Recent readings

In the reading I have done in the week, I thought Norman touched on some interesting points.
On page 31, he states "The same technology that simplifies life by providing more functions to each device also complicates life by making the device harder to learn, harder to use." I completely agree with this statement. Sometimes simplicity is best. Often, when people are offered too many options with a single object, things become more complicated to learn and understand. Many times, buttons, switches, knobs, etc. are not labeled or labeled poorly. People are generally lazy; we don't want to spend the time to thoroughly go through instructions. And the more options we have, the more we need to learn.

Nelson also discusses "learned helplessness", which is something I am personally guilty of. There have been countless of times I have not been able to use something, and I automatically blame myself and stop trying. Or I think I'm too 'dumb' to understand the object I am trying to operate. It never really occurred to me that maybe it's NOT me. Maybe it's the object, and it's poor design. Many people unfortunately experience this, and continue to blame themselves. The designers then believe that their creations have no flaws, when they indeed do and they continue to design poorly designed objects.

Change for assignment 2

Initially, I wanted to have my mother use the NJ Transit Ticket Vending Machine. Unfortunately, she's not feeling well and I really don't want to have her leave the house.

Fortunately, I just bought a new digital camera on Friday. My mother has never used a digital camera before, so instead, I will be having her attempt to operate it and navigate the interface.

For Assignment Two...

I will be recruiting my mother, who has  not been on a bus or used anything bus related in over 25 years, to operate a NJ Transit Ticket Vending Machine. This, folks, will be very interesting to say the least. Stay tuned...

Reading Assignment 1: "As We May Think"

I must admit, "As We May Think" by Vannevar Bush was not an easy read. So hopefully I am correct in my analysis in the article. As I was reading the article, I noticed it is a bit similar to the book I am currently reading in my Aesthetics and Theory course. The book is called The Age of Spiritual Machines by Ray Kurzweil. Both Vannavar and Kurzweil discuss the evolution of technology, and where technology will go in the future.

One section that stood out to me was Vannevar's discussion of the intricacies of photography. He talks about 'wet' photography that has been the only way to create prints out of film. He says, "When Brady made his Civil War pictures, the plate had to be wet at the time of exposure. Now it has to be wet during development instead. In the future perhaps it need not be needed at all.  Vannevar is correct by his prediction, because now we have digital photography. In digital photography, you can automatically view what you are photography before you press the shutter. Instead of developing film developer, stop bath, etc., the photographer can easily hook up the camera to a USB port and see the photos they shot, then print it out from their printer, or upload them online. The user can take the shot and have high quality print in under 5 minutes, where it took a much longer time from shooting to development of a print. What is next after digital photography. Although it's under the same vein, telephones are now replacing actual cameras. Nowadays if you look at a good portion of photography online, there's a good chance it was taken by a higher end cell phone.

I think this can be said about all forms of technology. Once you think something is so unique and innovated, along comes something to top it. This is an on going thing.

Assignment One-Best and Worst Interface

1a- Best Interface: The 5^th Generation iPod Nano

For the best interface I have used recently, I chose the 5^th generation iPod Nano. I have used several versions of iPods (and this also includes the new iPod Nano), and this by far has the best design.

The iPod (Classic) was very large and cumbersome. It was also quite heavy. And for some reason, they would easily stop working. I am guessing this is the case because at the time it was new, and there were still ‘kinks’ within the system. To operate the iPod Classic was fairly simple. There was a circular scroll wheel that had arrows. The right arrow indicated that if you pressed it, you could advance to the next song. The left arrow showed that you would go to the previous song. At the bottom of the scroll wheel, there were “Play” and “Pause” symbols, which the users would press. The only problem I found was how to adjust the volume was not very clear. There were no volume buttons along the side or in the front of the Classic. I eventually figured out that to adjust the volume, the user had to gently run their finger around the circumference of the scroll wheel. Also, there was no “off/on” switch. How on earth do you turn this thing off? It was not until I purchased the iPod Nano, I figured it out.

The iPod Nano was introduced to the public 5 years ago, in September 2005.  It was much smaller and slimmer, and had a longer life than the Classic. I have used two versions of the iPod Nano, but I will discuss the one I am using now which is the 5^th generation iPod Nano.

The 5^th generation iPod Nano is very compact and slim in size compared to it’s predecessor, the Classic. It can easily fit into your pocket without looking ‘clunky’. The screen is smaller than the Classic, but it is still very clear and easy to view. The Nano also has a scroll wheel that has several uses like adjusting volume scrolling through the Menu items (by using your finger around scroll wheel), or going back and forth through songs or video (by pressing the scroll button).  In the middle of the scroll wheel, there is another circle which is actually a button. The problem with the center button is that it looks like a plain circle. The user does not really know if it’s there for aesthetics or if it actually has a function, until the actually touch it and it offers the user feedback (such as turning the Nano on, adjusting a setting, etc).  Also, the user can set the Nano to several languages, which makes the Nano able to be used internationally; the scroll wheel as well offers symbols (fast forward, rewind, play/pause) that are for the most part internationally known. As for the volume, you use the scroll wheel, just like in the Classic. Unfortunately, the user would not know this unless the read the instructions or figured it out for themselves somehow. There is nothing that says “scroll for volume adjustment”. My biggest issue with the iPod Nano is that there is no “off/on” switch or button. Most people do not even turn it off because they do not know how. Therefore, the battery runs out and it needs to be recharged. After searching online, I found out it can be turned off by simultaneously pressing the “Menu” part of the scroll wheel and the center button. The user will then see a faded “Apple” logo, and then it will turn off (or maybe hibernate?). To turn it back on, press the center button again.

Apple just introduced a new 6^th generation iPod Nano last week that looks like a very large postage stamp and has a touch screen (what about those with large fingers trying to touch a small section of the screen?). The interface just does not seem easily functional.

The 5^th generation iPod Nano does have a few interface issues I think could easily be fixed (labeling, off/on button or switch, etc), but I generally love the design of this mp3 player. It is small, very light, easy to use, inclusive to those from different nationalities, and is very customizable in general. 

5th Generation iPod Nano

1b- Worst Interface: The New NJ Transit Ticket Vending Machine

            With the consistently late buses, and ridiculous fare increases, I am not a fan of New Jersey Transit. However, NJ Transit’s recent ‘upgrade’ of their ticket vending machines have made me dislike them even more.

The old ticket machines were not perfect. However, the interface was more simple and easier to use. About a year ago, NJ transit decided to upgrade many of their vending machines various major bus and train stations. When I first encountered the new vending machines, I noticed they were touch screen. Personally, I do not like touch screens. I find them to be too ‘sensitive’, and prefer buttons I can actually press. The old vending machines may not have been high tech or fancy, but they had buttons and made purchasing tickets much faster and easier. To get the process rolling, the new vending machines have a large, clear touch screen with instructions in English and Spanish to touch the screen to begin (what about people who do not speak either English or Spanish?). That screen leads you to the bus number screen. The user presses the bus number (ex.: the user has to press each number, such as 1….6….3 for the 163 bus). After that, it advances to the gate number, which is designed in the same fashion as the bus number screen. The screen goes to what kind of ticket the user is requesting: monthly, 10 day discount, etc. And the user presses which kind of ticket they want. Now, here is where the problems really begin:

 For example, if  user wants to purchase a ticket, but they want 3 tickets. After the user presses that they want a ticket, it goes to the payment screen. The problem is, on the ticket screen, NJ Transit does not give the user an option to pick the quantity of tickets while still on the ticket screen. Instead, while the user is on the Payment screen, there is an icon on the bottom of the screen that says “To Change Quantity of Tickets, Press Here”. When it is pressed, it takes you to a different screen and lets the user add or decrease the number of tickets they want to purchase. After that is adjusted, the user presses “Next” and it goes back to the Payment screen. This interface wastes a fair amount of time, especially if the user has a bus or train arriving very shortly. Many users, including myself, have missed buses because of having to go back and forth between screens. Not only is the back and forth between screens an issue, the touch screen is so sensitive it is very easy to unintentionally go back to the first screen. There are no real instructions on how to use the machine, except for what is on the touch screen. And if the user is not an English or Spanish speaker, the vending machine is pretty much useless to them. There are also these metal bars with numbers on them on the side of the screen that, to my knowledge, has no purpose. I have pressed them, and they do not do anything. Possibly there IS a purpose to them, but for the entire time the machines have been in use, they have been of no use. 

These machines are absolutely horrendous. I have had to help so many people figure out how to use them because it is very confusing. I cannot help but wonder, did all these fare hikes help fund these ridiculous and confusing machines? If so, I want my money back. 

 Older, more easily functional NJ Transit Ticket Vending Machine

Newer, poorly designed New Jersey Transit Ticket Machine

I started reading The Design of Everyday Things by Donald Norman. Surprisingly, it's an interesting read so far! 

Norman give examples of microwaves, manual doors, slide projectors and even a museum. Even though these are all very different object, they have a common ground: they are everyday items that are not necessarily easy to use. The problem with many common products is that the companies and designers seem to be focusing on their product being aesthetically pleasing or innovative, and ignoring functionality. 

So far, the most interesting section of the book is "Affordances" (starting on page 9). To my understanding, an affordance is something that gives the users an idea of how something could possibly work. For instance, a doorknob would be an affordance; the doorknob gives the user the idea that it can be turned and the door can be opened by this particular object. In Norman's example, he uses reinforced glass panels that were for shelters. These panels were used by British Rails. The problem with these panels was that they would be smashed by vandals. British Rails replaced the glass panels with wooden ones. This alleviated the 'smashing' problem, but since it was plywood, vandals were able to carve and write on it. This makes me wonder, are there ANY materials that would really work? If they replaced the plywood with metal, it would be stronger; however, you can etch in metal and write on it. You could use a stone material, but you can still write on it and it can possibly be carved or chipped. So possibly, there really is no 'good' solution for British Rail's problem.

I've never been one for blogging (I guess this is a good start), but I'm required to do one for my Interface Design class. Who knows, this blogging thing could be fun!