WebWord

eWeek — “The problem is that nowadays most work is knowledge work. So, this means to get productivity gains today, we have to adjust the machines—and by machines now, we really mean software. So, how do we adjust machines to human thinking? Well, by studying human thinking; in other words, by doing these usability studies […]

So, I went to the AT&T store to pay my mobile phone bill. I knew I’d be right near the store so I took my statement, my phone and my wallet. I walked up to the desk, pulled everything out, and started talking. Before I even finished my sentence the service representative stopped me short […]

Intel — “In this paper we outline a technique for quantifying design and quality assurance for wireless development. While the specific example we use is a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) application, you can use the same set of principles and mathematical models to quantify other types of mobile and wireless applications. The model we suggest […]

“The conversation, at times amusing and insightful, didn’t really offer a coherent picture of the history of the Mac, or even of its development, but it did underline the importance of computer-human interfaces.”
…and…
“Jef Raskin is a professor at the University of Chicago, still working on human interface. Frustratingly, he was unable to provide any details […]

A WebWord reader passed along some good information about the Macworld Conference & Expo in Boston. Apparently, Raskin was unable and perhaps even unwilling to describe a new interface he is working on right now. In fact, he said that he wouldn’t describe the interface (”LEAP”) because that is how he sells books.
Maybe Jef […]

“Participants in the “Computer Ate My Vote” campaign said paperless voting systems are poorly programmed and prone to hackers, fraud and software bugs.”
…and usability issues? Touch screen voting stinks, from what I have read.
Read the article…

The Car Connection — “In general new cars are fantastic - vastly more reliable and better-built than the cars of the past. But some have features you wish would stop working, or that had never been installed in the first place.”
In effect, this is a
usability rant. I know some people *cough* me *cough* that like […]

The Age — “There is a school of thought that it is users that really invent the application of technology; that developers invent technology but users are the primary innovators of how these are applied.”
What is the name of this “school of thought”? Do you know? I don’t.
Read the article…

Greg Benoit of GregFu has published a very good list of reading materials about China. He doesn’t just list the books, he explains why they are worth reading. If you want to know more about China I highly recommend that you look at his list. By the way, if you know of a similar list […]

unraveled — “I just switched to Vodafone from T-Mobile. I didn’t really want to switch that badly, as T-Mobile’s service had been generally quite good, but my phone had features that only could be used if I was on the Vodafone network. I did a little research, and the price difference was negligible so I […]

Via the WeBeeb…

“A US inventor has come up with a hi-tech way of allowing the deceased to talk from beyond the grave - by fixing video screens to their tombstones.”

Readers respond with their own ideas.

So, assuming you don’t find this idea repugnant (and even if you do), what do you want on your tombstone (please […]

I’m eating Quaker Oh!s right now. They taste pretty good (suger death bombs) but they are leaving this strange scum or film in my mouth. Sort of hard to explain, but I have experienced it before. You probably have too.
What is nice about vacation is that it allows your mind to be free for a […]