When you pick up an iPod you don’t need to spend 2 hours poring through an instruction manual on how to operate the damn thing.  There are a few neat pictures that simply tell you the basics of plug the cord into the iPod and the other end to the computer and you’re ready to rock.  The motions of the controls fit with the first guess that pops into your brain for how a particular feature should operate.

The simple fact is, if you want to be able to reach the largest audience, you have to design intuitively for your Average Joe user. You can’t build a complicated system that is intuitive for the engineers of the world or one that demands that your users RTFM(Read The Fucking Manual).

RTFM is an excuse for laziness in design.

As Norman points out in his book, consumers develop this idea that they are being “bad” with technology.  They are simply interfacing with bad design.  My favorite example is the shower in most hotels.  As a frequent traveler with a degree in engineering I am constantly amazed at how inept I am at operating a shower without a decent amount of trial and error.

I have learned through Norman’s guidance to demand better in the products I design as well as the products I use.  However, better design comes at a higher price.  So the next time you buy a gadget with identical tech specs and a $100 cheaper price tag, most likely you are taking a cut in design.  Those tiny little things that hinder your work and make you feel like you are incapable of operating a simple device is where your $100 dollars went(capitalism works).
Demand more, pay more, live better.

From that moment on the internet could only be free.  Movies, books, and software were all obtainable for the price of persistence and the equivalent of knowing the secret knock to a speakeasy.  Through the power of an insanely fast internet connection and some motivated geeks I could obtain a terabyte movies during the course of a day in college.

My point?  I am just a drop in the ocean of hackers who, inspired by the efforts of organizations like the RIAA, vowed to not pay for that which I could easily obtain through a download and a key-generator.  I couldn’t afford the $15 for a CD, or the $20 for a DVD let alone the $50+ cost of software packages.  Since I didn’t have a job my efforts went into schooling myself in the dark arts of computers and the internet.  This carried me through college keeping my iPod full and my entertainment costs at a minimum.

Then I graduated and got a job…  Making software.

Shit.

I was finally making money and being the gadget-head that I am, the first paycheck arrived and it went to directly buying a Droid-X and getting my hands on that oh-so-sweet unlimited data plan.  I had selected the Android Os for two purposes.

1) It wasn’t made by Apple.

2) Most apps were free.

The second reason is why, despite Android’s dominance in market share, developers aren’t cashing in at near the rate they are on iOs.  As a result developers are tending to pursue more ad-supported applications.  Ad-Supported applications are infuriating.  There simply is not room for advertising on the small mobile screens these applications are built for.

After a year of trying to muddle through using these application and my accidental clicks and ads which pull me out of what I was doing and launch my phones browser, I reached the end of my rope.  I was desperate.  I committed an unspeakable act, I plunked down 99 cents of my hard earned money on an app.  It made me feel like I was shooting heroin in a back alley.  I was ashamed, I couldn’t tell me co-workers and fellow Android fanboys what I had done.  How could they respect me after what I had done?

But when I launched that app and saw it’s clean uncluttered screen without a force-close in sight, I was hooked.  It was purchasing applications daily.  I had become Mr. Moneybags and I could buy whatever I wanted when I wanted.  Then my credit card bill came in the mail.  Oh the horror, I had dropped a whole $10 dollars on applications!

For less than the cost of lunch one day of the week, I was finally experiencing my beloved platform in all it’s glory.

A few years ago I unknowingly found the answer to this question when I started using the integrated Nike + ipod system in order to track how far I was running in preparation for running the Indy 500 Mini-Marathon.  The result of this purchase was that I went from un-motivated (and unable to run more than 2 miles without a near death encounter) to nightly runs of 5-6 miles on hilly terrain.  Initially, I attributed my success to the fact that I was driven to complete the Mini(I have since signed up for the mini and failed to run) when the reality was I was able to see myself leveling up on my computer screen every night.  This machination of my bodily statistics provided motivation beyond anything I could imagine.  The difference between going out and running in a circle, and striving to watch my character(me) run further, faster and with less fatigue was the motivation I needed.  As much as I’d like to pretend the feeling of accomplishment after a run or the abstract knowledge I was getting in better shape is enough to keep me going, it’s a crock.

I had to see data.  Cold, hard facts and figures to prove that today’s Mark could beat the crap out of yesterday’s Mark.  If there was only one level of character in World of Warcraft and the game simply displayed messages like “Your Character feels dandy after slaughtering the Orc of Azeroth” would it be the phenomenon it is?

Hell no.

Feelings are fleeting and hard to understand.  Just look at how the internet has cashed in on dating with algorithms that predict you will love someone.  Even these “scientifically” proven algorithms manage to make users inclined to believe the outcome.  Because, data would never lie.  We have been taught that numbers mean facts, and I like everyone else buys into this whether they like it or not.

Therefore, embrace the numbers!  If you want to achieve a goal in life make your self a data slave.  Emulate that grade grubbing punk-ass premed who will sell their soul to get another point on their homework.  It is the path to success.

Which is why I have purchased the Zeo Mobile Sleep Manager cause an EEG to quantify my sleep is freaking cool, and data is king.  A review will be written on my path to becoming a level 10 sleep warlock.

Cheers,

Mark

This blog will be devoted to analyzing the world of science and technology and sharing my own trials and tribulations. It will be part fact, part opinion, and always open to discussion. I hope through this blog I will be able to capture some of my own insight into this fast moving world as well as what products, tools, services etc. can best be utilized to make life easier, more enjoyable and more fulfilling. The site may experience growing pains over time as I become used to wordpress’s blogging environment and I figure out the best way to leverage this technology. That is all for now, I leave you with my Amazon Affiliate link. Purchases made by accessing amazon through this portal will go towards funding my efforts.

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Stay Tuned,

Mark