9.28.2006

Power Mac G4

In The Psychology of Everyday Things Donald Norman sets forth the following usability standard for everyday things: if you have to put a sign on it to explain it, you've designed it poorly. He goes on at length to talk about doors and having visual clues people pick up unconsciously to know how to open the door, and how they will follow these clues DESPITE the signs on the door.

I think whoever decided this mac should have no way to open the disk drive except by a key hidden at the top of the number pad on the keyboard and doesn't have ANY visual key in to concepts like "dvd tray" needs to be sent to the Donald Norman remedial classes. Would all hell have frozen over to have put ANY button at all on the box itself? God help you if your rabbit pees on your keyboard while Paul Anka is in the CD tray.....

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