Archive for September, 2005

« Older Entries

Firefox interface first thoughts

Sep 05
28

I’ve been using firefox for the past week here are some initial thoughts

  • Migration experience from IE was painless. All my favorites where easily imported, and the browser extensions that I care about seem to be supported.
  • All my favorite sites work with minor visual issues. Most with no issues at all.
  • Pages seem to load slower. I can see images download and update and I can see images render progressively. In internet explorer pages seem to ‘pop in’ instantly.
  • In general FireFox seems to have less security dialogs, prompts, questions and interruptions then in IE. This is a good thing.
  • Tabbed browsing is a nice option for advanced users. I like the fact that it’s off by default. There is an advanced feature that allows you to have multiple home pages (one in each tab) this is very useful. It’s perhaps not for everyone but it allows me to load up Google, News, weather and other starting point sites in one click.
  • Firefox has a better password manager. It actually allows me to see my saved passwords, set a master password and edit saved passwords.
  • Keyboard shortcuts seems to map to IE shortcuts so switching is easy.
  • I’m not crazy about the look of the browser itself. The icons seem a little amateur. The fact that the browser support skins and themes is a nice touch and there are a lot of themes that I believe improve on the default look.
  • Managing bookmarks is nicer then in IE. I’ve personally never been a bookmark person opting to use google to find my sites. The ability to actually manage 100′s or 1000′s of bookmarks is really powerful.
  • Basic RSS support is included. Firefox shows you if the current site has a “RSS” feed and it allows you to easily add it as a live bookmark. This allows you to see the sub-articles expanded within the favorites menu. This isn’t as useful as a built in RSS reader but it’s better then nothing.
  • Microsoft introduces the concept of a “Favorite Icon” that allows a website to have an icon for the site. Firefox takes this a step further allowing you to have an icon for every website you visit, not just your favorite ones. This makes it easy to identify tabs
  • There is a built in Search toolbar that can be configured for Google or other search engines. This means you have one click access to google without making it your homepage.
  • Downloading files in firefox is nicer then in IE. The dialog is simple and it helps clean up your temporary files after you’ve finished downloading.
  • The address bar in FireFox shows you both the title of a page as well as the URL. This is useful when you have multiple URL’s that look the same. Unfortunately you can’t filter this list by the title you can only type filter by the URL (perhaps next version)
  • Finding text on a web-page is much improved from IE. Firefox uses a find toolbar that allows you to quickly do incremental searches. Initially I thought it was odd that the toolbar was at the bottom of the screen however I now think it’s ok as it’s easier to keep the find window open all the time. It may be nice to have this as a dockable toolbar.
  • I had problems with multi-monitor support. I kept getting my right click menu on the wrong monitor.
  • Alternate Style Sheets – This is a niche feature but a useful one. It allows websites to publish alternative style sheets for their designs. This could allow things like an accessible stylesheet, a high resolution style-sheet, a PDA or phone style sheet, etc. So far I have found few sites that allow this but it is a powerful feature for the future.
  • Help documentation isn’t great. The help files aren’t focused on user tasks and are more geared to feature descriptions and keywords. Refocusing the text toward user centric tasks rather then technical terminology would be a good thing.

What’s in it for developers

  • CSS support in Firefox is better then IE and I’m able to develope pages faster by debugging in Firefox and then backfixing bugs in IE.
  • Firefox allows you to select a block of text and “view-selection source” this is a super useful feature since you can find the snipet that you need quickly.
  • There are more high quality developer toolbars and built in developer tools for Firefox then IE. It’s possible that these exist for IE as well but for whatever reason FireFox extensions are easier to find, install and use. These include in-place CSS editing, Javascript console, DOM browser, a better source code viewer then notepad, better property sheet inspectors for web page objects and more.
  • Firefox is available on multiple OS platforms so you can test on one platform and know that the page will work in other operating systems. This is not true for IE.

Minor UI nits

  • Form elements that use the label control don’t properly show hover effects on checkboxes and radio buttons.
  • Scrollbars are missing the scroll to here shortcuts.
  • Back and Forward split button toolbars don’t show the split when you hover over the splitbar.

Final Verdict

  • Firefox is ready for prime time. There’s no serious reason why you shouldn’t switch.
  • If you’ve thought about it you should dive in head first, make it the default browser for a week and see what you think. You can always switch back if needed.
  • If you’re a web-developer I would recommend switching as it will make you more productive.

(Next month I may try out Opera and do a browser shootout )

Posted in Browsers, HTML/CSS | No Comments »

Coffee and Keyboards

Sep 05
28

My sister was drinking coffee and typing on her laptop one day when she knocked her coffee over and it spilled all over her keyboard. The coffee started dripping between the keys and in a desperate leap to save both the laptop and the paper she was working on she started blotting the keyboard with a nearby napkin.

After a little while the computer pops up a dialog. “Do you want to turn on sticky keys?”
Five minutes later I get a phone call from my sister…
“How the heck did the computer know my keys were sticky?”

(For anyone not familiar with stickykeys it’s an accessibility feature for Windows that can be turned on by pressing the shift key on your keyboard five times)

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Humor, Microsoft, Windows | No Comments »

Ipod Nano First Thoughts

Sep 05
28
  • Yes it’s amazingly small.
  • It’s been said before but the screen does seem to scratch easily. This may be made worse by the fact that the Ipod is designed to have a glossy finish. Most electronics have a matte finish so it’s harder to see scratches and imperfections. Because the Nano is polished to a showroom shine it’s instantly visible when there is even the slightest scratch.
  • There is an ingenious de-tangler on the headphones included with the Ipod nano. It’s essentially a little belt-buckle that can slide up to the top of the headphones to keep them untangled when you put the Ipod in your pocket. I haven’t seen anyone else mention it but it’s a brilliant and insightfully addition.
  • Calendar syncing with Outlook is very useful however the total user experience doesn’t quite work. As soon as you connect your Ipod it tries to synch with Outlook and brings up a security dialog asking to allow/deny access. Some may say that this is a bug in Outlook however it is possible to write an Outlook add-ins that access the contact data and does not cause the security dialog. (As a temporary fix there is a tool called “ClickYes” that addresses this issue)
  • The dock connector is positioned right next to the headphone jack. Initially I didn’t think this would be a problem until I discovered that you have to squeeze the dock connector to allow it to disengage from the Nano. Since the connector has to be squeezed from both sides you have to first unplug the headphones.
  • I’ve heard some complaints that the headphone jack is at the bottom of the device however I think this is actually a better design since the cord doesn’t block the screen. It also means that if you place the device in your pocket the cord is facing out of the pocket so you don’t get poked in the leg with the headphone jack.
  • Initially I thought that photo viewing would be great but at such a small size I haven’t found it very useful.
  • Proporportional scrolling and shuffling songs are much easier then in the original ipod. Some of my original comments on the Ipod still hold true.

Posted in Apple | No Comments »

Never Reboot my computer

Sep 05
25

Software should never reboot a computer.

I don’t care what files are copied or what DLL’s are moved. I don’t care what registry keys you changed or what drivers are installed. I don’t want software to ever reboot my computer.

It drives me crazy when a program thinks it’s so important that I should stop everything that I’m doing to wait for it to reboot. Examples of bad behavior:

  • Reboot now or I’ll keep bugging you. You can’t say no. Microsoft does this in some software updates. It’s software just bytes, memory and instructions. Can’t we hot patch things yet? Most updates are minor bug fixes, don’t reboot my computer for this minor maintanance.
  • Auto-closing all my programs. I’ve seen this a couple times, all of a sudden durring an instalation all my documents and files start closing automatically. Ahhhh! No way to cancel or say no. I frantically move between applications try save things before they close.
  • Rebooting after seting up a software program. There is NO reason to reboot the computer for a puerly software program. Software should NEVER install operating system files so there should be NO reason to require a reboot. Many times I have discovered that even though it says to reboot the software runs without issue with no-reboot. Stop asking.
  • Rebooting after uninstalling a program. This is even worse. I just uninstalled so I don’t care about the program and now you’re asking me to reboot?
  • Rebooting while I’m not looking. I’ve seen some programs that have a time out or a limit of time before they reboot. Well what happens if I’m away from my computer? Never , ever, ever do this.

Times when a reboot is justified

  • Reinstalling the OS, and even here I should only reboot once not 4-5 times.
  • Installing new internal hardware.
  • That’s it.

Posted in Apple, Linux, Microsoft, Misc., Windows | No Comments »

RCN discovers a new form of energy

Sep 05
24

I was having problem with my new HD cable connection to RCN so I called their technical support department. After waiting almost 30 minutes on hold I finally spoke with someone.

I was experiencing static, pixelated images and staggered pictures. After a breif description of the problem the tech support person started to ask about how my cable was set up.

  • Me: It’s coming in one room, where it splits, the split end is currently unplugged. The cable then goes into my living room where it splits again to my Cable modem and my Cable box.
  • RCN Support: The problem is likely with the first split. The signal gets split and is weaker when it reaches the cable box.
  • Me: But it’s not plugged into anything. It’s like having an extension cord with nothing plugged in. It should not change the signal.
  • RCN Support: Well it does, the signal gets split and is weaker after the split.
  • Me: I’m sorry, I’ve taken electrical engineering classes (granted it was a while ago.) The signal could me marginally weaker because of the added resistance in the length of cable but since it’s not plugged in it should be negligable.
  • RCN Support: We’ll it’s not an electical signal that is being sent down the cable.
  • Me: Really? (holding back from laughing) What kind of signals are they?
  • RCN Support: It’s not an electical signal, it’s called a “cable signal.”
  • Me: Really, are you sure? The signals aren’t electical?
  • RCN Support: No the siganls are not electical.

At this point I burst out laughing. I scheduled a repair person to come and help improve my “cable signals” however I’m worried that the repair person won’t be able to find them.

Basic information on how cable works can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coaxial_cable

Posted in Experience, Television | 1 Comment »

The big HD myth

Sep 05
20

Some people believe that 2006 will be the big year for HDTV. Although I’m sure plenty of HD sets will be sold the overall experience of watching HDTV will leave people with a sour user experience.

  • Two different channel numbers for the same channel – How is the person watching a show supposed to know that there is another channel that is showing the same content? In my opinion this is dumb. If there is an HD equivalent I should get it automatically.
  • Two many cable options for connecting your HD set leads to consumer confusion – DVI, HDMI, Component cables all come as standard options. Just give me one standard that will deliver on the promise of HD.
  • Screens don’t auto-adjust for aspect ratio. I’m not certain if this is true for all sets but my cable box, and TV has no idea what each other is doing. This means that I have to manually adjust the aspect ratio based on the channel that I’m watching.
  • No cable ready HD Tivo (yet.) For me this is a huge drawback, the UI for both Comcast and RCN is terrible and the remote control experience is even worse. There are too many UI problems with the digital cable box to list here. I came up with a nice list with little trouble.
  • Current HD programming uses standard TV as the lowest common denominator – Menus, sports statistics, commercials and promos all run at standard resolution in the centre of the screen or stretched out. This will continue to be a problem until HD takes a majority foothold in TV households.
  • HD does not make crappy TV shows less crappy. Some people may assume that the TV experience will improve with HD, this is not true. You may be more immersed in the picture and realism but the quality of the TV experience is with the quality of the story you are watching not the number of pixels on the screen.

Posted in Experience, Television | No Comments »

Telephone madness

Sep 05
15

Telephone pet peeves…

Please listen carefully because our options have changed.
- I don’t care if they changed just tell me the options. If people are calling your support line so often that they memorize the options you have bigger problems.

We are experiencing unusually high call volume.
- Bullshit. If you have a voice message telling me it’s unusually high volume it can’t be that unusuall.

After asking me to answer a set of automated questions and input personal information such as SS#, PIN, Account # don’t force me to go through it again with a person.
- Either create a data path from the computer to the receptionist or don’t bother asking the automated questions.

If I can’t answer an automated question don’t hang up on me.
- I’ve seen a number of automated phone systems that actually hang up on the person calling. This is an awful user experience. Now the user has to find the number again, and call back.

Use Caller ID
Caller ID is a super usefull way to lookup information about customers without asking tons of questions and going through the NameAccountAddress shuffle. Call centers should be using CallerID to lookup my information before I even say Hello. A local shop next to where I live has done this with ease. When I call they know when I called last, what I ordered and where I live. Any company that doesn’t do this should be embarased to know that they have a worse customer call experience then my corner pizza place.

Posted in Telephone | No Comments »

Software product cycle

Sep 05
15

Stage one.

  • Build a good product.
  • Have it do one thing and do it well.
  • Cut all features that are not critical to the central idea

Stage two.

  • Take your product and make it great.
  • Do the things you wanted to do but didn’t have time to do during stage one.
  • Address the top customer issues

Stage three

  • Expand and Integrate
  • Add features that allow your product to play well with other products
  • Your product is not the center of the universe but by integrating with other products you move a step closer to the center.

Stage four

  • Allow developers to integrate and further expand your product
  • This makes your product more valuable by allowing people to build on your foundation

Step five

  • Spin off a related product
  • It may have aspects of your core idea but it’ll have a different spin, angle, target, customer
  • Continue alternating minor and major revisions
  • Repeat

Posted in Misc. | No Comments »

Ipod is a bathroom?

Sep 05
12

A recent article from my friends at Frog Design suggested that the reason people perceive the ipod as “clean” is because it reminds them of the bathroom. The idea is novel but I don’t think it’s quite right. In fact many bathrooms I’ve seen have very little association with “clean.” I believe the reason people are attracted to the design of the iPod is it’s ‘user experience design.’ Let me explain.

Some people talk about user interface design, but interface design is only what happens on the screen, it doesn’t encompass the complete experience. To truly create a gem you have to think about the entire user experience.

- The ipod is the only music player that I know that has a totally integrated user experience from the hardware to the software. Most other players piggy back on Windows Media Player. Although many of the same features are in both the seamless integration is not found in the Windows solution.

- The ipod has a minimalist design not found elsewhere. This is true both in software experience and in hardware experience. From the software the menus are always task centric and linear, you never have to worry that you missed something. The hardware has less buttons then a typical alarm clock. I haven’t seen another player do simplicity both in player UI and in hardware.

- The ipod feels solid. Other manufacturers cut costs and make their devices from flimsy plastics. These devices often have a different tactile feel in the hand. The iPod does not feel cheap.

- The user experience starts before you open the box and ends after you’ve turned it off. Apple did a great job branding this device and marketing it. The packaging team did a great job creating a novel box for the device. The online team created a seemless online shopping and music experience to compliment the hardware.

My Kitchen sink may resemble my bathroom but my kitchen sink doesn’t have the same appeal as the ipod. I think a better comparison would be a white sheet of paper with a circle drawn on it. The user experience is that circle, and it doesn’t get any simpler then that.

Posted in Apple, Design | No Comments »

Invention is the mother of invention

Sep 05
3

Some like to say that necessity is the mother of invention but I’m not sure I agree. Sure necessity forces you to get into a creative mode and begin the process of thinking of a solutions to a problem but “necessity” rarely leads to the actual invention.

Thomas Edison’s “necessity” to work at night didn’t lead to the invention of the light bulb. It was the previous discovery by Sir Humphrey Davy who found a way to get an electrical arc to produce a light.

Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone didn’t arise out of the necessity to talk to Watson it grew out of the previous invention of a fellow named Joseph Henry who had invented a device known as the telegraph.

Throughout history you find more and more examples of inventions being built to improve other inventions. In fact most solutions to problems are build on past solutions and past inventions.

In the box thinking
Well that means that if you have a problem or even a “necessity” it’s far more likely that you will find the solution by searching for past solutions to similar problems. Most often this can be done laterally across industries. For example if you’re solving an ‘inventory’ problem in a medical field you should search for existing solutions to the ‘inventory’ problem in other unrelated fields (e-commerce, retail, manufacturing, etc.) If your trying to solve a PC-work-flow problem perhaps you can take a page from the Ford assembly line.

You may find that your solution is achieved not by thinking outside the box but by finding a different box and rummaging around in it for something useful.

Posted in Ideas | No Comments »

« Older Entries