false 44098 3 The recurring metaphor in <I>The Inmates are Running the Asylum</I> is that of the dancing bear--the circus bear that shuffles clumsily for the amusement of the audience. Such bears, says author Alan Cooper, don't dance well, as everyone at the circus can see. What amazes the crowd is that the bear dances at all. Cooper argues that technology (videocassette recorders, car alarms, most software applications for personal computers) consists largely of dancing bears--pieces that work, but not at all well. He goes on to say that this is more often than not the fault of poorly designed user interfaces, and he makes a good argument that way too many devices (perhaps as a result of the designers' subconscious wish to bully the people who tormented them as children) ask too much of their users. Too many systems (like the famous unprogrammable VCR) make their users feel stupid when they can't get the job done.<p> Cooper, who designed Visual Basic (the programming environment Microsoft promotes for the purpose of creating good user interfaces), indulges in too much name-dropping and self-congratulation (Cooper attributes the quote, "How did you <I>do</I> that?" to Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, upon looking at one of Cooper's creations)--but this appears to be <I>de rigueur</I> in books about the software industry. But those asides are minor. More valuable is the discourse about software design and implementation ("[O]bject orientation divides the 1000-brick tower into 10 100-brick towers."). Read this book for an idea of what's wrong with UI design. <I>--David Wall</I><p> <B>Topics covered</B>: User interfaces--good ones and bad ones--and where they come from. Also, how to improve the ones you create. 43471 1999 The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition) total:166|5:32|4:72|3:47|2:15|1:0| 166 619 323 30 3 1 false false Tue May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu May 17 11:06:15 -0700 2007 Thu May 17 12:30:43 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Sep 03 08:55:28 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 03 08:51:28 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 03 08:55:28 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Nov 02 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Oct 17 09:47:24 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 04 20:23:03 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Wed Oct 01 23:25:42 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 01 23:29:55 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Mon Aug 11 01:08:03 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 11 01:08:03 -0700 2008
Where some UI autho...more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Jul 21 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 18:51:01 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 19:08:31 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Feb 26 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Feb 13 12:20:20 -0800 2008 Tue Feb 26 06:18:39 -0800 2008
Working for a hi-tech co., this book certainly has resonance, but I thin...more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Tue Feb 24 00:48:02 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 24 00:52:06 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Jan 15 02:15:18 -0800 2009 Wed Dec 03 13:24:11 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 15 02:15:18 -0800 2009
There's some useful material in this book, but it's hard to dig out in the constant noise of Mr Cooper's whining. You could easily ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jul 05 17:22:08 -0700 2007 Sun Aug 05 21:02:24 -0700 2007
As a confirmed klutz in life, these two authors are my heroes. Sometimes it's helpful to be reassured that it's not always just me, that things appear to me to be appallingly designed because the...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 17 11:36:46 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 17 11:37:53 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Sun Oct 18 08:33:58 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 18 08:34:11 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Oct 18 01:20:42 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 18 01:21:13 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sun Nov 30 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Sep 29 18:01:56 -0700 2008 Sat Nov 29 21:54:32 -0800 2008
The most useful parts of the bo...more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jul 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 15 12:08:35 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 10 10:24:36 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sun Jan 04 15:56:00 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 09 18:36:34 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 04 15:56:00 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sun Jan 25 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 02 08:24:55 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 03 08:12:06 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Jun 13 21:33:47 -0700 2007 Thu Sep 13 19:11:44 -0700 2007 more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 09 06:48:59 -0700 2007 Sat Mar 15 07:28:50 -0700 2008
I think Cooper has some fantastic thoughts about why software design doesn't work, but I kept waiting for more solutions. I hear that his institute and coursework offer more in that regard - perhaps this ...more...]]> 2 0 false false Fri Jul 31 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 17 05:03:11 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 31 05:06:18 -0700 2009