false 840 6 Anyone who designs anything to be used by humans--from physical objects to computer programs to conceptual tools--must read this book, and it is an equally tremendous read for anyone who has to use anything created by another human. It could forever change how you experience and interact with your physical surroundings, open your eyes to the perversity of bad design and the desirability of good design, and raise your expectations about how things <I>should</I> be designed. 18518 1988 The Design of Everyday Things total:870|5:275|4:390|3:169|2:30|1:6| 870 3508 1667 117 5 2 false false Thu Jul 05 17:21:16 -0700 2007 Sun Aug 05 20:57:34 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 1 true false Tue Feb 19 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 20 18:30:22 -0800 2008 Fri Dec 05 00:06:50 -0800 2008 "Affordance," the various possibilities for actions to be performed by the person, on the object. Norman emphasized "Perceived Affordance," the perceived possibilities, and the propensities for certain actions to be performed with t...more...]]> 5 2 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Mar 31 07:18:36 -0700 2008 Mon Mar 31 07:32:11 -0700 2008
Even though the book feels a bit outdated (they talk about rotary phones and old sewing machines), all the principles covered in the book still apply today.
...more...]]> 5 1 false false Fri Mar 30 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Mar 21 11:32:55 -0700 2008 Fri Mar 21 11:41:41 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Oct 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 27 06:14:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 27 06:31:25 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Oct 10 17:15:33 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 10 17:23:45 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Nov 19 23:35:36 -0800 2008 Wed Nov 19 23:42:11 -0800 2008
In a nutshell, your perspective doesn't matter nearly as much as the user perspective matters. What is "obvious" to you as someone ...more...]]> 0 1 false false Sat Jul 12 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 15 10:22:36 -0700 2008 Sun Jul 13 17:32:16 -0700 2008 2 0 false false Wed Mar 11 08:14:24 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 11 08:14:43 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 08 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 22 18:26:06 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 08 15:12:37 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Sep 07 07:53:38 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 07 07:56:55 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Feb 23 19:19:22 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 23 19:24:59 -0800 2009
Ever push on a door that said "pull"? It isn't you. It's the design. If a door needs a sign to tell you how to use it, it is a poorly designed door.

I found this book very liberating because again and again it showed me how poor design is at the ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Aug 02 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 07 16:45:12 -0700 2009 Tue Nov 03 13:55:31 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri May 22 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Feb 03 10:58:38 -0800 2009 Fri May 22 09:07:13 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Thu Apr 05 09:08:20 -0700 2007 Thu Apr 05 09:30:50 -0700 2007
This book points out that there is virtually no reason for anyone to ever pull on a door that should be pushed, or vice versa. Doors can easily be designed so people just don't make that mistake. It was written before the ubiquity ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri May 01 10:50:44 -0700 2009 Fri May 01 10:50:44 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Apr 23 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Apr 20 18:10:55 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 29 20:00:30 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Apr 10 17:14:54 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 10 17:16:31 -0700 2009
Everyone else SHOULD read it, to learn about how the world works and why things don't work all the time.

I keep a copy on my shelf at work. It's a little test. When people walk into my office, if they recognize this book, and ...more...]]> 3 1 false false Fri Aug 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Nov 22 06:28:53 -0800 2008 Mon Aug 31 15:18:57 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Oct 25 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 16:00:52 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 16:02:47 -0700 2009