i'm with stupid
Post on 17-Nov-2014
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I’m with Stupid
why smart people are so bad at computers(and what to do about it)
Stephanie Leary, @sleary, sillybean.netTexas A&M University
My “Stupid Users”
• faculty
• students
• authors
• Mom
Working with Mom
“We go to great lengths to ensure
easy understanding. We make the
button look like something you can
press.”
“Anatomy of a Noob”: http://tinyurl.com/noob-anatomy
Working with Mom
“We use desktop as a reference,
windows, pull-downs, accordions, etc.
We call them metaphors, but very
seldom do we question whether those
metaphors are as intuitive and
universally understood as we assume.”
“Anatomy of a Noob”: http://tinyurl.com/noob-anatomy
Working with Mom
“In the case of my mom, there is
obviously little connection between
the physical desktop and its digital
counterpart.”
“Anatomy of a Noob”: http://tinyurl.com/noob-anatomy
“And yea, upon teh n00bs, did Our Geek Jobs set His Obsessive Eye. And He brought forth a device of great sales potential: the iThing, which one can touch with thine finger.
And lo! did teh n00bs poke and jabbeth at the iThing, achieving much of what was desired.”
Working with Profs
“The computer just hates me.”
Working with Students
“I thought it was just me.”
They assume they’re doing something
wrong.
They can’t see the interface holistically.
Facebook & ReadWriteWeb
People don’t understand the difference between the location bar and the search box.
Facebook & ReadWriteWeb
People don’t notice peripherals: URLs, page titles, even design and layout.
Facebook & ReadWriteWeb
People use the search box as a natural-language command line interface.
They’re afraid to make the wrong
move.
Working with a Computer
“In abusive and controlling
relationships, the victim has the
sense they are always ‘walking on
eggshells’ - fearful of saying or doing
anything that might prompt a
violent/intimidating outburst.”
“Defending Windows over Mac a sign of mental illness” http://tinyurl.com/abusive-computer
“In relationships with an abuser or
controller, the victim has also
experienced a loss of self-esteem,
self-confidence, and psychological
energy. The victim may feel ‘burned
out’ and too depressed to leave.”
“Defending Windows over Mac a sign of mental illness” http://tinyurl.com/abusive-computer
Working with a Computer
We are all trapped in abusive relationships with our computers.
Our users are afraid and embarrassed to
ask for help.
“We’re the stupid ones.”
We work with very smart people.
We can do better.
1. Invite blame.
Better 404s• apologetic, personal language
• search for words in the bad URL
• show search box and sitemap
DB & Server Errors• phone numbers
• alternate methods
“Report a problem”
• contact form that automatically fills in the referring URL
• link in every page’s footer
• Link Checker extension
Phone Numbers• Put the main office line in the page
footer
• Add a phone number to the email contact form
2. Find different testers.
Unusual Suspects• people in waiting rooms
• brown-bag lunch attendees
• new hires
• retirees
• accident-prone users
• receptionists
3. Change the goals.
Users’ Goals• accomplish tasks online 24/7
• find up-to-date information
• talk directly to professors, administrators, etc.
4. Explain the metaphors.
Feeds• icons with explanations
• email alternatives
Microformats• Tell people what to do with vCards
and iCal files
• Link to explanations
Fewer options
Less clutter
This has to be easier.
Thank you.Stephanie Leary
@slearysillybean.net
uwc.tamu.edu
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