Users are creatures of habit who don't like change. Resistance (to change) is something I've written and researched extensively with users – people don't like to change even if it's good for them, because they are comfortable with how things…
Category: My Quora answers
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Why do creators of some online booking systems think it is a good idea to check the availability of seats only at the very end of the booking process?
Two reasons I can think of: First, the focus of the reservation process is booking the trip, and so the location of your seat is secondary to that. It may be important to you and many others, but it is…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What are the best ways to provide instant gratification to users in a webapp?
A good question, and I've written about this quite a bit. First, provide points or virtual currency that actually let you DO something with them – a good example is XBOX points that users can use to get content or…
Apple, My Quora answers
What features will likely be in the iPad 3?
Some reasonable guesses: Better Display (not quite “Retina” but close) Faster processor (A6?) More RAM Siri Integration Better camera Some “Out there” (and semi-informed) guesses: Thunderbolt connectivity for faster transfer AND charging (goodbye, iPod connector) NFC Wider home button that…
Movies, My Quora answers
Why are British detectives and spies depicted as more sophisticated than American detectives and spies, even in American movies?
Why are the British detectives and spies portrayed as more sophisticated than Americans in our movies? Three reasons I can think of. First, the genres and the archetypes of said genres both come from the United Kingdom, in an age…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
How do you or others get informed about the UX activities being performed at your company today?
My company has a “UX community” that has regular meetings to share and communicate progress. It’s useful, but a little “echo chamber-y” for my tastes. The key way to keep in touch is to be involved and engaged with the…
My Quora answers, Trek
Why does JJ Abrams like to use the lens flare effect often in his films?
It’s a stylistic flourish that he likes, many directors have similar “affectations” that aren’t as obvious (the angle of a shot, or a tendency to use extreme close ups or tracking shots). A similar example: Quentin Tarantino’s obsession with close…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
UX for Mobile: What are the best methods for doing contextual user research for mobile?
Here’s what I did when I did a contextual research project around mobile usage and habits two years ago: First, I interviewed people. A lot of people. 30 people in three different states. I asked them about how they used…
My Quora answers, TV
Why is Bryan Cranston still getting small parts in movies even after his success playing Walter White in Breaking Bad?
My opinion: He's older than 35, and he's never "carried" a movie before. Add to that the fact that Hollywood is getting more and more "risk averse" and you can see why brilliant actors like Cranston aren't given the big…
Apple, My Quora answers, UX Articles
What would be a more elegant way to handle updates to apps on iPhone and iPad?
Make them push, not pull. Right now you have to go "get" the updates, by clicking on the App Store icon, then going to updates. That's "pull." Change to "push" by using the new Notification Center that was just added…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
How can you encourage conversations about UX leadership in your organisation?
You can pontificate about your organization focusing on user experience, or you can lead by example. I have found that the best way to encourage a geniune conversation is the successful implementation of a user-centered design in a project or…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What is the reason for multi-column layout in magazines and newspapers?
Before I became a semi-well-known user experience guy, I did magazine layouts and typography. I also studied/majored in journalism, so I read of the early days of newspapers and how they began. So, I think I’m semi-qualified to provide an…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Is NPS is a good measure of a users experience? Also, are there any other calculations that could measure how a product is perceived by its users?
Yes, I think NPS is a fairly good indicator, but it’s a “one-dimensional” indicator. No matter how many customers you survey it is still just a survey, without much context. Some other ways you can get a sense of how…
My Quora answers, Trek, TV
What can you learn about management from Star Trek?
Upper management is far far away… As in, several million light years away. Networking opportunities are rare. The only “face time” that you get is the occassional chat with an admiral, and then it’s usually the typical “there’s a situation…
Apple, My Quora answers, Technology, UX Articles
Why are our "smart devices" so dumb?
There are some practical reasons, and some pragmatic ones. A "thinking" device is a device that is consuming power to think (to run the processor), and hardware and software designers have to keep a core user need in mind: battery…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
When should you disable a feature rather than hide it?
Disabling a feature is best applied when it shows the user that they can do something, just not right now. Two examples are menu options that aren't available, or a data entry field that they can't edit. This could confuse…