Re: [Usability]'org chart'

[Seth Nickell <snickell stanford edu>]

On Tue, 2002-10-15 at 12:34, Luis Villa wrote:
> As some of you may have seen discussed a few months back[1] some effort
> is being made to create a GNOME 'org chart' that would help improve
> GNOME's communication and lines of responsibility.
> 
> The relevant portion of the original doc for you guys and gals is:
> 
> Usability[sent]
>  -contacts: Seth Nickell, Nils Pedersen, Calum Benson
> responsibilities:
> 	*maintain and publish the HIG
> 	*review all GNOME software for HIG compliance and general usability
> 	*provide and evangelize advice and resources for hackers and programs
> 	*coordinate with a11y team

This list is more or less accurate, but reflects more what we have done
in the past than what we should be doing now.

> Is this accurate? Does it describe what you guys think you should be
> doing for GNOME? Does it describe what you think GNOME should expect

I think a critical point is missing regarding what we "should" be doing
for GNOME. Namely, all this stuff is still primarily premised on
usability helping clean up the inevitable trail of destruction left by
random hacking ;-) I think that phase is gradually falling away. The
most important function we should be performing is forward looking:

   * design the interfaces of GNOME components

A related function that we're starting to take baby steps toward is...

   * ensure the completeness and coherence of the GNOME desktop

This essentially entails looking at the usability of the desktop as a
whole....how do pieces fit together? Do they work similarly? Are there
important missing functions? This sort of thing.

-Seth