Re: [Usability] In short, I hate windows. (Hans Petter Jansson)

[Rodney Dawes <dobey novell com>]

The problem with usability, is that it mostly isn't. The window
management metaphor however, does fit well with the limitations we have,
and with how people manage things in real life. People multitask. They
eat, play video games, drive around, talk on the phone, use the PC,
draw silly pictures, and do many other things, simultaneously. Trying to
tell them that they can't do that any more, will make it harder to use
the computer, not easier.

What would really help, would be moving away from strictly having the
"desktop" as we know it in software, and get away from the single or
very few displays, pointing device, and keyboard way of thinking. When
I'm working, I want to get up and move around, and do many things at
once. I don't like being stuck in front of the same screen all day long,
sitting in the same chair, with my hands in the same position, my
fingers moving slightly, to fill in the words on my screen. I want my
desktop computer to be more of a central docking station and server,
more than a place I am required to be to get things done.

Another common term for Usability is HCI (Human-Computer Interaction).
However, it's still about how I can sit in this one position, and work
more efficiently. It's much more about the computer, than the human.
It lacks a certain amount of ergonomics and fluidity. It would be nice
if someone could get us out of the rut we keep digging deeper, and help
us leap into the 21st century, where we should be living.

-- dobey


On Wed, 2007-01-17 at 23:22 +0100, pohlmannmark72 wrote:
> Apart from the proposed functionality, it would be confusing for a
> user to have that kind of framed environment. For years, users are
> manipulating windows all day long. Changing that would be a very deep
> change in their way to use a window. I would not recommand that.
> Beside that, I do agree that this would be a very quick way to switch
> from one window to another. To conclude, as a reminder, you could use
> the ALT+TAB key combination to have that feature.