Interaction08 - Don’t Make Me Click

Don’t Make Me Click
Aza Raskin - aza@mozilla.com

to the user, the interface is the product

the best interface is no interface (NFI = no fucking interface)

what’s better than a shovel? a hole

90% of the feature requests for Word are for features that already exist - the difference is a usable feature

google calculates, track packages, searches discography, track flights and a lot more all from one interface element - so much functionality packed into a minimal interface

mouseover/tooltip requires interaction from the user - instead of just being able to see it and use it, we’re forcing them to interact

what we need are ZIAs - zen internet/interface applications: “act without doing”

when interaction goes up, information density comes down because the user has to click to get information. less content, less users

paging is held over from databases - give me x number of results sort of call; we want to avoid showing the user the database model!

don’t force users to ask for more content, just give it to them

dynamically loading more content to the bottom of the page as the user scrolls — scrolling down already has this semantic of going back in time or going down for more results (this is an example of removing interaction)

when interaction goes down, content and users go up

what else can scroll simplify?’
bret victor - scroll tabs (http://worrydream.com)

www.flashearth.com - more usable than google earth because there is no concept of levels

www.songza.com

google calendar event add form looks like a database model - www.30boxes.com is a better implementation of the add event form

“your personality is nothing but a thin veneer over your underlying implementation”;

every time you force a user to make a choice they don’t care about, then you have failed as a designer!