Posted on June 25th, 2010
I was busy typing away on my laptop yesterday when suddenly, a window flashed on the screen, quickly closed, and my computer began restarting.
The window was nothing other than the “Windows Update restart now” dialog box. I don’t know what the default button is, but considering windows will “click” on a button based on keystrokes, and I was typing at a fast pace (as I am known to do), I had no time to stop typing to avoid unintended activation of an unwanted feature.
In other words: Please tell me what moron would design an operating system that works this way?
In my ranting, I did manage to begin calling Microsoft to complain, a task I quickly gave up on due to its inevitable futility; instead, I focused on using my friend Google to find the best way to turn off the damned restart now prompting from Windows Update.
One of the most common suggested solutions was to . . .
→ Read More: Stop the “restart” popup from Windows Update
Posted on June 1st, 2010
Sometimes, geeks translate things in ways most people wouldn’t understand.
Geek #1: I can’t find my notepad.
Geek #2: Look under c:\windows.
. . .
→ Read More: Quote for a Geek: The missing notepad
Posted on May 17th, 2010
One thing I’ve learned to appreciate more as I’ve gotten older is simplicity. Less confusion, less clutter, less distractions can yield less stress and more productivity. (Note: I appreciate it much more than I am actually successful at doing it.)
One area where simplicity is important is in web design. A recent article by Smashing Magazine, “Principles of Minimalist Web Design, With Examples,” does a fair job at illustrating the importance of simplicity on the web, even though it’s focus is more on graphical design (not my specialty!) than interface design.
A link in the aforementioned article goes to an article, “The Minimalist Principle: Omit Needless Things,” by zenhabits, which is the source of the remainder of my comments in this post. . . . → Read More: Simplicity 101: reducing clutter via minimalism
Posted on April 14th, 2010
From “Domain Modeling or Data Modeling“:
Users do not care “objects”. They care UI, and the fact that the data on the UI are saved in databases. So, by definition, UI and the key data are the “business language”; objects are not.
I have seen the value of domain driven design, but my style lends itself mostly to UI modeling using mockups. This is probably a result of my upbringing: I’m not a trained computer programmer!
For me, user interface mockups are the most effective way to communicate concepts and start building an application. Normal business people (that is, everyone except computer programmers!) respond to a visual and interactive UI in a different way than an abstract object/data/domain model. UI mockups can be easily understood by any user, which improves feedback.
. . .
→ Read More: Domain, data, or UI modeling?
Posted on April 12th, 2010
Some days I get over a hundred emails. Often, 90% of those are a waste of my time, and that is after excluding junk mail and related marketing mumbo-jumbo. Why so much email fluff, not-quite-spam-spam? It’s because people don’t consider the human cost of sending an email.
The Email Cost Algorithm
To understand the productivity cost of an email, we need to consider the factors that go in to an email, and how they correlate to time.
First, some facts and assumptions regarding email reading speed.
All emails are intended to be read by all recipients.
The average American can read and comprehend at a rate between 250 and 400 words per minute.
People read about 25% slower on a computer screen than on paper.
We will assume the typical email reading speed is 250 words per minute.
Second, some facts and assumptions about email writing speed.
Every . . .
→ Read More: Stop the email!
