siamese twins?

"I have 'em by the short hairs, Don..."

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but seriously, folks... they could be joined at the hip. it's a marriage made in heaven, those two.

I wonder what they are talking about, really I do. Between them, they have published, patented, encouraged, discouraged, disparaged, reprimanded or skewered practically every aspect of design for the web.

I have to admire them for that. The chutzpah, I mean. They're good. Between them, the sages have it mostly right. mostly.

all said and done, their work has created new profession(s), lots of career changes and awareness of user centered design at the highest levels.

not that the things that they say have not been said before, or that the ideas are all original - they say it so much more convincingly.

I generally do not quote them, preferring the work of Wurman, Shedroff, Pearce, Mok and others, but then again, I find that EVERYONE (including my grandma) knows about Jakob & Don, while very few know of the other players.

It's as if there are no other players. Wait a minute - there ARE no other players. at least, not at the level of the siamese twins. (I know, I know.. there's Tog, Spool, Peter, Matthew* and the rest)

but wait, folks... you can use this to your advantage. I kid you not. are you in a difficult situation with a client? need to convince a hard-headed project manager or system designer? need to have a wonky idea funded? need to have your proposals pass right on and get approved?

then use the "Jakob said so" mantra. Or "it's in Don Norman's book" mantra. sit back and watch the magic happen... it works.

try it, I have.

*what? you've haven't heard of M'sieur Oliphant?

________________________________________________________ copyright 2004 ajoy muralidhar. all names or brands referenced are the copyright of their respective owners.

reality check: training issues

now, time for a reality check.
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myth #1: training ostensibly exists only to fill the gaps between user perception and design affordance

myth #2: training on a new application is prescribed based on gaps discovered during usability testing and the pilot release.
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fact: the UI designer works to eliminate the need for training.

fact: training as it exists in most organizations is a carryover from the dark days before the interaction architect/UI design professional/usability dude was a formal part of the design team.

fact: training is still carried on in the same way as they did way back then.

fact: It's as if we did not exist at all.
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so.. does anyone really care about the UI guy (or gal)? if they have a "training program" in place?
________________________________________________________ copyright 2004 ajoy muralidhar. all names or brands referenced are the copyright of their respective owners.