Reactions To "Attractive Things Work Better" and "The Design Of Everyday Things"

This week in Physical Computing we were asked to read two pieces,  both by Don Norman.  The two pieces provided contrast to each other, in that the first, "The Design Of Everyday Things" is a chapter from Norman's original book focusing on usability, while the second is an essay attempting to amend some of his original conclusions and take aesthetics and emotion under consideration.


While both readings are interesting, by in large their conclusions both seem to exist extremely squarely in the realm of common sense.  Perhaps this is because the writings are close to two decades old, and it is certainly true that capable and aesthetically pleasing designs have become much more mainstream in the past ten years.


In the first piece, Norman makes a strong case for utilitarian designs, and the need to consider usability in deployment.  In the second piece, he responds to his own writing, by conceding that aesthetics can have an equal importance to usability when designing the optimal device.


That being said, many of Norman's examples seem trite, or perhaps from another age.  The tasks or devices that he cites as being challenges are simply things that most adults today know how to deal with.  The "blinking clock on the VCR" is a joke rooted in the 80's, and with good reason; it's simply no longer an issue.


Norman's writings may have had poignancy and relevance ten years ago, but today they serve to do something different.  They are illustrative of the advances that have been made in design in the mainstream, and just how prevalent they are.  Here's hoping the trend continues.