I've said it before (although not on this blog) and I'll say it again... The user interface (hardware and software) is the single most important piece of technology that has seen virtually no new development in the last 20 years. We still bang away on keyboards and mice to interact with 99% of the machines in our lives. To make matters worse, the look and feel of software and web design is often a reflection of these limited input devices.
You would think that UI and input device design would constantly be changing. Science fiction has been showing us interesting ways of interacting with computers for a long time now. So why has nothing happened in this space? Why aren’t we speaking and interacting naturally with computers as if they were extensions of our own being? I think there are two answers to that question. First, the old keyboard still does the job pretty well. Although limited, the technology is so entrenched, that displacing it would require huge amounts of money. Very few companies have the resources to not only revolutionize the way we interact with computers, but to also educate the market to overthrow the accepted standard. Second, there has been a fundamental rift for the longest time between creative people and technical people. Bringing those two sides together more efficiently should result in all kinds of UI and human-computer interaction improvements.
Some of my favorite UI/input device developments in the last few years:
- The pearl in the Blackberry Pearl
- Nintendo’s Wiimote
- Microsoft’s Surface
- IBM’s Trackpoint (which I still swear by to this day as being 2000x superior to those godawful trackpads)
With the exception of the Trackpoint, these “revolutionary” input methods have all sprung up in the last 2 years. And all (except the Trackpoint) are associated with advancements in software UI. Right now, all of the talk is about the touch screen used in Apple’s iPhone. While I don’t necessarily believe all of the hype, I think it sends an important message to would-be entrepreneurs in this space. Don’t ignore the importance of how the user interacts with your device or software and don’t be afraid to innovate there. If you think typing on a keyboard is for shmucks, feel free to e-mail me at dawalibi@garagecanada.com.
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2 comments:
Agreed the Microsoft surface rocks, I have been in touch with MS and unfortunately MS is limiting the availability of the SDK to a shortlist of partners / developers. I would love to see what is under the hood as the applications and eventual use interesting.
My guess is that the SDK will eventually be made available to everyone. I wouldn't be surprised if this happened through a new verson of Visual Studio (combined of course with a set of development tools specific to multi-touch, multi-user environments).
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