Every two years when we upgrade computers and operating systems, we fire our entire staff and bring in new people who won't complain about change. I also save by eliminating the training budget. We simply hire new people with the skills we want. Yeah!

Posted by: Zoot Suit on March 10, 2003 01:58 PM

---

 

What struck me about this article was the lack of "eye flow" (for want of a better term). The paragraphs were so short, I kept having to "restart" my reading. After a while, it got exhausting. This seems to run contrary to the advice the Jakobs of the world give. Has anyone else run into this? I also see this popping up in user tests.

Posted by: Lydia on March 10, 2003 08:32 PM

---

 

Lydia,

I struggled with the same thing. Maybe it was that very few paragraphs had more than one sentence.

Maybe it was also a case of "I've read this type of piece 100 times before and I'm looking for something new." For me, I would have been happy with a few more bullets and a lot less text. Maybe "inverted pyramid" writing would have worked better as well. Maybe the article's tone and voice just didn't engage me. It might have been find for offline reading, but online it better either get to the point quick or have an engaging voice that makes just the way something is said enjoyable. In other words: I want "fast food" content or an experience (a la "french cuisine" or "Chuck E. Cheese") -- or ideally both fast and enjoyable.

Having said all that, the article's points are all valid. Of course, Webword readers would rightly and naturally add "poor usability" to the list of reasons why users don't adopt new IT systems.

Posted by: Lyle, Lyle - Croc O' Lyle on March 10, 2003 10:03 PM

---

 

ResistAnce

Posted by: Toby on March 10, 2003 11:19 PM

---

 

Nothing new here but it needs repeating because each new generation of managers makes the same mistakes.

The heart of the problem is that these issues are about politics and power, and such issues will probably never go away.

Posted by: Philip Chalmers on March 12, 2003 05:44 AM

---

 

Good points, Lyle, thanks! I like the fast food analogy and will probably steal it in the future. :)

Posted by: Lydia on March 12, 2003 05:45 PM

---