Kim Vicente
"We who inhabit the modern times of the twenty-first century have to adapt to digital technology moving at light speed. More and more technology is being foisted on us at a faster rate. We walk around with electronic leashes--pagers, cell phones, personal digital assistants and pocket PCs--that tie us to our work. At home, we have the latest electronic consumer products--each with its onw remove control and heft user's manual. All these gadgets are supposed to make life easier, but the often make it more difficult instead. And before we learn to use the latest technological 'convenience', there's a new one of the market with more 'advanced' features. No matter how many user's manuals we read, we just can't seem to keep up."
Kim Vicente, The Human Factor, pp. 13-4.
"More and more we're being asked to live with technology that is technically reliable, because it was created to fit our knowledge of the physical world, but that is so complex or so counterintuitive that it's actually unusable by most human beings."
Kim Vicente, The Human Factor, p. 17.
"Ironically, the strength of... the often brilliant designers of high-tech products and systems today is also partially responsible for their downfall: since they have so much scientific and engineering expertise, they tend to think that everyone knows as much about technology as they do."
Kim Vicente, The Human Factor, p. 34.
"We don't want to figure out what all those buttons do or why they are set up the way they are. We just want to get on with our lives and do our jobs well. When we make use of technology, we want to focus on achieving our goals, not on deciphering the technology. The design should be in the background of our attention."
Kim Vicente, The Human Factor, p. 34.
"There's something very odd going on here. If designers made completely unrealistic assumptions about the physical world when designing technology, then we would blame them (and likely sue them) for technical incompetence. Yet when they make grossly unrealistic assumptions about human nature... we don't blame the designers, we blame the unfortunate people who are just trying to do what the design requires."
Kim Vicente, The Human Factor, p. 45.
"... design should begin by identifying a human or societal need--a problem worth solving--and then fulfill that need by tailoring technology to the specific, relevant human factors."
Kim Vicente, The Human Factor, p. 45.