Month: July 2010

  • The UX of Rock Band 3 – Prerelease

    Check out this sneak peak at what Rock Band 3 will be like: A real keyboard, more realistic drums and a guitar that is a real world guitar.  This takes learning music to a whole new level. I am very excited to get this for my kids.  Currently, only the drums are a close analog…

  • The UX of Ongoing Games

    My first experience with an ongoing game was Dungeons and Dragons in the early 1980’s.  There was no ending.  You just played whenever you could get the right people together.  You gained in levels and collected new weapons and powers.  It was an addictive game. The next stage occurred with the introduction of a Tamgotchi…

  • The UX of Support

    Question: What is the difference between the approach UX takes and the one Support takes? Each group is dedicated to making the customer happy.  Of course, UX is often involved in the creation process of the product/service and support is not, but there are many times when UX is brought in specifically to help an…

  • My Google AdSense Month

    After 30 days of having ads on the right of my blog, I now have data that shows how much money I could make with Google.  It was really difficult getting analogous information on the web, so I hope this is helpful to other people.  I am going to disclose the exact stats and money…

  • Consistency in UX

    Rule #15: Consistency is good. But how do you make decisions when it’s complicated?  Let’s compare some of the situations. A vs. B: No-brainer.  Of course, go for something better for the situation assuming all choices are inconsistent. A vs C: Again, no-brainer.  Of two equal solutions, choose the one that is more consistent with…

  • Reversing an Emotional Decision

    Have you ever convinced yourself of a decision based on an initial reaction?  Of course you have, everyone has.  The more important question is: Have you ever reversed one of these decisions later when reality turned out different than you initially experienced? This is crucial to having good judgment.  Sometimes the initial WOW or YUCK…

  • Words are Imprecise

    Imagine a chair.  You have it in your mind.  Now try and write (or speak) a short description of what makes a chair a chair. online dictionary definition: A piece of furniture consisting of a seat, legs, back, and often arms, designed to accommodate one person. It’s trivial to imagine a chair that doesn’t qualify…

  • Top 10 Tips for a New UX Designer

    For anyone who is starting off as a brand new UX Designer: Always be observing and analyzing. Look around you. What do you see? Who made those things? Why did they make them that way? Why is the ceiling that tall? Who decided on the spacing of the boards in the floor? Why is the…

  • Posting from the iPad

    Trying to post from the iPad using Safari. Hmm, right away there is a problem. I can’t use the WYSIWYG editor. Crap, that is a serious limitation. Oh, well, No bullet points today. Lets look at the keyboard. For some reason the folding case i purchased never showed up, so I am propping up the…

  • Mayor of Awesome Town

    I had a form in front of me for business cards.  I put Senior Director, User Experience.  I didn’t want to.  I wanted to put down, Mayor, Awesome Town.  Why did I chicken out?  Why did I go normal?  Ugh, I am looking at my card now and deeply feel the regret. What title do…