I’m with Stupid

why smart people are so bad at computers(and what to do about it)

Stephanie Leary, @sleary, sillybean.netTexas A&M University

My “Stupid Users”

• faculty

• students

• authors

• Mom

Working with Mom

“We go to great lengths to ensure

easy understanding. We make the

button look like something you can

press.”

“Anatomy of a Noob”: http://tinyurl.com/noob-anatomy

Working with Mom

“We use desktop as a reference,

windows, pull-downs, accordions, etc.

We call them metaphors, but very

seldom do we question whether those

metaphors are as intuitive and

universally understood as we assume.”

“Anatomy of a Noob”: http://tinyurl.com/noob-anatomy

Working with Mom

“In the case of my mom, there is

obviously little connection between

the physical desktop and its digital

counterpart.”

“Anatomy of a Noob”: http://tinyurl.com/noob-anatomy

“And yea, upon teh n00bs, did Our Geek Jobs set His Obsessive Eye. And He brought forth a device of great sales potential: the iThing, which one can touch with thine finger.

And lo! did teh n00bs poke and jabbeth at the iThing, achieving much of what was desired.”

Working with Profs

“The computer just hates me.”

Working with Students

“I thought it was just me.”

They assume they’re doing something

wrong.

They can’t see the interface holistically.

Facebook & ReadWriteWeb

People don’t understand the difference between the location bar and the search box.

Facebook & ReadWriteWeb

People don’t notice peripherals: URLs, page titles, even design and layout.

Facebook & ReadWriteWeb

People use the search box as a natural-language command line interface.

They’re afraid to make the wrong

move.

Working with a Computer

“In abusive and controlling

relationships, the victim has the

sense they are always ‘walking on

eggshells’ - fearful of saying or doing

anything that might prompt a

violent/intimidating outburst.”

“Defending Windows over Mac a sign of mental illness” http://tinyurl.com/abusive-computer

“In relationships with an abuser or

controller, the victim has also

experienced a loss of self-esteem,

self-confidence, and psychological

energy. The victim may feel ‘burned

out’ and too depressed to leave.”

“Defending Windows over Mac a sign of mental illness” http://tinyurl.com/abusive-computer

Working with a Computer

We are all trapped in abusive relationships with our computers.

Our users are afraid and embarrassed to

ask for help.

“We’re the stupid ones.”

We work with very smart people.

We can do better.

1. Invite blame.

Better 404s• apologetic, personal language

• search for words in the bad URL

• show search box and sitemap

DB & Server Errors• phone numbers

• alternate methods

“Report a problem”

• contact form that automatically fills in the referring URL

• link in every page’s footer

• Link Checker extension

Phone Numbers• Put the main office line in the page

footer

• Add a phone number to the email contact form

2. Find different testers.

Unusual Suspects• people in waiting rooms

• brown-bag lunch attendees

• new hires

• retirees

• accident-prone users

• receptionists

3. Change the goals.

Users’ Goals• accomplish tasks online 24/7

• find up-to-date information

• talk directly to professors, administrators, etc.

4. Explain the metaphors.

Feeds• icons with explanations

• email alternatives

Microformats• Tell people what to do with vCards

and iCal files

• Link to explanations

Fewer options

Less clutter

This has to be easier.

Thank you.Stephanie Leary

@slearysillybean.net

uwc.tamu.edu