I’m DonNorman. I’m… gee, youknowit’s hardtodescribewhat I am.
Well, he’s been a professorofpsychology, professorofcognitivescience, professorofcomputerscience, a vicepresidentofadvancedtechnologyatApple, butforourpurpose.
I wasspending a yearinEngland, and I gotsofrustratedwithmyinabilitytousethelightswitchesandthewatertapsandthedoors, even, then I wrotethisbook.
If I continuallyget a doorwrong, isitmyfault?
No. Infact, ifyoucontinuallygetitwrong, it's a good⏤andifotherpeoplecontinuallygetitwrong⏤goodsignthatit's a reallybaddoor.
A NormanDoorisonewherethedesigntellsyoutodotheoppositeofwhatyou’reactuallysupposedtodo, orgivesthewrongsignalandneeds a signtocorrectit.
Whydoesitneedaninstructionmanual? Thatis, whydoyouhavetohave a signthatsayspushorpull? Whynotmakeitobvious?
Itcanbeobviousifit’s designedright.
Thereare a couplereallysimple, basicprinciplesofdesign, andoneofthem I’llcalldiscoverability: When I lookatsomething, I shouldbeabletodiscoverwhatoperations I cando.
Theprincipleappliesto a wholelotmorethandoors.
Andit’s amazingwithmanyofourcomputersystemstoday, youcanlookatit, there’s nowayofknowingwhat’s possible; should I tapitonce, ortwice, oreventripletap?
So, discoverability, whenit’s notthere, well, youdon’t knowhowtousesomething.
Quiteoftenthesearewrongatfirst, buteachtimetheygoaroundthecirclewedo a betterjobofmakingthedevice, untilthepointwe'reactuallymakingsomethingthatreallyworks.
Therearelotsofthingsinlifethatarefairlystandardizedandthereforewhether I buythishouseornotisnot a functionofwhetherithasgooddoorsinit. Andso, exceptforsafetyreasons, doorstendnottobeimproved.
Butthetyrannyofbaddoorsmustend.
- I thinkthatit’s a reallyshittydesign. Infact, theyput a pullhandlewhenit’s a push. Thatshouldbe a flatpanelhere, andnot a [beep] pullhandle. That’s how I feelaboutthisdoor, it’s verymisleading. - I agree.
You’reright, Becky. You’reGod-damnedright. Andifweallthoughtlikeyou, well, wemightjustdesign a betterworldtogether.
Itwon't openbecauseit's a securitydoor!
Whatthe **** areyoutwodoing?
Hey, soasyoucansee, since I startedmakingthisvideo, they'vesincechangedthedoor a littlebit. Guessit's a stepintherightdirection. Thankyousomuchforwatchingandto 99% Invisible, oneofmyfavoritepodcasts, itwassomuchfuntocollaboratewithwiththem, thankyou. Andcheckthemoutonanypodcastappor 99pi.org.
There’s thisdooronthe 10thflooroftheVoxmediaofficethat I hatesomuch.
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