Blogs

  • Visual design’s trajectory

    Jonathan Grudin Posted: Thu, July 17, 2014 - 4:50:11

    Some graphic artists and designers who spent years on the edges of software development describe with bemusement their decades of waiting for appreciation and adequate computational resources. Eventually, visual design…

  • Excuse me, your company culture is showing

    Monica Granfield Posted: Fri, July 11, 2014 - 10:36:16

    Find the simple story in the product, and present it in an articulate and intelligent, persuasive way. —Bill Bernbach As I read this quote by the all time advertising great,…

  • The challenges of developing usable and useful government ICTs

    Juan Hourcade Posted: Mon, June 30, 2014 - 4:04:52

    Governments are increasingly providing services and information to the public through information and communication technologies (ICTs). There are many benefits to providing information and services through ICTs. People who are…

  • Organizational behavior

    Jonathan Grudin Posted: Mon, June 23, 2014 - 11:36:18

    Two books strongly affected my view of organizations—those I worked in, studied, and developed products for. One I read 35 years ago; the other I just finished, although it came…

  • May I have your attention

    Ashley Karr Posted: Sun, June 01, 2014 - 6:40:51

    Take away: Removing ourselves from stimulation, electronic or otherwise, is crucial for our brains to function at their peak, and focusing on one task at a time with as little…

  • So close but yet so far away

    Monica Granfield Posted: Thu, May 29, 2014 - 11:12:06

    In the last five days I have clocked at least eight hours on three Fortune 100 consumer websites for tasks that should not take more than an hour combined. What…

  • Philosophical robbery

    Jonathan Grudin Posted: Wed, May 28, 2014 - 10:19:20

    In 1868 I read Dr. Holmes's poems, in the Sandwich Islands. A year and a half later I stole his dedication, without knowing it, and used it to dedicate my…

  • Bringing together designers, ePatients, and medical personnel

    Richard Anderson Posted: Fri, May 23, 2014 - 11:06:54

    Back in 1989–1991, I served on the committee that founded BayCHI, the San Francisco Bay Area chapter of ACM SIGCHI. I became its first elected chair and served as its…

  • Why teaching tech matters

    Ashley Karr Posted: Fri, May 16, 2014 - 10:12:56

    Education is one of the most valuable ways that we can improve quality of life for ourselves and others. This improvement applies to teachers as well as students. Having just…

  • Designing the cognitive future, part IV: Learning and child development

    Juan Hourcade Posted: Thu, May 15, 2014 - 10:29:54

    In this post, I discuss how technology may affect learning and child development in the future, and how the HCI community can play a role in shaping what happens.Let’s start…