i'm with stupid

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I’m with Stupid why smart people are so bad at computers (and what to do about it) Stephanie Leary, @sleary, sillybean.net Texas A&M University

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Why smart people are so bad at computers, and what to do about it. (Keynote presentation, Arkansas Regional HighEdWeb conference, 2010)

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Page 1: I'm with Stupid

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

Page 2: I'm with Stupid

My “Stupid Users”

• faculty

• students

• authors

• Mom

Page 3: I'm with Stupid

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

Page 4: I'm with Stupid

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

Page 5: I'm with Stupid

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

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“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.”

Page 8: I'm with Stupid

Working with Profs

“The computer just hates me.”

Page 9: I'm with Stupid

Working with Students

“I thought it was just me.”

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They assume they’re doing something

wrong.

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They can’t see the interface holistically.

Page 12: I'm with Stupid

Facebook & ReadWriteWeb

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

Page 13: I'm with Stupid

Facebook & ReadWriteWeb

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

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Facebook & ReadWriteWeb

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

Page 18: I'm with Stupid

They’re afraid to make the wrong

move.

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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

Page 20: I'm with Stupid

“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

Page 21: I'm with Stupid

We are all trapped in abusive relationships with our computers.

Page 22: I'm with Stupid

Our users are afraid and embarrassed to

ask for help.

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“We’re the stupid ones.”

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We work with very smart people.

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We can do better.

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1. Invite blame.

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Better 404s• apologetic, personal language

• search for words in the bad URL

• show search box and sitemap

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DB & Server Errors• phone numbers

• alternate methods

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“Report a problem”

• contact form that automatically fills in the referring URL

• link in every page’s footer

• Link Checker extension

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Phone Numbers• Put the main office line in the page

footer

• Add a phone number to the email contact form

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2. Find different testers.

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Unusual Suspects• people in waiting rooms

• brown-bag lunch attendees

• new hires

• retirees

• accident-prone users

• receptionists

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3. Change the goals.

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Users’ Goals• accomplish tasks online 24/7

• find up-to-date information

• talk directly to professors, administrators, etc.

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4. Explain the metaphors.

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Feeds• icons with explanations

• email alternatives

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Microformats• Tell people what to do with vCards

and iCal files

• Link to explanations

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Fewer options

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Less clutter

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This has to be easier.

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Thank you.Stephanie Leary

@slearysillybean.net

uwc.tamu.edu