Media: NY Times reports on a Crime of Interface Design

["Wanted by the police: A good interface" by Katie Hafner in The New York Times has me in a dilemma. This is paid-for content and the only way I can link to it is to offer an abruptly terminating page on CNet (linked below) but it's such a good story that I am putting the gist of it here and offering the link for anyone with the patience to do as I did and open it over and over again to read what is actually officially 'expired'.]

The US police department has been using a new mobile dispatch system that includes a Windows-based touch-screen computer in every patrol car. But users say the system is so complex and difficult to use that it is jeopardising their ability to do their jobs. Vitally, a "call for assistance" command - that officers use when they are in danger - is needlessly complicated.

Police officers were not consulted about the design of the interface. Routine tasks are so difficult to perform that they are discouraged from doing them.

Aaron Marcus and Jakob Nielsen both get quoted in the New York Times article.

Associated Link: Wanted by the police: a good interface

Study: Mobile Web sites need Improvement
Source: CNET, 13 October 2008
 
A new study suggests that the usability of many mobile Web sites still needs improvement.

Better Usability makes Online Backup more Appealing
Source: UN, 11 October 2008
 
Repeat after me: "Backup via the Internet is for everybody."

IBM Task Modeler version 6 now Available
Source: Unknown, 10 October 2008
 
The latest release of IBM Task Modeler is now available for download. This includes many new features to support efficient and collaborative task analysis and synthesis.

Caroline's Corner: Design to Read - Designing for People who do not Read easily
Source: Caroline Jarrett, 9 October 2008
 
Reading is a skill many of us take for granted. Chances are that if you’re reading this, you’re one of the lucky ones who read easily.

Bill Buxton to change Microsoft from within
Source: The Register, 8 October 2008
 
"Last year Steve Ballmer said to 85,000 employees 'If you don’t change and you don’t go in this direction, we’re dead, and I don’t want to die.' I wanted to go hug him when he said that."

New Report: Innovative Marketing in the Digital World
Source: E-consultancy, 7 October 2008
 
A new report from E-consultancy provides a distillation of ideas and suggestions provided by digital marketing experts.

Linking Industry with Academia
Source: unknown, 6 October 2008
 
Customer experience research consultancy, fhios, based in London, has just launched an innovative internship programme, aimed primarily at postgraduate students.

Online Travel Booking: What influences Consumers?
Source: Webcredible, 4 October 2008
 
What influences consumers when booking a holiday? How can travel companies offer the best user experience?

Getting the Word out
Source: UN, 3 October 2008
 
I SAID, I'M ON THE TRAIN... Voice recognition technology can now translate all those pesky garbled voicemails into manageable text messages.

Mobile hardware outpaces Software and User Capabilities
Source: ComputerWorld, 2 October 2008
 
The main issue dissuading users from employing all the capabilities of their mobile devices is the complexity involved in operating them.