Little UX is moving

Update

Beta is now live at, http://www.littleux.com

Take a look

Original post

After a long period of neglect, I'm moving Little UX to it's own spot on the web and incorporating my portfolio into the mix.

I've got the hosting, I'm sorting the domain and the site is in beta mode. I'll post links here so you can watch the site being finalised.

Below are some sketches of what Little UX will look like when it goes live.

Speak soon.

Logging in

I've been getting really frustrated recently trying to log into websites. I have so many accounts now, I've totally lost track. With that I no longer remember what the user name and password combination is for the vast majority.

Working out my user name is the first big step. Even if it is an email address as the user name, I still need to remember which email I signed up with (personal/work/etc.).

Browsing blogs today I came across this article on smashing mag, New Approaches to Designing Login Forms. I encourage you to take a look, it's really is an inspiring read.

To break it down simply, here is a brilliant way to set up a login form;

• When somebody types in a user name, update the page if it recognises that user
• Give it a tick, for a recognised user like we often see on sign up forms
• Or, bring up the user's avatar or first name
• If the user name doesn't match, said user can keep working on this before they start trying to remember the password

This is a great way to do things because in this model the user only has to remember one thing at a time. They also get feedback as they progress through the steps to assure them they are on the right track.

The other approach, using an email address or social network to log in. When I see the option to sign up for an account with my Google email, I immediately know it's going to make it easier for me in the long run.

OS X UPDATES: The great disappearing act

After a month of using OS X Mountain Lion, the biggest thing I've noticed is not noticing the differences.

The benefits of rapid releases

In UX we are fans of rapid prototyping in order to comb out errors and improve the experience, and the agile environment encourages frequent releases.With software updating rapidly, the changes and benefits are easily missed. I don't know how often my Chrome browser updates, nor do I know what has changed with it. Back when I used Firefox, I would always read the page after an update to see all of the new features added. When rapid iterations appeared I stopped noticing the changes and stopped being interested in them.

Is being unnoticed good or bad?

Having updated many OS X versions in the past, I've always loved to read about the new features and explore them when they arrive. Building an anticipation for a product is something Apple has used for many years now to increase hype and excitement, hence the queues on release days.

When Apple sell their new OS, the changes are a leading reason to buy. If they are not being noticed, does it discourage it's customers from buying?

Why am I missing the changes?

Maybe it's just me missing the changes, maybe I've bought out of Apple's eco system.

The notification center offers me no notifications, I don't use Mail, iCal and tend to use 3rd party software. I prefer using my Twitter client as I want to see what is happening in my timeline, so I'm not going there for that.

Messages seems difficult to set up, I don't know how to add my contacts and they don't seem to have synched from my iPhone contact list. And, when I'm on my computer I tend to stick to my emails anyway.

Noticing what hasn't changed

The things that I notice most, are the things that annoyed me in Lion. Having to tell my computer I want to run apps I download off the internet, is completely unnecessary.

Not having scroll bars looks nice, but if I'm using something new there is lack of visual cues that there is content 'below the fold'. It took me a few days to notice where my removable devices were in Finder because I didn't realise it was possible to scroll the left hand menu in finder.

There were many more problems I found with Lion that are still present and still annoying me in Mountain Lion.

An OS is not just an update

The key point for me, is that releasing a new OS is more than just an update. My Chrome browser updates rapidly, just like my OS adds updates for security fixes etc. 

When a new OS is released I'm expecting something new, changes that will make using my computer a better experience. Just take a look at the difference between Windows 7 and 8. That is a new OS not an update to Windows 7.

I realise that Mountain Lion, is an  extension to Lion so changes will not be ground breaking. More like an iPhone S to the model before. But, if I'm not seeing any changes in doing it, and I'm paying to do it, is it being packaged to me in the right way?

codeacademy.com

Something I've stumbled across this week on the web is CodeAcademy.com and I had to write about how much I love it.

The site offers a brilliant way to 'hand-hold' through the early stage of coding. It doesn't matter if you are an new to programming or a seasoned pro.

Beginners get a great introduction to programming and writing web pages, whilst those that know a programming language are shown quickly how to do the basics in another language.

At the moment there is only so much that is fully supported but I love the idea. If you get a chance give it a go and put it down in an email/blog/tweet and pass it on. I'm confident it will help a lot of people.

John Peel's Record Collection

One of the things I have always believed in is the importance of tangible objects that we can hold in our hands and experience.

As much as I love my music being collected digitally and held on a hard drive. I have always found it a far more enjoyable experience to count and collect my CDs and spend time organising them into perfect patterns that have some intrinsic value to me. Think Nick Hornby's High Fidelity and the importance of organising record collections, (here's a clip from the film to illustrate the point). One of many projects I have done like this is organising my DVDs by colour.

Creating an experience like this in a digital world is never going to be possible. But there are steps that can be taken to make the most of the medium.

Have a look at this experiment to recreate John Peel's record collection online.

Browsing through records, it is possible to pull records out, have a look at the artwork and even look at the notes John Peel made about them.

There is talk of the API for this being released in the future. Even if that can't be done there is inspiration to be had from playing in this record collection.

With the added functionality of Spotify playback you can always use it to discover some new music if nothing else.

One handed soft keyboard

Interesting idea Microsoft Research, and I like the thought process

Two things that strike me initially ....

1. It takes up a lot of screen space replying to texts and emails where you have to check what has already been said might be difficult... but if you are just typing something off the top of your head that's not going to be a problem
2. It's at an angle if you look at what you type while you are typing you have two things to look at that both require different perspectives

You can read a little bit more about the keyboard at Gizmodo and The Verge the images have been leaked from a presentation and published online by WMPowerUser.com

What do the Windows 8 Tablets mean for Nokia?

Nokia and Microsoft

Nokia's partnership with Microsoft looked like it was going to help both companies become leaders in the mobile market.


The Lumia 800 is a great smart phone but hasn't changed the fortunes of Nokia, recent announcements of job losses keep dark clouds hovering over Nokia's fortunes. 


Despite being a great phone the Lumia 800 has problems rooted in it's "parent companies" having conflicting interests and products. Nokia Music clashes and confuses with Zune Music+Video and the same is easily said of Bing Maps and Nokia Maps. The reasoning for the competing products is understandable but the results are not conducive of a good user experience.

Microsoft Tablets

As announced last night Microsoft have produced their own Windows 8 Tablets, and on first impressions they look pretty good.

The Metro interface present in Windows 8 is the same design principle in Windows Phone 7 and it works wonderfully on a mobile device. Put simply a tablet is a mobile device so there is reason not to expect the Metro UI to work scaled up.

The pro model makes clear attempts to blur the line between tablet and ultra-book, we'll have to see if they can pull that off in a few months time. I'm a skeptic of this approach, making a new product better than both an ultra-book and a tablet is a difficult game. Note the tablets with the biggest market share haven't tried this. Things look better with the lower end RT model, which is clearly aimed at being a mobile tablet device, a closer competitor to Apple iPads and Amazone Kindle Fires. 

How much the OS and UI differs from future Windows Phone OS releases will be seen in time. But at the moment it looks like Microsoft is approaching with a PC down approach. Opposite to the likes of Apple and Android who make differing versions of their mobile OS for tablets. It would also be fair to say that Microsoft's previous attempts at stripped down desktop OS on tablets have not been earth shattering.

Nokia Tablets?

So what does this mean for Nokia?

Rumours of a Windows 8/Windows Phone tablet from Nokia have been around for a long time. Some fan mock ups have looked pretty exciting like this one;

From recent announcement it appears Microsoft are going to take the tablet market for themselves and Nokia have been left behind. Phones and tablets are not in the same picture at Microsoft.

But what about the future for Microsoft? The Surface tablets are hardware and branded as Microsoft products. Are Microsoft intending to be more involved in their hardware and will this spell bad news for Nokia? Is there anything to suggest that Microsoft are not planning for to build their own 'Microsoft Phones' in the future?

If Microsoft push into mobile hardware, it is not looking bright for Nokia, and if Microsoft continue to leave them behind in their rush for the mobile market then they are going to get a lot worse.

Right now it seems unlikely a Lumia tablet is coming anytime soon, and tablets are to be Microsofts super portable PCs. Wether this approach is going to work, which as I say hasn't traditionally worked for user experience, will be answered in time. Although time is something that, worryingly, Nokia may not have much of.