Gus Svendsen

Why the iPhone Is Not as Advertised

Posted by gussvendsen - 10/28/09 at 08:10:49 am

When I got my first iPhone back in June 2007, it was heralded as the coolest Phone/Email/Browser/iPod the world has ever seen. Now near the end of 2009 and 120+ apps later, my iPhone is less Phone/Email/Browser/iPod than ever. Although that may not be how it was packaged in the beginning, I have a feeling it was all part of the master plan.

Less Phone
If you’re like me, you don’t use the phone much anymore, cell or landlines. Conversations are more easily maintained via chat/SMS or through social networking sites like Facebook. Plus, these asynchronous technologies enable me to have multiple discussions going simultaneously. Therefore, I finally did it. I removed the Phone app from my iPhone Dock. Besides, I receive more calls than I place, and I don’t need to give up space on the dock to answer a call.

Less Email
Email has become my archive for stale conversations and forgotten passwords. I prefer the dynamic nature of real-time dialog, and I can get that through Twitter, SMS and Facebook. I took Email off my Dock and replaced it with Echofon, a Twitter app. However and for now, email still gets a position on my home screen.

Less Browser
Another thing I did a while back was remove Safari from the Dock. It now has a spot on my #2 app screen. I rarely use it because the Web apps/sites I frequent most have an iPhone app that offers a more customized user experience than a general browser can provide. Plus, many apps like Echofon, TweetDeck and more offer Web browsing inside their app… which reminds me, why doesn’t the email app work that way, Apple?

Less iPod
I knew, before I waited 6 hours in the blistering South Carolina sun to buy my first-gen iPhone, that I was not in need of a new iPod. It was bonus. Gravy. But more importantly than offering music and videos, Apple was positioning the iPhone as a portable entertainment device. People are always in need of some entertainment, right? Yes! And as it turns out, I do listen to music on it, but more often with Pandora. And I do watch videos on it but that’s because my kids can’t sit still on airplanes or in doctors’ offices. Entertaining as all that is, based on frequency I demoted the iPod app from the dock and ultimately from my Home screen.

More of a “Post-PC Device”
Even before it hit the market, Steve Jobs strategically referred to the iPhone as a “post-pc device.” He knew it would become more than a phone. (Watch the video @4:55/5:40) PCs had reached their practical maturity, and it was time to introduce the next generation of personal computing. But the iPhone did not come on the scene as a new type of gadget (e.g. Helio’s “Don’t call it a phone” campaigns). It deliberately was in the form of something we all knew, and it even came with apps we were used to seeing on a computer. But now, many of the apps I’ve used on a traditional PC environment have gotten booted from my home screen. Here’s what’s left and why.

Maps (on Dock) – one of the most useful apps I use with any predictable consistency. (Standard)
Settings – good to be able to access this when needed. (Standard)
App Store – always looking for new apps or updating my existing ones. (Standard)
Flashlight - If you wonder why I have this so prominently placed, I’ll assume you do not have children who sleep in the dark. (Web | iTunes)
Camera - For life’s special moments. Got to keep that one handy with kids around. (Standard)

Voices Memos – Use this to dictate randomness or capture business meetings. FYI – my longest recorded meeting was over 50 minutes. Imports to iTunes. (Standard)
Calendar - Thanks to iCal and MobileMe, my wife and I can easily share calendars that stay in sync. (Standard)
Shazam - one of my favorites! Technology at its best. If you don’t know this app, get it. Listens to music and tells you the title, artist and more. I use it a lot in the car. (Web | iTunes)
Bookmarks- all my 3000+ Delicious bookmarks are just a tap away. (Web | iTunes)

foursquare - I’m new to this one, but it impressed me right away. It’s got a long way to go to serve Smalltown, USA, but it’ll get there. (Web | iTunes)
Loopt - I am here. You are there. Great app for meeting up with someone, like to watch the Cal Bears beatup on someone. (Web | iTunes)
Minibooks - I do freelance work and use Freshbooks. (Web | iTunes)
Wordpress - I’m actually typing this post with it. Not ideal but works. (Web | iTunes)

ESPN FF - goes back to the entertainment factor. It’ll be gone by February. (Web | iTunes)
Poker 5K – my alternative to insomnia. Also very useful when rocking sleeping babies. (Web | iTunes)

What Did I Learn?
UX Rule: When adoption is key to your success, evolution is better than revolution.

So that’s my home screen. What does your iPhone Dock or Home Screen look like and why?

Even Google Makes Mistakes

Posted by gussvendsen - 10/16/09 at 12:10:18 pm

Google does a lot of things right, so when I came across this [rare] awkward user moment with a Google product, I found it noteworthy. It happened after my PC crashed. I had Chrome running with multiple tabs open, so after I restarted my machine and browser, Chrome gave me the option to restore my pages. Take a look at what I encountered, then I’ll show you three alternatives that could fix the issue.

 

Google Chrome Restore Button Issue

Button too far from the instructions “click Restore.”

View it at original size. (You’ll need at least 1280 wide screen)

The instructions tell you to “click Restore,” but what they don’t tell you is that they mean that button lost in the clutter on the far right-hand side of the alert… not the actual word Restore. When I read it the first time, I did not notice the button on the right, so I hovered over the word Restore because I was about to click on it. But the word never indicated it was a link because it was not a link. So I had to throw out my trained “click here” habits and hunt for the right place to click. Not a big issue, but user experience is as much about the small details as it is the large.

UX Rule: Make sure the primary action is clear, and don’t let it get lost in your layout.

 

Google Chrome Restore Button Fix #1

Place the Restore button immediately after the instructions.

[click image to zoom]

 

Google Chrome Restore Button Fix #2

Ditch the button and provide a text link.

[click image to zoom]

 

Google Chrome Restore Button Fix #3

(My Favorite) Place a Restore Pages button immediately after the alert.

[click image to zoom]

 

Please let me know what you think. Take the poll and put your comment below. Thanks!

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That’s No Way to Greet a New User

Posted by gussvendsen - 10/15/09 at 02:10:28 pm

Recently I installed a handy collaboration tool called Kalexo. Overall, it’s does what you would expect for business and design use cases, but it’s got some sizzle. For example, the things I find most useful for what I do daily is the ability to share my screen on-the-fly with anyone via a browser, and I can quickly capture and share a recording of actions I take on my screen.

Having said all that, as a dude I found part of the UX offensive. Take a look and see if you can find what caught my attention.

Continue reading That’s No Way to Greet a New User…

9 Ways to Tweet Like Guy Kawasaki

Posted by gussvendsen - 10/15/09 at 06:10:48 am

Average people are important. For without them, it would not be easy to spot greatness. Guy Kawasaki is greatness. He continually adapts to new technologies and demonstrates principles for mastering new mediums. Let’s take a moment to observe how he’s managed to earn perfect marks for his twittering techniques.

Continue reading 9 Ways to Tweet Like Guy Kawasaki…

Welcome to My New Blog Site

Posted by gussvendsen - 10/11/09 at 08:10:18 pm

No, this is not my first blog post ever, but thanks for asking. I have been blogging for a while but in other capacities.

This is a new blog where I will be focused on posting thoughts, information, and more about the topics that I encounter in work and in life. Most of this will be motivated by work-related topics, but I reserve the right to inject a little bit of my interesting and never dull adventures as a parent, husband, and tech enthusiast.

Subjects I will cover:
• Social Media
• Web/Mobile Apps
• User Experience (UX/UI)
• Green and GreenTech
• Work Resources
• The Great Outdoors
• Cameras, Cars, and Gadgets

Thanks for stopping by, and I look forward to our conversations.

-Gus