Information Software and the Graphical Interface

Excellent paper that you should not pass up reading. If you read one thing this week, it should be this: "Information Software and the Graphical Interface"

"Today, software consumers demand technological features because software marketing presents features. Consumers ignore design because marketing ignores design. The cycle is vicious, but perhaps vulnerable too—some brilliant new software with engineering, design, and marketing all in sync may raise the bar for everyone."

Contents:

What is software?

• Of software and sorcery
• What is software design?
• What is software for?
• Manipulation software design is hard
• Most software is information software

Graphic design

• Information software design is graphic design
• Demonstration: Showing the data
• Demonstration: Arranging the data

Context-sensitivity

• Context-sensitive information graphics
• Inferring context from the environment
• Inferring context from history

Interactivity

• Interactivity considered harmful
• Reducing interaction
• How did we get here?

Intermission

• Case study: Train schedules
• Demonstration: Trip planning redux

Changing the world

• Designing the information software revolution
• Designing a design tool
• Engineering inference from history
• Engineering inference from the environment
• Information and the world of tomorrow

[1] http://worrydream.com/MagicInk/