The Humane Interface: New Directions for Designing Interactive Systems

by Jef Raskin

Book Overview

Deep thinking is rare in this field where most companies are glad to copy designs that were great back in the 1970s. The Humane Interface is a gourmet dish from a master chef. Five mice --Jakob... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0201379376
• ISBN13: 9780201379372
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.2" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Excellent, but doesn't give practical advice

This is a great book! It goes into considerable depth about how people think and how the way we process information should affect computer interface design. The two key concepts are the singular nature of the human locus of attention, and the human ability (and compulsion) to habituate behavior. The author then details how he would design a whole new way of interacting with computers to take advantage of these two key concepts. I found the author's ideas intriguing and his point of view a direct, if somewhat idealistic, challenge to the current human/computer interface paradigm.What this book isn't, however, is a practical guide for how to improve your own design. This is a very theoretical text (although extremely easy to read), not a reference or a checklist. Be sure you are aware that the book is trying to give you a foundation and a point of view, not a tutorial. Once you recognize that, it is a tremendous read!

You should read this book...

There are two categories of people who should read this book:1) those who write programs and design user interfaces (which today includes everyone who builds a Web page, and2) those who don't.For the first category of folks, the point is clear -- there are some well-researched principles to designing user interfaces, and you should know about them before you write code for human consumption. As a matter of fact, the references and bibliography alone are probably worth it for serious programmers.For those of us in the second category, the book is a glimpse into a world where computers serve useful functions in a simple way. Rather than the complicated, feature-bloated and overly cryptic machines we use today, computers are presented as being capable of adapting themselves to our work, fading into the subconscious, and allowing us to focus on the work itself.Everyone should come away with an almost obvious thought or two they've never realized, but upon reflection will say, "you know, that's right!" Nothing is taken for granted, and you will never view such standard user interface components as logins and passwords, file systems or text searches the same way.I'm afraid it will be years before hardware, software, operating systems and development tools catch up to some of these concepts, but there is nothing in it that couldn't technically be implemented today. Get this book, and pay attention to the footnotes!| OK |

Every computer programmer should read this book!

I can not over-emphasize how absolutely important it is for everyone involved in the design or programming of computer software--no matter how big or how small--to read this book. Even designers of non-computer interfaces, like for steroes or vcrs, would benefit from reading it.The book doesn't just explain the dos and don'ts of interface design--it also clearly explains the WHYS, by going into the psychology of the human mind and explaining interface design from that standpoint.It is true that the book goes outside the realm of currently-used computer systems, and introduces ideas that can't immediately be put to good use. But that is necessary to get a complete picture of the concepts. (Not to mention the help that it might give to someone who decides to go about designing an all-new computer or operating system of his or her own. This is a hint for all you inventors out there.)And it isn't just the individual ideas themselves. After finishing the book, I began to have an all-new way of thinking about programming; a whole new attitude which is helping me with some of the projects I'm currently working on. A creative mind can think of many new ideas based on the general concepts presented here, other than the specific things that Raskin mentions.The book is, for the most part, very pleasant to read (a page-turner!) and focused on the concepts. Very professionally done.

Fascinating, wonderful book -- A MUST READ

The book opens with a brief look at cognetics. Studying how the mind works, such as matters of attention and habituation, clarifies why many popular designs are often so COUNTERintuitive. Once you have that background, Raskin starts defining terms. Then, he provides formulas for analyzing interface efficiency. As valuable as usability testing can be, it's nice to add some objective measurements to the toolbox. The last half of the book looks at some popular current practices in software, and points out ways they violate the principles expressed in the first half. Some of his ideas are quite radical, but definitely thought-provoking. I wonder if anyone in the Open Source community would be interested in taking a crack at developing a new system based on these proposals.Raskin designed the Apple Macintosh and CanonCat systems, both of which are used as frequent examples. An appendix on why the Mac chose the one-button mouse is a must read for any Mac partisan (pro or con). Because the CanonCat is so obscure, I do wish he provided more information (especially pictures) on how it actually looked and worked. But that's a minor quibble.As someone new to the profession of UI Design, this book has proven invaluable. I'm already using his terminology to explain issues to developers. And I'm still ruminating over some of the other proposals in the last half of the book.If you've read last year's popular book "The Inmates Are Running The Asylum" by Cooper, you understand the problem exists. This is a good follow-up to start you on the road to fixing it.

A practical, insightful leap forward, a must-read

I recommend this book wholeheartedly and not only for the marketplace that includes application designers and web page developers, but also for the many who may be curious about the fundamentals of human-computer interaction. The book succeeds in providing a basic education in interface design principles. For me, an editorial director in magazine publishing working with a growing web department, the book was fascinating and stimulating. I now recognize interface elements that work well, or that do not, much more ably. The book describes a set of elements that coalesce into a next-generation interface that could revolutionize the way people use computers. Jef does a brilliant job reducing quantification of interface activity to readily understandable terms. And for those who want a deeper, philosophic, scientific look, Jef very briefly delves into information theory to show how to evaluate the ultimate efficiency of drop down menus, error messages, and the like. Jef has done an enormous amount of research and credits countless pioneers and researchers. His colorful and interesting sidebars and eclectic appendices are interesting side trips. Jef's work is an eloquent, humble, and inspirational salute to current knowledge that awaits implementation. But it is also a primer for every web page developer, every editor working with web page developers, and every application or operating system designer out there. Offering many practical insights, this book lucidly pursues the humane where computers and human lives are becoming ever more entwined.