Thomas OtterI have mentioned many times that the latest, coolest UI technology doesn’t mean that an application has good usability. Good design requires ingenuity and creativity but it also requires discipline and a focus on details.
I you want to check how seriously a vendor takes usability, do this simple test. Have a look at the error messages. I’m not talking here about witty 404 errors, but the stuff that happens when the payroll currency conversion field is incomplete.
If they are up to date, accurate and easy to to understand, chances are the application is too. If there are spelling mistakes, missing entries and unintelligible codes then the vendor’s commitment to usability is skin deep.
Error messages aren’t hip, glamorous, or agile, but they are a window into the development ethos. Error messages are the canvas in a suit.
Ask for a list of all error messages when you do your next vendor evaluation. You will learn more about the vendor’s commitment to usability and product quality than you will fathom from a slick demo.
3 responses so far ↓
1 uberVU - social comments March 22, 2010 at 2:31 am
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by vendorprisey: a sunday evening blog post. On usability. http://bit.ly/cnWpAQ...
2 Meg Bear March 24, 2010 at 8:02 pm
Thank you Thomas, both for introducing “bespoke” into my vocabulary and for supporting my core value that the little things matter a great deal.
-Meg
3 Pixelbase » This Week in SAP April 21, 2010 at 6:36 pm
[...] Otter on why “Usability doesn’t mean UI”. I like it how Thomas is on the same page with developers and analysts when it comes to what REALLY [...]