When will tech become truly user friendly?

by | Mar/10/2010

I used a wonderful ATM in Santa Barbara recently. The main screen had a space for your PIN and the buttons for $20, $40, $100, etc. All the customer needs to do is touch 4 keys for the pin and 1 key for the amount requested and DONE! No “Enter” key. Out pops the cash! So easy.

When I use a tool that easy, it is so refreshing.

So much better than the usual, “What do you want? Enter. Are you sure? Are you sure you are sure?” etc. Additionally, think of recent changes Microsoft implemented in their interfaces. On the downside, many people are less than impressed with the new Microsoft Office ribbon menu system. On the upside, Windows 7’s interface has many features I find much more appealing than XP’s interface.

Many people rave at the engineering Apple puts into their products and almost everyone can see why. Xerox shipped the first mouse but Macintosh made it famous. The iPhone definitely made a permanent mark in personal IT history.

One of the next biggest advancement opportunities is voice recognition—and that’s better than you think already. I wonder what the next widely adopted user friendly interface change will be? If you want to, post your ideas and comments in this blog.