Windows 8 — Disappointing Usability for Both Novice and Power Users

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications

Hidden features, reduced discoverability, cognitive overhead from dual environments, and reduced power from a single-window UI and low information density. Too bad.

Danielle M. Villegas‘s insight:

Jakob Nielsen is at it again. I found this article thanks to a friend of a friend on LinkedIn. My friend was asking about Windows 8, trying to get a feel for whether is was worth the switch, and another friend of hers recommended this article, and it’s a good one. I think without going as in-depth as Nielsen did, even just with some of the perusing I’ve done at my local Microsoft stores had me leery of the product. I’m usually the first to jump onboard with a new OS from Microsoft, and for the first time, I’m actually hesitating and truly hedging on doing the upgrade. I’m very much a PC person when it comes to my heavy duty computing needs, but I’m really still not sure about Windows 8. This article justifies my instincts a bit.

–techcommgeekmom

See on www.nngroup.com

Author: TechCommGeekMom

Danielle M. Villegas is a technical communicator who currently employed at Cox Automotive, Inc., and freelances as her own technical communications consultancy, Dair Communications. She has worked at the International Refugee Committee, MetLife, Novo Nordisk, BASF North America, Merck, and Deloitte, with a background in content strategy, web content management, social media, project management, e-learning, and client services. Danielle is best known in the technical communications world for her blog, TechCommGeekMom.com, which has continued to flourish since it was launched during her graduate studies at NJIT in 2012. She has presented webinars and seminars for Adobe, the Society for Technical Communication (STC), the IEEE ProComm, TCUK (ISTC) and at Drexel University’s eLearning Conference. She has written articles for the STC Intercom, STC Notebook, the Content Rules blog, and The Content Wrangler as well. She is very active in the STC, as a former chapter president for the STC-Philadelphia Metro Chapter, and is currently serving on three STC Board committees. You can learn more about Danielle on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/daniellemvillegas, on Twitter @techcommgeekmom, or through her blog. All content is the owner's opinions, and does not reflect those of her employers past or present. View All Posts