Wrap-Up

1. "Technology offers the potential to make life easier and more enjoyable; each new technology provides increased benefits. At the same time, added complexities arise to increase our difficulty and frustration. The development of a technology tends to follow a U-shaped curve of complexity: starting high; dropping to a low, comfortable level; then climbing again."

I found this passage to explain, in a nutshell, the short run drawbacks and long run pros of new technology.  As products become more advanced, they begin to include technologies that the user is unfamiliar with.  It takes an adjustment period before a product actually gains ground in its respective industry, and usability is the most significant factor contributing to success.  The narrower that the U-shaped curve is, the more successful a product is bound to be.  It's important to understand that if a consumer becomes too frustrated by a product because it is too difficult to operate, the technology would be useless. Advancement and innovation must not compromise usability or simplicity. 

2. Even though Norman's book was written twenty years ago, it still relies on basic fundamentals of design, and caters to what the user wants and needs.  Visabiltiy is a key consideration when evaluating a design, because it relies on simplicity. The paradox of technology also still exists to this day.  Anytime something new is created, the same U-shaped curve cycle is experienced, through each trial of the innovation. The simplistic tendency of design will never grow old, because advancements are consistently trying to make life easier for the public.  Norman's ideas are logical and simple, and for that reason will stand the test of time.

3. In order to evaluate the design of a product, I would primarily make sure it was simple to use.  Instructions should not be necessary to use a product, because if the design accomplishes what it should, the user should have the ability to operate it with minimal difficulty.  It should also have immediate feedback, so the user knows that the action they have taken is the correct one.  The more features a new technology has, the more feedback it should have as well in order to accomodate the advancements.  The natural mapping should make operation of the product obvious.  For example, if you wanted to turn the volume of something up, you should have to push an "up" button, and vice versa.  Constraints must be set as well, to visibly trigger the mind into knowing how to operate it.  Conceptual mapping is also significant to visibiltiy, because it logically shows the user exactly how to work the product and it's features.