Categories: design, learning

Will Odom an Associate Instructor for my HCI Design Evaluation Methods brought to students attention a 60 minutes video on the future of HCI and frustrations consumers face with lack of usability in the digital products that increasingly surround us in our daily lives.

“We are becoming slaves to our own technology - addicted to and dependent upon all sorts of beeping, flashing gadgetry that is supposed to make our lives easier.”

B. Dworschak brought up a thought provoking comment that I’d like to close with, “Of course we have become slaves to our technology, but our second-class status is not the fault of these tools, but rather our own fault, both individually and collectively. Technology are valuable tools, but they must be wielded with careful thought; otherwise these devices become not a means to an end but an end in themselves. We have the freedom to choose how we use them, but too often, we surrender our free will and play the role of the hapless victim of our devices. Be strong, make decisions about how you want to live your life. It’s always the same question, folks.”