Human factors central to design of new laptops
By Zatni Arbi
JAKARTA (JP): Take a look at any of the laptop computers that came out about 10 years ago. Some of the leading brands that you would have seen by the end of the 1980s were NEC, Tandy, Toshiba, Zenith and IBM. Then take a look at today's notebooks, particularly the high-end ones from Big Blue, such as ThinkPad 600, and you'll see not only how far technology has advanced and how much the bulkiness has dwindled but also how comfortable it has become to use them.
Certainly one of the obvious changes you'll notice is the addition of a palm rest. In the past, the keyboard was placed closer to you on the lower part of the notebook. It made typing an acrobatic act for the fingers. In today's notebook designs, the keyboard has been moved up away from you and as close as possible to the cover hinges, which, in the meantime, has also been moved to the upper edge of the notebook body. The result is not only a much larger space for the screen but also the palm rest's introduction. With support for our palms, typing has become very comfortable. And also the keyboard itself, which belongs more to the subject of ergonomics, has become far more comfortable, too.
It's an evolution. But certainly, these changes are also the result of studies that are loosely called "the human factors", which are basically aimed at making human-machine interaction smoother and less frustrating.
"Today, notebook makers have to compete in the area of human factors," said Stacey Baer when I interviewed her last month at the plush Sheraton Mirage, Port Douglas, Australia. Stacey is in charge of IBM's Personal System Design and Development, Human Factors and Usability.
User centered
Why has human factors research become so important? The PC standard, which was actually also a brainchild of IBM and which is now virtually controlled by the Microsoft and Intel duo through their Windows operating system and Pentium processor, is an open standard. It means that anybody can design and sell a PC or a notebook computer based on this standard. What this also means is that it is impossible for notebook and PC makers to compete based solely on features, speed, processing power and price. Everybody can obtain the best and the fastest components on the market and use them in the notebook and PCs they sell.
What is left for them to compete on is the human factors, as Stacey said. How easy it is for computerists to use one machine as opposed to another? And, we may not realize it, small things may matter a lot in the users' purchase decision, particularly as users are now becoming more and more knowledgeable about computers.
Take the placement of the power switch, for instance. Many notebooks still have it on top of the keyboard, and it forces you to open the cover before you can power them up or down. "We have moved the power switch to the side of the notebook because we have found that users often want to be able to turn the machine off while the cover is down," said Monica Kappiantari, product specialist at IBM Indonesia.
So, human factors research attempts to make the computer as friendly as possible to the users. It is never an easy task, though, because there are a wide range of computer proficiency levels among computerists. There are always the novices and the power users. If a computer maker places too much emphasis on ease of use for the novice, the power users will find the aids excessively redundant.
Focus groups
How do human factor researchers know which feature the users love and which ones they hate? For the IBM ThinkPad, they conduct studies using focus groups. Users -- especially their major customers -- and industry analysts and observers are invited to comment on the features of their products. What they concentrate on is primarily the elimination of things that frustrate users.
"We conduct this study in many regions of the world because people's preferences are different," explained Stacey, who is a cognitive psychologist. "For products that are still in the conceptual development stage, we may use wooden mock-ups to test users' reactions," she added.
They have to get people from different cultures involved in the studies because they differ in their likes and dislikes. "The Japanese, for example, tend to read the manuals first before touching the buttons," said Stacey. As we all know too well, in many other parts of the world -- including in Indonesia -- people will just jump into the keyboard right away and open the manual only if unsolvable problems are encountered.
Do the human factors researchers always listen to the feedback from the users in the focus groups? In most cases, they seriously do. But I personally found it amusing to see that each time some users suggested that the TrackPoint be replaced with a touchpad the IBMers would quickly come up with a claim that the TrackPoint was easier to use, and provided a bevy of theories to support the claim. It's not really hard to see why it is so difficult for IBM to let go of the TrackPoint. This pointing device was IBM's own invention. At the time, where we were all frustrated by an external mouse or the slippery trackball on our notebooks, the TrackPoint was indeed a godsend.
But, would you ever find a curvy ThinkPad in beige in the future? Perhaps unlikely, because boxy and black with a red dot are the characteristics that have become so closely associated with ThinkPads. Big Blue has been quite successful in associating ThinkPads with advanced technology, durability and also prestige. Changing the design styles of these notebooks may affect the already established image and, thus, it may never be done, despite the fact that many users may prefer a ThinkPad in a different shape and a different color.
Nonetheless, the human factors and the ease of use, in addition to ergonomics, are becoming a crucial part of competitive weapons among computer makers. Therefore, IBM, as well as other notebook and computer vendors will continue working and expanding on this type of research, and we, the users, are the beneficiary.