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With the release of the Iphone a couple of days ago I started thinking a lot about user interfaces and what makes them good or bad. The Iphone is an interesting example to evaluate because for the most part it doesn’t bring a single new technology to the cell phone/smart phone market. The reason everyone is so excited about it is because Apple is known for fantastic user interfaces and an uncompromising commitment to the customer experience. Are there phones available with more features than the Iphone for less money? Sure, but I don’t want to use most of them because while the features are great they are mostly a pain to use. This is bad news for companies like Microsoft, Palm, and Blackberry who rely on users lust for features to continue the relentless upsell of their latest products.

A good user interface opens up possibilities that previously were either too difficult or too cumbersome to do before. Microsoft should be thanking Apple for opening a market that they have been unable to bring to fruition themselves, the fusion of the cell phone and music player. There are many devices that do this now, but none have gained significant traction and most are a pain to use and/or the pricing structure is the equivalent of a slap in the face of the customer. Users that see how easy it is to do things that they previously hated to do (Like listen to voicemail) on their old phones will see how much better the experience can be when the user interface isn’t an afterthought for the company bringing a product to market.

There are a bunch of verbal tics that people use that drive me crazy.  “Honestly” and “to tell you the truth” are the two that I dislike the most. 

Another one that I hate is “that’s a good question” as the immediate response to a question.  I know this is just buying time to start to formulate an answer, but it always annoys me.

Today, one of my partners (who heard me coach a CEO on this the other day in preparation for a presentation) told me that I had just said “that’s a good question” three times in a meeting we were in.  I looked at him with my normal incredulous “huh?” look and said “really?”  He didn’t respond with “that’s a good question” but responded, “I don’t mean to be an asshole about it, but really.” 

I guess I’ve been promulgating one of the verbal tics that annoys me.  If you notice me doing this with you, please admonish me appropriately.

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Two mice fell into a bottle of cream, the first mouse quickly gave up and drown, the second mouse wouldn't quit, he struggles so hard that eventually he turned that cream into butter and crawled out. Gentlemen, as if this moment, I'm the second mouse.

Two mice fell into a bottle of cream, the first mouse quickly gave up and drown, the second mouse wouldn't quit, he struggles so hard that eventually he turned that cream into butter and crawled out. Gentlemen, as if this moment, I'm the second mouse. -- "catch me"