At the end of last year, I contributed to a year-end roundup piece in A List Apart called “What I Learned About the Web in 2011.” I shared the most impactful lesson I had learned from various user research projects last year.

CONTEXT IS KING
The most important thing that 2011 taught me about web design is that physical context of use can no longer be assumed by platform, only intentional context can. For the past couple of years, we have gotten into the habit of presuming that mobile means on-the-go, desktop denotes a desk, and tablet is on the toilet. But increasingly the lines are blurring on where devices are being used and how they’re being used in unison. This year I have learned to see devices as location agnostic and instead associate them with purpose—I want to check (mobile), I want to manage (desktop), I want to immerse (tablet). This shift away from objective context toward subjective context will reshape the way we design experiences across and between devices, to better support user goals and ultimately mimic analog tools woven into our physical spaces.

When I had blogged about my reflections, Jim Nielsen commented that my thoughts had spurred him to create a graphic to represent my idea. I love it so much that I wanted to reblog it here.

Paul Boag also read my thoughts in ALA and wrote about his reaction in a post titled, “Device implies use not context.” In his case he’s using “context” to denote physical context, whereas I differentiated between physical context (location) and intentional context (intention of use). While he likes the notion of tying device to intent, he isn’t entirely sure he agrees with the intentions that I apply to each device.

What do you think of how I’m using device choice as an indication of intention and not location? Do you feel that my division of check/immerse/manage is a fair one?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts as I dig into this concept more deeply.

• What I learned in 2011 and my predictions for 2012
• Apple’s Most Notorious Flops
• Pleasure and Pain has gone mobile
• TweetDeck stream of consciousness
• Why I Don’t Have an iPhone (but might someday)

Pleasure and Pain is not my first blog. It’s probably my fifth, though it’s certainly the only one that ever took off.

From September 2004 – August 2006, I had a blog called self-preservation (self-hosted WordPress, natch). At the time, I was pretty damn proud of myself for that witty title — and I kinda still am. It wasn’t a blog about UX or tech specifically, it was just a random assortment of things I found interesting at the time.

I was recently compelled to browse through the old posts to see if there’s any content worth revisiting. And boy are there some gems! I’ll repost things here as I find them.

Here’s a great reminder of just how far consumer technology has come in six short years.

Written January 17, 2005:

On my way home, my cell phone battery pooped out. It’s been hanging on by a thread lately, and since I was overdue for an upgrade, I decided to renew my contract with Verizon and got a deep discount on a new phone: the Samsung SCH-a670. It’s a CDMA camera phone with speaker-independent voice dialing. That means that without programming my voice, I can dial anyone’s number just by saying their name. The phone also has a color screen, Multimedia Messaging Support, and voice memo recording.

I’m sure I’ll be reading the manual for the rest of the night to figure out the other cool features. I love new toys!

God, I loved that phone. A secondary display when the clamshell was closed…hotness!

• My Cell Phones: 2000 – Today
• Photo of the day: A 90-year-old’s cell phone
• Ten Best Things and Five Worst Things About the BlackBerry
• Tips and Tricks for BlackBerry Users
• Photo of the day: But if you teach me to organize…

Hotel alarm clocks are usually a big pain in the butt. Hampton Inn aims to fix all that — and takes simplicity to inconceivable levels.

They go so far past easy to use and intuitive that they come back around to obscure and pointless.

They visualize musical genres.

Columns for Classical
Stream for Soft Rock
Cows for Country
Cadillac for Oldies
Bleachers for Sports

Now you tell me: if a hotel guest has somehow never heard of these genres, will they be able to deduce their sound via the associated imagery? My guess is not likely. If you can’t read English, I can see how the bleachers and the cows might point you in the right direction…but a stream for Soft Rock?! First of all, a stream doesn’t make rocks soft, it makes them smooth. Second of all, just because “rock” is a homonym in English (meaning both a mineral and a category of music) doesn’t mean it’s a homonym in any other language — so it could easily be mistaken for sounds of water.

What I’m getting at is why would they ever spend the money on this? They had to produce or purchase the photography. They had to custom design and manufacture the devices. What in their minds could possibly be the benefit of all of this cost and effort?

Hampton Inn is so proud of their radios, they even have them for sale on their Home Collection website for a mere 60 bucks.

If any of you have a different perspective on this, I’d love to hear it. I’m simply stumped.

• The conditioner bottles at The Hampton Inn
• The Work I Love
• links for 2008-02-27
• Photo of the day: Do Not Disturb
• The User Experience Designer’s Anthem

[UPDATE: I'm getting a lot of visitors from TD Bank's Intranet. If you are a TD Bank / Commerce Bank employee, please leave a comment on this post with your thoughts!]

I save my spare change in a ceramic vase that was given to me by my childhood babysitter. It isn’t cute like a piggy bank, but every time I drop in some coins I feel a sense of encouragement when I think of her.

Whenever the vase gets filled to the top, I bring it to my bank to exchange the coins for paper. It’s a double reward: I get to deposit all the money I saved (woo!), and their Penny Arcade coin-counting machine is so much fun to use (double woo!).

The Penny Arcade originated at Commerce Bank, known throughout NYC and surrounding areas for its unrivaled customer service (let’s call them the Zappos of banks). Just a few examples of how awesome they are: they refund your ATM fees from other banks; deposits clear on the next business day (even from other banks); and they’re open late and 7 days a week.

TD Bank bought out Commerce Bank last year, and by the Fall the name and branding had been replaced in all of its locations. As a customer for several years, I was unsettled by the change and afraid that Commerce’s zest and perks would soon disappear. So far the service has remained top-notch, and the Penny Arcade is still in its place and still totally free (to customers and non-customers alike).

When I brought in my change the other day, I decided to document the process to share with all of you. It really epitomizes what great customer experience is all about — not just making things easy, but also pleasurable. See for yourself.

The Penny Arcade

There’s a touchscreen straight ahead, shelf to pour in coins, and a “KIDS Counter” on the right so the little ones to join in on the fun.

Step 1

You’re walked through the process by a cartoon kid, which is an automatic cue that this is going to be fun (and it doesn’t hurt that she looks like me).

Step 2

You’re shown how to dump the coins into the machine and gently reminded to inspect them.

Step 3

Instead of making you just stand there and wait while your change is being counted, you can choose to play a game and guess how much it’s going to add up to.

Step 4

I made a guess based on my previous trips to the Penny Arcade.

Step 5

Then I shuffled all the coins into the machine, mimicking the hand motion I’d seen a few screens earlier.

Step 6

As the coins are falling into the machine, there’s lots of clinking noise — almost a spectacle, like winning at the slots.

Step 7

When all the coins have been counted, you’re prompted to move on.

Step 8

Arrrgh! I missed the screen where it actually displays my total amount. But trust me, it’s there. I just didn’t snap fast enough.

Step 9

Bummer. My guess wasn’t even close so I didn’t win.

Step 10

By this point you’re really itching for the next time you can come back to the Penny Arcade.

Receipt

Best of all is the receipt that’s printed showing me all of the money I saved. $25 more than I had estimated!

So what are you waiting for?! Find a TD Bank branch near you and bring in your spare change. You’ll be surprised just how much fun banking can be.

• Photo of the day: Cigarette vending machine
• SeamlessWeb Mobile Site: Easy to Use, But Impossible to Order
• The 5-Year Anniversary of My LLC
• I bought a MacBook Air!
• The Work I Love

On a recent trip to Pittsburgh, I passed this cigarette vending machine when I went to the restroom at Finnegan’s Wake (one of my favorite Irish pubs in town). It took me by surprise because they’ve been illegal in New York City for almost 20 years. I remember playing with the knobs as a little girl, but can’t recall noticing one ever since. I’m not a smoker so possibly they’ve just escaped my attention altogether, but this one in particular caught my eye because of how it has been modified.

The cigarette machine itself only has a slot for coins, no room for dollars. In 1980 when this machine was probably manufactured, cigarettes cost a mere 63 cents per pack. Now they’re being sold for $6.75. In order to accommodate the rising costs, The Bill Collector has been attached to the side of the machine, allowing the customer to pay with dollar bills “for credits,” as the machine states. But interestingly it also says “No change returned,” which leads me to believe that you’ve gotta insert six one-dollar bills and then three quarters in order to make the purchase, or else insert seven dollar bills and be out a quarter.

Since I don’t smoke and didn’t want to waste the money, I didn’t give it a try to test my theory. But I did happen to find some detailed information on The Bill Collector patent filed by Revenco.

If someone out there has used one of these machines and has a different understanding of how it works, let us know in the comments!

• Photo of the day: Accommodating large parties
• Photo of the day: Don’t Lose Your Shirt
• TD Bank’s Penny Arcade
• Photo of the day: Whirlpool dishwasher utensil tray
• Photo of the day: Insert hands to dry

A few years ago I went out with a guy who made me dinner in his apartment. I’m going to refrain from saying what I thought of the food. But at the end of the meal as we brought the dishes into the kitchen, I noticed that his dishwasher had a unique design that I’d never seen before. Though I didn’t even have this blog at the time, I took some photos knowing that one day I’d want to share them with the world.

What I thought was so cool about the dishwasher, a Whirlpool Quiet Partner I, was that the utensil tray sits on the door instead of where you normally see it, on the side of the bottom rack. This leaves more room for dishes, and skips the step of having to pull open the rack every time you need to throw in a piece of silverware.

Interestingly, the tray can actually be detached from the door and hung on the lower rack:

In this position gravity helps keep the silverware from shifting around every time you open the door, but it does kind of block your access to inserting or removing dishes from the bottom rack without having to pull it open. I suppose that’s why this guy kept his attached to the door.

Anyone out there ever seen one of these? What position did the owner keep the utensil tray in? The idea that Whirlpool wanted to try to innovate in this area is interesting to me. Do you guys think it was a success?

• Photo of the day: LLUP to open
• Twitter.com finally removes their awful pagination
• Photo of the day: Do Not Disturb
• Who needs a plumber when you have Twitter?
• Photo of the day: Floor seats

I’ve talked before about how designers use personas to capture user needs, behaviors and motivations. If you were ever wondering how those insights help guide the product design, this pretty much says it all:

[via gregoire]

Questions?

• The value of personas
• Google’s Design Principles
• Redesigning the boxee experience
• “Using Mental Models for Tactics and Strategy” webinar with Indi Young
• The UX Design Process for the Boxee Beta

As you probably know, Apple released iPhone 2.0 yesterday. Watch Steve Jobs’ WWDC Keynote Address if you haven’t already seen it.

I watched it live on MacRumors, and when it was over I Twittered this:

That comment solicited quite a reaction from my Twitterverse. Two examples:

As a designer and gadget geek, I’m constantly asked why I don’t have an iPhone and instead choose to use a BlackBerry. Those are my two standard answers: AT&T and touchscreen keypad. But since I keep getting asked, allow me to explain myself in further detail here.

What’s wrong with AT&T?

I’ve been a Verizon Wireless subscriber since I got my first cell phone eight years ago. It’s by far the best network in New York City, and in my experience has the best coverage throughout the country. When roadtripping with friends — which I do fairly regularly, at least two trips a year — I am consistently the only one with cell reception. My friends use Sprint, T-Mobile and the service formally known as Cingular Wireless. But unless I’m in the basement of a concrete building or on top of a mountain, I always have service. After all, my device is a phone first and foremost — and it is important to me that I be reachable no matter where I am.

Take a look at the AT&T and Verizon coverage maps.

AT&T Coverage Map

Verizon Wireless Coverage Map

Now granted, both maps show diminished coverage in the Rocky Mountain range, but Verizon is considerably better in Colorado, Utah and Nevada (where I have driven several times) and Northern California (where I’ll be driving later this month).

To be fair, a few people (who I certainly trust) said that they haven’t experienced problems with AT&T:

Jared said it twice just to make sure I got it ;)

Still, there have been several times when I’ve been in Miami with my parents and my phone has full reception while my mom’s iPhone has none.

It’s a sexy phone. It’s got a beautiful form factor and some really neat features. I’m glad my mom has one so that I can play around with it. I have a lot of respect for it. And if Apple ever opens up the device to multiple carriers (just like BlackBerry does), I’d be halfway there. But not entirely.

What’s wrong with the touchscreen keypad?

Part of user experience design is interaction design, and that means that I am responsible for creating products and systems that are easy to interact with. They must be designed to meet the user’s goals and exceed their expectations. They must be responsive and efficient. They must prevent the user creating errors. And above all, they must not cause physical or emotional harm.

In my opinion, the touchscreen keypad on the iPhone is an example of very poor interaction design.

Notice the difference in hand positions. On the iPhone, the user must cradle the device in one hand and hit the keys with their index finger. On the BlackBerry, the holds the device in both hands and can type with their thumbs. Both hands are used equally on the BlackBerry, while on the iPhone one hand is always used for typing while the other is for holding — unless of course you switch back and forth, but that would surely slow you down and get rather annoying.

Then there’s tactile response. The keys on my BlackBerry have a ridge that allow me to touch type without having to stare down at them. I can feel where one key ends and the next begins. The ridges from Q to T curve in the opposite direction than the ridges from Y to P, which helps me to divide the keyboard into the left-side and right-side for each thumb. And furthermore, because I can press the buttons with my thumb, I can type an entire email with one hand. Try doing that on the iPhone.

There was a discussion about this on the IxDA mailing list when the iPhone was announced in January 2007, with people arguing on both sides. That’s even the case in my Twitterverse:

People often say that the iPhone’s intelligent word suggestion feature makes up for the poor ergonomics and frequent fat-fingering, but I know which of my friends has an iPhone, and I see their constant misspellings. My emails and texts and tweets — yeah, those are typo-free. And that’s important to me.

Why I say “might someday”

Perhaps next year Apple will announce that the device is open to all carriers, and Verizon Wireless will release their version of the iPhone. That would be a huge win. Same phone number, same great coverage, no hassle.

Additionally, there has been a significant advance in the research and development of haptic technology — the ability for virtual controls to have reflexes akin to tactile controls. Currently, the iPhone’s keys respond with a click sound and an enlarged key so that the user knows that their touch was recognized by the device. But these are only visual and audio cues, not tactile ones.

If you’ve ever played a drag racing game at an arcade, you’ve probably experienced a much higher level of haptic feedback; the steering wheel vibrates, gets tight as you round a corner or loose as you go straight — it responds to the road conditions that you see on the screen. Or how about a more current example: the Wii. If you’ve played Wii sports, you’ve felt the sensory feedback when you’ve hit the tennis ball or punched in the air. It feels real.

Students at the University of Glasgow are doing research on how to bring haptics to the iPhone. They are developing tactile responses to the “finger down” and “finger up” states of the keys to create the “natural snap ratio” of a physical button. It’s fascinating work and I encourage you to read more about it. Where there is considerable discussion on Gizmodo over the value of this particular approach, this is really only the first step. If there were a way to sense the iPhone’s virtual keys before pressing down, it might enable touch typing or the use of the thumbs.

So now you have it, my complains in full detail. The new iPhone comes out on July 11, which just happens to be my birthday. While the thought of you standing in line for 10 hours to buy me a birthday present amuses me greatly, don’t do it. I’m very happy with what I have. But if you don’t mind, I’ll play with yours…just for a little while.

• My Cell Phones: 2000 – Today
• links for 2008-02-27
• Tips and Tricks for BlackBerry Users
• Ten Best Things and Five Worst Things About the BlackBerry
• Formatting my blog for the iPhone

Alex Rainert just posted this great piece on his blog Everyday UX showing the evolution of his mobile phones from 1998 to now.

I was inspired to post my own, though I have to admit I’m not sure if I have the exact models right. Thanks to GSM Arena for having photos of every mobile phone ever produced.

2000 – 2001

Motorola Talkabout T8160

I was off to college and the folks requested that I buy a cell phone. I loved the clamshell and the blue battery cover. This may have been the easiest-to-use phone I’ve ever owned. Send and Off buttons were on the bottom of the keypad, keys were squishy and well-spaced.

2001 – 2002

Nokia 8210

This was so much slimmer than the Talkabout — could fit in the front pocket of my jeans — and I thought it made me look really classy. I quickly hated that I always had to lock the keys or risk hip-dialing someone. The keys were TINY, even for my little fingers.

2002 – 2004

Motorola V60

I must have broken off the antenna four times. One time it was in my front pocket at an Everclear concert and I was hopping around and snap. Good thing the Verizon store only charged $10 to replace it.

2004 – 2007

Samsung E300

Yes, I had this phone for a long time. I was waiting for the iPhone (and when it finally came out, I really didn’t want it). This was my first (and only) camera phone, and the first time I had used text messaging. Sending and receiving photos with boyfriends got expensive.

November 2007 – Present

BlackBerry 8830 World Edition

Pretty obvious how I feel about my Crackberry — I’m addicted. Push email, full QWERTY keyboard, BB Messenger (IM-client), the Web (ok, it’s mobile web). You can read all about it here and here.

So what about you? How many cell phones have you owned and when did you start?

• Photo of the day: A 90-year-old’s cell phone
• Why I Don’t Have an iPhone (but might someday)
• From the archives: I love new toys!
• Tips and Tricks for BlackBerry Users
• TwitterBerry was mean to me

I’ve got a thing for Twitter and I own a BlackBerry, so naturally I use TwitterBerry. It’s a downloadable BB app that lets me post updates, get replies, read my friends timeline and the public timeline — all without having to load Twitter in the mobile browser.

It isn’t perfect, but it usually works pretty well and is generally painless… that was until last night. When it couldn’t find tweets to populate my friends timeline, it gave me an unexpected error that almost hurt my feelings.

Ha! Isn’t that hilarious?! What an unfortunate goof. I suppose the TwitterBerry developers never took the time to test their error messages on the front-end. If they had, perhaps they might have avoided insulting their users.

This is what the Friends Timeline normally looks like:

Has anyone else using TwitterBerry experienced this?

• My Twitter Karma
• Twitter: An Asymmetrical Chat Room
• Etiquette isn’t dead
• Photo of the day: Nine wrong ways to swipe
• I’m Speaking at Pittsburgh Web Design Day