So, when I create apps, I ask others to use it. I ask them what they like, what they don't like, and what they'd like to see improve. And, I do this from the first day I start writing the app. I know that user involvement is one of the key to success.
What is a good application? I'd say it is the one that lets you get your job done. You don't even feel like you're using the application or tool. You get in there and it enables you to focus and get what you want to get done, and stays out of your way.
Sometimes the usability of an application, or the lack there of, is so obvious, you wonder if any real person ever used it before it went into production. I experienced, or I should say endured, one such application recently at the Bangalore airport.
I was going to write more about it, but Naresh took the lead and wrote it already! So, thanks Naresh, I will simply link to his story here.
So, the next time you are ready to write some code, I have a kind favor to ask. Please, please, involve your users or at least think about them and their experience.
