Recently in Use-case introspection Category

While the media does a lot of hand-wringing about the lack of privacy in our digital lives, the average consumer is increasingly becoming comfortable with letting go. There's no privacy now, inasmuch as your information isn't fully opaque. It's all a spectrum. The question isn't, "Am I exposed?" but rather, "How convenient is it for someone to snoop?"

Which is why I think it's very important for product managers to take the cross-roads of privacy and usability under a microscope. Don't just do blanket privacy controls and think you're done. Think about the nuances and fine-tune the barriers.

I present three cases where privacy is nullified for convenience. In the first case, it's designed appropriately, but in the other two cases, the design destroys the whole experience.

Take for example browser history. I do not clear my browser history, and because I use Firefox, a guest user of my computer could easily type something in the address bar that could auto-complete to something hilarious. However, the odds of that are low enough that I don't worry about it. Since the privacy shortcomings are outweighed by the convenience of having that feature, I—and probably most users—let it go.

On the other hand Google's Chrome Browser by default can not let you turn off the Frequently Visited Sites home page. Even if you set your home page to blank, any time a user opens a new tab, this alternative home page would show your eight most visited sites. And since users commonly open new tabs, this would shove my private sites in a guest user's face with a high probability. And so I had to ditch Chrome. As much as I loved nearly every other thing about Chrome, that one aspect lost me. It was much more exposure than I could tolerate.

This is all a roundabout way of saying that I wish Google asked you for your password again when searching the Web History feature. Web History remembers all the sites you surf on any computer you have the Google Toolbar installed, and then allows you to search the contents of those pages. This would be so profoundly useful to me. I'd be able to ditch my bookmark managers and I wouldn't be frustrated trying to remember some anecdote I vaguely recall a season or two ago. But having that feature always available is a can of worms. See, I'm always signed onto Google, and I'm not willing to give up the "Remember Me" feature, and so a guest user could just open any of my browsers, click on Web History and go to town. If Google just made it so searches would require a password re-entry, it would save the product for me.

The sad thing is I'm sure this is one of their top requested "features" for Web History. But if the product manager is looking at this as a "feature" then they've already failed. It's only a "feature" request if the present lack-of-it means the product is being used less. When in reality it's a "dealbreaker" because it means its not being used at all. The ideal product manager knows which label is appropriate, and by having zero dealbreakers, brings their products to a viable audience.

Theoretically, there's ways for users to mitigate problems with Web History and Chrome. Hell, if I really wanted to, I could switch to a Guest profile any time I wanted to let someone use the computer. But if that's the best response you can think of, then you're thinking like an engineer. In natural settings, a friend is at my house, I have to answer a phone call, he motions, "Hey, can I use your computer?" For a split second, my mind makes a snap comparison between having to interrupt the phone call to log off my computer, being rude by motioning "No," or taking my chances with letting him use the semi-private computing environment I've become accustomed to.

Is there a way that if I read a facebook message in my Gmail, and I hit "Archive," it can automatically "Mark as read" in Facebook? I have the same problem with Google Voice, as I listen/read all my voicemail in Gmail, and after a week, a stack of messages remain unread in the Google Voice app on my phone and on the web.

If you're thinking The Tablet is just a big iPhone, or just Apple's take on the e-reader, or just a media player, or just anything, I say you're thinking too small -- the equivalent of thinking that the iPhone was going to be just a click wheel iPod that made phone calls. I think The Tablet is nothing short of Apple's reconception of personal computing.

When John Gruber wrote this in The Tablet, it got my wheels turning. I started imagining use-cases. Every couple days or so, some inconvenience would strike me and I'd think, "Wish I had a Tablet." Here they are:

1. The New Yorker is my favorite magazine that I read on a regular basis. The problem is that for some reason, here in Austin, the print magazine arrives on a Wednesday or Thursday, while as some of the content is released online the previous Sunday night, and bookstores get the magazine Monday morning. One option is to read the digital edition that Condé Nast publishes, but the reader is designed almost like you're reading Google Maps, zooming and panning and squinting. The only way to get any use out of it is to print the articles. The other alternative is to read it on the Kindle. The Kindle, however, also has a nasty unified format, and the Kindle edition does not have every article! If I had a Tablet, the magazine would arrive Sunday night in an easy-to-use reader that Apple is inevitably coming up with. Plus, since the Tablet is going to be a flagship device that's supposed to revolutionize the print industry, I expect that Condé Nast wouldn't just provide a fraction of their content, but instead provide the premiere and complete New Yorker experience.

2. I remembered that I had to make a lunchtime dash to the Post Office to pick up a stack of held mail. On the way out of my house, I recalled that waiting at the Post Office is usually a harrowing experience, and that I should bring something to read. On my table was a 400 page hardcover of Googled by Ken Auletta. I wasn't particularly interested in reading it that morning, plus it was kind of bulky. In the scramble, I picked it up anyway. At the Post Office, reading it required two hands, partly because of its weight, and partly because I needed to hold the pages down. Doing this while shuffling forward a couple feet every five minutes wasn't really much better than just waiting patiently. If I had a Tablet, firstly, I wouldn't have had to deliberate as to what reading material to bring. I'd just yank my Tablet, trust in knowing that I'd have everything I wanted to read with me. At the Post Office, I could probably read it with one hand. When I collected my held mail, I could've bundled the Tablet with it, without having to clinch the hardcover book under my arm while juggling my keys and envelopes. Plus, the bigger picture is that I wouldn't have had to waste any trees or as much money buying the eBook version of Googled.

3. Some form of reading material is with me at all times when I'm on the go. When I dash out the door, I usually yank the nearest magazine, and once I get in my car, I drop it on the passenger seat. If I pick up a passenger, then I have to slide the magazine into the side pocket, which if inserted unfolded, flops over. If I fold it up, then it creases the pages. So usually I slip it between my seat and the handbrake, where it inevitably gets stuck, lost, or torn apart. Hardcover books also pose similar problems. Most are too bulky to fit in the side pockets or by the handbrake, so usually I have to move my arms in an awkward way to deposit and retrieve the book from the floor of the backseat. If I had a Tablet, I could slide it securely into the side pocket and also by the handbrake. And this placement wouldn't have to change for each medium. Whether it's newspaper, magazine, hardcover, or softcover, I wouldn't have to stretch, fold, or fuss at all. Most likely, my passenger would pick up the Tablet herself and look up directions for me or read something that interests her.

4. I commute once every quarter from Austin to San Diego to visit family, and it's about a 3-hour flight. Normally, I carry on my laptop, partly for security reasons, but also in case I get bored and want to do some writing. However, the battery on my Macbook Pro, which is a year-and-a-half old, has depleted to the point where at full charge, it only shows one-and-a-half hours of time left. Also, that number is generally deceiving, partly because the last ten-to-fifteen minutes you don't have, as you and your Macbook start to panic about low battery life, and partly, because the number is generally a lie. With one hour of solid use, I have to ration my distractions. I usually read magazines until I get bored and nod off, leaving me with just the right amount of time to use my entire battery for the remainder of the flight. If I had a Tablet, the battery life would definitely better than my Macbook. I'd hope that it'd be much better than 3 hours. Also, it'd be much easier to handle on an airplane. While you wouldn't even need the tray table, if you had to use it, you wouldn't be worrying about the screen bumping a reclined seat. If you wanted to put away the Tablet, you could just slide it into the seat-pocket. No more messing with leaning and reaching below for your laptop bag, then unzipping the bag and stowing it away.

5. If you're going to use your laptop for any long period of time, you're going to want a table. Tapping away on your lap can eventually be an ergonomic pain. And so I was debating whether or not to bring my laptop to my friend's apartment to do some light co-working, like checking emails or looking up reports. But then I remembered that his apartment's really messy, and there's not really any solid table space. Plus, as minor as the task may be, the thought of unplugging my laptop, bringing my power charger, and lugging it in my bag, was kind of a hassle, and I thought to myself, "eh, I'll just play Xbox on his couch, maybe use my phone to do some emails." If I had a Tablet, I wouldn't have to make that compromise. I could just whisk it off my desk, run down the stairs, hop in my car, and be comfortably computing at his place, without having to fuss with cords, table space, or the discomfort of typing on a laptop while you're sinking into a sofa.

6. I saw a small ad in The New Yorker for a water-proof sleeve for the Kindle. This got me thinking: If I had a Tablet, and this water-proof sleeve came out for it (since every accessory manufacturer now has the Tablet in their sights), I could not only read in the shower, but I could blog there too. Warm showers stimulate my thinking, and I always get ideas for blog posts or little business opportunities, but by the time I get out, cooled off, and dressed up for work, the flame has died down, and there's a 50-50 chance I'll jot the idea down to maybe forget later. If I had a Tablet in the shower, I could already be doing light research on my ideas, or maybe even begin typing up a draft.

7. I was interviewing graphic designers, and most of them have digital portfolios. So, usually before the interview, I load their websites on my laptop. However, since Mutual Mobile is just a start-up, I usually don't have the most ideal interview space arranged. Sometimes I have a table, but it's a square one, and the candidate is sitting 90 degrees away from me. When I want to ask them questions about their portfolio, I have to rotate my laptop, which if the table is glass, makes this squeaky sound. I have to rotate it just the right amount so that we can both see it while pointing at it, and usually I have to move my chair around too. Sometimes I don't even have a table for the interview, and so I have to rotate the laptop 180 degrees and peer over while I point and ask questions about their work. If I had a Tablet, I could, with the lightest of gestures, rotate their portfolio so that I'm looking at it upside down and they're looking at it right-side up.

8. I was baking a pizza, and I hadn't used my oven in a while, so I wanted to make sure I wasn't going to burn anything and set off any alarms. I decided it was important to stay in the kitchen, but I also had a bunch of emails on my mind that I wanted to respond to. I could've brought my laptop into the kitchen, but its generally my policy to keep the laptop away from liquids and food. Plus, I'd have to make room for it, and then the whole thing starts to feel like a process. So instead I just pulled a newspaper into the kitchen that I wasn't really that interested in reading. If I had a Tablet, I wouldn't think twice about computing in the kitchen.

9. When I wake up, I stumble to my computer area, awaken either my desktop or laptop, lean in to either move the mouse or use the trackpad, and then crane my neck to face my upright monitor, just to check the weather. This routine happens three our four times a day for a lot of little tasks, like reading a short email standing up or changing mp3 playlists. Either way I'm bending my back, craning my neck, and stretching my arm in order to avoid having to roll out my ergonomic chair and situation myself in front of the screen just to take care of a task that would have taken five seconds standing up. If I had a Tablet, I'd just have to look down, tap tap tap, and be done with it.

It's a great testament to Apple's marketing machine that they can elicit such a grand sense of possibility for a device that hasn't even been officially announced yet.

I had a Compaq Portege Tablet PC in 2003. I've played with the Kindle. And I've paid attention to the announcements for Tablet computers at CES. And while there are a lot of devices that can take care of some of these use-cases, Apple's Tablet would probably take care of all of these, and would do so at a level of polish that would make you want to use it every day.

Cloud Computing has been one of those Holy Grails of computer science. I remember being in High School and watching a talk by Scott McNealey of Sun Microsystems making loud claims about how everybody will just have simple terminals with Internet access and store everything in data centers. And look where that kind of thinking got him.

But there are now signs that finally Cloud Computing is on its way here. You only have to look at changes in your own personal computing to see the proof.

For example, there's more and more applications that are faster for me in the Cloud. The first one that comes to mind is Gmail, which is faster than Outlook or Apple's Mail.app. Another is spreadsheets and text documents. It's faster for me to just hit the "Documents" link on Gmail (which is almost always open), and then hit New -> Spreadsheet (or Document), rather than fire up those Microsoft Office beasts, Word and Excel. Plus, people are already weary enough about loading attachments.

Another example is looking at hard disk usage. In 2006, I tried to invent a law, like a tongue-in-cheek version of Moore's Law:

Dhingra's Law (Fallacy) of Disk Usage
The typical consumer believes that by doubling his hard drive capacity today, he will have more than enough space for tomorrow. 18 months later, he is at maximum capacity.

I wrote that in 2006, and that had been true for me up to that point in time. But now things are different. The latest desktop I bought has less total hard drive space than my old machine. I had about a terabyte before, while as now, I have 750GB. The difference is that I stopped hording files. There was a time when it was a chore to download good mp3s or movies. As a result, you kept organized folders of your media, which required gigs upon gigs of space. But now, with services like Hulu, BitTorrent, and Lala, I have no need to archive media. I watch whatever I want, delete it, and if I want to watch it again, it'll take me 10 min. to fetch it. I've noticed that with games too. I used to keep copies of my games archived in case I wanted to play them again (I never did), but now I just use Steam, and re-download the ones I want, delete the ones that I don't.

Google is betting big on Cloud Computing. Chrome OS will simply be a web browser, with no user-accessible hard disk space. Will they reach the Holy Grail this time, or will they suffer the same fate as Sun?

The sell was going really well. I received a little slip of paper in the mail with a dead simple form to order personalized address labels from Artistic direct for only $7.99. I'm thinking, "Great, I can get this done right now, and pay the bill later." By the time got back home and sat on my sofa, I almost forgot and cast the paper aside.

But then I saw a line that said, "save $1 if you order online." "Excellent," I thought, and went ahead and tried to purchase. I was one click away from checking out when I saw this:Shipping:
21 business days (3-5 days processing, plus 10-14 days 3rd Class U.S. Postal Service) - $2.99Are you kidding me? In this day and age, I'm going to wait that long for simple personalized labels? While I was about to just say "screw it" and check out anyway, I was irked enough to Google "address labels." The first result that came up would then proceed to sell me 60 labels for $1 and $1.99 shipping, and it'd get here in 3-5 days.

Here's the lesson: it's still possible to make ridiculous margins on simple products because the average consumer won't comparison shop. As soon as you have them "on the line" so-to-speak, do not give them any excuse to bail out. It's hilarious to see ecommerce statistics showing that something like 85% of people bail out on their orders when they reach the check out page. If you add any extra steps or put anything that breaks the shopper's flow, you are asking them to open a new tab and do a Google search. Keep the shopper in flow and you can sell them anything.

This is a very common error, even on big sites like MSNBC. What they do is give you a small, postage stamp-sized thumbnail that's supposed to be a teaser for a gallery of "amazing images." But once I click on it, I don't see an enlarged version of the enticement. In fact, I have to rifle through a whole series of photos to get to what I want. In this one example, it wasn't until picture 49 out of 50, that I finally saw a larger version of what I originally clicked on in the first place.