Constructive Criticism: The Importance of Feedback
In case you have not read the story introduction I posted don't fret. It isn't very good. I have gotten lovely feedback from my brother who writes some very good, though grammatically challenged, My Little Pony fan fiction and strangers on Reddit. I have started over at a different part of the story's timeline and I like the new introduction much better than the old one. Maybe I willl post it some time. Right now I have a more important topic to discuss.
I knew, dear reader, that my first stab at writing would not be very good. I knew I would have to start over a few times because writing is not yet my craft. Even when I am working on a technical project that I have planned out very thoroughly I run the risk of needing to start over to get that last bit of perfect into it.
Criticism can be given and viewed in many different ways, but here is my favorite: When given, criticism is an expression of how the critic finds fault. When taken, criticism is an opportunity to improve. If someone has the energy to criticize then there is usually something to fix.
Before my mother knew how to use a computer she would criticize it all the time. "I just want to see my email. How do I see my email" might make a lot of you roll your eyes, but imagine you were using a computer for the first time. Why are there two buttons on the mouse? What is that symbol in the lower left of Windows 7? Why does the bar at the top of a Mac keep changing when I change programs? To those of us who use computers these and other details are obvious, but to a new user they are nothing but a spring of PEBKAC errors. Microsoft has taken two stabs at fixing this interface problem that I am aware of. The first was Microsoft Bob. Microsoft Bob was a non-technical interface that looked like rooms in the home. If a user wanted to write an email they would click on the stationary on the desk. If a user wanted to adjust the time they would click on a clock. The second try that I know about is Windows 8's tile format. What could be easier for a non-technical person? If you want to write an email, you click on the square that says "email." Both attempts have been/are being met with scorn from techies. "Why would you do this?!?!" we scream at the new interface (as well as other things) and the less technical may follow suit because, hey, we geeks must know what we are talking about.
The end of this story starts getting into knowing your audience, marketing well, and balancing against different demographics. The point of the story in this article is: Hooray Microsoft for listening and understanding feedback in the instance of operating system user interfaces! Whether you are writing a story or programming an operating system, constant feedback can be a great way to improve your product.
