steve kwan user experience designer

personal/holidays

Going to Mexico

(October 20th, 2007 - 11:56PM)

At 3:00AM tomorrow, I'm heading to Mexico for just under two weeks! I'll try to update the blog remotely and upload photos, but I'm not sure how well that will go.

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work/vitrium software/engineering

Conversation during a code review

(October 18th, 2007 - 11:49PM)

Terry: "Jessica, this is great. This is far better than anything I'd expected."

Steve: "Terry, is my work great too?"

Terry: "No, you're a useless twit."

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personal/home

The eagle has landed

(October 16th, 2007 - 11:07AM)

This was a triumph. I'm making a note here - huge success!

(If you don't know where that's from, I highly recommend you play Portal.)

I successfully moved to my new apartment in Port Coquitlam. I much prefer it over my old place, and I much prefer the solitude of living alone.

I haven't decided yet if I'm going to throw a housewarming party - I'm not a big fan of parties - but I'll think about it.

I'm in need of some new furniture, in particular a new couch. I'll go shopping for one after I get back from Mexico. My Aunt wants to help me pick out my new furniture. I've become her pet project. She surely has better taste than me, so I'm happy for input.

I'm heading to Mexico at the end of the week, but I'll try to blog remotely if I can. I might also upload a few photos to my Flickr account. Expect a link if I do.

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personal/home

Moving on up

(October 12th, 2007 - 12:44PM)

I started packing last night, because I'll be moving Saturday morning.

I'm getting a nice apartment, and for the first time in my life I'll be living alone. No parents, no roommates. I'm a social person and I like having other people around, but I'm actually looking forward to some solitude.

This new apartment is very nice, and having spent years touring the Vancouver rental scene, I appreciate a place that's well-maintained. But even better, this place used to belong to my grandmother. We were really close, so this apartment is like home to me already.

This will be the first place I've rented that actually feels like home, because in a lot of ways, it is. Besides, it's owned by my family, and I'd rather pay rent to my family than to a landlord.

Last night I packed up the stuff in my room. There's nothing more depressing than being in a house full of boxes. It's that awkward transition period between leaving your old home and moving into your new one.

But as much as I hate moving, I'm looking forward to it this time. This will be a real home.

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stevekwandotcom

Threaded comments

(October 8th, 2007 - 6:13PM)

At long last, I've added threaded comments to stevekwan.com.

At the bottom of every post, you'll see a link telling you how many comments there are so far. Click the link to read the comments or add one.

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entertainment/music/ipod hardware/mac

I'm done with iPods

(October 6th, 2007 - 1:27AM)

Regular readers shouldn't be surprised. I'm known to be an Apple hater (see Exhibits A and B). Don't get me wrong, I don't think iPods are bad. It's just that they leave something to be desired.

Apple's always been a great innovator; the iPhone and iPod Touch are recent examples. But all the same, there's a difference between making an innovative product and making a well-rounded product. While iPods have instilled a lot of fresh thinking into portable music players, I find that every iPod has a handful of features I like and a handful of shortcomings that piss me off.

I currently own a fifth-generation (last-gen) iPod. I suppose it's an iPod "Classic" now. I didn't actually buy it, but got it on exchange for a broken iriver. Overall, I've been quite happy with it. In particular, Apple is in my good books for popularizing podcasts, supporting audiobooks, and including video playing capabilities in this model.

But despite all of the great features in the iPod Classic, there are still a lot of weak points that are unacceptable in a high-end music player.

1. Lousy sound quality.
   The most offensive shortcoming in all iPods is the lousy sound quality. I've had the pleasure of using great portable music players such as the iriver h320, which had great sound quality, plus support for SRS WOW and TruBass. Going to the iPod was quite a downgrade. If there's one thing that a portable music player needs to get right, it's playing music. All of the great features in the iPod line are downgraded by the fact that the audio quality is so poor.
2. The click wheel.
   Apple's touch-sensitive wheel is great for controlling volume and skipping forward in audiobooks, but it causes a variety of problems. For example, leaving your iPod in your pocket can result in fabric brushing up against the click wheel, which can blast the volume up to maximum. This can be quite a jarring experience. Also, the click wheel is perhaps a bit too sensitive, and I find myself bumping into something and accidentally skipping forward or backward. This isn't so bad with songs, but if you lose your place in an audiobook it's a pain.
3. iTunes and the iTunes Store.
   I resent having to use a software player as lousy as iTunes to sync my iPod, and I resent low-quality DRMed music.
4. Easily dented and scratched body.
   Other players don't seem to have this problem, but even the newer iPods have metal cases that scratch easily.

Even the newest generation of iPods has these problems. I'm certainly not going to buy a sixth-generation iPod with such awful sound quality. The iPod Touch intrigues me, but it also makes me wonder how I'm supposed to pause or change songs when I'm not looking directly at it. What if the iPod's in my pocket? What if I'm driving? Is Apple's plan to make me take the iPod out of my pocket to manipulate it? Then again, that kind of makes sense: since iPods are more of a fashion statement than a gadget, any chance to pull it out in public is a plus.

So what's my next portable music player? I'm probably not going to replace my iPod until it craps out, but if it does tomorrow, I'll probably get the new Creative Zen.

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personal/family personal/holidays

Lora and Len's Korean misadventures

(October 2nd, 2007 - 12:25PM)

My Auntie Lora and Uncle Len recently got back from a trip to Korea. They've posted their travel journal on this blog, as they don't have their own. Here goes.

Part 1

We are having a great time in Korea. Thinking of you all. Wish you were here. We have seen the most wonderful things. It is a magnificant trip. Tell your mom we are okay and we have had such incredible adventures. It took us ages to try to get this e-mail out. Finally, we tried this technique. Hope you get it okay. This whole trip is heavenly. This evening, at dusk, we visited a Buddhist temple. The buddhist monks beat the drum for all living creatures with skin. They rang the bell 33 times for the dead in Hell. They beat on a large wooden fish for all the things in the sea and they hit a gong for all the things that fly. There was a huge Buddha over 100 feet tall covered in bronze. Incredible! The other parts of temple were exotic in deep reds and filled with beautiful lanterns with prayers for the dead hanging from them and large gilded Buddhas. I gave prayers at the temple for the safety and prosperity for all of you. You would not believe the things we have eaten!!!!We have such interesting tales to tell.

Part 2

You are there. We are here. We are all together. We are one. Peace and Harmony.

It's raining today. Typhoon is reported to be coming in. Batten down the hatches. She's going to blow. We climbed to the top of a mountain today way up in the clouds (Where in the fog are we??) to see the enormous Buddha of the Western Paradise. What was I thinking when I allowed them to cut off my hair????? We went to a fishing village. Went to see the market place filled with wonderful food and food products (fish, spices, garlic, fresh herbs and garden veggies and of course buckets of kimchi. And as a matter of fact, anything else you can think of is there! In the land of tea it seems I am becoming addicted to coffee. Yes, I can't get a cup of tea if my life depended on it so I am resorting to coffee for my caffeine kick and am now finding I can't do without it. We are having a terrific time. Wish you all were here. Tomorrow another city, another temple. We will be home soon Buddha be willing.

Part 3

Hey, a small dog came up and bit my leg and when I tried to "shoo" it away it bit my fingers. Ouch! What is up with that?? Bad Karma. But I'm not sure which of us has the Bad Karma. Anyway, the dog was plump and may end up in the soup pot soon so I think my Karma wins. ??Maybe?? But we'll see when the Ten Kings make the final judgement. The drum at the temple may be beating for me. "Don't ask for whom the drum beats. It beats for thee."

Love and positive energy,

P.S. We have just been informed snakes are poisonous and they bite in these here parts. That could have been useful information as we trudged up to a mountaintop grotto in the fog and made our way over a creek and through a forest in complete darkness on a temple excursion. Do snakes bite at night? Or in a fog? Do you have any idea how dark the woods can get at night? I do. DARK!

Part 4

Hopelessly lost in Jagalchi Fish Market Nampodong Street Busan

We turned around to get a picture of fish in a tank and "Poof" we were all alone in the mega fish market with hundreds of thousands of fish, crabs, octopi, shellfish and hundreds of thousands of Koreans none of which could speak English. And, of course, we can not speak Korean. It was obvious we were out of place being the only two white people in the vicinity. We were like two white noodles (heads) in a large bowl of seaweed soup. We stood out. It was an unbelievably anxious ten minutes as we stayed put, tried to keep our cool (don't panic, breathe) and waited for our fearless leader to come find us in amongst the hordes of seafood and people in the torrential downpour. Believe me one wrong turn and we would never have been seen again. Did we know our hotel? No. Did we know the company that is entrusted with us here in Korea? No. Did we know our guide's full name and phone number? No. We were gone. Lost. Somewhere in an endless labyrinth of a fishmarket with all our worldly belongings in a van somewhere.

Part 5

Eating around a short table cross legged on the floor is not as much fun as one might expect. First you have to get down there and that is an ordeal in itself. You sit and wait for the waitress. You wait till she sets the table. You wait till she brings the food. You wait. Eating rice and small bits of pork off a plate with chopsticks hunched up over a table is difficult.

Part 6

Now I can continue with my next story. The computer shut me down. Forced censorship by a machine.

Eating with chopsticks over a ten inch high table is an exercise in muscle control from the tips of your fingers to the tips of your toes.

Finally, the meal is over, the bill is paid and it is time to go. HELP!! I could not get up. Our tour guide said I just needed to stretch. Yeah, right! The muscles of my legs were locked in a permanent pretzel. All feeling and sensation had been lost. Signal to unwind that was sent to the brain did not compute. PAIN. This kind of activity may be good for a young spry thing but don't try it at our age.

How am I even going to be able to sit, pray, chant and meditate for four straight hours at the temple? Twice?

Our travellling buddies, a couple from Vienna Austria, say

"Not to worry. After two hours you lose all feeling and you no longer have any pain."

Oh, great. Nirvana after two hours of excruciating muscle spasms. They also told us that if you don't look like you are meditating seriously enough the Master hits you on the back with a stick.

?!What?!

The fun is going out of the vacation.

Part 7

To eat or not to eat? That is the question. We were walking to the Four Headed Buddha when we saw an old lady cooking a wok full of squirmy black worms on a braisier. Our guide, Chae, said it was one Korean food he could not eat. The smell makes him sick. So we begged him to eat one for the tourists. We got out our camera but he refused. We begged and begged but he said that it would make him throw up.

"That's the Korean picture we've been waiting for!"

Auntie and Uncle

Part 8

Chae, our guide, has been to Europe thirty-two times. Thirty-two times!!!!!! We have been whittling our lives away. We are going to have to go into super overdrive to get in all the things we need to see in this lifetime. I know the Buddhists believe in reincarnation but there seems to be some ambiguity about that. There is a Heaven and a Hell and Reincarnation. I question. I ask. I can't get answers. I guess it is best to live to the fullest here on Earth, in this lifetime, and not too worry too much about the next one.

Part 9

Resorted a few days ago to fractured/pigeon English. It is easier to get questions and points across. The Queen's English is just not quick and efficient enough for these here parts. Pantomine has become my new way of communicating. And I am not good at it.

Part 10

Sleep, perchance to dream. We need sleep. Sleep sweet sleep. All night the T.V. screen has been on. It would not shut off no matter what we did. Sometimes we would get a reprieve but after a few minutes it would come back on again. Quite a bright night light, I must say. Wow! The light even etches through one's eyelids.

Part 11

Food-what have we been eating?

noodle soup- a weak ginsing broth with thick super glutonous,slimey noodles

cabbage

rice, rice, rice, rice, rice, rice

pickled radish

garlic a million ways a million times

watermelon, oranges, a bit of pineapple

eel, octopus,abalone (covered with HOT sauce)

very unusual vegetables-ferns, squash root

pear apples

Kimchi

seaweed-22 various types

bean curd

strawberry jam and toast (strangely tasteless)

I need meat, chicken, fish. None to be offered. Where is the McDonald's? Oh, no! I can't believe I just asked that.

I need a salad. A silly little salad. Please!

A sandwich. A silly little sandwich. Please!

Part 12

Charisma

That special something that can be seen in a few no matter what the culture or nationality. No matter where you are in the world you can recognize it immediately. There she was, about 25 years old, and when she turned and looked our way-Charisma. She raced to communicate with us as fast as we were drawn to her. Maybe that is what is meant by "enlightenment". There are those that are lit up and attract all the rest of us like moths to a flame. Some people's personalities are lit so bright that the charisma is obvious and transends race, language, religiion, culture, age, nationality, and gender. Amazing!!

Part 13

I now know what it means to be wired. Oh, my, too much coffee. My entire body is pulsating. Can't sleep. Neurons sparking. I've sworn off coffee. Tried some Korean ginger tea. That is hot stuff! Makes your eyes water and brain ooze but at least you are not jangled.

Part 14

Clothes make the man (or woman). The Koreans are such well presented people. The women are well dressed, neat and tidy, prim and proper. The office men wear white long sleeved shirts with a black tie and black pants and black shoes. When it was lunch time thousands and thousands of men poured out of the buildings dressed in identical attire. Not a purple, blue or green shirt among them. No grey, red or saucy orange ties. All the same but in the heat and humidity, where Westerners look wrinkled, wet, dirty, and unkept, the Koreans looked cool. Oh, so cool, crisp and clean. Inspiring!!!

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software/hci software/ui software/ux

Tiered complexity in user interfaces

(October 1st, 2007 - 4:43PM)

Recently I've had a lot of discussions about simple vs. advanced user interfaces. It's not uncommon for software to have two paths of entry:

• a "simple" approach, usually a wizard, for non-sophisticated users, and
• an "advanced" approach, usually a screen with lots of input controls, for power users.

This way of thinking dictates that two interfaces are better than one. With two interfaces, you can accomodate simple users with little technical experience, while also accomodating advanced users with little need for wizards. Right? Wrong.

Dual interfaces (simple and advanced) do not work. Users will almost always gravitate towards the simple interface and ignore the advanced one, especially if the simple one meets their needs. This can result in a great deal of application functionality going untouched if it only resides in the advanced interface.

I believe that wherever possible, software engineers should strive for a single interface for their products. Instead of having two interfaces for simple/advanced users, have one interface that accomodates both groups. This is best done by tiering complexity.

Instead of making a simple interface and a separate advanced interface, just make one interface: a simple interface that has links to advanced features. When people aspire to create dual (simple/advanced) interfaces for their products, what they're really doing is avoiding the brainwork required to make the advanced interface simple. Shoving all the advanced features off into a corner where nobody will see them is a usability cop-out.

Consider docmetrics, the flagship product we develop at Vitrium. It's a SaaS solution for marketers. Docmetrics helps marketers learn how customers read their PDF documents.

One of main functions in docmetrics is the ability to view a report on a PDF. However, it's also important to allow marketers to compare two or more documents against each other. Comparing is a very important feature, but is somewhat advanced and won't be used by all users.

We made the decision to put the emphasis on the single document report, and take the emphasis off the comparison feature. We did this by tiering complexity: the system focuses on single document reports, but also provides the ability to compare via links.

Here's a screenshot of the reports screen. Note how the Single document option (1) is at the top where it's likely to get attention, whereas the Compare multiple documents option (2) is lower at the bottom. It's certainly visible for people who are looking for it, but it's not the focus of the application.

Once the user selects a document and views the single document report, we provide all the metrics we've gathered on that document, but we also provide a link to the comparison screen. This way, the user can read the report she's looking for, but she has another chance to compare this document if she wants. See the screenshot below.

So the system makes common (basic) functionality as explicit as possible, but gives the user many options to compare the document. If the user doesn't want to compare, she can always ignore the links. This way we can have one interface with many tiers of complexity, instead of two separate "simple" and "advanced" interfaces.

If you'd like to see this example in action or learn more about docmetrics, I recommend signing up for a docmetrics account. It's free.

("Tiered complexity" is my idea and my term. If you want to use it, go ahead, but take credit for it and you'll face an army of lawyers.)

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