Web-Surfing as Easy as Doing the Laundry

Who,

except for hackers and geeks, really likes a computer?

Do you, good reader, (at least once in each session spent in front of your

computer) experience feelings of pure rage and feel like throwing your computer

out the window, or off Dave Letterman’s famous six-story building?

Don’t feel bad. This is a common grievance for all users, even advanced

ones.

As computer software and hardware companies continue making more complicated

and better operating systems, the amount of problems increase. Recently, Windows

2000, which is the business version of its industrial strength operating system,

was released to an unsuspecting public with an astounding 63,000 bugs!

Better call the exterminator!

Then again, what do we expect? If competition demands thousands of

customizable features in an operating system, don’t we realize that will

multiply the likelihood of glitches?

What if all we wanted to do was surf the Internet, send e-mail and do a

little chatting?

The problem for most non-technical users is that while companies claim to

create easier computers, it still remains an elusive dream.

But I don’t think this dream will take forever to be realized. There is a

new breed of Internet-enabled computers just around the corner.

Look at our old machines

While modern PCs remain complex and bug-laden, consumer voracity for Internet

access will one glorious day produce simple, easy-to-use domestic devices to

access the Web.

Think it’s a fairy tale? Consider two other information-spreading machines

that today enjoy widespread popularity–the television and the phone.

Do you complain when your television suddenly stops working without cause, or

when your phone freezes unexpectedly when you are dialing into a radio station

to win a contest? No, because it doesn’t happen.Televisions and phones–like

microwaves and other common appliances–have become reliable through years of

innovation. Because they are so ubiquitous today, any maker’s model had better

work without major flaws or a consumer would simply buy another one.

Think about it: the manufacturer of a phone or television wouldn’t stay in

business long if it gave up the ghost as much as Windows or Apple does!

Remember the Newton?

If you want a more recent example, consider the personal digital assistant

(PDA) as a case study of how a usability problem was overcome with dedicated

research into what a consumer needs.

The dawn of the PDA was dominated by the Apple Newton, which debuted in 1993.

At the time, the clunky unit was a marvel of advanced technology. Its plastic

pen-activated screen came with handwriting recognition, "contact

management" for phone numbers and addresses and a long-lasting battery, or

so Apple promised.

Problem was, none of it worked very well, especially the machine’s

purported ability to recognize its master’s handwriting, which Apple said was

the greatest thing since sliced bread. For some reason, the company disregarded

a simple truth–everybody’s handwriting is different. (We’ll acknowledge

there were diehard Newton fans who mourned Apple’s February 1998 decision to

cease production.)

Enter US Robotics in 1995. The company (which is now owned by 3Com)

introduced a new generation of PDA that you may have heard of–the PalmPilot.

It promised to do all of the same things the Newton did (which by then had been

abandoned by Apple during its restructuring efforts in 1998) but with one major

change.

Its handwriting recognition recognized the fact that people all have

different penmanship. So instead of trying to do what only could have been

accomplished using vast computational skill and power, it insisted that users

learn its way of writing, which it called Graffiti.

Today, the PalmPilot is the standard by which all other PDAs are compared.

The product is into its fifth iteration (the Palm VII) and continues to be

scooped by on-the-fly executives and students alike. In recent weeks, Palm

Computers spun off from its parent company and saw its initial public offering

of shares nearly quadruple in value on its first day listed on NASDAQ.

3Com discovered a break-through way of thinking about usability. Instead of

pandering and giving the consumer everything he wants, 3Com instead researched

what would be best for the consumer and told them.

Keeping it simple

So what will bridge that final gap to make Internet access truly easy and

painless? Something called Internet appliances or network computers will.

These are mini-computers that exist solely for Web-surfing and e-mail sending

and receiving. They are not overly complex, clunky and buggy machines, but

small, elegant devices.

Or at least they will be one day soon. Today, only a few pioneering companies

are manufacturing such things.

Many companies are experimenting with set-top boxes such as Web TV, owned by

Microsoft. These are devices that hook up to your television, much like a VCR,

and allow you to surf while relaxing in your comfy chair or couch.

Web TV is very simple for users because it is not a desktop PC, with all its

extra features and extra headaches. All it does is let you surf and send and

receive e-mail. It’s well suited for the user who doesn’t want to have to

worry about operating system bugaboos.

While Web TV is far from ubiquitous, the idea will be one day. Companies such

as ATI Technologies in Ontario have plans to create similar set-top boxes.

Typically, these devices are priced in the $200 range and are very easy to

use. The standalone devices are the size of a large phone, with a large display.

As well, other Net-enabled computers will make access simple as using the phone

or the television. (Although I’m sure the timers will still flash 12:00 when

the power goes out.).

Never out of touch?

Companies that started with cellular phones and computer modems such as Nokia

and Research In Motion have recently branched into wireless Internet appliances

that were well-made and well-received. The appliances allow users to surf Web

sites and receive and send faxes and e-mails, all through digital cell phones

and pagers. With them, you can check out your online portfolio, e-mail your

buddies or read the news most anywhere.

AOL, Yahoo! and others have all recently announced a way for users to easily

access their sites through cell phones. Herschel Shosteck Associates predicts

there will be 126 million handheld computers and personal digital assistants by

2003.

The big picture

However, at this point, wireless Internet access for the masses is pie in the

sky. While many companies have leapt on the bandwagon, none of them really knows

how it will work. It is hard for most people to imagine they’d be satisfied

viewing a Web page on a cell phone. Future phones will have to have larger and

better screens.

Will these devices ever be truly easy to use? Count on it. Technological

advances will allow the industry to overcome the practical obstacles. Customer

demand will ensure that they do.

While Internet appliances are just in the infant stages, one day soon they

will be just as common as a phone in most homes.

JOHN DUJAY is senior news editor for Global Television Network’s Globaltv.com

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