April 6, 2011

Gnome 3

Most open source products have rather horrible user interfaces. Very likely, this is because the people making the user interface decisions are the same ones writing the code. To them, obtuse user interfaces full of options and obscure features make perfect sense.

Some open source projects have noticed this issue, and are working hard to change it. One of these projects is Gnome. It seems their work is paying off; Gnome 3 looks pretty neat. Here are some of my favorite aspects of the new release.

Activities


(Large Version)

Clicking on «Activities» or moving the mouse to the top left screen corner switches Gnome into a mode that combines application launching with window and virtual desktop switching. Windows are zoomed down à la Exposé on Mac OS X.

Launching Applications


(Large Version)

Clicking on «Applications» shows a simple grid view of your apps. It’s possible to only show apps belonging to a specific category.

Search


(Large Version)

Type a search term, and Gnome 3 will show matching applications, files, and settings. From here, you can also directly jump to Google or Wikipedia.

Managing windows and launching applications has always been a weak spot of modern desktop operating systems. Fortunately, Gnome, Mac OS X, and Windows are all making strides towards solving the problem.

(Via Jochen Wolters. Ars Technica has more on the topic.)

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designed_for_use_small

If you liked this, you'll love my book. It's called Designed for Use: Create Usable Interfaces for Applications and the Web. In it, I cover the whole design process, from user research and sketching to usability tests and A/B testing. But I don't just explain techniques, I also talk about concepts like discoverability, when and how to use animations, what we can learn from video games, and much more.

You can find out more about it (and order it directly, printed or as a DRM-free ebook) on the Pragmatic Programmers website.