Autor: Johanna Lielacher

Anna Neuner und ich haben uns in den letzten Wochen sehr intensiv mit der Ausarbeitung eines Ausstellungskonzepts für die Ausstellung „designing the real world for the better“ befasst. Einmal in der Woche haben wir einander unsere Ideen präsentiert und uns gegenseitig inspiriert.

Titel der Arbeit:
Transformation durch Arbeit – UnternehmerInnen als „Agents of Change“

Verfasserin:
Caroline Triml

Erscheinungsjahr:
2015

Studienrichtung:
Universität Wien, Institut für Internationale Entwicklung

Today I like to present the end results of my survey concerning mildly infuriating things. Finally 40 participants took part and gave me some new insights to the topic. I updated the bubble chart. The numbers are showing which circumstances the most people experienced theirselves.

Yesterday something really really bad happened to me (again).

I was sitting in class, listening to the lecture of Sebjanic. And then the „DIY“ part started. Actually pretty to nice to have hands on classes. But moving through the pretty stuffed class can be pretty annoying and sometimes risky. We were cutting, clueing, screwing and then. Then it happened. I was rolling back with my chair to carry some tools for our self-made microscope. And then it went right through me. I heard an uncanny noise from behind. You wont guess what it was. No it had nothing to do with the cutter, the ruler, the screwer, the hot glue. It was „just“ my charger for the Mac Book. Which hang down loosely – cracked at the plug. The sockets in this class (307a) are exactly on the same height like the seatbacks. So I just destroyed it with a little, strong movement. And of course it happened right after I plugged it in – so my mac was pretty uncharged. Just a little side fact.

The aim of this survey is failed user experience. Everybody knows some issues with products, that haven’t been solved yet. These design flaws are still annoying users again and again. With this research I want to gain other opinions on this topic of „Mildly Infuriating Things“. What drives you crazy? Please check off all of the points you’ve already experienced and then write down your own thoughts!

Please take part in my survey of 5 minutes!
I promise – it’s just a little bit annoying 😉

https://goo.gl/forms/vweRsRIGbMUD5Hsl2

Thanks for helping me!

As humans we get used to everyday things very fast. As designers we have to see, feel and improve these products and services.

He is talking about stickers on fruits that have been invented to put barcodes and quality seals on it. They solved a problem, but reinvented another: The rubbing process before eating the fruits. The interesting part is, that users get really upset by the first time scratching but then they get along with this issue and accept it in a way.

Our brains encode these everyday things into habits. This learning process is called habituation. Think about the first time you sat on the bike. Everything was new, exciting and quite hard to learn. Remember the skinned knees. But somehow you got better and better and used to it. The bike meant freedom to move faster and this was great. But the same goes for bad UX too, we forget about the annoying part. We like to filter all the information, so we have the chance to focus on new things.

He mentions Jerry Seinfeld (Comedian) and Mary Anderson (inventor of the windscreen wiper), they recognized this annoying parts and made something out of it.

Tony Fadell had been working for Apple and he is talking about his learnings from that time.

Steve Jobs taught him and his colleagues to stay beginners in the developing process. And to focus on tiny little details. Tony Fadell became well-known for inventing the iPod. He has always been an „early adopter“ and at one point he bought a new gadget and was very happy to unbox it, but then the disappointment – a tiny sticker, which said: „CHARGE BATTERY BEFORE USE.“ Back in the 90’s almost every product had this sticker on it. He says that Steve Jobs noticed this issue and said: „We’re not going to let that happen to our product.“ And so, excited customers could just start using the product. Today every product comes out fully charged.

His learnings:
1. look broader
2. look closer
3. think younger

If only bananas had robust, natural, biodegradable packaging of their own. Some kind of peelable skin, perhaps.

Nach dem ersten Feedback Gespräch habe ich mich dazu entschieden, meine Recherche und Analyse für „Mildly Infuriating Things“ unter anderem in Richtung Verpackungsdesign zu lenken.

Verpackungsdesign sollte eigentlich alle Sinne durch Aussehen, Haptik und Geräusch (möglicherweise auch Geruch und Geschmack) ansprechen. All diese Eigenschaften helfen dem Nutzer zu verstehen, was er zu erwarten hat, wenn er das Produkt kauft. Wenn also die Verpackung nicht mit dem Produkt übereinstimmt, werden die Erwartungen des Kunden nicht erfüllt.

Ein Nebenaspekt, der in der nachhaltig denkenden Gesellschaft immer wichtiger wird, ist, das sich Kunden möglichst umweltfreundliche Verpackungen wünschen. Das heißt es sollen Ressourcen, wie Plastik, Wasser, Erdöl geschont werden und dabei möglichst wenig Müll anfallen.

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