Ron Pinder
ronpinder@rogers.com
Ottawa, Canada


Date: Mon, 27 May 2002 11:03:10 -0400



Mr. Rod Welch
rowelch@attglobal.net
The Welch Company
440 Davis Court #1602
San Francisco, CA 94111 2496
..
Subject:   Kudos & permission for reference

Dear Sir,

Found your site doing research on Tom Landauer's book, "The Trouble with Computers". Very much like the way you think.
..
With your permission, I would like to use a few lines you've written in an article and talk for an upcoming conference, properly referenced, of course. www.foruse.com/2002. Talk abstract: www.foruse.com/2002/program.htm#t32
..
Point of the talk is that designers focus on usability too much and don't measure or manage for usefulness (ultimate customer value), or clearly bring it into the design process.

The following example in your review of Landauer's book illustrates the point we wish to discuss:
..

http://www.welchco.com/sd/08/00101/02/95/07/10/002652.HTM#1222 

661813 -     Computers are used frivolously because emphasis on usability puts
661814 -     things into the market before true "usefulness" is reached, as
661815 -     explained further below under User Centered Design. ref SDS 0 6403

..
In over 10 years as a practitioner and manager of 'User Centered Design' in a large corporation we have always walked a fine line between 'a solution looking for a problem' and genuine customer value. It all starts with requirements. Garbage in garbage out. If there is no true customer value - as in usefulness - captured in the requirements a useless product or service will almost certainly result, except perhaps by chance. The communication of requirements is poor at best - and for many of the reasons you describe in 'Communications Metrics'.
..
I hope you are comfortable with us referencing bits of your material and work from your site.
..
Do feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Cheers,



Ron Pinder
ronpinder@rogers.com



..
Copy to:

  1. Amy Dillon, dillon@nortelnetworks.com