Jacob's shtick hasn't changed

Nice to see that even in an age of heightened creativity, usage and involvement, certain things have not changed online. Of note, Jacob Nielsen is still preaching about usability. The self-proclaimed "usability guru" has been giving the same speech since the mid 1990s:

Most people just want to get in, get it and get out. For them the web is not a goal in itself. It is a tool.

What I find troubling is that Nielsen fails to see that usability has evolved from when he first started ranting (properly so) about the topic. Sadly, his thinking hasn't kept up with the times. Case in point:

Mr Nielsen also questioned championing teenage use of the web as a harbinger of what people will continue to do when they were older.

Although people in their late 30s make very different use of the web to those in their teens, Mr Nielsen expects that when those teenagers grow up the time they spend
online will diminish.

It's because they are 20 years old that they act differently to 40-year-olds.

He's showing his own age when trying to tell us about those pesky kids, isn't he?

Jacob has always waxed poetic about simple design and easy-to-use sites. His own site is so incredibly ugly, it is a joke. That said, you can always find what you're looking for.

So, which is it? Design, functionality or usability?

Seems to be room for all of it, I imagine. In fact, I'd say that without a healthy dose of all three, you may as well not bother.


Technorati Tags: design, usability