“Users should set the pace of an interaction” writes interface design pioneer Jef Raskin on the first pages of The Humane Interface (2000), reminding designers and developers that the person who is using the computer has the last word in how (fast) things should happen on a computer screen.
This semester we looked at the history and principles of “humane”, i.e. user centered in Graphic User Interface and Post GUI scenarios. Algorithmic timeline, infinite scrolling, or endless conversation with AI change computer users’ perception of time dramatically. How to design for scenarios where immediacy should coexist with eternity? What possibilities and responsibilities designers should be aware of? We revised and experimented with the very idea of time and pace in design of modern software products and tryed to make it right!
