Donald A. Norman

In The Design of Future Things, best-selling author Donald A. Norman presents a revealing examination of smart technology, from smooth-talking GPS units to cantankerous refrigerators. Exploring the links between design and human psychology, he offers a consumer-oriented theory of natural human-machine interaction that can be put into practice by the engineers and industrial designers of tomorrow's thinking machines. A fascinating look at the perils and promise of the intelligent objects of the future, The Design of Future Things is a must-read for anyone interested in the dawn of a new era in technology.

"Did you ever wonder why cheap wine tastes better in fancy glasses? Or why washing and polishing your car seems to make it drive better? New research has shown that attractive things really do work better." "In the last decade, the design community has made products easier to use, largely due to Donald Norman's The Design of Everyday Things. But as he demonstrates in this book, we don't just use a product, we become emotionally involved with it. Emotional Design demonstrates for the first time the profound influence of this deceptively simple idea." "Don Norman draws on a wealth of examples and the very latest scientific insights in this exploration of the emotional impacts of objects in our everyday world. His The Design of Everyday Things showed why the products we use should not be confusing, irritating, and frustrating. Emotional Design explains why they must also be attractive, pleasurable, and fun."--Jacket.

In this book, Norman shows why the computer is so difficult to use and why this complexity is fundamental to its nature. The only answer, says Norman, is to start over again, to develop information appliances that fit people's needs and lives. To do this companies must change the way they develop products. They need to start with an understanding of people: user needs first, technology last - the opposite of how things are done now. Companies need a human-centered development process, even if it means reorganizing the entire company. This book shows why and how.

The Design of Everyday Things is a best-selling book by cognitive scientist and usability engineer Donald Norman about how design serves as the communication between object and user, and how to optimize that conduit of communication in order to make the experience of using the object pleasurable. One of the main premises of the book is that although people are often keen to blame themselves when objects appear to malfunction, it is not the fault of the user but rather the lack of intuitive guidance that should be present in the design.

Insightful and whimsical, profoundly intelligent and easily accessible, Don Norman has been exploring the design of our world for decades, exploring this complex relationship between humans and machines. In this seminal work, fully revised and updated, Norman gives us the first steps towards demanding a person-centered redesign of the machines we use every day. Humans have always worked with objects to extend our cognitive powers, from counting on our fingers to designing massive supercomputers. But advanced technology does more than merely assist with memory—the machines we create begin to shape how we think and, at times, even what we value. In THINGS THAT MAKE US SMART, Donald Norman explores the complex interaction between human thought and the technology it creates, arguing for the development of machines that fit our minds, rather than minds that must conform to the machine.

For decades, Don Norman has spoken the language of gadgets, explaining how the things we see every day are made and made better. In this smart, sharp, fun exploration of design, Norman pulls back the curtain on the things we make to make our lives easier. From water faucets and airplane cockpits to the concept of "real time" and the future of memory, this wide-ranging tour through technology provides a new understanding of how the gadgets that surround us affect our lives. Donald A. Norman explores the plight of humans living in a world ruled by a technology that seems to exist for its own sake, oblivious to the needs of the people who create it. TURN SIGNALS is an intelligent, whimsical, curmudgeonly look at our love/hate relationship with machines, as well as a persuasive call for the humanization of modern design.