Andrew Wirtanen is a usability specialist in Cary, NC More »

“Objectified” Trailer

Objectified is an industrial design documentary from Gary Hustwit, the director of “Helvetica”. “Helvetica” was one of the best documentaries I have seen relating to design, and I can’t wait for “Objectified” because it’s a little closer to home. Check out the trailer:

Revolutionary New Laptop with No Keyboard

The Onion just released one of its funniest Mac-bashing videos yet. It’s the day before the last (and Steve Job-less) Apple keynote at MacWorld, and I think this video is a great follow-up to my last post on Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs). BCIs are keyboardless and so is this new laptop dreamed up by The Onion [...]

Brain-Computer Interfaces

Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI) are both scary and very promising at the same time. As evidenced by this 60 Minutes video, BCIs are an essential tool already for many disabled individuals. BCIs can provide the ability to use thought in order to type,  produce speech, and control prosthetic limbs.
Could BCIs finally replace the old WIMP (window, [...]

The Onion Gift Boxes

How did my family react to receiving these gift boxes from The Onion?
In order to have a little fun over my Christmas break on Cape Cod, I decided to package a select few presents inside these gift boxes. On Christmas Eve, four boxes were distributed. One, the Sounds of the Rainforest Smoke Alarm, went to [...]

Web 2.0 Holiday Card

First Round Capital has put together an awesome holiday video in the Where the Hell is Matt? style. They feature 70 companies in their portfolio, many of which are Web 2.0 companies. A few of my favorite organizations in this video are Mint.com, Stumbleupon, and Ambient Devices (I love my Baseball ScoreCast).
[via Laughing Squid]

Netflix Lays Off Workers Because of Good Usability

Netflix will lay off 50 tech support workers not because of the recession, but because they simply don’t need them. The Los Gatos-based company claims that their Web-based player is so easy to use that they don’t need all of the tech support staff that they hired.
While this is clear proof that usability can improve [...]

Surfing for Seniors: Making Computers Easier to Use Through Metaphors

Here’s a fascinating video that teaches seniors how to use computers and the Internet through metaphors. When it popped up in my feed reader, I was about to write it off as a nostalgic video with only comedic value. However, its two metaphors may still be useful today:

The controls on a claw crane can be [...]

Bruce Sterling on the Future of the Mobile Space

Bruce Sterling is a futurist and science fiction author. He shared his thoughts on the future of the mobile space at MoMo Amsterdam on November 3, 2008. This 27 minute video (with Q&A) is worth watching. Best of all, he doesn’t use any slides.

I haven’t had the chance to read any of his forward-thinking books [...]

Obama’s First Weekly YouTube Address

President-elect Barack Obama has started posting weekly video addresses on YouTube. As president, Obama will will deliver both the traditional weekly radio address and a weekly YouTube address. The “weekly fireside coffee talks” are a throwback to FDR, who delivered 30 evening radio addresses between 1933 and 1944 (Wikipedia: Fireside chats).
I think the weekly YouTube [...]

If the World Could Vote?

The President of the United States has a large global influence, yet the world has no say in who we elect president. If the world could vote? is a website that detects your location based on IP and let’s the whole world vote (albeit, entirely unofficially).
http://www.iftheworldcouldvote.com/