Ubiquity is a natural-language command line interface for the web, allowing the user to create context sensitive mash-up functionalities to existing web apps. The video above is an excellent demo for this very exciting new project from mozilla labs.
For quite some time I’ve been enthusastic about the resurgence of command-driven interfaces for computing apps. While point-and-click visual interfaces are fabulous–indeed, invaluable–for graphics-intensive applications like Photoshop or a 3D CAD environment, they are much less useful for simple day to day productivity applications like file management, email, and word processing. In fact, I espouse that the overuse of the mouse in the productivity applications in the last five to ten years is the main reason for the increases in repetitive stress injuries in the workplace, not to mention the productivity losses incurred by slower (albeit easier to remember) point and click operations in lieu of keystrokes. more »
08/27/2008Alberto Alessi on Italian design
I have found that in my quest for what I see as “fat free design,” I often lose sight of the life and vigor I so enjoy in creative problem solving; I become instead a very function-minded designer with too little respect for the roll that whimsy and feeling can play in my work. more »
08/26/2008