I fully understand why Internet Explorer 7 uses clear type. Some people’s eyes work better with ClearType. It is simply an accessibility nightmare in my humble opinion. Actually, the problem is not in the ClearType - which works better on some displays than others - but it is in the Internet Explorer ‘Advanced Options’ dialog. If you’re a glutton for punishment take a glance at it [click on the screenshot below for a larger version].

As a designer please use consistent text to give users the simplicity of vocabulary.  If all of the options use enable or disable rather than both, this will help.  Worse is the ClearType option which says, “Use…”  that’s neither enable or disable and it makes the scanning of the text even more frustrating because its even more words your brain has to parse as you scan over the text.  If you design interfaces - please consider being consistent.  I have some software I need to update to take this into account, but please - all new software should be written with greatest usability in mind, and all older software should really be updated.

The Advanced Options Tab in Internet Explorer 7

I just got an invite from TripIt.com. Well, it was through TripIt.com, from my buddy Dave. When the invitation arrived it not only had a link, but it had a username (my email address) and password already in the email. Wow. The cost to click the link and join their social network was much smaller than sites where I know I’m going to be skating around forms for half an hour to get setup *cough* hotmail *cough*.

TripIt.com got it right. Now I just have to look for opportunities to use this same style, which I find QUITE inviting.

I was reading at Unclutterer and they linked to a Radio Shack Ad on YouTube. As the commercial played I was able to see what looked like Audacity. Sure enough, once I zoomed in and paused the player at the right time they’re using the open source software to show a large, high quality wave pattern on the laptop display.

Check out audacity, its good, free software and it runs under Windows, Linux & OS X - I have it installed under all three OSes.

I dabble in the world of philosophy at times and one of the philosophical movements that I don’t participate in, but find interesting is existentialism. Experience is all that there is doesn’t suit me, but in the world of software development experience is all that there is.

1. Does your software do what it says it can do?
2. Does your software do that in a way that is simple?
3. Does your software do it in a visually attractive way?
4. Does your software do it in a way that is memorable?

For some folks these questions aren’t critical, but they help. I personally love to use certain pieces of software because they deliver on the promised goods, they’re simple, they’re attractive and most of all I remember them when I’m talking with others about software they may want to purchase. It isn’t grassroot software advertising that makes software catch on, its software that is designed well that brings about grassroot advertising.

What makes sense in the aQuantive acquisition? Not much, the long and short of it is that Microsoft just spent a huge amount of money to do some saber rattling. You could probably guess that Microsoft is peeved to be out of the loop in the lucrative online advertising world. You could also probably guess that they’re upset that other deals have fallen through, but what this acquisition does is allow Microsoft to get huge media attention and get free advertising at a six billion dollar cost. Sure, its not free, but it just makes more noise and that’s what they need. Advertising that they’re going to be better or more powerful that Google or Yahoo! is talk only. They can’t drive people to deposit their money there, or to get web sites and bloggers to switch over to their advertising system. This could be six billion dollars down the flusher or it could be the biggest noise maker deal, which is what Microsoft wants.

Microsoft wants every online advertiser in the market to buy into their system, this deal helps draw more attention to it and makes it seem like they’re a better choice. So far I think Google and Yahoo! have it. Microsoft has just invested a huge amount of money for what may help them in 2015. Watch out for 2015, because they may have the lions’ share of the market then