i vouch for this book.

one of the things that has been important to me to consider is the difference between the display (front end) and the archetecture (back end) of a project.

we do not always have to recreate the interface. there are so many things to be done which appear to the user as transparent and seamless. that illusion is a postive.

so i appreciate his comments, but feel it is not mutually exclusive to what we are doing. (example: how many ways can you have a user browse the web without knowing they are browsing the web?)

What interestes me is more than behavioral action of a user or usage. The boundary between "content" and "representation" has become blurry not to mention the idea of affordance.

When he uses the word "interface", it seems that he does't mean things within the category of so-called interface.

"Reflective design" is one of concepts he has been espousing. for example, Juicy Salif Gold Limited Edition (designed by Philippe Starck) might not be well-designed in terms of usage because it's made of gold and once used, it rusts. but, in terms of reflective design, it is a good design. the fact that it cannot be used as a juicer serves as the catalyst of conversation and thus is well-designed. The basis of Norman's notion is that things have to be read in the broader context of social dynamics to be analyzed. (He says not only about interaction between users and things but also manifacturing process and disposal process. new product release is so frequent that designers cannot take time to sophisticate products and make them matured.)

I feel that the essence of his argument in the BBC article is that products/objects should bring us pleasure. This is a very simple goal yet one that is incredibly hard to bring about in a mass market item. But focusing on pleasure makes us question why we interact with objects at all, if not for pleasure than for what? I'm sure a lot of proposals could be submitted, but can any of them equal the value of human happiness and satisfaction? Pleasure takes many forms and nothing says that pleasure must come at the expense of utility or intelligence...

I look forward to reading the new book in the next year.