The Productologist

At the end of the summer, Time, Inc. announced their decision to cease publishing a magazine called Business 2.0, which for several years, had chronicled the rise and fall of the New Economy (or the Internet Bubble or New Media or whatever your nom de jour for the years at the end of the last century/beginning of this century was).

Popularity: 26% [?]

I’m a big fan of addressing human factors in product design. Since I primarily deal with software products, my focus is on usability and simplicity (two similar, but not identical concepts).

In a recent edition of Business 2.0, I came across an article entitled, “Design that Captures the Buzz,” which highlights how cellphone headset makers are hiring product designers to improve the “fashion factor” of bluetooth headsets. While I don’t think that fashion, per se, is that important to software design, I applaud the use of designers to improve both the appeal and functionality of a product.