The Design of Everyday Things by Donald A. Norman

What three words best describe Peter Berkrot’s performance? They are out of date and truly irrelevant in this age. What was most disappointing about Donald A. Although the ideas contained are timeless, the examples (such as PBX phones and floppy disks) are so out of date they obscure the arguments of the book. This makes the book incredibly old fashioned and quaint to listen to. What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?ĭespite having a nominal publishing date of 2002, the examples in the book were never updated from the late 1980's. Apparently, the book is considered a classic in the design and engineering world, but until it is updated it only has value as a historic document. There is simply no need for an entire chapter fantasizing about a future where you can have an electronic appointment book. However, a significant amount of speculation is done by the author about what computers in the future will be capable of-all of which has already come to pass. The author mentions in his new preface that the ideas in the book are timeless and therefore he didn't think it needed updating. I honestly thought there was a problem with my stereo before I figured out he was doing it on purpose. The narrator has a Shatner-esque delivery where he randomly speeds up and slows down his reading and then dramatically drops his volume at the end of sentances.

Many of the psychological insights have been refined and unpdated in the two decades since publication and what must have been insightful and modern at the time now seems obvious or too simplistic. It contains mostly pop psychology insights from the '80s rather than design ideas, so if you are looking for information on the actual design process you will be disappointed. The original title for this book was 'The Psychology of Everyday Things' and it has not been updated since 1988.

The Design of Everyday Things by Donald A. Norman