INFORMATION overload is one of the great technology challenges of our time.
The very best experiences we have with computers are those in which technology presents us with less information, not more.
Developers take note.
We may crave sophisticated, in-depth analytics, but at the interface there is a massive difference between data and information, and just as big a distinction between extraneous and actionable information.
The Holy Grail of the business decision-maker is not an enterprise computing platform that provides them with every conceivable metric about their business on a three-metre widescreen. Neither is it to have 100 real-time data feeds into the executive desktop. No, the Holy Grail is a system that provides precisely the information needed to make a given decision at a given point in time.
It is tragic to see how frequently the perils of information overloads are forgotten by software developers. So many still believe success lies in including more information (or, worse, more style) to the interface when they should be aware what works for teenagers is not what appeals to managers and CFOs.
The very best business interfaces will always be those that provide abstracts, summaries, conclusions or recommendations with the OPTION of getting more details.
A few weeks ago I came across a perfect example of these principles in action. I had been asked to deliver a presentation on the future of human-computer interaction, giving me an excuse to catch up with some of the leading Australian academics in this field. I was especially privileged to spend several hours with Dr Cecile Paris, head of the advanced intelligent interface laboratory at the CSIRO, and one of the projects she stepped me through was CARRS (Computer Automated Road Report System) a system designed to provide advice to drivers based on current traffic conditions.
What is interesting about CARRS compared with all the other traffic information systems is it is designed to present us with the information we need and to screen us from the rest.
Instead of supplying a comprehensive set of traffic details over a given area, CARRS is designed to condense information from multiple sources into short actionable messages, tailored to whatever device we are using.
None of this is easy, and it is ironic that writing software to distil complex data into a simple message is a lot harder than writing software to present a lot of information in one place, but Dr Paris and her colleagues are passionate about what they are doing.
She summed up what drives them this way: "People don't want to know how many accidents there are today and how much extra traffic is currently being monitored at various intersections. They really want to be told 'leave 20 minutes earlier to get to the office on time'." Precisely.
BRICKBATS
OPTUS scored healthy positive publicity with its recent announcement that it can now block stolen mobile phones along with Telstra and Vodafone, but the focus should have been how long this has taken: the delay has been a disgraceful consumer rip-off.
RHETORIC on parallel importing has heated up recently, with various software publishers and hardware manufacturers keen to talk up the perils of buying products overseas. Part of this is justified - Aussie support staff can't be expected to know the idiosyncrasies of products localised for Iceland - but much of the problem comes from sales operations that cannot properly accommodate global purchasing (i.e. overseas purchases hurting local hip pockets).
BOUQUETS
IN the corridors of such organisations as Standards Australia and the National Office of the Information Economy, work continues on projects to facilitate electronic interoperability between government agencies and businesses. Every initiative that succeeds in progressing linkages across federal and state boundaries is especially important.
THE war in Iraq has highlighted the power of the web in umpteen different ways, but to my mind the most important is easy access to many news sources and widely differing points of view. One outcome is that heavily biased or one-sided reporting is quickly seen for what it is.
Bruce McCabe is an independent analyst and managing director of S2 Intelligence.
