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Subject:Re: intuition vs. background From:Ad absurdum per aspera <JTCHEW -at- LBL -dot- GOV> Date:Thu, 6 Jan 1994 18:05:56 GMT
Richard Ells <rells -at- u -dot- washington -dot- edu> wrote:
> 2. Human beings have the ability to make decisions despite
> uncertainty - we do it everyday in language, deciding what restaurant
> to go to, making investments, etc. We have specific strategies
> we use, including a) reasoning from past experience, b) inferring
> choices from the paradigm (desktops probably have wastebaskets nearby),
> c) exploring to elucidate the choices, and d) following someone else's
> example.
Note also that some human beings are more equal than others.
As an experienced modem abuser, I know whether I've connected,
and have an arsenal of techniques to make the remote system
give me a prompt. I also know that if the customary technique
doesn't work, beating on it a few more times might help.
Novices work differently and have fewer error-recovery skills.
If in doubt, grab some users whom you feel to be truly
representative of the intended audience and TEST. The
results are often humbling but also instructive.
Joe
"Just another personal opinion from the People's Republic of Berkeley"
