I saw a note recently on The Mojave Experiment, showing the "next version" of Windows to people that were not happy with Vista. Apparently the idea was to show 140 people a new box labeled "Mojave" and tell them it was the next version of Windows. These were people that were not happy with Vista, or had heard bad things about it.
At the end, they were told that they were really shown Vista, and that Mojave was an experiment to show that people's prejudice can really influence them. It's a good idea, and I like what they've done, but I'd also like to see what the people were shown, which things they saw on the screen and the actual actions performed. I'd also like to know the breakdown of people's use of computers.
I can't believe that someone that had used Vista would be fooled with something else. I have a Vista laptop and an XP desktop, and I use both almost every day and I have to say that I prefer the XP desktop in most ways. There are a few things I like about Vista (custom Explorer favorites are one), but not enough to make me switch all my machines over. If I could get drivers for the laptop, I'd go back to XP.
Perceptions are tremendously powerful. I see them all the time in responses to these editorials and when I speak with people at events. It's evident that the first thing someone hears often attains a high level of validity with that person, regardless of how true it is. The myth of Prius batteries lasting 80,000 miles is one that comes to mind, having just finished a car update. I see that questioned in almost every car update.
The way in which you start working with something can influence you more than you expect. It's like the old adage goes, first impressions last a long time. It's true with people and it's true with software. And it should guide you to be careful about what impressions you invoke in someone when you show them something new. There have been more than a few times I was showing something very rough, as a concept, and someone assumed that what they saw was the way things had to be done.
In software, I'd venture to say that managing expectations is best handled with agile development and small, short cycles showing changes often that the user can somehow involve themselves with feedback. Then their first impressions become less lasting. Unfortunately, it's not something Microsoft can do with a new OS. That tends to be one big change all at once.
Steve Jones
The Voice of the DBA Podcasts
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