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IDEA question - usability testing

 
Greenhorn
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Hi Dimitry,

I have another question on IDEA.

I noticed some changes to the GUI in IDEA 6, for example in the way you manage libraries and JDKs. Do changes like this come out of usability testing on older versions, or do you just try new designs and see how they fare in beta versions?

Thanks,
Steve
 
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Hello Steve,

We don't currently have any formal usability testing process. The UI changes are motivated by the developers' own experience when using the product, and by feedback we receive during the EAP process.
 
Steve Chaloner
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Interesting - this is probably the first example of a developer-designed GUI that works well! I guess when you develop in your own product you get to find annoying issues fast though.

Sorry for mis-spelling your name
 
Ranch Hand
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It's a developer product, designed by developers.
Developers tend to think alike, so they can anticipate each others' needs and wants better than those of non-technical people.

That's also why user interfaces for end user products designed by technical people are generally pretty useless for the intended audience. They expose the wrong functionality in the wrong way, making it hard to use for people who have little understanding of nor interest in the low level details of what they're trying to achieve, they just want it to work.
 
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