Binary Rescue

Summer of Mac Love - Week 5 - User Interface

August 8, 2008 – 12:53 pm

Last week I covered the differences between the software removal processes of OS X and Windows. Now that we have configured the system to our liking it is time to examine actually using the system. This week we will compare the user interfaces of OS X and the Windows platform. User interfaces are a science in and of themselves. For the purposes of this series I will forgo the highly technical and focus rather on the elements that affect the everyday user.

The Facts

Graphical user interfaces are the system by which the user interacts with a computer.

The most frequently used element in both Windows and OS X is the file browser. Finder is the file browser for OS X and Explorer is the Windows files browser.

Aqua, the OS X GUI, was introduced in 2000.

Windows released Aero as part of Vista in 2006. Windows 95 through XP all used iterations of the same user interface.

Windows has only one “administrator” account type giving this account full access to the system.

OS X other Unix systems have two layers of administrator access. Root access which is not available to users and the administrator account available to users which contains only a subset of root privileges.

The Criteria

• Capability: Does the tool perform the job?
  A capable user interface must allow the user to manipulate the computer and the data within in it. File operations such as moving, copying, deleting renaming are examples. While providing these basic functions does it also protect the operating system from damage, malicious or accidental? Modern user interfaces must also be able to manage multiple windows and applications simultaneously.
• Availability: Is the tool available and working correctly when it is needed?
  The most dramatic test a user interface can endure is an catastrophic error. When a software element crashes is the user interface still available to attempt to correct or mitigate the crash.
• Usability: Is the user able to intuitively work the tool?
  Usability is largely subjective but for purposes of this article usability means the following. How simple is the interface, i.e. are there ten convoluted ways to accomplish a task or one simple method. Is the interface consistent. Are dialog boxes and user interaction requests clear and concise?
• Efficiency: Does the tool perform the job with as little effort as possible?
  Last weeks criteria are also applicable to user interfaces. How quickly can the process be completed? How many steps are required? How much interaction with the user is required?

The Results

• Capability: Does the tool perform the job?
  Both OS X and Windows handle the basics of file manipulation in a similar manner. The difference arises in their ability to handle errors and prevent damage to the underlying operating system. See the Availability comparison for details. The second difference is the prevention of damage. Both systems attempt to prevent accidental and malicious damage by requiring administrative access to manipulate operating system files. OS X users are not given administrative access without a password. Furthermore “root” level access is required and administrative accounts are not in this group. Windows users can acquire the equivalent of “root” access by turning their account into an “Administrator” account. Finally the third major difference is how the user interface handles numerous windows and programs running simultaneously. Although both user interfaces are capable of managing this situation the difference lies in the usability, described below, of each method.
• Availability: Is the tool available and working correctly when it is needed?
  Due to the integration of Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer and the core of the operating system (ask the DOJ for details) a failure of any of these elements can render the system inoperable requiring at best a relaunch and at worst a rebuild. The architecture of Unix in general and OS X in particular provide for true task separation whereby each element is able to fail without taking down the rest of the system. In a Windows environment an failure in any of the three elements can render the user interface unavailable. The same is not true of OS X.
• Usability: Is the user able to intuitively work the tool?
  The Windows user interface is far more complex than that of OS X. It is common that Windows tasked can be achieved by numerous methods whereas the same task in OS X can only be accomplished in at most two different ways. Interface consistency also favors OS X. Although it is not perfect the user interface is far more consistent in OS X than in Windows. This results in a reduced learning curve for users and therefore increased usability. Additionally the number of dialog boxes and user interaction elements that suffer from what I call nerd speak is far less in OS X. The blue screen of death is by far the most striking example. I can’t count the number of times a client has written down the gibberish on this screen and called me for an explanation. The kernel panic (BSOD equivalent) of OS X simply says “Your system has encountered an error and needs to restart.” The information presented in the BSOD only serves to confuse the common user as they are not capable of understanding the data that is presented.
• Efficiency: Does the tool perform the job with as little effort as possible?
  A failure of the Finder in OS X can be remedied in two steps. Pressing Command-Option-Esc on a Mac presents a dialog box with a button labeled “Relaunch Finder”. In order to restart Explorer in Windows four steps are required and you must know the name of the process, explorer.exe, in order to attempt a repair. The problem here is the common user will not be able to learn this process as it is beyond their comfort level. Viewing all open windows and subsequently selecting the desired window can be achieved in two steps in OS X via expose. The only method to accomplish this same task in Windows is click through every item in the taskbar. The number of steps required increases with every additional open window.

The Winner

The first thing I recall from my undergrad days in Computer Science was the KISS principal. I vividly remember frantically working to get my program working before the due date, only to have points deducted from my grade. When I protested stating the my program worked as required the professor countered with yes it works but it took 100 lines of code to accomplish what could be done in ten. The lesson learned was this. Getting a program to work was the easy part. Making that same program simple was the hard part. This is the philosophical difference between the two platforms in terms of usability. Apple took the time to make the user interface in OS X simple and efficient. Microsoft however seems to be happy with just getting it to work. Although not exhaustive the examination of criteria above demonstrates that OS X is more capable, more available, infinitely more usable, and more efficient than Windows. Although Microsoft made some progress in Vista, this progress is in many ways one step forward and two steps back. But that is an article in and of itself.

Score one more win for OS X:
OS X 5 Windows 0