Less is more…
I love computers. I love technology. I especially love getting to play with the new toys. If you are here and reading this, then I’m sure you know this. Along these lines though, I just have to vent, and let the world know, “I hate working in IT.”
I was reading a nice article the other day, written by Michael Janke, at “Last in – First out http://lastinfirstout.blogspot.com” and it inspired me. He talks about how he surfs the internet with both java and flash, and basically everything he can, disabled. The only problem is, you’re hard pressed to find a useable “big name” website that can function like that. A great example, was his fight with trying to get information from the Acura website. You can read about that battle here: http://lastinfirstout.blogspot.com/2008/05/flash-javascript-and-clowns-that-design.html
At the end of the article, he makes a statement that ring very near and dear to my heart.
“I’ve got a solution though – Make all web site designers & testers use a 1Ghz Pentium with 256MB of RAM for their workstation. I’ll bet that they’ll design fast, lightweight web sites.
They’ll have to.”
I agree. Many people come to me with problems, and when I can’t duplicate them, they are quick to say, “Oh you work in IT. You’ve got the latest and greatest equipment.”
False. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. I take pride in being at the END of the product replacement cycle. I want the oldest, slowest, dumbest stuff possible. I like to keep my users way ahead of myself, at least in hardware terms. In fact, I have NEVER owned a personal computer with more than 512 megs of ram, but that’s another story for another day.
My theory is, “If I can make due with the worst equipment, and make it work, then I know my users shouldn’t have any problems.” Am I the only one that takes a “Less is more” approach?
Tags: hardware, IT, technology, testing, web design