In 1997, Stanford University Computer Science professor (and influential researcher in natural language systems and human/computer interaction) Terry Winograd was asked to project 50 years into the future and theorize on the impending flood of interaction.
Mr. Winograd spends some time defending his predictions, citing the impractically of assumptions and the underlying shift in the public’s perception and acceptance of technology. And it is in this uneasiness that Winograd’s true brilliance shines – he foresees the need (and subsequent rise) of the Interaction Designer as a specialized profession.
That’s right. This guy saw your job in 1997. Do you remember the web back in 1997?
He sets the stage for this by painting a historical review of technology forcing the emergence of new specialized professions. Just as the engineer and architect use specialized cross-discipline skills to perform their duties; so too will the emerging Interaction Designer: part engineer, part graphic designer, all user advocate.
Winograd is quick to point out that this skill set is not something that a “graphic designer” designing “web pages” is an expert at; nor is it in the realm of the software engineer (who’s conflict of interest between what is easy and what looks nice excludes them from the argument). No, it is to become a specialized field spanning across both design, engineering and cognitive psychology.
Mr. Winograd, your foresight is as clear as Vanover Bush. If I was to remove the first paragraph of your essay, one might be under the impression that it was a current reflection on the industry.
Thank you dear sir.
From Computing Machinery to Interaction Design
(Psst. This is a must read for current/wannabe Interaction Designers.)
