Chris Hanrath

After logging in to Netflix today, i experienced a recently added feature to improve movie recommendations. These ratings are asking users to make statements about their taste for movies based on mood characteristics such as: “romantic, goofy, sentimental, dark, controversial, steamy, mind-bending, violent…”

These taste preference can be categorized into “never, sometimes and often” and are supported by six example movies to understand what netflix considers to be classified under the mood. These can be changed later on.

Tags: Cool Stuff,Recommender,User Experience

Comments(1)

I just returned from Spring Break, so i will start posting again…

Tags: Uncategorized

Comments(1)

I just discovered a neat interactive beta visualization for citations in scientific publications that i found on isiknowledge.com

Tags: Cool Stuff,Interface,Research,Visualization

Comments(0)

I just opened a blank new Tab on my browser and Google presented me with a context sensitive page suggesting most visited pages, recent bookmarks and recently closed tabs… uhm, Thanks! …I guess…

I wonder about the missing thumbnail screenshots, why an icon of a broken camera? Did i break something, or do i have to get my digital camera out and take a picture of each screen so that Google can post it? I am also not sure what the recent bookmarks are, since i don’t bookmark pages or click on bookmarks…

Tags: Cool Stuff,Google,Usability

Comments(1)

I was browsing the new WordPress Dashboard today and stumpled upon the “Turbo” Section. It offers to speed up WordPress using Google Gears with a little note stating: “Don’t install on a public or shared computer.”

This made me wonder… what if somebody installed Gears on a public computer that is not protected against such browser plugins or i use someone else’s computer. Will it store confidential or private data about me? Will the Firefox “Clear Private Data” option delete traces of me from this system? Just a thought.

Tags: Failure,Google,Security

Comments(0)

Today i experienced an absolute showstopper even though I have been pretty satisfied with Windows Vista so far. For the past time as long as i remember the “Off” Button to the left of the “Lock” Button has been setting my Laptop to Standby.

Today – when leaving the Coffee shop – the same button suddenly decided to shut my system completely off with all my applications running. What would Nielsen say? Where is the Consistency, Recognition and Error Prevention?

Tags: Failure,Interface,Jakob Nielsen,Usability,Vista

Comments(0)