The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Giving importance to product usability

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Dec 09, 2007
ePaper

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Giving importance to product usability

Kaladhar Bapu

Design as a concept is quite popular among western manufacturers while Indians are lagging much behind. One obvious reason is lack of awareness among consumers about the design lapses they silently put up with, Kaladhar Bapu tells V. Swathi

Kaladhar Bapu, a young student of Architecture in JNTU way back in 1995, however, thought differently. From his thoughts emerged an online forum that talks about design lapses in most mundane aspects of life.

As the founder of usabilitymatters.org, he dreams of a day when manufacturers line up at his office to know their users’ preferences.

Emptying an oil bag into a bottle of narrow opening requires much skill, mastering which is an absolute waste of time.

If shampoo sachet comes with a dent to tear open, many teeth will be saved of the trouble.

Pressure operated manholes will pull only excessive water and not lives. Cylinders and batteries with value addition in terms of indicators of gas and energy levels can serve much better.

“While designing furniture, ergonomic aspects are rarely taken care of. That leaves many office workers enduring unbearable sprain in the back,” Kaladhar says explaining in the same breath that human hands are not designed to hold an electronic mouse.

“Imagine holding a handful of dough. An ideal mouse should be moulded in those lines,” he says with an infectious smile.

All these are usability aspects which are rarely considered by Indian manufacturers and forever ignored by the all-enduring consumers. Not anymore, says Kaladhar.

Passion

Son of an established artist Seetarama Swamy and hailing from Amalapuram, Kaladhar’s passion for usability dates back to 1995 when he was an undergraduate in architecture with JNTU.

“A project visit to a government hospital that did not have a ramp to wheel in patients set me thinking. Then, I began viewing every aspect of life from the usability perspective,” says Kaladhar.

Later, he went on to complete his M. Des from IIT Bombay (He was the All-India topper of the entrance examination) and is presently employed as User Experience Designer with Microsoft. UMO (usabilitymatters.org) began as an online venture and expanded its presence into public domain through workshops and conferences across colleges and institutions.

Also conducted are nation-wide contests in locating bad designs which receive entries even from IIT students.

The plan is to publish a handbook about product usability.

Jugards is another initiative in the pipeline, which focuses on plebeian innovativeness.

Kaladhar won many painting competitions and had been a caricaturist with a local daily. Pet of famous artist Bapu and named after him by his father, he is behind the development of the website www.bapubomma.com.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh