every day, your cursor protects you from unclear UI. It helpfully turns into a text cursor as you hover over textboxes, or a hand as you hover over a link or action item. iPad has no such thing. Bad UI will stick out like a sore thumb, both in apps and on websites. Your tappable areas had better look tappable. Your controls had better look controllable. That decorative little page-curl in the corner of that entry had better turn a page. Without being able to subconsciously hover-to-test, users will end up frustrated at anything that doesn’t do what it looks like it should do, or vice-versa.
Both a very interesting observation about current computer UI and what the iPad will force UI designers to do.
I know a number of people who, when reading on their computer, are extremely active mouse users. They constantly highlight things by selecting them—somewhat unconsciously—and poke around with their cursor. This is alien to me, and I find it very distracting just to watch. (Perhaps that’s why I am so happy with my Kindle?) I imagine, then, that some of these cursor addicts are going to have to change their ways once they get to an iPad.
Cameron Daigle Dot Com | PodCamp Nashville 2010 Presentation
