Re: [school-discuss] Web app innovation vs complication

["Douglas S. Blank" <dblank@brynmawr.edu>]

Thanks to David Bucknell for his work and articles on opensourceschools.org;
he has brought up many good issues that need to be resolved.

I hope that the issues that he has highlighted in the article mentioned below,
though, aren't seen as a "collision" between computer science and usability.
Usability IS computer science.

However, he has identified a problem. I see it as a collision between
simplicity and functionality. I believe that the problem is a temporary one in
the evolution of these software projects. The install and config have gotten
complex, but the software has also gotten more sophisticated. 

One might think that the sophistication is not worthwhile, while others might
find it desirable. Either way, don't worry. I'm sure that once the
possibilities of the software have been explored, then the simplicity will
trickle back down into the install and management options.

I wouldn't worry too much about trying to control the direction open source
software moves in. I also wouldn't worry about bloat of unnecessary code and
features. The nature of open source software seems that it always grows in
unexpected ways. It's not always a smooth ride, but I've always been amazed at
the ingenious results.

-Doug

David Bucknell <david@members.iteachnet.org> said:

> I use Web content apps, all of which are built with php and use mysql or
> postgres databases. Lately, I've found that well-intentioned "innovations" are 
> making it difficult to upgrade. Maybe it's just a transition period, but I
> wonder if the developers, whose good works have destined them for paradise, are
> losing touch with the needs of their users. I've written an article in which I
> try to describe the situation at
> http://opensourceschools.org/article.php?story=20020303154244921
> 
> I didn't say so in the article, but it occurs to me that this may be where
> computer science collides with usability.
> 
> I'd appreciate any comments you might have.
> 
> David Bucknell
> -- 
> http://www.iteachnet.org
> http://members.iteachnet.org
> http://opensourceschools.org
> http://schoolforge.net member
> 
> ------------------------------------------------
> http://members.iteachnet.org/
> http://www.opensourceschools.org/
> 



-- 
Douglas S. Blank,       Assistant Professor         
dblank@brynmawr.edu,          (610)526-6501
Bryn Mawr College,  Computer Science Program
101 North Merion Ave,  Park Science Building
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 dangermouse.brynmawr.edu