BenjaminSte.in

marco:

Tech geeks are terrible at knowing what they want from technology. (A faster horse.) It’s embarrassing, because we’re supposed to be the experts. But we suck at this. If you listen to geeks, you get products targeted at geeks, usually at the tremendous exclusion of design, usability, marketability, and usefulness to regular people.

I’ll agree with your very last point (“exclusion of… usefulness to regular people”), but I have to take issue with your thesis.  Tech geeks may be terrible at knowing what other people want from technology, but they are quite good at knowing what they want.

Geeks are notorious for scratching their own itch and have made some great tools in the process.  For example, to reblog this post, I started my Fluid Tumblr app using Quicksilver.  As I type, I’m streaming audio in VLC.  My screen is dimmed using Flux to adjust to the indoor CFL lights.  For the most part, these tools are pretty inaccessible, but they are great applications for geeks by geeks.*

Geeks definitely know what they want.  They just don’t know what other people want.

* I should absolutely start a line of clothing “for geeks by geeks” and call it FOOBU