Good software makes us happy
What is amazing about good software is that they have the tendency of making us happy.
Over the last decade, I have seen software improved in so many ways that it is unimaginable what we were using back in the 1990s and the early 2000s. There is so much to learn from what software can do for us.
For this, I want to focus primarily on Mac OS X and iOS apps.
- They are designed with minimalism.
- They are straightforward to navigate with chock full of hidden extras.
- That's about it.
Take a good look at Alfred App. See how clean and manageable this software is?
It doesn't get in my way. For example, I call up the dictionary using 'define tea', what about finding the correct version of Firefox or Safari?
Another beautiful example is RipIt to show how trouble-free it can be to rip a DVD and compress for Apple TV, iPhone or iPad.
That is all I want to do. I have time to do other things. Other software such as Coda, Transmit, Pixelmator and Sparrow are gorgeous and powerful to use that you can get on with what you want to do.
On the iOS platform, Flipboard is an insanely beautiful social magazine for your iPad because the thought process is so fluid that it does not get in your way. You can pick it up any time to read at your own pace. Other iOS apps such as Mail, BBC iPlayer, Twitter and The Guardian Eyewitness are evidence that producing well designed and minimalism apps do make us happy.