PEOPLE WHO USE COMPUTERS AT WORK IN A OFFICE INSTALL
PEOPLE WHO USE COMPUTERS AT WORK IN A OFFICE WINDOWS

PEOPLE WHO USE COMPUTERS AT WORK IN A OFFICE INSTALL

Surely, day to day computing would become easier and IвЂ™d get fewer calls to install printer drivers and troubleshoot crashes, right? I was the person you went to when your printer wouldnвЂ™t work or your modem wouldnвЂ™t connect.ДЇor ten years IвЂ™ve been expecting that part of my work to die down. I began my IT career as the guy down the hall.

We need to be able to sit at our desks and get work done without a constant stream of frustrating and irritating encounters that draw attention to just how fragile our computers are. Computers should be getting easier to use, because thatвЂ™s our fundamental need. We bought into the promise and we have incorporated these machines into our work and personal lives at a deep level. Advances now, though, are incremental, and they have been for a long time. Oh, itвЂ™s not like development has stopped вЂ“ weвЂ™ve gotten touch screens and digital pens, whee. TheyвЂ™re being tweaked in mildly interesting ways. Hardware, software, networking and security are not undergoing those profound shifts.

PEOPLE WHO USE COMPUTERS AT WORK IN A OFFICE WINDOWS

Windows and AppleвЂ™s OS had to undergo wrenching changes to incorporate the security required by a persistent connection to the internet. The hardware was changing in fundamental ways at a fast pace, from brand new processor architecture to constant changes in audio, video and networking components.

Twenty years ago it was perhaps acceptable for computers to work best for people willing to learn about their fiddly bits. A generation of schoolkids is growing up with Chromebooks.Д«ut I havenвЂ™t talked about another reason, something that everyone knows in their bones and that shapes our decisions even if we donвЂ™t think about it consciously: p ersonal computers are just too hard to use. We are engaged in a transition away from computers to phones and tablets. IвЂ™ve recently talked about some of the reasons for the drop in computer sales. Sales in the 1st quarter of 2016 were at the lowest point in a decade. Year over year? Sales of desktops and laptops were down 11.5% compared to the 1st quarter in 2015.

Sure, thereвЂ™s always a drop after the 4th quarter but sales are down in any way you care to measure. Taken together, the top eight vendors (Lenovo, HP, Dell, Apple, etc.) saw a 20% decline in laptop sales compared to the holiday season. AppleвЂ™s laptop shipments fell 40% from the last quarter of 2015. Sales in the first quarter of 2016 were even lower than the most pessimistic projections. ThatвЂ™s profoundly disappointing, and it has big consequences for our world. ItвЂ™s twenty-five years later and itвЂ™s still true. That was the first line in the first column that influential tech journalist Walt Mossberg wrote on Octofor the Wall Street Journal. вЂњPersonal computers are just too hard to use, and it isnвЂ™t your fault.вЂќ

People who use computers at work in a office