The Interface Experience ― A User's Guide

Within the history of computing, the last thirty years have been defined by the ascendance of the personal computer, a device that finally brought the power of computation out of laboratories and corporate technology centers and into the purview of the individual user. That thirty years has seen a blur of technological advances in both hardware and software as computers have gotten smaller, faster, more powerful and more complex. In fact, so much has happened so quickly and been so dramatic in its effect on everyday life that we often forget to think about just how we have interacted with these machines over time, and how those interactions have come to define our experiences with these machines. In this regard the ubiquity of these tools, which often sell millions of units, and the almost constant state of change in the field of technological discovery often leaves us taking for granted just how different it has been to experience these machines at different points over time. This book aims to defamiliarize some of the most ubiquitous objects in the history of personal computing, allowing for a better understanding of the historical shifts that have occurred in the design and material experience of these computers, and to get visitors to start thinking about the cultural moments that have come to be defined by our interaction with these material objects.

Objects to be examined include:
Commodore 64
Apple Macintosh Plus
Palm Pilot Professional
Apple iPad
Microsoft Kinect

Kimon Keramidas is assistant professor and director of the Digital Media Lab at the Bard Graduate Center in New York City.