Brilliant.

http://stuffthathappens.com/blog/2008/03/05/simplicity/

So Google Chrome was unleashed on the unsuspecting public yesterday with very little preceding hype. It enters a market that has thus far has had only two major players - Mozilla and Microsoft. Backed by marketing power that is unrivaled in the online world, it is strongly positioned to take both on (and especially Microsoft).

A web browser built on the webkit engine (same as Safari), Chrome offers a simple UI and extensive support for web technologies. Having used it for a couple of days now, it is striking to me how obvious it is that Google is a web company - in bold contrast to another software giant currently pushing for their next-gen browser.

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Internet Explorer development is moving along and and as part of an effort to improve the quality of their next browser, Microsoft has posted a request for bug-testers on the IEBlog.

Beta 2 is right around the corner and we are expanding our reach! If you wish to be a part of making IE better by contributing great bug reports then please email us at IESO@microsoft.com and tell us a little about yourself including why you’d be a great beta tester.

Reading the blog responses and this post on the subtly named ‘Why IE sucks’ blog, it seems the reactions are mostly negative. Aside from some unfortunate phrasing, I have to wonder why.
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User interface design is my favorite part of the development process. The problems it poses are the most interesting, and thinking up solutions is a form of creative expression. Users consume our applications through the interface - one chance to either deliver a satisfying experience or fail miserably.

It is a topic I have very strong and passionate opinions of, and motivated by this beautiful prose by Jono over at Not the User’s Fault, these are my guidelines for user interaction design:
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