On magic as a metaphor for interaction design
Who in their right mind would want an enchanted object? Think of the havoc they cause in stories and films. The ring Bilbo finds in the Hobbit contains so much evil that it takes three books, hundreds of pages, and an epic battle involving multiple races to dispose of it. The classic genie in a bottle grants three wishes, but does everything in its power to twist the to the detriment of their recipient. The enchanted broomstick in Fantasia threatens to drown its creator. Countless examples hint at the danger of such objects.
Magic is the name we give to things we don't understand, things we can't control. It is a mysterious power beyond the capacity of most, mastered only with difficulty and scholarship. Harry Potter had seven years (and seven books) worth of study in it. Why should we need such an education to operate the things around us? They are complex enough without the addition of a shroud of obscurity and unpredictability. The goal of interaction design and the interaction designer is to reveal and explain the functioning of the objects in our world, not commingle them with the primal and eternal forces of the universe.
It is a failure, not a goal, for our products to seem magical. It means that we don't understand them, that we are afraid to manipulate them for fear of what might happen. It means that we sense strange things beneath the surface whose purpose and ways we cannot fathom. Think of the person who dares not click an unknown button because they don't know what might happen. They are constrained by the precise limits of their past experience. Is this so different from the aura of fear and respect afforded to mystic runes or an enchanted potion? Magic means meddling with forces you do not understand and cannot control.
When we design, we should think of the human, the familiar, the natural. We should strive to create products which match our expectations and experiences with the world and its contents. We should be able to comprehend the connections between action and reaction, between one system and other. Otherwise, we will dwell in a world of mysteries - mysteries that go by the name of magic.
