Ben Schneiderman on setting the direction for user friendlier software. A lot of what he says is common knowledge in HCI circles and is what I'm working towards every day in my company. Ben also says that end-users must actively campaign to regain the rights they've been stripped of in software license agreements. They must demand companies provide easier-to-use and less buggy software.

I agree that change will come more quickly if the end-user gets involved, but I don't see that day coming anytime soon. Most end-users don't even realize what they give up when they click the "Agree" button at the license screen. They've also been brainwashed into an endless upgrade cycle by both hardware and software companies. It will take more than this article to shake people up.

The positive side is that the industry is slowly moving towards better quality software on its own. Unfortunately, this is only because that is the new differentiator in a world of bottomless feature lists. From my experience, companies still don't see the ROI from investing in usability.