.::output >> /dev/null::.

Norman says that there are three categories to good design: visceral, behavioral and reflective. I feel that it would be appropriate to illustrate these three terms using the Apple computer.

• Visceral
  Visceral deals with appearance. The more honest of us will agree that few if any of the other computer hardware in the market today have the physical appeal that an Apple machine exerts. Dell definitely has to undergo some serious design issues; their latest machines seem to be some clone of previous macintosh models. The only other computers out there that have some form of physical appeal would be those in the Sony VAIO line. For instance, my powerbook G4 is still better looking than any other of my peers' computers. It has a certain appeal: its almost symmetrical keyboard layout, the large track-pad in the center, the color coordination, and its thinness. Its titanium body also exerts a certain tactile feel to it that is not perceivable on black plastic. It feels almost sexy.
  Furthermore, visceral deals with our first impression of the machine. It by-passes all of our logical thinking. It is the "i-want-it" factor. It leads you to believe that titanium on a notebook is cool even though it might scratch easily. It tricks your brain from realizing that a slot-loading CD-drive will not be able to accept those awful mini-CDs that some companies love giving out. And it lets you forget about how some of you misinformed friend would make fun of the single mouse button. In short, its physical beauty hides all other of its possible flaws; the greater the visceral quality of the product the more likely it will be the influential factor when deciding to buy or not to buy.
  Though Norman does not mention this in his book, I believe that OS X's user interface itself is appealing. In a computer world, most of the everyday tasks involve moving the mouse around the screen; there is very little that you can touch and feel besides the keyboard and the track-pad. Thus the GUI designers have at least made the interface appealing with the Aqua interface and all those beautify buttons and icons. Some command-line users might argue that all those beautifications are useless but to a first time user, it has a certain appeal. And even to a user who stares at the computer almost 90% of his day, those simple colorful buttons still have a certain appeal to them even if you do see them everyday. Their colors and design are neither too gaudy nor too austere.
• Behavioral
  The term behavioral deals with the pleasure that one derives from the usage of the product. I can attest to the fact that using my powerbook and OS X has given me no less pleasure today than it had when I first powered it on. Everyday I am able to use my computer and be productive when I want to get some work done. I can also enjoy my music and games when I feel like it. Also, nothing prevents me from trying on new programs without the hassle of trying to get rid of program residue. Even Windows runs better in a controlled virtual PC environment.
  It is the behavioral factor that determines whether you will be able to use this product daily. It measures how long you are able to bear using this product without cursing or attempting to dismantle it. And when the product in question is a notebook that will be serving you for most of the day, it had better be usable.
  How do you get a product that is going to appeal to almost everyone? Well you cannot. During a talk by Guy Kawasaki, one of the early Apple evangelists, he suggests that you do not try to convert someone who does not wish to be converted. Therefore, Apple is wise in the sense that it still maintains control over most of the OS and machine. Apple is not going to even try to appeal to everyone; not everyone is going to like its iLife suite. Some would even prefer to install some Linux distro instead of using OS X. But that is not the point. OS X is designed in such a way that there is at least some features that will appeal to different groups of people. For example, some users will never need to use the command line so OS X does not mandate the use of the command line to do anything. Some people will not need to use XCode for developing so it does not come installed by default. In short, though Apple exercises some form of control over its machines, it does leave the more intrepid user with freedom to do what he or she wants.
• Reflective
  I am proud to be among the few in my ECE department who use a macintosh. I like being different from the rest. Whenever everyone brings out their black notebooks I am there with the only computer that is gray and has the glowing Apple logo. I feel good whenever I see another user with a macintosh.
  Few products can have such an effect on people. And when they do, you know that they have achieve some form of brand power. Their consumers will proudly become walking billboards for them. That is why Nike is able to get away with the rather prominent swoosh logo on their products. And why Dell's logo will forever be those simple 4 letters with the slanted E as a failed attempt at being creative. Most people will treasure the Apple stickers that come with the purchase of a new machine. That is why Apple throws a couple of them in and no other company does this (i think).
  A successful product will have the users talking about it. And also forming close knit groups that discuss about the product they are using. It is the final factor that will probably determine whether you will be using this product for a long time to come. It measures how much that product has become part of your lives so much so that you are willing to tout that product to everyone else.

I think that Apple has succeeded in creating products that fulfill all three categories. In the book The Culf of the Mac, we can see devoted Apple fanatics clinging on their Newtons, modding their macs to be more personal and so on. Few others in the PC world would do something like that.