In a review of Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8, Gartner analyst Gunnar Berger's one-word description of the mouse-and-keyboard user interface as "bad" was extrapolated in the blogosphere to describe the whole OS. He's since responded, and removed the reference, but should he have?
Just days after a Gartner analyst called Windows 8 “bad,” he then did a quick retreat and removed the reference from his blog post and in comments to a U.K. tech publication.
Gunnar Berger, a research director at the consulting firm, wrote a total of five blog posts summarizing his thoughts on Microsoft’s next OS, which is due this October. Berger covered a wide variety of features and functions on a hybrid tablet/laptop to using both the touchscreen and a standard keyboard and mouse.
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This was where the trouble started. Berger described the experience of using a mouse and keyboard in Windows 8 as thus: “in a word: bad.” He went on to explain why.
“Extremely important menus in Windows 8 are hidden off screen, easily brought in when using a touch and swiping with your thumbs, are absent when using a mouse…Prior to this incident, I can’t tell you the last time I had to ask someone how to do something in a client OS.”
He found remote access to a Windows 8 computer to be a headache because the Metro interface on the remote PC would not accept input from the Windows key on his local keyboard.
At least Berger backed it up. But the headlines among tech blogs claimed simply that Gartner called Windows 8 “In a word: bad.” Far too few actually bothered to get into the weeds of why he said it.
As a result, Berger yanked the offending line from his blog post, complaining it was taken out of context. I wrote to him for comment but no word back yet. He did, however, speak with the UK publication PC Pro.
He said his overall opinion on Windows 8 “is actually really good. That’s why I’m surprised at the amount of press – they love taking that one sentence and pulling it out of context. That’s driving me nuts. Overall, it’s actually a compelling product, combining a tablet OS and a desktop OS… I think that’s a very smart move.”
Berger reiterated that the problem was the keyboard and mouse support was not equal to that of the touchpad. “It’s very intuitive when you have the touch interface, when you swipe with your thumbs those menus are easy to get to, but when you do a mouse and keyboard, they’re hidden and not easy to spot. It’s not easy to find them.”
So once again we have a case where someone explains what they mean but no one listens. I can understand Berger’s sentiment that his words were taken out of context, because everyone focused on the word “bad” but not why he said it.
In Washington, they have a saying: if you have to explain, you’re losing. Rather sad that such intellectual laziness has infected our world, too.
