When you encounter problems with objects - whether you can't decide whether to push or pull a door or you're baffled by the quirks of modern computing and electronics products - the fault is not yours. Don't blame yourself: hold the designer responsible. It is the technology's fault or, more precisely, the design's fault...

When we first see an object we've never encountered before, how do we figure out how to use it? How do we manage to handle tens of thousands of objects, many of which we encounter only once? This question drove me to write this book you are holding. The answer, I quickly concluded, was that the appearance of the device must provide the critical cues necessary for its proper operation - knowledge must exist both in our heads and in the world.

In this entertaining and educational analysis, cognitive scientist Donald A. Norman praises design excellence as the most important key to regaining a competitive edge in influencing consumer behavior.

This revised and expanded edition of the book "The Design of Everyday Things," enriched with a new introduction by the author, serves as a valuable guide for anyone interested in learning how and why certain products satisfy consumers while others frustrate them.