I am sure you have heard from the new Email client google wave that is currently in a limited user invite-only testing stage.
Now people may wonder what are the differences to regular Email clients? The answer to that question could be the feature list, but that does not actually reveal what it feels like to use wave.
The UI of Wave will be great! The interactivity that is involved will bring a new concept to life that was not so commonly used yet. It is similar to responsive disclosure, a user interface pattern that I like to use instead of wizards or forms containing static input fields.
In responsive disclosure, interacting with user interface elements defines the elements that are presented below your current input position. The user selects one path through a decision tree that builds up the user interface.
Wave works in a similar way. Members of a Wave can add new text, change it – even from someone else – and add arbitrary content like pictures or videos. Wave supports a plugin infrastructure, to extend the experience by arbitrary, interactive forms, for example.
By hiding non-relevant information, a user interface based on responsive disclosure implicitly converts input to a concise report that reflects a back log and the overall state of the document. It is printable, and can be reedited, thereby creating a form of interactive paper .. on screen.
This paper vision will get a lot more real with the advent of web tables like the Archos9 or the long awaited and rumored iTablet from Apple.
With multi touch interfaces and new methods to input text, a new era will begin and one of the user interface concepts that will perfectly fit in, is responsive disclosure. Keep that in mind when you are designing your next user interface.
yours
armin
