Aside - did you know that the mac shortcut to navigate to the beginning of a line is the same as the Firefox shortcut to go back one page in your history. The is the 3x at writing this. Lesson learned. Writing blog posts longer than one paragraph should only happen outside of a browser.
Over the past two months we have been trying out Netflix as it is now available in Canada. What follows is what I have the patience to recreate after typing this three times (see above, I don't learn fast). This is my experience in Whitehorse, YK.
Platforms used
Data usage
We have traditionally used about 10 -> 12 GB of data per month. The addition of about 2 hrs of shows has boosted us up to by about 50% to 18GB/mth. If you are a heavy TV watcher (or must have high definition) then upgrading your internet package will probably cost you more that just bundling cable with your internet (if you live in Yukon). Something to keep in mind.
Content selection
We are watching a lot of Dora the Explorer, Thomas the Tank Engine and ... not much else. There are some documentary stuff, some HBO/BBC stuff and some slasher/horror/b-list movies but not really much here for the mainstream cable TV viewer. Apparently this will be improving in the "near" future. The selection of shows for those older than two, in my humble opinion, sucks.
Performance
We have a 5MB/s cable internet package and have found that we can easily watch standard definition shows/movies/etc with almost no issues in streaming; there is a short delay while things get setup and then the performance is solid. The image quality is "good enough" for our devices. I can't comment on the performance of high-definition content as we just don't watch any.
About Us
We did not abandon high-def cable for Netflix. We don't have cable, so this is a way to get "on-demand" shows for cheap. Cable is a purely optional luxury for us - if this service didn't exist we would not be subscribing to cable. We subscribed via the free trial (on the Wii!) and the convenience of the service is enough that we don't mind paying the $8 monthly fee.
Final Thoughts
For our, admittedly low, expectations and needs Netflix works. The combination of our movie rental habits, acceptance of standard definition content and meager viewing hours per week means we can fit this into our lives with minimal cost or change.
In my daily work I come across more than my fair share of interfaces. These are internal tools, off the shelf, and external web sites. Today, I came across an external web site that inspired me to post a blog entry.
It must be an epic event!
No, it was the use of three different verbs to describe the same action in the help text.
In an employee survey, names withheld to protect the innocent, I was taking they have three verbs to describe the "click the next button" action.
First, there was the always confusing, to me "select".
Secondly, there was the slightly more correct but confusing in that it's an indirect action "push".
Finally, they said "press", again an indirect action.
I may disagree with the verbs used in the help text but the greater message here is that interfaces are about consistency, especially help text. If you don't make me think, or distract me from my goal - getting to the next page, you have succeeded.
The next time you are using an web form try to keep track of the different verbs used to help you - you might find they are doing the opposite.
It's the most enjoyable time of the year - ELECTION TIME!
