Simon Whatley

DOGE Understands Something the US Policy Establishment Does Not: Technology is the Spinal Cord of Government | TechPolicy.Press For the US Digital Service, tech was a means to an end, writes Emily Tavoulareas. What is technology a means to now?

I’ve been following DOGE with a real sense of shock from the UK. This is a good article - how understanding the relationship between policy, modern services and technology is crucial, and what is technology a means to? www.techpolicy.press/doge-underst...

The UX of login codes I could do a deep dive into the UX of login codes, but I'll do my best to keep it short. If your product texts/emails login codes, the experience better be amazing. Bad The text/email neve...

✏️ ✏️ I wrote a quick little rant about the awful UX of login codes.

The Great Mental Models The Great Mental Models project is the clearest way to change the way you see the world, avoid problems before they happen, and make better decisions.

You can buy the Great Mental Models series via the Farnam Street website: fs.blog/tgmm/

The image shows the four books in the "Great Mental Models" series by Shane Parrish on a table. Book 1 is about general thinking concepts; book 2 is about physics, chemistry and biology; book 3 is about systems and mathematics; and book 4 is about economics and human behaviour.

I’m reading ”The Great Mental Models” by @shaneaparrish.bsky.social. It’s 4 books packed with tools for better thinking:

1. General thinking concepts
2. Physics, chemistry, and biology
3. Systems and mathematics
4. Economics and human behaviour

I’m two books into the series, and I highly recommend

The next time you evaluate a UX project, don’t just ask about ROI. Ask about behaviour change. What specific actions do you want users to take? How can UX help facilitate those actions? By focusing on behaviour change, you’ll get a clearer picture of a UX project’s true value.

UX isn’t just about aesthetics or usability. It’s about driving specific actions. A beautiful, easy-to-use website might impress users, but it’s not achieving its goal if it doesn’t get them to buy, sign up, or share.

ROI isn’t the best way to talk about the value of UX, but behaviour change is.

When it comes to UX, ROI’s limitations become apparent. It’s a financial measure, while UX is about human experience. Behaviour change is a more meaningful indicator.

I fed NotebookLM all of the service assessment reports (www.gov.uk/service-stan...) from the past 18 months just to see. Got 17 minutes and wanna hear some AI-generated Americans talk about child benefit, spaceships and legacy systems? I've uploaded it here soundcloud.com/anna-goss-48...

On the other hand, it’s an opportunity for some smart people to fix many things if they’re empowered.

How has Microsoft convinced so many people to use their terrible software? It’s a masterclass of con-artistry!

Image with the words “Madan Madan Madan Madan Bakermat”

I miss This Is My Jam. The simplicity of it was wonderful.

Anyway, this is my jam; the saxophone is awesome: open.spotify.com/track/5EGAY1...

When is an interaction designer, not an interaction designer?

When they only design in Figma! 🙈🙉

Image showing a cover for the New Yorker magazine drawn by Christoph Niemann, depicting a man sitting at a desk, struggling for inspiration, and enlisting the aid of a robot.

Rescued by a bot, by Christoph Niemann for the New Yorker, imagines the unintended consequences of turning to artificial intelligence to solve problems of the artistic imagination. #AI