Giant Leaps

Nokia’s mobile user interface is based on a hierarchical menu that is operated with softkeys. We have introduced our set of menu types and the control keys applied in our basic phones. Menus and softkeys are the logical backbone of the user interface. We have also discussed other UI levels that are related to the menu structure. Shortcuts provide a layer of interaction that aims at higher efficiency than a menu UI. Interaction during calls also calls for solutions that differ from the hierarchical menu in being more overt and direct. The logical UI level defined by menu structure must be complemented by a layer of language that communicates the meaning of menu.

The achievements of the Apollo Guidance Computer were beyond respectable. Moon flights were one of the most outstanding milestones of technical development in the twentieth century. Their consequences were felt in several areas of human life, from technology to global politics, and the diskey (DSKY) UI was a small but vital part of the technology behind the giant leap.

What are the parallels between diskey and mobile menu on the level of social or societal consequences? Are there any at all? With something like 10,500 key presses on the Apollo’s computer system, three astronauts were able to fly to the moon, land there, and come back home—a tremendous achievement in itself. The same number of key presses today could mean, for example, 35 text messages (160 characters per message, two key presses per character on average). A present-day teenager could use those key presses to reach out to another one living somewhere else in the universe—or maybe next door—and fall in love. That may be one small step for mankind, but it’s a giant leap for the individuals involved.