Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!rutgers!mcnc!ecsvax!gryphon.COM From: mhnadel@gryphon.COM (Miriam Nadel) Newsgroups: comp.society.women Subject: Women and Ergonomics Message-ID: <6717@ecsvax.UUCP> Date: 17 Mar 89 02:34:06 GMT Sender: skyler@ecsvax.UUCP Organization: Trailing Edge Technology, Redondo Beach, CA Lines: 30 Approved: skyler@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Moderator -- Trish Roberts) Comments-to: comp-women-request@cs.purdue.edu Submissions-to: comp-women@cs.purdue.edu A few months back somebody was asking about women and mouse usage and an experience I recently had reminded me of the broader issue. My department recently got a Mac II and, as happens whenever there's a new toy, almost everyone has played with it a little. So I sit down and start using this draw program and play a little with Hypercard, more or less just seeing how things work and whether I might ever want to do anything with it. In under ten minutes, my right hand was in intense pain! Whoever designed their mouse has hands much larger than mine. In order to move the mouse *and* be able to press the button at any point, I have to hold my wrist in a very uncomfortable position. This is the kind of thing that's subtle but I can see how easily it can happen. Human factors is radically negelected everywhere and people assume the default is what is comfortable for them. In this case, 12 men and 3 women have tried the mouse; the only other person who had trouble with it is one of the other women (who also has smallish hands). Any other examples of designs that are more likely to be difficult for women to use? Miriam Nadel -- "Most kayaker's EEGs show signs of standing waves, reversals and eddies." - Dr. Surf mhnadel@gryphon.COM !gryphon!mhnadel