Microsoft Jack (Schofield) Cites Microsoft Employee About Apple Product, Without Disclosure (Corrected)

Dr. Roy Schestowitz

2010-06-04 13:01:26 UTC
Modified: 2010-06-05 05:16:39 UTC

[Correction: there was a mixup here. The reader who sent us the information confused two usability/user experience people from the Technical University of Denmark. They are not the same person. This post is therefore not correct.]

Photo by Doc Searls

Summary: The Guardian shows how to belittle Microsoft's competition by approaching Microsoft employees without naming their relationship

Microsoft Jack (Jack Schofield [1, 2, 3, 4]) has mostly retired from The Guardian, but he still writes for the paper just occasionally.

"Jakob Nielsen critiques the iPad's usability failings," tells Microsoft Jack in his latest article's headline, but he describes Nielsen only by his umbrella company, Nielsen Norman Group. Microsoft Jack 'forgot' to mention ~~Nielsen's job at Microsoft [DOC]~~ (see correction at the top). To quote for those who cannot open .doc files:

Jakob Nielsen Principal User Experience Manager, Microsoft Dynamics Microsoft Corp.

Jakob Nielsen is the user experience manager for Microsoft Dynamics at Microsoft Corp., and is passionate about improving the experiences people have with Microsoft’s line of products for enterprise resource planning (ERP). He plays a leading role in driving the RoleTailored design approach into the development of the Microsoft Dynamics products, resulting in a user experience that enables people to be more productive in their particular role and thereby contributing the highest value to their business.

Nielsen joined Microsoft in November 1996 as a senior consultant for Microsoft Consulting Services in the Nordic region, where he specialized in IT strategy and technology consulting. Before Microsoft’s acquisition of Navision a/s in 2002, Nielsen spent three years as a product manager at Navision designing the user interface for Microsoft Navision Financials (now Microsoft Dynamics NAV). Before that Nielsen worked as a development manager for INFOFLEX A/S and as a developer for BRUHN DATA A/S, both Denmark-based companies.

Nielsen earned a master of science degree in computer science from the Technical University of Denmark in 1991.

This was last updated in 2009. Microsoft Jack went to meet Nielsen in his hotel room, which worked out pretty well for Microsoft. He ended up with an anti-Apple piece and as Microsoft's CEO considers Apple to be a top competitor, maybe Schofield will find a place as a Microsoft employee (PR/"communication"), just like Peter Galli. They love hiring journalists who attack Microsoft's competitors with false claims and omissions. We gave another example earlier this week. ⬆

Comments

bugstomper

2010-06-05 00:36:41

Wrong Jakob Nielsen!

Compare these two profiles on LinkedIn, the Microsoft Jakob Nielsen at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jakobnielsen

and the famous Jakob Nielsen at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jakobnielsenphd

Dr. Roy Schestowitz

2010-06-05 05:15:03

You are right. The person who mailed me about it suggested it's the same person as their background and name are almost identical. I will add a correction.

verofakto

2010-06-05 07:18:07

That's fascinating. Because I've noticed you rarely seem to miss an opportunity to mention that something you're publishing was provided by a "reader".

I guess it was just an oversight. It happens.

Dr. Roy Schestowitz

2010-06-06 06:31:22

Groklaw adds: "Nielsen is criticizing the apps, not the iPad itself, and first he says they are not enough alike and so Apple should exert more control, and then he says Apple exerts too much control. Anyhow, anyone who has used an iPad for more than a day knows exactly how to use it and that it's more than easy. It's intuitive and fun. And may I just add that there is no such thing as an overemphasis on aesthetics? It's what people buy Apple products for, the sheer beauty of the products. And as Johnny Holland points out, Usability Ain't Everything: "The iPad does not have a Graphical User Interface but a gestural one. GUI design guidelines do not necessarily apply when users can interact directly with the content." And updating: There's more than one Jakob Nielsen. See the two profiles on LinkedIn, both with pictures:

"The Microsoft Jakob Nielsen and the well-known usability specialist Jakob Nielsen."

Microsoft Jack (Schofield) Cites Microsoft Employee About Apple Product, Without Disclosure (Corrected)

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