Redesigning the Bloomberg Terminal would be any interface designer’s dream. There’s obviously much room for improvement since the interface hasn’t changed for a long time, and the personas using it are quite easy to define.But the complexity and richness of the displayed data, the necessity to fully understand how traders use the tool, and the immediate impact on the work efficiency of more than 156,000 users around the world make it tremendously challenging to make any changes.
Here is a picture of the Bloomberg Terminal as it stands today (2010). As most users say, “it’s hideous.”
Here is the Bloomberg keyboard:
IDEO has submitted a redesign proposal back in 2007 after a 3-week study. Here’s how it looks:
A widget allows you to zoom in on some detailed part of IDEO’s design and have some explanation on the choices they’ve made. You can also read a short description of the project on their website…
Read the rest of the article here: uxmag.com
This project reminds me of two that MJ and I had back in the 90’s where we had to redesign the terminal software for airline booking agents at travel agencies. We had TWO projects from two different companies where this was the task.
They LIKE their complex text-based, keyboard based UI. It gives them status.
In the end, we made a very cool terminal that automated some of their text manipulation. We respected the user experience rather then our own ideas about good user interface.
The article is a good read and wake-up call for consultant who cling to their HIG guidelines like the Bible.