Cheers to Flex - User Community - in response to product testing discussion

K7NXT

Many of  you have seen the robust conversation on this forum the last couple of days about Flex and Maestro Product Status, Testing, and software releases.  

Separate from that chain, I wanted to share my appreciation for what has gone right and offer our assistance as a usability research and a ham.

1. Flex has done an amazing job at bringing the best HF technology to the market with a platform that can continue to grow via software.  And I'm very impressed that FLEX allows all comments to be posted, even those critical to Flex. What a great way to build loyalty and transparency. Kudos!

I am guessing that the company underestimated the software issues, but I've been impressed by the people who are managing the company and still have faith in the upcoming versions of software.

2. I'm also impressed by the user community who are active contributors and provide a wide diversity of experiences, viewpoints, and ideas. I encourage everyone to continue, but I respectfully suggest that people be a little more willing to listen to other perspectives and avoid personal comments.

3. Finally, a small group of us recently founded a non-profit organization focused precisely on technology usability and user experience.  Our focus is on helping make technology easier to use, especially for those with special needs. Kindly remember that not every ham operator has the knowledge, time, health, or other resources to become network savvy, even if they enjoy the radio hobby.

We are glad to offer our technology usability skills to Flex, free of charge.  If interested, please view www.cognitivelink.org  

Best regards,  Dr. William A. Reed  K7NXT

Walt - KZ1F

Well put Bill (William). BTW, impressive site!

butch alline

Could not have said it better.

Norm - W7CK

Thanks Bill.   I took a quick look at your site and noticed I fit right in and was well described on the LEARN tab under Aging Population! HIHI....   Although I'm laughing, there is definitely a need for simplifying technology so that non-technical people can use it.  There is a time coming when the software will be simple and intuitive enough that anyone can use it.  After all, technology is a TOOL isn't it?

It will be interesting to see what changes your company will bring about over the next few years.

I actually worked in the computer industry but retired back in 2008.  This past week I worked on establishing a VPN and bridge back to my home network from my laptop and my Maestro.  I have to admit, it was way more work than it needed to be.  This should have been a VERY simple task.  After all, we've had VPN technology for many many years now.   Just a classic example of how an end user has to have a very good knowledge of the technology just in order to use it.

Norm

K7NXT

Thank you for the kind words. Please feel free to sign up on our site. We will be sending out a news letter every few months and we'll try to make it interesting and useful and related to technology - and we won't spam anyone.  

KY6LA_Howard

Interesting. You have a Maestro on ur website.

Walt - KZ1F

Promises promises

KC9NRN

William, Great website! I signed up. I also like your QRZ site page as well.