Abstract
“Computer equipment is hard to choose, install, maintain, and, especially, operate” (Landauer 1995 In: The trouble with computers: usefulness, usability, and productivity).
How many cables did you have to connect (and organise) before the personal office system was properly installed and put into use? How many set-up procedures and agreements did you have to complete before you could access your e-mail with your mobile phone or PDA? Did you lose any documents or applications when you replaced your old computer with a new one? Computers, mobile devices and information technology products are sometimes difficult to put into use because of the several operations required prior to their first use.
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Notes
OOBE addresses the user perspective (how do I experience a new product?). The related concept out-of-box readiness (OBR) addresses the manufacturer’s view (how do I build a good OOBE for the user?).
Out-of-box is a synonym for set-up that was studied in the 1960s by Conway et al.
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Acknowledgements
We were surprised by the number and quality of submissions for this special issue. We would like to thank those who submitted papers, and the reviewers who helped select and refine those that are published in this special issue. We hope that the readers will find this special issue useful and be inspired for developing better OOBE solutions and research activities in years to come. - Irmeli Sinkkonen and Pekka Ketola.
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Ketola, P. Special issue on out-of-box experience and consumer devices. Pers Ubiquit Comput 9, 187–190 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-004-0319-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-004-0319-2