2 September 2006

Over the past four years, Mark Hurst’s popular Good Experience Live, GEL, has grown to become one of the most important events on the user-experience scene. And on Friday, September 1, Mark brought his concept to Copenhagen for the first-ever EuroGEL.

In Mark’s own words, “GEL is a conference, and community, exploring good experience in all its forms – in business, art, society, technology, and life.” And when EuroGEL kicked off in the Royal Library’s Black Diamond Theatre, Mark certainly delivered on his promise.

Program at a glance
During the course of an absolutely amazing day, we were treated to a barrage of good experiences – from German interaction designer Christopher Bauder’s innovative “Tone Ladder” and Dutch multi-instrumentalist Han Bennink’s equally innovative percussion performance to UK-based author Ted Dewan’s highly original Road Witch Trials, and ex-Christianite Lise Autogena’s ingenious multi-media installations and acoustic mirrors. And ex-New Yorker Alison Young came up from her new home in Paris to perform four of her songs, accompanied on ukulele – deeply original, deeply personal, deeply moving.

Wikipedia’s Jimmy Wales makes his case
Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales effectively debunked the myths surrounding the accuracy of the world’s 17th most popular website; a study by the respected scientific publication Nature, demonstrated that the Encyclopedia Britannica typically contained three factual errors per article whereas the Wikipedia contained only four. Not bad for a collective work edited by millions. Jimmy also pointed out that less control was the secret to better quality, not more control, as is often thought. The vandals are few and the protectors are many.

How Credit Suisse is changing their world
David McQuillen, Vice President of Customer Experience for Credit Suisse, showed how he conducted planned “experience immersions” for senior bank officials who had long since forgotten what it was like to exchange Swiss Francs for Euros at a local branch. This was one of the day’s few “case stories” in the more traditional sense, but a unique chance to discover techniques designed to change the opinions of even the most conservative opponents of experience innovation.

Wonderful Copenhagen?
If the day had a downside, it was perhaps the overly partisan description of life in Copenhagen as depicted by Professor Jan Gehl, Director of the Center for Public Space Research, The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and President of GEHL Architects - Urban Quality Consultants. Apparently, bicycle paths are the solution to everything. And Lord Mayor Ritt Bjerregaard, reading from a carefully prepared manuscript, also gave us a rundown of the virtues of her fair city.

As one who has been intimately involved in rescuing a residential area from the perils of container traffic to and from Copenhagen Harbor, I’ve seen this story from the other side. I know that trucks are too wide for bicycle paths and that air pollution has increased in Copenhagen because motorists can no longer find parking spaces. But let’s leave it at that.

Do it again, Mark!
Mark Hurst has given us one of the most professionally produced conferences I’ve been to in years – slick in style, high in content value. And judging by the enthusiastic applause at the end of the day, we can only hope Mark will come back and do it again next year. And FatDUX will do everything it can to spread the good word.

Reported by Eric Reiss