“A new study by the American Computer Learning Society, the nations leading body on researching how to optimally use the personal computer in everyday life, reports that displaying a solid color on a computer’s desktop results in increased productivity for the user. While the current trend is to post a personal photo or “wallpaper” as a background image, researcher Laura Beechersmith says that this is a less-than-ideal situation for both private users and employers alike.
Says Beechersmith, “Since nearly the inception of the computer desktop, people have liked to put a picture of their kid, pet, favorite vacation destination or whatever as the backdrop for their personal computing. What we’re finding is that not only do people who have these customized wallpapers spend less time being productive, they also spend more time on things that should matter way less than they do.”
Beechersmith notes that those who like having control over their desktops are more often to browse the Internet in search of fresh images to display, and are 20% more likely to engage in idle, non-work-related conversation with their co-workers than those who just have a single, solid color as their background. In a widespread study that concluded last month, blue was seen as the best color to set a desktop background to in order to increase productivity.
“Employers would be wise to take note that solid colors result in more productivity and to likewise develop their workplace computing guidelines accordingly,” notes Ezra Gould, one of Beechersmith’s colleagues. “This could be as easy as a bulletin on a public board or as intensive as visual checks of each workstation.”
Public reception has understandably been mixed. Says local resident and employee of Three-Angle Computing Solutions Ashley Carrey, “I think it’s a big deal that this research might have an impact on my employers decision about computing in the workplace. I mean, I have a picture of my two sons playing baseball on my desktop, reminding me each day that I work hard so that they can have a better life. If that image were gone, my motivation would go down.”
Others seem completely fine with the change. Businessman Karl Simons of Uptown commented, “This will be great for my work. I have a guy who sits next to me all day who talks non-stop about how the Saints are the greatest football team in America, and how he is such a huge fan by having twenty different Saints wallpapers running on a rotation. Forcing him to have a solid color would save me countless headaches and no doubt increase productivity in my office.”
Whether yellow or blue, the research does seem to indicate that a solid color could certainly help productivity by decreasing distractions and helping the hardworking American concentrate on business at hand. Only time will tell if employers will heed the advice and take action in their workplaces.”
Pretty convincing, no?
Now, if you had done any Googling whatsoever of anything in the article, you would know that it is not a real article. The newspaper name is fake, the quotes are fake, and the research is fake. I wrote that article in fifteen minutes. So why bother writing it?
Because I want to make a point that not everything on the Internet is believable just because it looks good. Web design has come a long way in a very short time span, and having a good website with lots of information does not necessarily mean that it’s good information. In an age where we expect everything to be linked or cited, we often take such things for granted and don’t investigate the credibility of articles we may come across. I wrote this article in fifteen minutes - imagine what it could look like if someone was really intent on fooling you and was willing to put a lot more time and effort into it!
Investigate what you read!
_DZ
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