How to fix your boring progress bars

Launch: Highrise for iPhone

One of the downsides to the initial download is that it can take some time depending on your connection and the number of contacts you have. Waiting for anything sucks, but what sucks more is being bored while waiting.

So we decided to give you something to do while the initial download is in progress. You can play tic-tac-toe while you wait. Just tap the button and the screen flips to a tic-tac-toe board. The download progress bar remains at the bottom so you see where you are while you tap away your time trying to beat the computer.

You betcha.

From the blog postings I’ve seen thus far, I’ll wager that this app gets more attention by virtue of this one screen than it does for all its pedigree as a 37signals product. What does that say about introducing playful human computer interfaces to technology?

(Is it insulting to end with a rhetorical question like that?)