The foundations of GUI interfaces (and some NUI) have been built upon the metaphor of the desktop. This existed because they needed to help users understand the "new" interface they were working within. Throughout the years we have supported this metaphor as if it was some sort of axiom that all HCI / UX / IA / UXA (geez really - so many more too) followed. You can see it in almost every website (file cabinets), every application (spreadsheets), and most Operating Systems (recycle bin). For the new generation of apps, sites, and systems this metaphor should disappear altogether. It is no longer relevant.

For Babyboomers they will cling to the desktop because they grew up around it; it was in their home, in their office, it was the way they organized their work life (arguable not many played in their office). However for Millennials, Gen Yers and even Gen Xers their world isn't limited to this metaphor. As pervasive (ubiquitous) computing becomes commonplace the desktop metaphor holds us back. We no longer work in a singular office, we take everything to go. The "office" is an extension of our body (so to speak - not trying to be dramatic here), your mobile device could be considered your main office, the laptop an extension of it. The desktop, with its singular categorization of files and structures and limited interface potential, holds us back.

The visualization of information and content, the 140 char scanning of content, context awareness and geolocation, all yearn for smarter applications and environments to work within. To this day I see sites go up that still support a "main navigation" ; yet everyday it's search, scan, skim, save, and traceback. Why are we making the users work so hard? Implicit and explicit information choices should drive the structure. Use the models of attract and repel to display information (this also works well within a gesturing environment).

I was chatting with someone, just the other day, that perhaps a site should be a stream (like Twitter) of 140 char content, since it supports the model of scan and skim as a user behavior. This content could be backed up by a 'blog' when users want to search deeper within their selected content. Show the relationships to other content, as a user navigates forward (always forward) the experience attracts and repels content based on their implicit / explicit choices.

Embrace the search, it's a place to start. As a brand try a stream of information (backed by search) and once a user selects a 140 char item of interest build the display content around it. With a mobile device you can obviously add in location awareness, and perhaps take a guess as to context but always allowing the user to "flick" content away or drag content to a stream.

Of course what is this site I'm talking about here? An office or central location hub of information that people go to? That is dead as well. We are currently working with a Fortune 500 on what I like to call "freeing the content" - essentially turning all content into custom feeds of choice that vendors, dealers, and users can do with as they please; content syndication on distributed system. The next brand sites should be feeds, supported by scaffolding that allows for flexibility and choice in the presentation. I shouldn't have to go to the "office" to see what you are up to...i just need to check my "stream" and start the journey from there.

Welcome to the current.