Why are mockups always infinitely cooler than the end product?

[Palmyra]

It doesn't really make a difference what we are talking about, but this rule almost always applies: mockups generally are infinitely cooler than the end product. This rule applies to hardware, software, Windows, Linux, and so on.

Since this is a Linux forum, I'll only focus on Linux. If you check out websites like www.gnome-look.org, you'll notice that there are some great mockups, and the same is true for KDE. But wait a minute...mockups almost never reflect the end product. In fact, you might say "Oh, okay" when you see the final release.

It's such a shame that we can't live up to the promising nature of mockups. They are fantastic, but they are never implemented. That is probably because mockups may give people the impression that implementation is easier than it really is. There is a lot more to software programming than using this or that tool in GIMP.

Here's my all time favorite Topaz mockup, by the way:

http://members.westnet.com.au/peter.lilburn/sl/tpz1.jpg

[popch]

Could possibly be because the mockup has to impress other people than the final product, if any. Secondly, the mockup is done by entirely different people than the product.

Most drastic example: Potemkin's (SP?) villages: all mockup, no product.

Typical example: models of next generation cars, traditionally made of wood. The actual cars are not made of wood, I believe.

[phrostbyte]

Because mockups are much easier to produce then actual products.

[n3tfury]

Because mockups are much easier to produce then actual products.

yep. they don't have to work or function, they just have to look good.

[rfruth]

one word marketing (you can engineer crap long as it sells its a success, OTOH engineer a marvelous whatever but if it won't sell its a failure) look at Windows

[DeltaPHC]

Another great example of a mockup that never quite came to be:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=b9ifQvQCO7Y

[blithen]

Haha look at this

1 definition found

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

mock-up
n : full-scale working model of something built for study or
testing or display

What you mean is a mess-up.

On topic: I have never really seen I mess up work like it's suppose I don't care how good it looks. It actually HAS to do it's job.

[ShadowVlican]

Because mockups are much easier to produce then actual products.

+1

engineers > architects