Software that anticipates the users needs often guesses correctly what the user is going to do next. It considers a preformed task as a hint as to what the user is aiming to achieve and uses that to predict what the user might do next.

Software that anticipates the users needs assists the user in accomplishing goals rather than just individual tasks. Since tasks are just one of multiple steps needed for a goal, anticipating what comes next makes the users life much easier and their use of the software much more pleasant.

When desigining interactions that faciliate the users needs we should understand what string of tasks are often preformed together. We can do this by understanding our users’ tasks and goals and how they work. We can also often udnerstand this from data that we gather during the softwares operation.

Software that anticipates the users needs should also be perceptive and take into account how slightly different actions might mean different goals are being worked on.

Examples of software anticipating users’ needs

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WhatsApp searches for Cyrillics

Gmail anticipates who you might want to CC as well.

Supplybunny doesn't just display an error that the minimum order quantity has not been fulfilled, it also shows you the exact amount. It then anticipates that you will want to increase the quantity to the appropriate amount.

Supplybunny doesn't just display an error that the minimum order quantity has not been fulfilled, it also shows you the exact amount. It then anticipates that you will want to increase the quantity to the appropriate amount.