“We’re waiting for the rest of it . . . .”

Sixteen pairs of experienced computer users are asked to beta test your on-line product and each of them just stare at the screen until they are asked "what’s wrong?"

They reply almost in unison, "we’re waiting for the rest of it."

Would you have been discouraged by their almost unanimous response?

Kind of like the emperor, after being told by a child that he’s wearing no clothes?

In response, would you have been inclined to clutter up the user interface to provide "the rest of it"?

Or, would you recognize the power of simplicity and brevity?

With this kind of a slow start, would you ever expect to earn the label "the most successful company in the world"?

Thank goodness Marissa Mayer, employee #24, kept the lines clean, easy, and the screen bare.

If you’re tired of waiting for "the rest of the story," click to see the answer below the jump.

I was fascinated by this story in a television program re-run from last week, about Google’s wild success, and I thought I’d share it with you, in case you have missed it.

So, how much of Google’s success do you attribute to the simplicity and brevity of the home page?

UPDATE: For David Needle’s account on InternetNews.com from about three years ago, see here.