7 ms·

To be fair, even Google has terrible UI/UX these days. Just look at Google Maps or Gmail. Material design isn't that great for discoverability either.

flukus 10y ago
They took away the zoom in/out floating buttons on the android maps app, managing to destroy discoverability and single handed operation.
- striking 10y ago
  At least on my OnePlus phone, you can double-tap the screen and drag up or down to zoom in or out, like a scroll wheel. It's better than buttons, in my humble opinion.
  - ViViDboarder 10y ago
    But not discoverable. There is no visual indicator telling you about the feature. Only trial and error.
    - madeofpalk 10y ago
      Not every feature needs to be immediately discoverable. The default and 'main' way of zooming is the (un)pinch gesture. Take keyboard shortcuts - they're EXTREMELY undiscoverable, but they're not required for most operations, it's more of a power-user feature.
      - flukus 10y ago
        Most programs will list the keyboard shortcut against the menu item for the same feature, that makes them discoverable.
        Natanael_L 10y ago
        Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V works in Android too, among many other classical shortcuts. Try it with a Bluetooth keyboard or over USB-OTG. How about that for undiscoverable in a mobile OS? :)
      - eyelidlessness 10y ago
        > Not every feature needs to be immediately discoverable. Not every feature does. But every function does. If there is no visual indication of how to zoom at all, there are users who will never even discover that they can zoom.
  - coldpie 10y ago
    Off topic, I know, but which OnePlus do you have? Do you like it? I'm considering the OnePlus 3 to replace my 2013 Moto X.
    - striking 10y ago
      I have the OnePlus One still, actually. It's been in water and dropped on the ground, and somehow is still going strong. For $300, this is the best phone I have ever had, even ignoring the 64GB storage and out of the box rootability. I've looked at the OnePlus 3, and it seems like a worthy successor. LinusTechTips on YouTube did a review on it. I'd recommend checking it out.
- agentdrtran 10y ago
  But pinch to zoom is used for everything.
  - flukus 10y ago
    Maps and the occasional website (the browser used to have zoom options too) with crappy css are the only times I really need pinch zoom. It's annoying as hell when you're holding a coffee and want to zoom.
    - Dain42 10y ago
      You're probably outside the 95th percentile on that one, though, and good design targets the rest of the user base. I think most people probably just got annoyed by accidentally hitting those, or by them taking up real-estate or cluttering the view.
      - flukus 10y ago
        > You're probably outside the 95th percentile on that one In what way? If you mean one handed usage, it's pretty common here when people are standing on public transport, you need to hold on with one hand. If you mean the infrequency I need it, take a look through you're list of installed apps and tell me how many require zooming? Almost all are designed specifically to avoid it.
        lake99 10y ago
        I agree with all you have written, but there is a way to zoom in or out without using your other hand: use your lips. "Muaa" zooms out, and "auum" zooms in. This will make public transport journeys more interesting (for the others).
        Natanael_L 10y ago
        I'm not that close with my phone, though.
- bestnameever 10y ago
  double tap and drag. http://www.carlsednaoui.com/post/46803524724/google-maps-one-hand-zoom-on-iphone http://www.carlsednaoui.com/post/46803524724/google-maps-one...
icebraining 10y ago
What's wrong with Google Maps? I've just been watching a non-technical friend use it and the only thing that wasn't intuitive was adding an extra stop to her trip (and even then, she discovered it without needing to search for help).
- reitanqild 10y ago
  So tell me how am I supposed to find a route between x and y from my phone without being on x or y first? It is doable, but how is it supposed to be done? (For context: IIRC there used to be a shortcut to navigation for that feature. And yes I think ux designers mindlessly copying each others or Apple are at least partially to blame.(
  - fpgeek 10y ago
    1. Search for x (or y). 2. Ask for directions 3. Replace your location with y (or x). 4. Reverse start and end if necessary. Personally I think is flow is better than directly entering start and end for two reasons: - The common case (go from where I am to somewhere else) is faster. - I don't have to think about how to enter "my location", which isn't obvious (over the years I've seen - typing "my location", searching with the start box empty, pressing a special button for the purpose, and others).
    - reitanqild 10y ago
      > - The common case (go from where I am to somewhere else) is faster. > - I don't have to think about how to enter "my location" IIRC at some point this where solved rather nicely by offering you start location pre-filled with your current address.
      - reitanqild 10y ago
        Update: As lake99 and hawski pointed out it still is there. Just use the blue-sign-with-white-arrow-up-and-to-the-right (directions) and there the nice one is.
  - deleted 10y ago

flukus 10y ago

They took away the zoom in/out floating buttons on the android maps app, managing to destroy discoverability and single handed operation.

striking 10y ago
At least on my OnePlus phone, you can double-tap the screen and drag up or down to zoom in or out, like a scroll wheel. It's better than buttons, in my humble opinion.
- ViViDboarder 10y ago
  But not discoverable. There is no visual indicator telling you about the feature. Only trial and error.
  - madeofpalk 10y ago
    Not every feature needs to be immediately discoverable. The default and 'main' way of zooming is the (un)pinch gesture. Take keyboard shortcuts - they're EXTREMELY undiscoverable, but they're not required for most operations, it's more of a power-user feature.
    - flukus 10y ago
      Most programs will list the keyboard shortcut against the menu item for the same feature, that makes them discoverable.
      - Natanael_L 10y ago
        Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V works in Android too, among many other classical shortcuts. Try it with a Bluetooth keyboard or over USB-OTG. How about that for undiscoverable in a mobile OS? :)
    - eyelidlessness 10y ago
      > Not every feature needs to be immediately discoverable. Not every feature does. But every function does. If there is no visual indication of how to zoom at all, there are users who will never even discover that they can zoom.
- coldpie 10y ago
  Off topic, I know, but which OnePlus do you have? Do you like it? I'm considering the OnePlus 3 to replace my 2013 Moto X.
  - striking 10y ago
    I have the OnePlus One still, actually. It's been in water and dropped on the ground, and somehow is still going strong. For $300, this is the best phone I have ever had, even ignoring the 64GB storage and out of the box rootability. I've looked at the OnePlus 3, and it seems like a worthy successor. LinusTechTips on YouTube did a review on it. I'd recommend checking it out.
agentdrtran 10y ago
But pinch to zoom is used for everything.
- flukus 10y ago
  Maps and the occasional website (the browser used to have zoom options too) with crappy css are the only times I really need pinch zoom. It's annoying as hell when you're holding a coffee and want to zoom.
  - Dain42 10y ago
    You're probably outside the 95th percentile on that one, though, and good design targets the rest of the user base. I think most people probably just got annoyed by accidentally hitting those, or by them taking up real-estate or cluttering the view.
    - flukus 10y ago
      > You're probably outside the 95th percentile on that one In what way? If you mean one handed usage, it's pretty common here when people are standing on public transport, you need to hold on with one hand. If you mean the infrequency I need it, take a look through you're list of installed apps and tell me how many require zooming? Almost all are designed specifically to avoid it.
      - lake99 10y ago
        I agree with all you have written, but there is a way to zoom in or out without using your other hand: use your lips. "Muaa" zooms out, and "auum" zooms in. This will make public transport journeys more interesting (for the others).
        Natanael_L 10y ago
        I'm not that close with my phone, though.
bestnameever 10y ago
double tap and drag. http://www.carlsednaoui.com/post/46803524724/google-maps-one-hand-zoom-on-iphone http://www.carlsednaoui.com/post/46803524724/google-maps-one...

icebraining 10y ago

What's wrong with Google Maps? I've just been watching a non-technical friend use it and the only thing that wasn't intuitive was adding an extra stop to her trip (and even then, she discovered it without needing to search for help).

reitanqild 10y ago
So tell me how am I supposed to find a route between x and y from my phone without being on x or y first? It is doable, but how is it supposed to be done? (For context: IIRC there used to be a shortcut to navigation for that feature. And yes I think ux designers mindlessly copying each others or Apple are at least partially to blame.(
- fpgeek 10y ago
  1. Search for x (or y). 2. Ask for directions 3. Replace your location with y (or x). 4. Reverse start and end if necessary. Personally I think is flow is better than directly entering start and end for two reasons: - The common case (go from where I am to somewhere else) is faster. - I don't have to think about how to enter "my location", which isn't obvious (over the years I've seen - typing "my location", searching with the start box empty, pressing a special button for the purpose, and others).
  - reitanqild 10y ago
    > - The common case (go from where I am to somewhere else) is faster. > - I don't have to think about how to enter "my location" IIRC at some point this where solved rather nicely by offering you start location pre-filled with your current address.
    - reitanqild 10y ago
      Update: As lake99 and hawski pointed out it still is there. Just use the blue-sign-with-white-arrow-up-and-to-the-right (directions) and there the nice one is.
- deleted 10y ago