Agree with author that desktop UIs could be quite a bit better, and web tech gives devs enough rope to hang themselves with, which most do. Rest of the article

Agree with author that desktop UIs could be quite a bit better, and web tech gives devs enough rope to hang themselves with, which most do. Rest of the article sort of reads like a general annoyance with a grab bag of various apps and UIs tho. The most revealing part of the article is that the author states current UI philosophy is making things legible and intuitive, but that UIs should be about speed and efficiency. These aren't really either/or, good UI/UX should explore the frontiers of both, and pitting them against each other feels off. I think speed/efficiency are proxies for something deeper that the author is really getting at - many apps focus on approachability so much that they become superficial when they should be powerful. There are, however, approachable apps that are powerful. For example, Airtable is quite intuitive and approachable, but ultimately its a tool that helps users manage complexity, not avoid it. This class of tools is what we need more of, and I think the author is looking to fixing frameworks when deep down the problem is actually having better apps (e.g. this feels like category error). Also, the author is asking for a reboot, but has failed to look at the most important UI reboot in the last decade - iOS UIkit. A junior dev can make a passable app just by following iOS Human Interface Guidelines that is accessible, responsive, intuitive, etc. Personally, I like terminals for their show your work ledger aspect and the 'I know exactly what I want' factor, but just about everything else they're terrible at UI-wise. And in improving them, I'm not seeing anything in this piece that makes me think the same mistakes won't be repeated over again.