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All the banking sites I have used have highly unusable UI. The same with my mobile and broadband service provider websites. Sometimes it is just not about the

by niyazpk 16y ago

All the banking sites I have used have highly unusable UI. The same with my mobile and broadband service provider websites. Sometimes it is just not about the UI. I can live without the best looking websites, but if the functionality is equally broken as the UI, then it is really frustrating. One of my biggest pet peeves is the back button not working in many websites. Many systems just tell you to log in again and it just freaks me out.

jsankey 16y ago
Lucky you don't use my bank: it might just tip you over the edge :). Not only does the back button not work (most of the time), but they've also specifically added back-button detection so they can tell you why: For security reasons you’re unable to use the Back, Forward and Refresh buttons in your browser. Uh, ok...
- Dramatize 16y ago
  Commonwealth Bank?
  - jsankey 16y ago
    Yep. The NetBank project also seems to have involved every second developer in Sydney at some point or another.
    - GVRV 16y ago
      Ah, NetBank is not so bad. You can get the basic stuff done without any hassle at all (transfers, BPAY, etc.)
      - Dramatize 16y ago
        Yeah, I don't find NetBank too bad. It's just the back button issue that's a pain.
  - lachyg 16y ago
    NetBank is pretty great in terms of online banking!
mahmud 16y ago
How often do you log into your carrier or ISP websites? I don't think I have ever visited their websites, much less be bothered by the UI.
- niyazpk 16y ago
  How do you pay your bills then?
  - bruceboughton 16y ago
    Monthly direct debit / monthly credit card tx, like any sane person.
    - _delirium 16y ago
      If it's a completely flat rate (my ISP), I do that, but if it's a variable rate (like mobile phone), I like to be able to see what they're trying to charge me before I pay it, so I can catch/dispute any weird charges. Especially so in the past year or two, where fraudulent third-party charges on my mobile bill seem to be getting more common.
arethuza 16y ago
Oh god - don't get me started. I have one that enforces a crazily long password and then asks you for characters taken at specific locations from this password. Which means that every time I log in I either end up scribbling down my password on a bit of paper or typing it into an editor window. I refuse to believe this actually improves the level of security.
- russell_h 16y ago
  You could use Wells Fargo instead - they limit you to 14 characters, which isn't even what I would consider a medium length password.
  - taphangum 16y ago
    I'm guessing that he's talking about Barclays in the UK. There the only one's i know who do this.
    - pieter 16y ago
      The Royal Bank of Scotland does this too, though they don't enforce crazy long passwords.
      - illdave 16y ago
        Lloyds TSB in the UK, too.
        ErrantX 16y ago
        HSBC do this, but limit you to 10 digits
- gordonguthrie 16y ago
  The reason for this is that they use the same password in the call centre. So when you phone up they say "give us the 3rd letter of your password" and the 2nd digit of your Pin Number. The point of it is to make it hard for a call centre operator to get hold of your password. The internet banks are all built on top of the Direct Bank systems and ported that model in whole or in part to the internet. Legacy systems issue!
russell_h 16y ago
This. Another thing that gets to me is trying to check my credit card balance on the Bank of America "Mobile Site". The only number it will show me is the sum of the transactions that have cleared - it's impossible to see my "available credit" (or the information necessary to figure it out) which is probably the only thing I would ever care about on the mobile site. Of course my completely unscientific tests seem to indicate that the standard, non-mobile site is significantly faster than the mobile one on my N1 in any case... So I'm stuck using that atrocity instead. Oh, and don't forget Bank of America's Android/iPhone apps, which, last I checked, were just WebViews around their website.
heresy 16y ago
The all-time worst I've ever experienced is Korea Exchange Bank. It only works in MSIE. You have to install a panoply of ActiveX controls. You have to install a "keyboard security" device driver (ha!). Then, for an actual transaction involving funds transfer, it's a long-winded, 15-20 step process requiring so many layers of authentication that the typical person keeps an unsecured document around detailing what to enter on each step. I'd kill for plain old HTTPS.
- d_r 16y ago
  Major Chinese banks are about the same. The best part is that the ActiveX controls are optimized for IE6 (seriously) since various security settings in IE7+ prevent them from working. Yes, the controls for added security only work with lower security settings. We keep around an dusty old Windows XP machine in the house just for using these websites.
mambodog 16y ago
As far as banks go, I'm really impressed with NAB (http://nab.com.au http://nab.com.au).
bdclimber14 16y ago
AMEN! I never thought a website would be a competitive advantage for a bank, but I am actually switching all my accounts to Wells Fargo because their interface is mediocre (compared to Chase's which is horrendous). I have over a dozen bank accounts, and even more credit cards, between personal and businesses. It's an exponential increase in UI confusion with each account.

by niyazpk 16y ago

jsankey 16y ago

Lucky you don't use my bank: it might just tip you over the edge :). Not only does the back button not work (most of the time), but they've also specifically added back-button detection so they can tell you why: For security reasons you’re unable to use the Back, Forward and Refresh buttons in your browser. Uh, ok...

Dramatize 16y ago
Commonwealth Bank?
- jsankey 16y ago
  Yep. The NetBank project also seems to have involved every second developer in Sydney at some point or another.
  - GVRV 16y ago
    Ah, NetBank is not so bad. You can get the basic stuff done without any hassle at all (transfers, BPAY, etc.)
    - Dramatize 16y ago
      Yeah, I don't find NetBank too bad. It's just the back button issue that's a pain.
- lachyg 16y ago
  NetBank is pretty great in terms of online banking!

mahmud 16y ago

How often do you log into your carrier or ISP websites? I don't think I have ever visited their websites, much less be bothered by the UI.

niyazpk 16y ago
How do you pay your bills then?
- bruceboughton 16y ago
  Monthly direct debit / monthly credit card tx, like any sane person.
  - _delirium 16y ago
    If it's a completely flat rate (my ISP), I do that, but if it's a variable rate (like mobile phone), I like to be able to see what they're trying to charge me before I pay it, so I can catch/dispute any weird charges. Especially so in the past year or two, where fraudulent third-party charges on my mobile bill seem to be getting more common.

arethuza 16y ago

Oh god - don't get me started. I have one that enforces a crazily long password and then asks you for characters taken at specific locations from this password. Which means that every time I log in I either end up scribbling down my password on a bit of paper or typing it into an editor window. I refuse to believe this actually improves the level of security.

russell_h 16y ago
You could use Wells Fargo instead - they limit you to 14 characters, which isn't even what I would consider a medium length password.
- taphangum 16y ago
  I'm guessing that he's talking about Barclays in the UK. There the only one's i know who do this.
  - pieter 16y ago
    The Royal Bank of Scotland does this too, though they don't enforce crazy long passwords.
    - illdave 16y ago
      Lloyds TSB in the UK, too.
      - ErrantX 16y ago
        HSBC do this, but limit you to 10 digits
gordonguthrie 16y ago
The reason for this is that they use the same password in the call centre. So when you phone up they say "give us the 3rd letter of your password" and the 2nd digit of your Pin Number. The point of it is to make it hard for a call centre operator to get hold of your password. The internet banks are all built on top of the Direct Bank systems and ported that model in whole or in part to the internet. Legacy systems issue!

russell_h 16y ago

This. Another thing that gets to me is trying to check my credit card balance on the Bank of America "Mobile Site". The only number it will show me is the sum of the transactions that have cleared - it's impossible to see my "available credit" (or the information necessary to figure it out) which is probably the only thing I would ever care about on the mobile site. Of course my completely unscientific tests seem to indicate that the standard, non-mobile site is significantly faster than the mobile one on my N1 in any case... So I'm stuck using that atrocity instead. Oh, and don't forget Bank of America's Android/iPhone apps, which, last I checked, were just WebViews around their website.

heresy 16y ago

The all-time worst I've ever experienced is Korea Exchange Bank. It only works in MSIE. You have to install a panoply of ActiveX controls. You have to install a "keyboard security" device driver (ha!). Then, for an actual transaction involving funds transfer, it's a long-winded, 15-20 step process requiring so many layers of authentication that the typical person keeps an unsecured document around detailing what to enter on each step. I'd kill for plain old HTTPS.

d_r 16y ago
Major Chinese banks are about the same. The best part is that the ActiveX controls are optimized for IE6 (seriously) since various security settings in IE7+ prevent them from working. Yes, the controls for added security only work with lower security settings. We keep around an dusty old Windows XP machine in the house just for using these websites.

mambodog 16y ago

As far as banks go, I'm really impressed with NAB (http://nab.com.au http://nab.com.au).

bdclimber14 16y ago

AMEN! I never thought a website would be a competitive advantage for a bank, but I am actually switching all my accounts to Wells Fargo because their interface is mediocre (compared to Chase's which is horrendous). I have over a dozen bank accounts, and even more credit cards, between personal and businesses. It's an exponential increase in UI confusion with each account.