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I think it comes down to the fact that GUIs _sell_. GUIs have visibility and appeal, they are something users can actually see, and have opinions about (right o

I think it comes down to the fact that GUIs _sell_. GUIs have visibility and appeal, they are something users can actually see, and have opinions about (right or wrong). GUIs are the ultimate bikeshed, and for many users, the lipstick IS the pig. ---- Anecdote: I can't count the number of times I have seen a team changing a color, updating a logo, or moving an image a few pixels, resulted in happy clients/customers, and managers sending a congratulatory company wide email. While teams solving difficult engineering problems may have garnered a quiet pat on the back, if they were lucky.

Gibbon1 7y ago
I just remember doing cad in the 1980's. If you want to talk slow. As in getting coffee while the compute redraws the screen slow. Some time around 1993-4 suddenly the hardware was fast enough. I think at this point we're trading performance for a bunch of ultimately worthless bling bling. No one's added a damn thing that improves user productivity.
TeMPOraL 7y ago
> I think it comes down to the fact that GUIs _sell_. IMO not just that, but also that the sale happens very early - before people get a chance to discover the UI is garbage. What's worse, in work context, a lot - probably most - software is bought by people other than the end users. Which means the UI can be (and often is) a total dumpster fire, but it'll win on the market as long as it appeals to the sensibilities of the people doing the purchase.
tripzilch 7y ago
> changing a color, updating a logo, or moving an image a few pixels, resulted in happy clients/customers, and managers sending a congratulatory company wide email. While teams solving difficult engineering problems may have garnered a quiet pat on the back, if they were lucky. That sounds like an extremely unhealthy business environment. It'll also leave you with just the worst engineers who cannot find a better job. A company that doesn't do this should be able to run circles around one that does.

Gibbon1 7y ago

I just remember doing cad in the 1980's. If you want to talk slow. As in getting coffee while the compute redraws the screen slow. Some time around 1993-4 suddenly the hardware was fast enough. I think at this point we're trading performance for a bunch of ultimately worthless bling bling. No one's added a damn thing that improves user productivity.

TeMPOraL 7y ago

> I think it comes down to the fact that GUIs _sell_. IMO not just that, but also that the sale happens very early - before people get a chance to discover the UI is garbage. What's worse, in work context, a lot - probably most - software is bought by people other than the end users. Which means the UI can be (and often is) a total dumpster fire, but it'll win on the market as long as it appeals to the sensibilities of the people doing the purchase.

tripzilch 7y ago

> changing a color, updating a logo, or moving an image a few pixels, resulted in happy clients/customers, and managers sending a congratulatory company wide email. While teams solving difficult engineering problems may have garnered a quiet pat on the back, if they were lucky. That sounds like an extremely unhealthy business environment. It'll also leave you with just the worst engineers who cannot find a better job. A company that doesn't do this should be able to run circles around one that does.