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I carefully coached my husband's 85 year old aunt in how to look at the pictures she took on her iPhone and then send the ones she wants printed to our shared a

I carefully coached my husband's 85 year old aunt in how to look at the pictures she took on her iPhone and then send the ones she wants printed to our shared album. She had the steps meticulously written out. She was good to go! Then Apple changed the UI a little bit. I can't begin to explain it to her over the phone in my second language, because for starters, I don't have a non-updated device to be able to compare and find the exact difference. I felt a bit of a jar and was able to roll with it, but couldn't tell you what the difference is exactly. LTS (guaranteed non-change for existing features, at the cost of possibly not getting all new features) for UI would be amazing. And do not get me started on the drama involved in an iOS major version update and the requisite iCloud password entry to even start the phone. She has the password written down, but since it's helpfully hidden as she types, she can't see that she was a letter off or missed a shift. I ended up sending her to the Vodafone corporate store with her password and 3 reset answers to have one of them type it in for her, as we're on the other side of the country, and she kind of needed to be able to make and take phone calls.

ls15 4y ago
> She had the steps meticulously written out. She was good to go! On multiple occasions when explaining computer stuff, I explicitely said something like "don't write anything down, but try to understand the metaphor", because the software is a moving target. I've been also asked about "a manual for this computer", when they actually wanted a printed manual that explains all the software on the computer. Modern day electronics aren't really made for most people who are born before about 1960. Understanding all metaphors intuitively probably requires having been exposed early in life.
andrei_says_ 4y ago
> She has the password written down, but since it's helpfully hidden as she types, she can't see that she was a letter off or missed a shift. If someone had to design a process to mock and torture the elderly trying to use modern devices, that's the one. Along with messages that time out and unexpected events that steal focus.
unyttigfjelltol 4y ago
Stylish has clearly taken priority over functional in mainstream tech design. I just got a new Android phone that iterated 1 version in the operating system and product. The old phone had a persistent triangle symbol to press for "back". Now that symbol is gone and I'm supposed to swipe from the edge of the screen for the same "back" function. Except, lots of apps use a similar motion for other functions, including Firefox for closing tabs. So, now I'm constantly swiping a few milimeters too close to the screen edge and going "back" when I want to close a tab, with few clear visual clues as to what is going wrong. This is just 1 of many UI fails on the new phone, very frustrating for me and I would guess extremely and unnecessarily confusing for "normal" people.
- phonepostingsux 4y ago
  My Samsung XCover has physical keys for back/home/switch task and that'll be a hard requirement for any future phones I'll even consider. Can't patch those out without really wanting to fuck me over. I suppose outdated features like good grip and removable battery are a bit much to ask for.
- leaflets2 4y ago
  Stylish sells better? Or why does it happen? People don't have time to dig into usability details, instead they get an app because it gives a nice looking first impression? Could "rewards" in a company work in similar ways -- impressing managers with sth nice looking?
- sizzle 4y ago
  This is why I switched to apple and never looked back, can’t stand OSes manipulating interface controls arbitrarily after updates.

ls15 4y ago

> She had the steps meticulously written out. She was good to go! On multiple occasions when explaining computer stuff, I explicitely said something like "don't write anything down, but try to understand the metaphor", because the software is a moving target. I've been also asked about "a manual for this computer", when they actually wanted a printed manual that explains all the software on the computer. Modern day electronics aren't really made for most people who are born before about 1960. Understanding all metaphors intuitively probably requires having been exposed early in life.

andrei_says_ 4y ago

> She has the password written down, but since it's helpfully hidden as she types, she can't see that she was a letter off or missed a shift. If someone had to design a process to mock and torture the elderly trying to use modern devices, that's the one. Along with messages that time out and unexpected events that steal focus.

unyttigfjelltol 4y ago

Stylish has clearly taken priority over functional in mainstream tech design. I just got a new Android phone that iterated 1 version in the operating system and product. The old phone had a persistent triangle symbol to press for "back". Now that symbol is gone and I'm supposed to swipe from the edge of the screen for the same "back" function. Except, lots of apps use a similar motion for other functions, including Firefox for closing tabs. So, now I'm constantly swiping a few milimeters too close to the screen edge and going "back" when I want to close a tab, with few clear visual clues as to what is going wrong. This is just 1 of many UI fails on the new phone, very frustrating for me and I would guess extremely and unnecessarily confusing for "normal" people.

phonepostingsux 4y ago
My Samsung XCover has physical keys for back/home/switch task and that'll be a hard requirement for any future phones I'll even consider. Can't patch those out without really wanting to fuck me over. I suppose outdated features like good grip and removable battery are a bit much to ask for.
leaflets2 4y ago
Stylish sells better? Or why does it happen? People don't have time to dig into usability details, instead they get an app because it gives a nice looking first impression? Could "rewards" in a company work in similar ways -- impressing managers with sth nice looking?
sizzle 4y ago
This is why I switched to apple and never looked back, can’t stand OSes manipulating interface controls arbitrarily after updates.