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Unlike HN users, supermajority of population is perfectly fine downloading and using an app. I would even say, opening a browser, going to a website, potentiall

by kredd 4y ago

Unlike HN users, supermajority of population is perfectly fine downloading and using an app. I would even say, opening a browser, going to a website, potentially logging in is more friction than “sliding down and typing doordash to open the app”.

danuker 4y ago
Convenience is the most effective way to get people to abandon software freedom.
- kredd 4y ago
  You care about software freedom, I do, but end users? Not really. When you’re in business of trying to increase your revenue, largely focusing on theoretical-ethical issues while your competition doesn’t will just drive you out of business. That’s probably when the legislation needs to come into play to even out the field. Whether that needs to be legislated is a different question though.
hansvm 4y ago
That's fine. I don't have a horse in the app vs website race. What's important to note though is that you are doing the thing I'm preaching. Hammering the idea home: - The (probabilistic) consequences of your actions are what determine the success of your business. E.g., given <improve shitty website> we <won't increase sales>. - Current usage metrics matter for time allocation only insofar as they serve the former point. It's fine to say that users like apps therefore you don't need a decent website. What's not fine is the post I responded to -- the shitty site doesn't have users, so we won't improve it. That's a dangerous thought pattern because it silently substitutes something easily measured for the value you need and tends to cause people to conflate the two. (maybe the author was thinking something more nuanced, but as written it's still a good opportunity to highlight the issue)
- kredd 4y ago
  If we add another metric into our decision-making - the percentage of users that have already downloaded the app and stagnating user growth (realistically, it has slowed down since most of people have already either ordered a take out or decided they never will), it doesn’t make sense to add resources into improving a UX that wouldn’t even grow. Generally I agree with you, but when we focus on specific business use case, it’s harder to convince the stakeholders to work on projects that obviously have lower user engagement.

by kredd 4y ago

danuker 4y ago

Convenience is the most effective way to get people to abandon software freedom.

kredd 4y ago
You care about software freedom, I do, but end users? Not really. When you’re in business of trying to increase your revenue, largely focusing on theoretical-ethical issues while your competition doesn’t will just drive you out of business. That’s probably when the legislation needs to come into play to even out the field. Whether that needs to be legislated is a different question though.

hansvm 4y ago

That's fine. I don't have a horse in the app vs website race. What's important to note though is that you are doing the thing I'm preaching. Hammering the idea home: - The (probabilistic) consequences of your actions are what determine the success of your business. E.g., given <improve shitty website> we <won't increase sales>. - Current usage metrics matter for time allocation only insofar as they serve the former point. It's fine to say that users like apps therefore you don't need a decent website. What's not fine is the post I responded to -- the shitty site doesn't have users, so we won't improve it. That's a dangerous thought pattern because it silently substitutes something easily measured for the value you need and tends to cause people to conflate the two. (maybe the author was thinking something more nuanced, but as written it's still a good opportunity to highlight the issue)

kredd 4y ago
If we add another metric into our decision-making - the percentage of users that have already downloaded the app and stagnating user growth (realistically, it has slowed down since most of people have already either ordered a take out or decided they never will), it doesn’t make sense to add resources into improving a UX that wouldn’t even grow. Generally I agree with you, but when we focus on specific business use case, it’s harder to convince the stakeholders to work on projects that obviously have lower user engagement.