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>It looks too spaced out People have similar complaints with Reddit re-design (so do I). What's with making websites "prettier" instead of more usable?
by pcwelder 3y ago
>It looks too spaced out
People have similar complaints with Reddit re-design (so do I). What's with making websites "prettier" instead of more usable?
- creshal 3y agoPeople who're already used to a website will prefer a dense layout, but new users can be intimidated by the information overload. But measuring and improving user retention is hard, and might need expensive measures like improving content quality, it's much easier to optimize onboarding new users by shuffling some stylesheets around. KPIs fulfilled, who cares about the rest.
- pmlnr 3y ago> new users can be intimidated by the information overload The learn to use it? There's now a reverse trend in appliances: they use to be simple, now they are quite complicated, see washing machines, yet people handle it.
- creshal 3y agoSome learn it, some don't. If your only goal is to get 100% of humanity to spend as much time as possible on your website, no matter if that's good for them or not, you need to make your app addicting even to people with no attention span.
- TeMPOraL 3y agoOf course. "Intuitive" is just an excuse. Software now typically relies on some form of lock-in (subscription alone is a soft form of one), so acquiring new users is a priority. Appliances... they had their simplification trend too, and now they're getting complex again because you have to use smartphone apps to control them - but all the extra confusion is worth it, as the audience is already sort of captive (approximately everyone needs a fridge and a washing machine), and the app offers a whole new dimension of lock-in and abuse. What it doesn't offer is usability, of course.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]