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Or, I should say, I don't add the feature until I can figure out how it can made be easy and intuitive to use. That's assuming the feature is even coherent with
by otoolep 2y ago
Or, I should say, I don't add the feature until I can figure out how it can made be easy and intuitive to use. That's assuming the feature is even coherent with the existing feature set of the database.
Of course, it's easy for me to do this. I am not developing the database for commercial reasons, so can just say "no" to an idea if I want. That said, I've found that many ideas which didn't seem interesting to me when an end-user first proposed them become compelling once I think more about the operational pain (and it's almost always operational) they are experiencing.
Automatic backups to S3[1] was such a feature. I was sceptical -- "just run a script, call the backup API, and upload yourself" was my attitude. But the built-in support has become popular.
[1] https://www.philipotoole.com/adding-automatic-s3-backups-to-rqlite/ https://www.philipotoole.com/adding-automatic-s3-backups-to-...
- nine_k 2y agoThe distance between a large effort and a moderate effort is not very long; from the user's perspective, both things are in the realm of the Hassle. The chasm between a small required effort and zero effort is vast, from the user's perspective. Any product person will tell you that. Hitting the right zero-effort target is what separates a runaway success from a tepid reaction.
- spinningslate 2y agoyes, definitely. I find it helpful to think of usability and friction as an inverse square law relation [0]. Small increases in friction (x-axis) cause dramatic drop-off in usability (y-axis) to begin with, then correspondingly less so. Specific user tolerance will vary, but adoption broadly follows a similar path - exponential drop off. I've never seen any data to back this up in a quantitative sense (though interested if anyone has?). Nevertheless, I've still found it useful as a qualitative rule of thumb in a positive sense: shaving off small edges of friction can have non-linear return in adoption and satisfaction. [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverse-square_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverse-square_law
- nine_k 2y agoI like the electromagnetic analogy. I could say along these lines that lowering friction is like upgrading from aluminium wires to copper wires, and removing friction is like upgrading to a superconductor. The change becomes qualitative.
- hawk_ 2y ago> The chasm between a small required effort and zero effort is vast, from the user's perspective. Wow! I think I have intuitively/subconsciously worked this into some products I have developed but never had it articulated this way. This is very useful. Any books you'd recommend on this topic?
- nine_k 2y agoSorry, can't recommend a good book. My opinions come from interacting with actual product people, and from watching "undercooked", "overpriced", "poorly made", "easy to replicate" things achieve enviable success and wide adoption very quickly: PHP, Docker, Heroku, Dropbox, etc. They all completely removed friction in some narrow but important areas, and this was more important than all their very real shortcomings.