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So many places in apps just wait for no reason. Let's take a hypothetical situation: Suppose you're doing gig delivery. You're delivering to two customers in t

So many places in apps just wait for no reason. Let's take a hypothetical situation: Suppose you're doing gig delivery. You're delivering to two customers in the same neighborhood on the same run. You drop the first order, take your photo of the drop, and the app spins. It's waiting for the photo to be delivered before it moves on. You can't get directions to the next customer until the app moves along. Why can't it just take the photo, take the text description, and hold that until service is better? Just give the driver the map, and upload the other stuff when you can. I have similar issues with every app. It seems like every user interaction, every button press requires a round-trip to the server before the app moves to the next step. There's no reason for this. I wager that every app can keep its UI and the user's data locally, and send and receive teensy data updates. But all "the best" software development employees (that they claim their hiring process hires) in these companies can't seem to work that out.

bee_rider 2y ago
That’s bizarre. The whole point of having an app instead of a website is to have more processing occur locally, right?
- jagged-chisel 2y ago
  > The whole point of having an app instead of a website is to have more processing occur locally, right? One would think this is the case. I agree it should be. > That’s bizarre. Unfortunately, it's not. It's normal operation.
- ponector 2y ago
  Why is it so? The whole point of app is to gather your info from the phone and to send you tons of notifications. And don't forget mandatory updates, when you open an app and cannot use it without updating to the latest crappy version.
- roughly 2y ago
  The whole point of having an app is to collect data, show ads, and “engage the customer with the brand.” Any additional capabilities beyond that are incidental.
  - CyberDildonics 2y ago
    Don't forget bait and switching with updates so you can do all that later, possibly after you sell your quality app to someone else and cash out.
  - thwarted 2y ago
    The delivery driver is not the customer, but I wouldn't be surprised if some MBA bonehead thought showing ads to workers was a win. "They have to use the app to schedule and do the work, so it's a captive audience!"
    - roughly 2y ago
      Hell, I got shown an ad after I paid for a ride on Lyft the other day. Even if you’re the customer, you’re still the product. If there’s not already ads in the drivers’ views, I’m shocked it’s taken them this long.
    - listenallyall 2y ago
      Why do you think only MBAs have the idea to insert ads? It's not exactly specialized thinking. Plenty of startup founders with technical chops decide to insert ads because they desperately need the revenue.
      - graemep 2y ago
        Because "MBA" has become a generic derogatory term for greedy and short termist management, because its easy to blame a group of people than face the fact that the problem is a wider one of incentives and ethics that pervades the whole of western society.
  - edwinjm 2y ago
    And send push notifications
- TylerE 2y ago
  History has shown over and over again that you cannot trust the client.
- dartos 2y ago
  No, the whole point of apps is data collection, background tasks (when the device is closed) and push notifications.
- simonmales 2y ago
  Many apps are shortcuts. They live rent free on people's home screens/launchers. Plenty could exist as a web app.
bluefirebrand 2y ago
> Why can't it just take the photo, take the text description, and hold that until service is better? Just give the driver the map, and upload the other stuff when you can. The obvious answer is because asynchronous workflows are brittle, and require intervention from the end user to correct if they break Then most end users aren't going to care to fix it when it breaks, or be able to fix it when it breaks for a variety of reasons
- TylerE 2y ago
  Relevantly, in this specified case, the picture of their delivered food is shown to the customer immediately. This is more than a nice to have (imagine a large apartment building, where your food could be dropped in any number of locations).
  - genewitch 2y ago
    it's shown when the driver gets a network connection again, was the way I read that. Because "[driver] doesn't know where to go till it confirms the upload"
- jagged-chisel 2y ago
  And what should one do if the network is down? Stand there indefinitely hoping it comes back up? Recall the driver can’t continue without an address.
  - TeMPOraL 2y ago
    Better they can't continue than they do the last order wrong, amirite? There's some strong "Seeing Like a State" vibes here. I'm pretty sure these apps are intentionally designed as tools to force the users (here, drivers) into a specific flow, a flow that minimizes complexity for the vendor, reality be damned. Another way to look at it: the job of the driver side of a delivery (or taxi) app isn't to be useful to the driver; the job is to be a remote control with which the business can control the driver like they were an automaton.
joquarky 2y ago
I'm proficient in optimizing these UX flaws, and have been unable to land a full time job in two years, even after hundreds of applications. Nobody cares about quality anymore.
- jagged-chisel 2y ago
  Don’t I know it …
wwalexander 2y ago
While doing Instacart deliveries here in Maine, I dropped off a leave-at-the-door order which requires uploading a picture of the shopping bags at the entrance. However, there wasn’t any service in the rural area I was delivering to, and the app required a connection to even open the camera interface. So I had to drive away down the road until I had service, open the camera, drive back to the delivery point, take the picture, then drive away again to upload the picture and complete the order.
- b112 2y ago
  Same thing with paypal. They require a mobile phone number now. If I give them one, they'll enforce SMS as a login path. I live in an area with excellent cell service, except for a few miles around my house. I'm not going to try to log in, while buying something, then drive down the road and wait for the SMS. Sheer stupid.

bee_rider 2y ago

That’s bizarre. The whole point of having an app instead of a website is to have more processing occur locally, right?

jagged-chisel 2y ago
> The whole point of having an app instead of a website is to have more processing occur locally, right? One would think this is the case. I agree it should be. > That’s bizarre. Unfortunately, it's not. It's normal operation.
ponector 2y ago
Why is it so? The whole point of app is to gather your info from the phone and to send you tons of notifications. And don't forget mandatory updates, when you open an app and cannot use it without updating to the latest crappy version.
roughly 2y ago
The whole point of having an app is to collect data, show ads, and “engage the customer with the brand.” Any additional capabilities beyond that are incidental.
- CyberDildonics 2y ago
  Don't forget bait and switching with updates so you can do all that later, possibly after you sell your quality app to someone else and cash out.
- thwarted 2y ago
  The delivery driver is not the customer, but I wouldn't be surprised if some MBA bonehead thought showing ads to workers was a win. "They have to use the app to schedule and do the work, so it's a captive audience!"
  - roughly 2y ago
    Hell, I got shown an ad after I paid for a ride on Lyft the other day. Even if you’re the customer, you’re still the product. If there’s not already ads in the drivers’ views, I’m shocked it’s taken them this long.
  - listenallyall 2y ago
    Why do you think only MBAs have the idea to insert ads? It's not exactly specialized thinking. Plenty of startup founders with technical chops decide to insert ads because they desperately need the revenue.
    - graemep 2y ago
      Because "MBA" has become a generic derogatory term for greedy and short termist management, because its easy to blame a group of people than face the fact that the problem is a wider one of incentives and ethics that pervades the whole of western society.
- edwinjm 2y ago
  And send push notifications
TylerE 2y ago
History has shown over and over again that you cannot trust the client.
dartos 2y ago
No, the whole point of apps is data collection, background tasks (when the device is closed) and push notifications.
simonmales 2y ago
Many apps are shortcuts. They live rent free on people's home screens/launchers. Plenty could exist as a web app.

bluefirebrand 2y ago

> Why can't it just take the photo, take the text description, and hold that until service is better? Just give the driver the map, and upload the other stuff when you can. The obvious answer is because asynchronous workflows are brittle, and require intervention from the end user to correct if they break Then most end users aren't going to care to fix it when it breaks, or be able to fix it when it breaks for a variety of reasons

TylerE 2y ago
Relevantly, in this specified case, the picture of their delivered food is shown to the customer immediately. This is more than a nice to have (imagine a large apartment building, where your food could be dropped in any number of locations).
- genewitch 2y ago
  it's shown when the driver gets a network connection again, was the way I read that. Because "[driver] doesn't know where to go till it confirms the upload"
jagged-chisel 2y ago
And what should one do if the network is down? Stand there indefinitely hoping it comes back up? Recall the driver can’t continue without an address.
- TeMPOraL 2y ago
  Better they can't continue than they do the last order wrong, amirite? There's some strong "Seeing Like a State" vibes here. I'm pretty sure these apps are intentionally designed as tools to force the users (here, drivers) into a specific flow, a flow that minimizes complexity for the vendor, reality be damned. Another way to look at it: the job of the driver side of a delivery (or taxi) app isn't to be useful to the driver; the job is to be a remote control with which the business can control the driver like they were an automaton.

joquarky 2y ago

I'm proficient in optimizing these UX flaws, and have been unable to land a full time job in two years, even after hundreds of applications. Nobody cares about quality anymore.

jagged-chisel 2y ago
Don’t I know it …

wwalexander 2y ago

While doing Instacart deliveries here in Maine, I dropped off a leave-at-the-door order which requires uploading a picture of the shopping bags at the entrance. However, there wasn’t any service in the rural area I was delivering to, and the app required a connection to even open the camera interface. So I had to drive away down the road until I had service, open the camera, drive back to the delivery point, take the picture, then drive away again to upload the picture and complete the order.

b112 2y ago
Same thing with paypal. They require a mobile phone number now. If I give them one, they'll enforce SMS as a login path. I live in an area with excellent cell service, except for a few miles around my house. I'm not going to try to log in, while buying something, then drive down the road and wait for the SMS. Sheer stupid.