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The idea, I think, is that the error is apologizing on behalf of the people who run the website, who can't be expected to be there in person to say sorry. You g
by devindotcom 13y ago
The idea, I think, is that the error is apologizing on behalf of the people who run the website, who can't be expected to be there in person to say sorry. You get "sorry" messages from other-than-humans all the time: "Sorry, we're closed" or "Sorry, this machine is out of order."
In each case I've always thought of it as shorthand for "The management is sorry to inform you that..." or something like that. It's mean to be a sort of humanity surrogate, and I don't see much of a problem with that.
Of course, it can easily go overboard. Over-"please"-ing and "thank you" after every single step can be wearying - on phone support, it's always "thank you for giving me that information. I'm sorry for the wait while I put it in. We thank you for your patience."
- derefr 13y agoI think I only find apologies strange when they come from devices I consider to be an extension of my own agency, rather than an emissary for someone else's. If a vending machine apologizes for being out of stock, that's the vending-machine company doing the apologizing. But if my Windows PC says sorry, that's not Microsoft apologizing to me; that's effectively me apologizing to myself.