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To me it seemed like the author was just fumbly with his fingers. Triggering undo and such. This information can be found online or in the manual so if he would

To me it seemed like the author was just fumbly with his fingers. Triggering undo and such. This information can be found online or in the manual so if he would just rtfm it would be obvious how he caused the delete button to show up. Also, the other glaring example here is the one about the mail client refresh-vs-reply arrows. Aren't these two icons the exact same icons used for pretty much the whole history of the internet? Circular arrows = refresh; Left arrow = reply. New things sometimes require just a bit of effort because you aren't familiar with it. In other words, easy-to-use != just like every other phone out there. It's pretty close to a 'fundamentally new UI' - just because you don't grok it within 5 seconds doesn't make it hard to use.

delayclose 17y ago
>This information can be found online or in the manual So can the information on how you should partition your hard drive for Linux installation. Yet (historically) most people think Linux installation is a usability disaster. Or for another way of looking at it, do you really think that an interface which requires you to go online (or read a manual) to figure out how basic stuff like undo or delete work represents "good usability"? Also, as the author points out, what is "refresh" supposed to do in the context of a single message? Just because a symbol is familiar, it doesn't mean its meaning is automatically clear if it's taken out of context. For example, at my workplace recently got a new microwave that has a play/pause button. In this case, it's relatively easy to figure it out but it still gave me a pause.
- thenduks 17y ago
  My point was that you can find the information online or in the manual if you don't get it, which this guy clearly does not. Some people have habits when it comes to devices like this that are hard to break. If you're one of those people, read the manual.
  - scott_s 17y ago
    I think you missed the point. The author is a person who designs user interfaces. He knows that he can look up how to do what he wants to do by referring to material outside of the device. His interest, though, is designing user interfaces that don't require that.
    - thenduks 17y ago
      Fair enough, I'm just saying that maybe the fact that he's a UI designer is what caused him to approach it in a way that most people don't. I've seen people who know less-than-nothing about interfaces (aka, your average person) get it without any help... And I'd say that is evidenced on a larger scale by the positive reviews and general success of the product.
GiraffeNecktie 17y ago
"To me it seemed like the author was just fumbly with his fingers. Triggering undo and such. This information can be found online or in the manual so if he would just rtfm it would be obvious how he caused the delete button to show up." You do realize that this is the developer's classic response to a usability issue? The user is just clumsy/stupid/lazy/ignorant/blind/stubborn [pick one]. I'd agree that you can't make UI decisions based on one person's reported problem, but the correct response is not "RTFM" but "This issue should be tested in a usability lab with a reasonable cross section of the target market".
- thenduks 17y ago
  "This issue should be tested in a usability lab with a reasonable cross section of the target market" That's the thing. It was. And it works for everyone I've ever met, including my wife and my parents who are the polar opposite of 'technical'. I'm not making baseless claims of the user being [insert one of the choices], it was based on my (rather extensive) experience with the device and users of it.

delayclose 17y ago

>This information can be found online or in the manual So can the information on how you should partition your hard drive for Linux installation. Yet (historically) most people think Linux installation is a usability disaster. Or for another way of looking at it, do you really think that an interface which requires you to go online (or read a manual) to figure out how basic stuff like undo or delete work represents "good usability"? Also, as the author points out, what is "refresh" supposed to do in the context of a single message? Just because a symbol is familiar, it doesn't mean its meaning is automatically clear if it's taken out of context. For example, at my workplace recently got a new microwave that has a play/pause button. In this case, it's relatively easy to figure it out but it still gave me a pause.

thenduks 17y ago
My point was that you can find the information online or in the manual if you don't get it, which this guy clearly does not. Some people have habits when it comes to devices like this that are hard to break. If you're one of those people, read the manual.
- scott_s 17y ago
  I think you missed the point. The author is a person who designs user interfaces. He knows that he can look up how to do what he wants to do by referring to material outside of the device. His interest, though, is designing user interfaces that don't require that.
  - thenduks 17y ago
    Fair enough, I'm just saying that maybe the fact that he's a UI designer is what caused him to approach it in a way that most people don't. I've seen people who know less-than-nothing about interfaces (aka, your average person) get it without any help... And I'd say that is evidenced on a larger scale by the positive reviews and general success of the product.

GiraffeNecktie 17y ago

"To me it seemed like the author was just fumbly with his fingers. Triggering undo and such. This information can be found online or in the manual so if he would just rtfm it would be obvious how he caused the delete button to show up." You do realize that this is the developer's classic response to a usability issue? The user is just clumsy/stupid/lazy/ignorant/blind/stubborn [pick one]. I'd agree that you can't make UI decisions based on one person's reported problem, but the correct response is not "RTFM" but "This issue should be tested in a usability lab with a reasonable cross section of the target market".

thenduks 17y ago
"This issue should be tested in a usability lab with a reasonable cross section of the target market" That's the thing. It was. And it works for everyone I've ever met, including my wife and my parents who are the polar opposite of 'technical'. I'm not making baseless claims of the user being [insert one of the choices], it was based on my (rather extensive) experience with the device and users of it.