Thursday, September 15, 2011

Dear Software Designers Near And Far

Dear Software Designers Near And Far:





























*


Because frankly I can't figure out a damn thing on any of your new fancy, textless toolbars. Yes I know the magnifying glass icon means zoom. I know the printer-looking icon means print (if I can see it). I know "X" means "close". But that's it. I should not have to go through 18 menus to say "turn text labels on". I should not have to hover over every single picture to figure out what they mean. Just tell me, with words. 

Many people cannot read, and I respect that you want to make these interfaces accessible to them. But please make them accessible to me too.

Love,
FCS

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(*) Since I actually do care about any readers who use screen reading software, these labels are meant to say: "Please, please, please put labels on buttons."

1 comment:

  1. "Many people cannot read, and I respect that you want to make these interfaces accessible to them. "

    Dottora, you may have just explained what they were thinking with the 2010 version of Microsoft Office. It seems most of the menu items are largely unlabeled icons, and small at that. I often find myself thinking, "Whatever happened to 'tool tips' (user gets an explanatory text balloon with a mouseOver)?".

    I think the one thing that enables me to help my otherwise literate mum with using Word is my capacity for quasi-intuitive hunches and deduction.

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