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People expect technology to suck because it sucks

tonsky.me

251–260 of 437 posts

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#251
Technology usually only sucks where there is no immediate consequence of this. For example I am currently working with some tools related to robot control and machine safety. Crashes are expensive and errors in safety can get you sued. That part of the software works perfectly. Similarly, your engine control unit, airplane avionics etc. all work well because if they did not, the producer would be punished monetarily.

User interface stuff is crappy because it does not matter in the sense that you can immediately break expensive things. Unless people raise a stink to the point where the producers are scared for theri bottom line, this will not change.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#252

I can’t help feel like the agile in business mentality is somewhat to blame for this. Focusing on getting core functionality sprint after sprint is great for adding new features but there is never enough time to go back and fix annoyances that are minor. I was looking for a new microwave recently and since I’m a nerd I was looking into ones with smart features. So I read some reviews and guess what? The smart microwa…

Software sucked in this way long before Agile, and will continue long after Agile stops being a trend. Of course, if is is truly a result of Agile, that is only because the team using Agile wasn't truly doing it right.

I’m sure you’re right. I’m probably projecting issues I see in my own organization since we switched to agile. Or attempted to. Or are continuously trying to attempt to.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#253
post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microsoft, Apple, Google. An MS bug in an enterprise piece of software (so they get paid every year for it) is Skype for Business. Perhaps my org hasn't updated their installation, but if I drag a contact from the chat window (say you message me and aren't in my contacts yet) and then drag it to the contact list (in status view) it will reliably crash the program. If I drag it to groups view it'll place the contact i…

Skype for Business is just Lync [used to be Office Communicator, maybe?] renamed/reskinned, right? I think that product is cursed. It was always a dumpster fire, like IBM's Lotus Notes. It's there so you their clients don't accidentally try Slack or any of the sane alternatives. All products of MS, Apple, Google are in a constant churn mode. New design. New integrations with whatever platform changes happened in the…

> I agree all of these are horrible. GMail is still a slow piece of shit. I recently tried Thunderbird, and .. it slowed down too. Wtf. Slack is slow too. Typing has become slow for some reason in a lot of "apps", maybe too fancy fonts?

Possibly because more companies are moving desktop apps to Electron so they can run JS everywhere.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#254
post #83

I have worked for software companies for over 25 years, mostly on teams building software, and I hate software. I find bugs in every software I use (my freaking microwave oven control panel!). In addition to questionable quality, software is often downright hostile (lose all the data you typed into a web form if you accidentally backspace while not in a text field, because it navigates off the page). Ironically softw…

Software has n^2 as many paths a piece of code can take depending on how it branches. Also, you cannot simulate the rest of the world (externalities).

If I design a bracket for a TV mount, do you blame the bracket when someone hangs a 3000 kg bookcase on it?

You’re expect software to be perfect, yet ignore the massive limits everything in the world has.

Not saying there aren’t quality issues with software. I’m saying software development is really difficult.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To provide an anecdotal counter-example, AirPods have worked seamlessly for me so far. Much quicker to connect and more reliable than Bluetooth. So their marketing isn't completely off-base :)

Shh nobody tell him AirPods are just bluetooth headphones :) https://www.apple.com/airpods-pro/specs/

But they're not; they're one specific implementation of BT with some proprietary secret sauce for the multi-device pairing etc.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#256
post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> never had a problem with a refrigerator These turn of phrases make me wonder what we are really expecting from software. I can’t imagine you never slapped the door of your fridge and it didn’t properly close. You gave it a nudge when you realized it, and it was fine, but it must have happened. And your whole food supply would be rotten if you didn’t notice in time. Or do we monitor energy consumption close enough t…

> I can’t imagine you never slapped the door of your fridge and it didn’t properly close. You gave it a nudge when you realized it, and it was fine, but it must have happened. And your whole food supply would be rotten if you didn’t notice in time. But if the fridge was software it would randomly turn off and ruin all your food. The light would sometimes stay on, except when you open the door. It would require you to…

We saw a failure case like this with a microwave in the workplace kitchen. It somehow got into a mode where it only turned on when the door opened. Needless to say we threw it out shortly after that was discovered. We didn't bother debugging it, but my guess is it was a hardware problem because the interlock should have obviously made it work the opposite of how it was and you'd hope that a software glitch couldn't get it into a mode like that!

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#257
post #95
post #83

I have worked for software companies for over 25 years, mostly on teams building software, and I hate software. I find bugs in every software I use (my freaking microwave oven control panel!). In addition to questionable quality, software is often downright hostile (lose all the data you typed into a web form if you accidentally backspace while not in a text field, because it navigates off the page). Ironically softw…

Doesn’t reality suck the same ? My gas car stinks, destroys the planet, needs yearly maintenance, crashes in everything the second I stop paying attention. My house decays days after day. Floors need constant cleaning, wall have holes from small impacts, paint contains inedible fragments and disperse nocive gas. Bees are building nests on my balcony and it’s definitely not what it was built for, nor where they should…

> Doesn’t reality suck the same ?

No. A hardware product like a car has predictable wear and tear governed mainly by the laws of physics. The fact that I can no longer use my smart speaker because the manufacturer decided to stop supporting it, went out of business, or got bought is not at all the same. My car will still work through all of those things in the exact same way. It also doesn't throw up random dialogs (or whatever a physical equivalent would be) that stop the product from working until I interact with it. Not the same at all.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#258

I can’t help feel like the agile in business mentality is somewhat to blame for this. Focusing on getting core functionality sprint after sprint is great for adding new features but there is never enough time to go back and fix annoyances that are minor. I was looking for a new microwave recently and since I’m a nerd I was looking into ones with smart features. So I read some reviews and guess what? The smart microwa…

It would greatly lower my shopping-anxiety if you shared the brands. Thanks!

For the microwave I was focused on Whirlpool since they had gotten high reliability rankings from a well-known reviewal magazine. However I did look at other higher end brands too and they all seem to have issues in the smart appliance space. I ended up buying a basic model instead.

The washer/dryer is a Frigidaire laundry center. (Stacked washer/dryer)

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#259
post #149
post #121

As an experiment, I logged every bug I encountered for a few days. I averaged 5 bugs a day, not counting dark patterns or bad design. Everything is broken, and nobody is upset. [1] Some of the software I use is so unreliable that I expect it to fail. I expect the Vodafone login page not to work properly. I expect one of my airpods not to connect on the first try. I expect my banking app to show random error messages,…

Thank you for mentioning AirPods! I was so excited to buy them after a ton of reviews saying they just worked. They said the days of fighting with Bluetooth audio were gone. I believed them, then reality showed up. My Mac sometimes unpairs them and worst it doesn’t find them. Some times while my baby is sleeping I put my AirPods and play a loud video just to realize they were not connected. My wife’s right side AirPo…

They work well enough, but they don't work magically well.

The main issue is with the right pod not always turning on when I take it out of the case. The solution is to put it back in the case for 5 seconds and to try again.

The second most important issue is the airpods falling out of sync with each other. It seems like the signal from my Samsung S9 in my pocket is choppy. Looking left or right for too long will make the signal drop. Putting my hands in my pockets also will. If I put the phone in my backpack, it's okay.

This is still more pleasant than wired headphones, but it's far from a magical experience.

Re: People expect technology to suck because it sucks

#260
post #83

I have worked for software companies for over 25 years, mostly on teams building software, and I hate software. I find bugs in every software I use (my freaking microwave oven control panel!). In addition to questionable quality, software is often downright hostile (lose all the data you typed into a web form if you accidentally backspace while not in a text field, because it navigates off the page). Ironically softw…

> I don’t know what has to happen for people to stop tolerating software as it is.

Deaths, a lot of deaths.

Software Engineering needs a PE type licensure and a union. We need a way to stand together to advocate for better working conditions, practices, and tools.

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