haha this made me laugh. would like to hear an official statement from the MS Design department
Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
271–280 of 330 posts
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#272Earlier quoted context omitted.
You still haven't answered my question. I have a set of documents, a subset of which I'd like to copy onto my USB drive. I also have a set of pictures, a subset of which I'd like to copy onto my USB drive. My USB drive already has a set of documents and a set of pictures, and I'd like to get a subset of the documents and a subset of the pictures onto internal storage so that I can plug out my USB drive afterwards and…
I think others have explained this, but I'll give it a try anyway. Plug an SD card with photos on it into the iPad camera connection kit, and plug that into the iPad. The Photos app opens, you tap the photos you want to import, and you're done. Your other cases are simple extensions of this example. The fact that an iPad can't do this right now with more file types or with a USB drive is not an inherent limitation of…
You really think we should write an app for every file type? As a developer who believes in abstracting common code out, I find the notion frankly idiotic.
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#273Earlier quoted context omitted.
Then why are the ipad and iphone taking off? It's really hard to learn to do things on those devices. It's cumbersome to turn off wifi and bluetooth to save battery. The control location makes no sense in the settings menu (to my mind, anyway). I was a HUGE Apple fan for the early Macs. I totally get what you are saying. But we LOST in the workplace. It was just too slow for the other folks in the office to use (of c…
I understand what you're saying, and despite the content of my above post I've never been an Apple guy, always a Windows one. Every time I went over to the Apple OS I felt I had one hand tied behind my back by lack of options. I also try to keep in mind that I'm not typical. I started on "PCs" in 1981 and have grown with them, this all comes naturally. So when I judge a UI I literally stick my Mom on it... she's 68.…
Ctrl+F1?
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#274Earlier quoted context omitted.
which are not 'logical' operations like tapping and swiping - they must be learned and remembered. And now even those are getting out of control: http://www.apple.com/macosx/whats-new/gestures.html Pretty soon I'm going to run out of fingers, and these certainly aren't easily discoverable.
Yeah, because those gestures are more akin to keyboard shortcuts, i.e. something for power users. OS X is perfectly usable without complicated gestures. Two-finger scrolling is the most complicated thing an average user has to learn. This same pattern continues on iOS devices. They don't ever use complicated gestures, certainly not as the only way to accomplish something. The most complicated gesture you need is pinc…
There is still a problem when you accidentally trigger gestures. All my friends are scared to touch my Mac because they'd trigger hot corners all the time. With 10.7, you can easily trigger gestures even on default settings. I am worried the iOS5 gestures will have the same problem.
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#275Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is only because the Finder/Explorer has been made harder and harder to use. Apple's OSX Finder is a shocking UI abomination. Their old MacOS Finder was clear and simple - my wife would spend hours arranging her work in coloured folders, each of which opened in a window whose shape and position she had chosen, and was meaningful to her. It was a powerful tool that enabled her to arrange and group her work. Now, b…
Are you talking about spatial mode? That still exists in Finder. Just hit Cmd+Opt+T or select "Hide Toolbars" from the View menu. You're absolutely right. I don't have the citation on me right now, but spatial mode has been found to be easier to grasp for new users in every single test ever. The only reason it was dropped was because (1) Windows Explorer, (2) power users whined about too many open windows and (3) a l…
I don't know about Windows but on the Mac it's not spatial mode (and hasn't been since OS9) - it's just a poor imitation.
You can easily have two Finder windows open on the same folder, meaning you lose the immediate recognition that spatial mode gives you. My personal take - they should have two types of Finder window - a spatial "folder contents" window and a folder-browser (probably in column-view) that only shows folders and maybe a preview of the files within.
So you can navigate quickly/enter file-paths in the browser, but to actually use a folder, you enter spatial mode, so you have the instant recognition of where you are.
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#276Earlier quoted context omitted.
". I also try to keep in mind that I'm not typical. ... So when I judge a UI I literally stick my Mom on it... she's 68" Well she no more typical a computer user than you are I would think. I like to see a curve of typical computer users age distribution (but I understand it would be a little skewed if it's hard for the older generations to use computers). I feel that ribbon is designed for a select group of new user…
What "advanced" things are you talking about that a regular user would need?
I would love to be able to remove a (huge) file without going through the trash can.
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#277I don't understand how there can be so many posts here defending this UI. Is this a concerted effort by Microsoft to flood hacker news with their viewpoint? I just don't see how this is a defensible UI, at all. Seriously, it's overwhelming. The UI is constantly shouting commands at the user, regardless of what the user is trying to do. UIs like these are exactly where the problem my parents have with computers come f…
All I see in this new UI is a bunch of interface designers trying to justify their jobs...
>What? Most users are familiar with CTRL+C, CTRL+V these days? LALALA NOT LISTENING!! ADD MORE RIBBONS!!
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#278I have to help "stupid users" in both the PC and the Mac world. There are "stupid users" everywhere and not more on one side or the other. I look forward to this new Windows Explorer. You would be amazed at the things regular people just do not know. MS is putting that all up front, in their face. They see it, they know where and what the commands are. It matches what their version of Office looks like. They will probably be able to figure it out instead of calling me to go show them how to do something, that as a nerd, deem "easy".
Plus, I agree with the other users. Our viewpoint is skewed. We are top tier users. We're not the ones that need disclaimers on the side of our hair-dryer that says, "Do not user while bathing."
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#279Someone should open a can of Apple HID on their asses.
Re: Microsoft UI has officially entered the realm of self-parody
#280Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think the point you're missing is that most people only manipulate data that clearly belongs to some application. So, for most people, the relevant application managing their data and abstracting away the underlying file system is a valid option. If that doesn't work for you, then okay. You're not most people.
Oddly, Microsoft used to be app centric and moved to being file centric with Windows 95. The idea being that you cared less about the app and more about the document you were using. Apple is going back and saying you care about the app as the dominant focus. This is interesting. For example, my mom knows the document she wants to open is her 2009 tax return document. The fact that it is a PDF or she reads it with Ado…
The tool drives the user. Your mom works this way because, as you said, windows 95 is file oriented. If it were app oriented as Mac OS X is, I bet she would have the opposite behavior.