this post was submitted on 29 Jun 2025
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The Decline of Usability: Revisited | datagubbe.se (datagubbe.se)
submitted 2 days ago by 2xsaiko@discuss.tchncs.de to c/technology@lemmy.world
9 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

In which we once more delve into the world of user interface design.

Autumn 2023

Three years ago, I wrote a rant about the problems of our current UI paradigm. The complaints I voiced were hardly new or unique, neither was the text what I'd consider my best writing. It was, honestly, mostly a way to blow off steam. It seems I struck a nerve, though, because it's proven to be one of the most popular texts I've published here. For some time, I've thought about writing a follow-up, and a recent resurgence in the text's popularity prompted me to finally do so.

[…]

What were we talking about?

Usability, as defined by Wikipedia, is "the capacity of a system to provide a condition for its users to perform the tasks safely, effectively, and efficiently while enjoying the experience." Its relation to software is further specified: "In software engineering, usability is the degree to which a software can be used by specified consumers to achieve quantified objectives with effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction in a quantified context of use." […]

In short, usability is the ease with which a predetermined task can be accomplished. Consequently, "It looks fresh" isn't usability; it's aesthetics. Likewise, the lack of a specific program feature isn't the same as being able to use it as easily, efficiently and safely as possible. […]

[…]

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[–] nyan@lemmy.cafe 6 points 1 day ago

People who wonder why I use a Linux desktop environment whose appearance and behaviour are basically unchanged from what they were 20 years ago, and daily drive a browser that forked from Firefox 27 and still uses that UI: this is why.