This is Broken

I… I don’t know what to do?

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:31:29 -0500

I… I don’t know what to do?

Fences are Impassable (via lot49a) “With these new 10 foot...

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 13:04:09 -0400

Fences are Impassable (via lot49a)

“With these new 10 foot fences, our stairs will be TOTALLY SAFE from intruders.”

Crossing is Directional (via lot49a) On the right, there is a...

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 13:03:09 -0400

Crossing is Directional (via lot49a)

On the right, there is a sign saying you can’t cross the street from here. On the left is a person WAITING FOR THE PEDESTRIAN LIGHT.

It’s a simple explanation, the sign applies to one direction but not the other. The thing is that this isn’t a corner, it’s a gently curving section. And you have to have approached from this side of the pole to even see the sign. Not pictured is the bus terminal and mall to the right - the direction from which most people will reach this spot without seeing the sign.

The fix is easy. Paint a “don’t cross sign” directly on the road, exactly where you don’t want people to cross.

Buttons are Shiny (via lot49a) After complaining about the bad...

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:01:07 -0400

Buttons are Shiny (via lot49a)

After complaining about the bad buttons at Ottawa’s crosswalks, I feel that I should highlight this example of good design. This is a button with an LED that lights up when any of the 4 buttons at this crossing have been pressed. The LED stays lit until the traffic light changes. The button itself can actually be pressed, so it’s good feedback all around.

There are a number of these buttons nearby. About half of them aren’t working, which offers some clue about why the riot-proof button, that I criticized, exists.

Temperature is Relative Neale at Five Whys evaluates poorly...

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:00:49 -0400

Temperature is Relative

Neale at Five Whys evaluates poorly labelled buttons. Click the link to see what he says: Five Whys » Blog Archive » Bad Button Design

Navigation is Direct (via www.quietbabylon.com) This is from a...

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 13:00:47 -0400

Navigation is Direct (via www.quietbabylon.com)

This is from a popular (and reasonably well funded) survey company.

Is there a good reason for the layout of the buttons, or did no one over there look at the entire screen?

Switches are Cross (via lot49a) (God willing and the river...

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:01:26 -0400

Switches are Cross (via lot49a)

(God willing and the river don’t rise, the most boring photograph I will ever have taken).

This is the light switch panel on the landing of the floor where I’ve been living. Each switch controls one of four lights nearby. Clockwise from the left these are: 1.hallway, 2.landing, 3.tracklighting, 4.stairway. Guess which switches correspond to which lights?

4.stairway, 2.landing, 1.hallway, 3.tracklighting

You can’t even deduce the order by comparing which switches are up with which lights are on because some of the lights are controlled by more than one switch in the house. When I took this photo, the stairway light was off even though the switch is up. Were I to flick the switch at the bottom of the stairs, then ‘up’ would become 'on’ again.

I’ve been living in this house for about 8 months and STILL can’t instinctively turn on the right switch when I come home.

Updating is Scary (via lot49a) Apple is normally lauded for...

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:01:18 -0400

Updating is Scary (via lot49a)

Apple is normally lauded for their excellent user experience and sleek design. Stuff “just works”. But when it comes to downloading free iPhone apps and updates in the App Store, the dialogues are confusingly wrong.

This one is for a free update to the excellent Subway Shuffle puzzle game. I moved the dialogue box over so you could see the app. When you click on the little “get update” button, the dialogue pops over top of it, hiding the price. Then the box explains that you have to click “buy” to download the app “and your credit card will be charged immediately.” WHAT?!

There is no reason that I can imagine for Apple not to have two different dialog boxes for this situation. One for paid apps and a second that makes clear that the free downloads are actually free.

Buttons are Fragile (via lot49a) Pedestrian crosswalk buttons...

Sun, 26 Jul 2009 13:00:29 -0400

Buttons are Fragile (via lot49a)

Pedestrian crosswalk buttons face an uphill usability battle. Constrained by the need to respect the rest of traffic flow, there’s no obvious causal relationship between pressing the button and an event that happens in the world.

Sometimes the light changes, sometimes it waits and then changes, sometimes it changes even if you don’t press the button. There is a running debate among my friends as to whether the buttons have any function at all.

On top of that, they face a whole lot of wear and tear from both legitimate use, frustrated use, and outright vandalism.

This button, outside Ottawa’s City Hall, seems to have been designed by someone terrified that it might end up in a riot zone. It has no moving parts - the metal plate you can see is fixed firmly in place. Touching it results in … nothing.

There is no press or click, no light comes on, no sound is made and the street light certainly doesn’t change on command. Touching the button resulted in no feedback whatsoever to indicate that the thing was working. Maybe it wasn’t.

Retribution is Indiscriminate (via lot49a) In an effort to...

Sat, 25 Jul 2009 13:00:10 -0400

Retribution is Indiscriminate (via lot49a)

In an effort to combat spambots on Twitter, they set up a @spam account to make it easy to report spammers. Here’s how: ‘Report Twitter spam by sending us an @reply with the suspicious user name: “@spam @spam123”’

A year later, they updated with the above advice. RT meant “retweet” which is the practice of reposting a message.

If your net is cast so wide that you are likely to catch legitimate users for the crime of TRYING TO HELP YOU FIGHT THE PROBLEM, then you need to reconfigure your net.

Paint is Thin (via lot49a) This was taken in the National Art...

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:00:47 -0400

Paint is Thin (via lot49a)

This was taken in the National Art Gallery of Canada in Ottawa. The metal rectangle is where the people making the door thought that people would push to open. The white patch where innumerable hands have worn through the paint is where they actually did.

Environmentalism is Negotiable (via lot49a) Bottled Water is...

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:00:18 -0400

Environmentalism is Negotiable (via lot49a)

Bottled Water is probably my favourite industry for cognitively dissonant advertising. Here, a corporate SUV promises that it’s carbon neutral.

Really, Glacéau Vitaminwater? The SUV for your product which is based around selling flat pop in disposable plastic containers is carbon neutral? Well done. How’s the rest of the operation?

I looked on their website for more information about the environmental claim but couldn’t find anything. I’ve emailed them asking for information and I’ll update the blog if they reply.

Comparison is Effective (via lot49a) Caught this clever little...

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:02:51 -0400

Comparison is Effective (via lot49a)

Caught this clever little display outside of a Loblaws grocery store in Ottawa. A pair of grocery carts filled with identical items, one of regular brands, the other with the President’s Choice generic brand. The sign shows the price difference.

The display is right next to the front entrance to the store, so they get you just at the moment that you’re thinking about buying food.

I love the attention to detail in making sure that each item’s position is duplicated in the other cart.

Flushing is Confusing (via lot49a) The first time I encountered...

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:04:35 -0400

Flushing is Confusing (via lot49a)

The first time I encountered an efficiency toilet, it was 1am at a house where I was renting a room for the night. My hosts were all asleep, so there was no one to explain how it worked.

I don’t know who decided that a pair of unlabelled buttons was an improvement over a single lever, but they were wrong. You may have encountered one of these before, or its operation may seem obvious to you. To my sleep addled brain, it was not obvious at all.

Two buttons offers the user at least 6 modes of interaction. (Tap small, tap big, tap both, hold small, hold big, hold both.) Assuming that you know that efficiency toilets exist (there’s nothing aside from the new flushing interface to let you know that this is one) you have to deduce how to use it properly through some kind of trial and error.

Before you accuse me of being obtuse on purpose, know that the toilet I encountered GAVE MORE WATER IF YOU HELD DOWN SMALL. Nor was there (to my untrained eye) any obvious difference in volume of water used with the big or small buttons.

The most frustrating part is that regular toilets already have two modes of flushing. Tapping and holding the lever down.

The Map is Lost (via lot49a) Montreal’s innovative Bixi...

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:04:53 -0400

The Map is Lost (via lot49a)

Montreal’s innovative Bixi bike rental network has a lot to recommend it. But when it came to putting up the maps of the network with a dizzying number of stations, they didn’t bother to highlight the location where you were standing.

Thankfully, someone with a paint marker saw fit to fix this one.

Laundry is Transferable (via lot49a) In contrast to the...

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 13:00:00 -0400

Laundry is Transferable (via lot49a)

In contrast to the head-banging dryer door of the vertical unit, check out the thoughtful way that the doors on this pair open. By folding outwards, they make the daily act of transferring from washer to dryer an easy process.

Laundry is Concussive (via lot49a) Space is at a premium in the...

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 13:02:00 -0400

Laundry is Concussive (via lot49a)

Space is at a premium in the kind of apartment where you find this kind of washer/dryer combo. There are some nice touches here, like the magnets that hold the washer’s door open. But check out the location of the dryer’s door. This is the natural resting point to which it returns when you aren’t holding it open.

Every time you bend down to fish clothes out of the washer for transferring to the dryer, the door swings back to this position right above your head. Ouch!

Coordination is Hard. (via lot49a) Montreal’s Olympic...

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 17:48:40 -0400

Coordination is Hard. (via lot49a)

Montreal’s Olympic Stadium.

This is one of those situations where the art department and the writing department clearly weren’t on speaking terms. The writers want you to know that this is the tallest inclined tower in the world. The art people picked THE ONLY ANGLE which did not show off the slant.

Street Design is Important (via lot49a) When they laid out the...

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 17:27:00 -0400

Street Design is Important (via lot49a)

When they laid out the historic Byward Market in Ottawa, they needed a place for parking I guess (they needed A LOT of places, judging by the sheer number of parking garages in the area). I don’t know who decided that it would be a good idea to put a parking lot on the path between Parliament Hill and the market, but they were wrong.