Because I am a geek, I will bore my wife and kids with technical nonsense when we are at the most unremarkable places, like the grocery store. However, as I like to point out to them, computers are everywhere and inevitably we are interacting with these computers’ user interfaces all the time. I can’t help but notice how some user interfaces written by presumed professionals are just awful. That said, I do often notice the good ones too.

The Good

OK, so technically this example is not a computer’s user interface, but quite frankly a user interface is a user interface whether it is the interface for tying a shoe or navigating a plane. We recently had some canned lighting installed in our kitchen but found them way too bright upon first illumination. We had a fader switch installed so we could find just the right level of brightness. I had not used a fader switch in a while, and was expecting a big flat switch that could be slid up and down to adjust the light. Instead, what we got looks like a standard light switch except for an awkward lever protruding from the base right next to the switch. “Dumb,” was my first thought, “that’s not going to be easy to change that setting!” Turning the light on would require that I flip the switch AND adjust the slider. However, after a few days I realized the interface was brilliant. With the old type of slider you had to fuss with the slider until you got the right level for that room every time you wanted some light. Eventually you break down and draw a line with a permanent marker so you and your kids can easily get it to the right level every time. Not anymore, with the cool new user interface you use the awkward little lever to acquire the right level of brightness and then don’t have to touch it again. Now with a simple flick of the switch the light is at the right level every time. The little lever is awkward, which is good because you don’t accidentally adjust it during normal operation.

The Bad

Recently we got a brand spank’n new grocery store right next to our subdivision. This means it will have all the latest amenities like check-yourself-out lines, salad bar, food bar, etc. I also would assume that it is using the latest technology for cash registers, point-of-sale systems and credit card readers. Imagine my surprise when I was confused the first time I had to use their credit card reader. The user interface is bright and the words are easy to read. The first step is made obvious: choose Credit or Debit. I selected Credit by pressing the touch-screen. The next screen displayed a number pad for entering my PIN. Oops, I figured I fat-fingered my choice and it must have read my Credit choice as Debit. I hit cancel and again was offered Credit or Debit. I make sure to clearly press Credit. Again I got the number pad. The cashier, who is already annoyed by my ignorance, told me to press Credit. I told her I did. She told me to do it again. I hit Cancel and then the Credit button again. “Same result.” I informed her. “Press Credit again,” she told me, a little more perturbed with me. I suggested that maybe it is not reading my touch-screen presses correctly. She leans over presses Credit and then pressed a small Credit button just below the #7 on the Number Pad screen and told me I’m good to go. This is why she told me to press Credit again. Apparently the first time you press Credit is just preparation for the real deal. The next screen is always going to be the number pad. You just have to press Credit again. At this point I don’t care if the bill gets charged to Credit or my Debit card so I look for a signature line and grab the attached pen. I see the signature line, and written clearly across the line is “DO NOT USE PEN”.