

How lazy programming burnt my ass. Literally. - coreymaass
http://gelform.com/blog/2010/12/how-lazy-programming-burnt-my-ass-literally/

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jordanb
More pipe and more turns in the pipe leads to more maintenance trouble.
Plumbing failures are expensive to correct and often cause expensive damage to
the wall, which is why buildings tend to be built to have a minimum number of
"wetwalls" (walls with plumbing in them).

Furthermore, can you imagine trying to get the temperature right when you have
to go from one side of the shower, to adjust the knobs, to the other, to test
the water from the faucet?

So his "solution" is more costly to implement, has substantial lifecycle
costs, and is bad UI to boot.

This happens a lot in programming too. A user has a problem, and thinks up a
solution themself. They then file a bug saying "product is missing
feature/behavior X". A good programmer then knows to figure out why the user
_thinks_ they want that behavior, so he can determine what the real problem
is.

In this case, the real problem is that water temperature in his building
wasn't stable. The real solution would have been better compartmentalization
of his water supply so his neighbor’s water usage didn't disrupt his hot/cold
balance.

~~~
coreymaass
Ha! Great point. My next post will have to be about digging deeper into the
real problem.

I don't picture the controls on the other side of a big, tub, just somewhere
that they can always be reached. Is there a "better" shower design out there?
Voice controlled temp? :-)

~~~
radiowave
Many designs of thermostatic shower mixers will throttle back the hot water,
rather than allow the occupant to get burnt.

~~~
coreymaass
I could've used that...

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kleiba
This article has nothing to do with programming. It makes a general point
about usability though: you should have it in mind when building a system.

~~~
coreymaass
You're right, Kleiba - it's not specifically related to programming. I was
just trying to relate a lesson I've learned in a funny, catchy way, so people
will remember it.

~~~
itistoday
I thought it was great; very applicable to programming (though jordanb made a
good point as well). :-) Sorry to hear about your head though, hope it wasn't
too serious.

~~~
coreymaass
Thanks!

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BobWalsh
And as design and usability becomes the deciding factor in what people want,
all the decisions that others make to their benefit are going to get called
into question. Let the plumber dance around getting their feet burned!

~~~
coreymaass
Totally. No matter what your role, I think you can share the vision of the
company, which should be to deliver the best experience to the customer.
What's the story? A janitor at NASA was asked why he worked so hard. He
replied, "Because I'm working to put a man on the moon".

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sibsibsib
This is a situation where adjustable showerheads come in handy. Just aim it at
an angle that gives you some room to reach in...

~~~
coreymaass
Now I always have the hand-held shower heads, both for this and for cleaning
pets. :-)

