

In Open Source, Learn to Decide - ptbello
http://nacin.com/2011/12/18/in-open-source-learn-to-decide/

======
bryanlarsen
That screen is exactly the reason why I personally prefer Android and open
source. I know what those options mean, and I appreciate the opportunity to
choose.

This really is a situation where you can "have your cake and eat it too". For
a good user experience you need:

1) sane defaults 2) a minimal, apple-like settings screen 3) an "advanced"
settings screen

The important thing about #3 is that you must make it clear that most users do
not need to access that screen. A button on the main settings screen call
"advanced options" does not necessarily make that clear -- there are still
people that will fiddle with it even though they don't need to. My suggestion
would be to make it minimally hidden, such as Firefox's about:config.

------
mbq
The funny thing is that the screenshot
([http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7160/6532001299_e08f052149_b.j...](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7160/6532001299_e08f052149_b.jpg))
on which this post is based is actually a request of making and unavoidable
decision (how the phone should present itself to the computer plugged via
USB), and the "clutter" is a clear description what both options mean.

~~~
jamesgeck0
There's several problems with that screen. I'm not a professional, and there
should definitely be user testing, but these are my observations.

\- There's way too much text. Users don't like reading.
[http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2009/10/treating-user-
myopi...](http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2009/10/treating-user-myopia.html)

\- Nobody who isn't a nerd will know what MTP and PTP stand for.

\- This screen could be broken down, roughly, into three large buttons for
Windows, Mac, and Linux with no extra text. Windows needs no explanatory text
or further configuration. The screen displayed after the Mac button is touched
could instruct the user to download File Transfer for Mac. The screen after
the Linux button could contain instructions for whatever it is Linux users do
to connect via PTP. Heck, you could even show Linux users the current screen;
they probably won't care.

~~~
mbq
But those Win/Mac/Linux buttons would be simply a wrong solution -- the idea
is to peak a standard that will work with a certain application, not OS. You
just can't make it simpler without sacrificing functionality.

Clueless user will of course be left only with an option just to try both, but
IMO this glitch is way better than macky "I won't work, but this is their
fault".

~~~
jamesgeck0
But surely you don't need ~40 words to communicate the difference between two
options.

------
gwillen
I WANT THAT FUCKING CHOICE. Don't you DARE take away my fucking choice. I WILL
CUT YOU! _rages_

[I exaggerate here, but I think my point is clear. Not every user thinks
choices are a bug. I will switch away from any platform with less choice to
any platform with more choice, every single time. And I am not alone.]

~~~
JamesBlair
So how is Linux From Scratch working for you?

~~~
gwillen
Good choices are accompanied by sensible defaults. LFS lacks any defaults at
all...

(I am in fact currently moving down the "user-friendliness scale" of linux
distros, but I haven't hit the bottom yet. Right now I'm ditching Ubuntu for
Debian, to escape the ongoing friendlification.)

------
MrScruff
The thing that always brings this home to me is how much harder it is (for a
developer) to rethink a design to remove the need for an option than to not
bother and defer the decision to the user.

It's sometimes instinctual in these situations to be lazy, but a small amount
of reflection (try having a conversation with an imaginary Steve Jobs) makes
it obvious that the time and energy cost for you will be easily justified by
the time saving for a non trivial amount of end users.

------
makecheck
I think the decision only has to be made at the top level, the graphical UI.

One of the things I like about Mac OS X is how solid the command-line
"defaults" mechanism is. It has allowed me to expose everything that _might_
be useful to configure, while still trimming the graphical preferences UI and
setting a series of factory defaults. So an app can be both simple and
flexible at the same time.

------
JamesBlair
Relevant reading is Barry Schwartz's _The Paradox of Choice_ , which makes
this insight as obvious as it should be.

------
d_rwin
Open source segments need the design considerations - Even with its size and
limits with scope.

An important read but not very relevant to open source
whitneyhess.com/blog/2011/04/23/youre-not-a-user-experience-designer-if/

The user perspective is the most important gain for any designer/team. Build a
team to challenge each other in user perception and details. Settings and
preferences are the most valid arguements for such choices. Clutter is
unacceptable.

Iterate on much focused segment of your problem.

