
The Mystery of Why Gas Pump Interface Design Sucks So Badly - t23
https://jalopnik.com/the-incredible-mystery-of-why-gas-pump-interface-design-1837314198
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andyfleming
I disagree with half the of the assertions in this article. I don't like how
the coke freestyle machines work. They touch screens are finicky, the soda
doesn't taste as good, and the interaction feels a little over-the-top. I
think the simplicity of most gas pump interfaces is actually a feature. My
main gripe is that they are slow. While I don't think gas pump ux is amazing,
it seems like the author is conflating visual design with effective user
experience.

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nudiustertian
> They touch screens are finicky, the soda doesn't taste as good, and the
> interaction feels a little over-the-top.

Those aren't things in question here

> it seems like the author is conflating visual design with effective user
> experience

often the fact that people separate those things so much is an issue in
itself. visual design is definitely a big part of an effective user experience
and a user's feelings about the product they are currently using

much like how the feeling of responsiveness of an interface can be manipulated
by simply changing the duration of a few animations (but not the actual
duration of the action)

~~~
andyfleming
Sure, that's fair. I said visual design, but I think I might have meant more
simply "look". Design implies some intentionality, but it felt like the
commentary was focused simply on how it looked and not how that actually
impacted the design. For example, the resolution of the pin graphic doesn't
really impact the design significantly.

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willyt
The design inconsistency makes it looks like the machine has been hacked,
would make me nervous about putting my card in it.

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kevin_thibedeau
Coke Freestyle is a poor example of good UI. The system is so underpowered it
can't reliably detect touch events or even the physical dispense button. It's
running CE on something like an early 00's reference PDA platform that can't
push the pixels to a big screen and handle all the embedded IO at one time.
That's why the 2fps animation is such a joke.

It's funny to watch young kids using quick taps and get nowhere, expecting it
to work like an iPad.

The Pepsi equivalent puts Freestyle to shame on UI polish.

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EliRivers
One problem being (badly) addressed in the images, in my unskilled opinion, is
that is it possible to finish the transaction without replacing the nozzle in
the holster (and then, presumably, drive away with the nozzle still in the
car). While no kind of UI expert, I do believe that good UI should guide the
user into a correct flow of actions and make it difficult to make a mistake.

I have a hazy memory that in the field of ATM design, the reason you don't get
your money before you take your card back is to ensure that people take their
card back; because people were focused on getting money, they would leave the
card behind as soon as the money was in their hand. The solution was to make
getting the card back a necessary step towards getting the money.

The analogy doesn't quite hold; people want the fuel, at the point they have
the fuel (and are effectively done getting what they want) the nozzle is still
in the car, but is there a way to make finishing the transaction more
difficult without replacing the nozzle in the holster? Perhaps if paying by
card, the machine could hold onto the card until the nozzle is replaced, or in
some other way make payment impossible without replacing the nozzle. That
would work where I am, but for all I know there are systems out there in which
people complete payment in advance, get their card back, and are then
dispensed a pre-agreed amount of fuel.

~~~
netsharc
In motor racing there's a guy holding a sign telling the driver to wait (and
to punch it when he lifts the sign up), called the "lollypop man":
[https://i2.wp.com/f1-grandprix.com/wp-
content/uploads/2013/1...](https://i2.wp.com/f1-grandprix.com/wp-
content/uploads/2013/10/wally_1342526a.jpg)

They could have a mechanical version of this, although the placement would
have to be figured out, cars have different dimensions and park differently at
the pump.

A rental I had required you to use the ignition key to open the inner fuel
cap, and you left the key hanging from that cap as you refuel This makes sure
you turn off the engine, and it also makes sure you won't leave without
replacing the fuel cap (and obviously that can only be done without the pump
nozzle in the way).

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GordonS
They used to have this in Formula 1, but _still_ the driver would sometimes
race off before the fuel nozzle was out. After a series of incidents, a couple
nearly really serious, Formula 1 scrapped refuelling mid-race - the cars now
start with enough fuel to finish the race.

~~~
nradov
Nascar and other racing series seem to manage refueling safely enough.

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gmueckl
I don't get why US gas pumps are so complicated at all. Here, I drive up to
the pump, grab the right nozzle, fill up, go inside to the cash register and
pay. There are literally bo buttons on the pumps. Fiddling with the pump UI in
the US has always been a slower process for me.

~~~
threeseed
Not sure if it's across all of the US but I know in Hawaii I had to pay before
I was allowed to put fuel in. Which made for this weird situation where I had
to try and mathematically calculate how much fuel I needed.

And of course no tap/pay like the rest of the world.

~~~
jasonpeacock
You can get refunds for un-spent monies after pumping. Tell the clerk you want
$50 of gas, then pump ~$40 and go back inside to get the leftover.

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robocat
My favourite UI mistake at a 24 hour self-service pump, a page on a 7" screen
half way through the sequence of pages after selecting the gas type that
simply asks for a Yes or No answer:

    
    
      Are you sure?
    
      Yes
    
      No

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raverbashing
I have a simpler explanation:

They let the IT guys handle the graphics.

This small company did the software, probable not a lot of UX/UI experience
there, so get something together that ""looks good"" and most importantly was
done without extra cost (well, maybe GIMP or an "unofficial" PS version * wink
* ) and voilà

The receipt screen looks nice because it's probably "native", meaning, there's
some SDK for the ATM/dispenser hardware that makes it easy to ask questions on
the interface

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smacktoward
_> Without exception, every major bank’s ATM screen design is top-notch,
impeccably professional looking._

Ah, my friend, I see you have yet to do business with SunTrust!

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gibolt
The thing that surprises me most not how bad each interface is, but that no 2
interfaces, even at the same chain or sometimes the same store, are ever the
same.

On top of that, how can every one of those unique combinations be so
consistently bad. Generally evolution finds at least one good option.

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eof
I have never been frustrated by a gas pump interface until they started
playing ads.

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RandomBacon
You can press one of the buttons to mute it.

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billyhoffman
That requires you to touch more parts of the gas pump

~~~
hadlock
There's a gas station I used to live nearby, they have a free plastic glove
dispenser glued to the side of the pump, so they you don't have to directly
touch the pump

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vidanay
The graphics on the screen are honestly something I have never payed attention
to. What really bothers me is the way the interface bounces you from touch
screen to physical key pad a couple times.

At my local station, the final step before you actually get gas flowing is to
push the "Enter" button on the physical keypad, which also happens to be right
next to the "Call" button which if you accidentally hit it (wearing gloves,
too fast, etc) you get the tinny disembodied voice asking "can I help you?"
instead of gas.

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dleslie
I'm Canadian and I've never seen gas pump UX like this. It's mostly just terse
instructions in a clear font on a black and white screen; certainly no cars
represented.

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m463
Gas pumps, payment readers at restaurants and stores, ATMs, vending machines,
etc...

I've always kind of thought it was because these important/widespread devices
lacked sexiness. So you get engineers working on them and not UI folks. You
get solid transactions, and UI is just not a priority.

Meanwhile at game companies, you get fancy UI folks self-selecting to work
there.

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Scoundreller
I hope they do microwaves next.

~~~
KozmoNau7
A microwave oven needs exactly two knobs, to control how much do I want to
nuke my food, and for how long.

~~~
wikibob
I totally agree.

Look for commercial microwaves.

Here’s one: two knobs. Power and Time. Even a reasonable price $120.
[https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004S28WEM](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004S28WEM)

~~~
yencabulator
Two counterarguments:

1\. Popcorn button, that uses a sensor to detect when the popping slows down
and stops at that moment so I don't need to babysit it.

2\. Beverage button, that detects the start of boiling and stops at that
moment.

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reilly3000
Why isn't the PIN pad on a touch screen? Wouldn't that be more secure? Are
people's hands just too filthy in the aggregate? I know those buttons feel
pretty grimy.

They have been giving away paper towels and glass cleaner since the dawn of
time. Why not hand out screen cleaners too, and let people wipe down the
touchscreen if it needs it? People could also use them on their phones and
would be delighted.

Or why not allow people to place their orders from their own screens?

There is no competition for this equipment around UX because there is little
competition at all in this space. Its a remarkably regulated product, from
weights and measures to EPA checks. UX only has to be good enough for the
seller to close the order, and they go in 2500 locations. People buy gas on
price and location, not UX, so the theory goes.

Who wants to disrupt gas pumps?

~~~
ginko
> Why isn't the PIN pad on a touch screen? Wouldn't that be more secure?

You can't input a pin without looking with a touch screen. Plus you never know
if your press actually registered.

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Digit-Al
Also, unless someone physically replaces the PIN pad, which is difficult and
likely to leave visible indications of tampering, then one can reasonably sure
that entering your PIN is secure.

With a software touch screen you have no guarantee and no reasonable way of
telling if the software is not harvesting your details and sending them off
somewhere so your card can be cloned and used by criminals.

[Edit typo]

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sm4rk0
Edit: I stand corrected. I've seen examples when people used "light years" to
express time, but this seems not to be that case.

I'm always puzzled about picky people who make trivial mistakes, like using
"light years" to express time.

~~~
racingmars
You mean when the article says "it has a user interface light years better
than your gas pumps". That's not expressing time, it's expressing distance.
Not sure if it's a common expression where you're from, but it's the same as
saying something like "we're miles ahead of the competition." Distance ahead.
So light years works as a substitute for miles.

~~~
sm4rk0
Yes, you're right. English is not my native tongue. Thanks for clarifying!
I'll edit my comment.

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tanseydavid
Has anybody seen the "upgrade" that AM/PM (at least in California) to their
pump terminals in the past 12 months or so. It is a breathtakingly poor UX and
use of hardware.

I am pretty sure that the approximately 10 inch screens are color and
reasonable resolution but the UI is entirely character-based and often manages
to obscure what little text is presented by placing it close enough to the
border that the outer frame easily hides it (at my height) leaving about 90%
of the screen unused -- the easily visible part.

Not sure what happened on this project. I figured they would roll out v2 of
the firmware/software shortly after I first saw it. Nothing so far.

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dsego
I thought this was going to be about why diesel and gasoline don't have
differently shaped nozzles, so you can't screw up your car engine with the
wrong fuel.

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chmars
Diesel instead of gasoline is almost impossible because the filler necks are
different – at least where I live … Gasoline instead of diesel, however, is
still possible.

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TazeTSchnitzel
But the design doesn't suck? I mean sure the images look a bit amateurish, but
they are perfectly comprehensible and would cause nobody difficulty.

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JoeAltmaier
My favorite screwup- my BP station prompts with something like "BP points 500,
Yes No?" What am I supposed to answer to that? I just hit No on the theory
that not doing something random is better than doing it.

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rascul
The worst thing I've found about pumps with touchscreens is that half of them
tend to be sitting in direct sunlight so they can't be seen. I can deal with
crappy Camaro images, but if I can't see the screen it's 100% unusable.

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lordnacho
Mystery? Are people going to use a different gas station based on the payment
UI design?

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NikkiA
Maybe not _this_ time, but next time? Maybe, it'll certainly be a factor in
which gas station they use if the prices are near identical.

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pacifiedcitizen
My guess is patents.

