I also see parallels between microwaves and web sites. Have you ever
noticed that no two microwaves call the "cook this now" button the same
thing? At least on most remotes you know that FF is Fast Forward -- but
I've stood in front of a lot of microwaves wondering what button turned the
dang thing on. Same for those artsy web sites -- if all I want to do is
find out there phone number, why do I need to choose between "dive" and
"pogo stick"? Sheesh.
Brent, I think you should forward this to some magazine so it can be
published, and so we can all get copies of it (with the magazine's logo on
it) to distribute to clients who want tiny grey type on black screens
<wince>. Anyone know of any mags out there that have essay-type of columns
that this could be submitted to?
--Tamra Heathershaw-Hart
At 09:40 AM 7/23/98 -0400, you wrote:
>Was just idly gazing at the remote control that came with a new VCR I
>bought last week, and was suddenly struck by the parallels between it and
>many bleeding-edge Web sites one sees; parallels in the sense that both
>are user interfaces to electronic media, and both do a rather rotten job of
>it.
>
>The remote is a deep gray beauty, with oh-so-discreet-and-tiny oblong
>buttons for all its major functions. The buttons are also deep gray, and
>the text beneath each is a lighter shade, in about 4-point type. Some of
>the captions are obvious -- FF, Play -- while others are more cryptic:
>Hold, Return, System. In any but the brightest light I can't read the damn
>things anyway, so it makes little difference. And the buttons are so small
>and closely spaced that I get no real tactile feedback from them. Nor are
>they grouped in ways that make any particular sense to me, though I'm
>sure they do to the clever engineers in Japan who designed them.
>
>All this I find highly analagous to many corporate (and ad agency) sites,
>with their expensive 4.x-browser-compatible designs: discreet navigation
>buttons tucked into out-of-the-way frames and layers, hard to read or
>find in many cases. Oh they *look* mighty nice, but as with my remote,
>function has taken a back seat to form.
>
>My old VCR remote, on the other hand, while rather a humble and, some
>might say, even simple-minded device, was much easier to use. The
>buttons were big, rubbery, and color-coded. They were plainly labelled
>and instantly distinguishable. They were even different shapes depending
>on their function, meaning that I could feel my way around in the dark (er,
>so to speak.)
>
>Oh, the VCR itself was pretty modest too. Unlike my new one, it didn't
>have Four-Head Crystal Lock Scanning With SynchroMesh Transmission, or
>whatever the hell it is. On the other hand, it *did* perform its primary
job
>-- playing video tapes -- with admirable reliability and simplicity. Sort
of
>like many of my favourite Web sites, come to think of it.
>
>-----------
>Brent Eades, Almonte, Ontario
> E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Town of Almonte site: http://www.almonte.com/
> Business site: http://www.federalweb.com
>
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