The user is on their own
Designing “intuitive” interfaces is far more complicated than making everything obvious at first glance, especially for complex tools that professionals use daily. Commenters contrast consumer apps, where ease of onboarding is a competitive advantage, with power tools, CAD software, tax systems and other de facto infrastructure, where training, documentation, and shared mental models often matter more than extreme simplicity. Many argue that over-optimizing for beginners can cripple expert workflows and reinforce a kind of “you’re on your own” individualism, whereas good support, community knowledge, and respect for domain expertise create better long‑term usability and equity.
Scope of “Intuitive” vs. “Learned” Interfaces
- Many argue “intuition” mostly means prior learning and domain mental models; nothing is truly self-evident.
- Interfaces can be made easy for beginners or efficient for experts, but often not both; pro tools (CAD, audio/video, Ableton-like apps) are cited as validly complex with high skill ceilings.
- Borrowing familiar patterns (OS and platform guidelines) is seen as the only reliable route to “intuitive-feeling” UI.
Training, Documentation, and Community Support
- Several comments stress that training, manuals, help screens, and community resources are essential and underused.
- Some criticize modern software and hardware for shipping with poor or absent documentation and offloading education to YouTube and the community.
- Good onboarding and migration tools (e.g., in ORMs) are appreciated as part of making complex systems usable.
Domain Knowledge and Mental Models (Drills, Faucets, Calculators)
- The drill-torque example splits opinion: some say the UI is bad; others say users can succeed with a vague model (“higher number = more power”) without understanding mechanics.
- Point made that UI alone can’t give users domain understanding; users’ mental models often differ from designers’ and must be respected.
- Similar ambiguity exists for faucets and calculator percent keys: behavior suits common tasks but violates other intuitions.
Accessibility, Public Infrastructure, and “Moron in a Hurry”
- Debate over how far to optimize for novices: some insist public infrastructure (ticket machines, alarms, doors, taxes, banking) must work even for stressed, inexperienced users.
- Others argue not everything should be designed for the “lowest common denominator” but that in-person assistance and support centers are necessary.
- There’s concern about older or less tech-literate people being excluded as computers become de facto mandatory.
Corporate Incentives and Product Quality
- Ad-driven platforms are accused of preferring “brain-dead simple,” engagement-focused interfaces over deep learning resources.
- Apple is praised by some for clear guides and approachable documentation; others emphasize its lock-in and control, preferring more open ecosystems.
Design Principles and Evaluation
- Usability testing via task completion without backtracking is mentioned as a concrete metric.
- Aviation and industrial standards (color meanings, qualitative displays, standardized labels, minimal clutter) are cited as mature models largely ignored in “webcrap.”