[panic]

This is a symptom of detailed metrics. When you're responsible for the "send an email" feature, you want to show you're doing your job. Getting more people to send email is an easy way to show progress without having to understand people's actual experience with the feature.

[all2]

> Getting more people to send email is an easy way to show progress without having to understand people's actual experience with the feature.

That makes my gut turn a little bit. It is a blind and abusive dynamic and I think it is horribly wrong.

For a while, I've been pondering what ethically designed software looks like from a user's perspective. And, for the modern consumer I don't have any answers.

The obvious bits are "it allows the user to do what they need" (ie, send an email, or draw a picture, communicate with friends, etc), but I don't know how to disconnect the functionality from addictive design elements.

Does that mean a HN style interface, where you can look at what threads you've started, but with no notifications? Or something else?

[munificent]

> I don't know how to disconnect the functionality from addictive design elements.

One way to think about it is, does the software help the user achieve their goals without trying to change what their goals are? Even this gets fuzzy when you think about long-term and short-term goals. An exercise app that manipulates me to frustrate my short-term goal of being lazy and help me reach my long-term goal of being fit might be ethically good.

But there are many clear cases where the app's job (just like much of advertising) is not to give me what I want, it's to control what I want and make me want what the app developer wants me to do.

One way I measure this informally is by asking how I feel after I use an app and put it down. While I'm using it, it always feels good because that's how these programs are designed. But many apps leaving me with a linger feeling of regret afterwards, exactly like the feeling I get after binging on junk food or drinking too much the night before.

Those are the apps that are a problem.

[TeMPOraL]

I don't think it's about "showing you're doing your job", but it very much is about metrics.

Imagine your metrics are perfect. Think of what your goal is: to get that sweet $$$. Using metrics, you'll tune your app towards extracting as much value as possible from customer. Note that it's different from providing value to customer in exchange for money - the latter is just an early stage of the former, and as you optimize further (using your perfect metrics), the only way to squeeze out more profit is to start making user's life worse.

[ken]

I would say it's a symptom of bad management. Why do you need to "show you're doing your job", if the feature clearly exists and works? Why do you need to cause it to be used more, too?

I don't see this happening in other industries. Do people responsible for radios or sunroofs or seat belts in cars take action to cause their features to be used more?