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by skydhash 879 days ago
> A user interface should be optimized for the tool in question, not optimized to look exactly like the interface for all other tools.

When you learn how to drive a car, you can expect the same standard across all cars. You don't relearn how to drive when you get into a new car. There's common UI and UX paradigms across all software and no one should have to learn your bespoke implementation. And I believe these sets should be part of the OS.

When you look at Spotify or Slack UI, there's nothing there that is better than their more native looking alternatives. I have utilities to populate a command panel with menu items, but it's essentially useless on these apps because everything is buried inside the app itself.
2 comments
anonymouskimmer 879 days ago
> You don't relearn how to drive when you get into a new car.

These days you do. We're at a transition these last 10 years or so as great as the one from crank-start to key-turn start cars, from regular steering to powered steering, and from manual to automatic transmission.

Even back a couple of decades ago I remember my 1980's Buick having shifting on the steering post toggles versus my 2000's Saturn having a standard shift stick.

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skydhash 879 days ago
Standards should change. No one is recommending to keep 1024*800 as the current resolution. I’m for evolution and for consistency. Not changes for the sake of change.
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anonymouskimmer 879 days ago
> No one is recommending to keep 1024*800 as the current resolution

I think the better parallel is aspect ratio, not resolution.

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Turing_Machine 879 days ago
> When you learn how to drive a car, you can expect the same standard across all cars.

Across all cars. Not "across all controllable artifacts" or even "across all vehicles" (driving a bulldozer is way different from driving a car).

An optimal user interface for (e.g.) an accounting package is extremely unlikely to be the same as the interface for (e.g.) a video editor.

For that matter, imagine attempting to drive a car by picking the things you want to do off a menu with a mouse.

It would suck.

Big time.

"Ok, now open the Speed menu and scroll down to 'brake'. Now go to the 'slam' submenu item... whoops! Sorry, kitty!".

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