Posted on Thursday, 8th October 2009 by Frank
Recently in a class I am taking, we talked about products that we liked and didn’t like. It opened my eyes as to how random we are as individuals and that we find more of a negative side with products than a positive side to them. Just take the many tech related products out there. People are buying something new left and right everyday. However, many of those people have trouble working the new gadget because it’s too complex or they don’t have the patience to learn it. This brings me into my topic for today – what is the worst tech product you have ever used?
For me, it’s definitely Microsoft Office 2007. Luckily, I switched out to Mac OS X, therefore I no longer have to deal with this software. Oh…and no I will not by Microsoft Office for Mac either! So why is this the worst product I have ever used? It is by far the most difficult interface to navigate around. The ribbon bar that is at the top of the window to find the tools you need is way too complex. I have never seen so many tabs within tabs before. As my professor pointed out, and I agree…the essential functions of the program that people need to access like PRINT are hidden. You literally have to search until you find it (top left corner, office icon button).
Technology can be great, but it can also be a very frustrating thing as well. Nothing aggravates users more than an interface that’s more trouble than it’s worth. Still to this day, I would recommend people to use Office 2003. It’s simple and user friendly. Companies for get that when creating new software or a high tech gadget that less is more. You can add in features and make it look unique, but remember someone is going to be using the product and needs to be able to work the damn thing.
Honestly, I list off a bunch of poorly designed tech products, but then this post would become a pure rant. Not that this would be a bad thing because people love expressing things they don’t like. Damn, we truly are a negative society. Positive reactions for us comes when everything works exactly to our specifications. Let’s face it, that’s not reality…you have to learn how to adapt and use the new technologies as they become available. Otherwise, you are going to be a lost cause when we are all engaging with the new products at hand.
I’d like to know what you think when it comes to making a bad product. Our products poorly made or is it the user lack of patience to learn? Maybe it’s a combination of both, but I digress. Are you willing to learn a new tech product that seems complex or will you give up after 20 minutes? Have you ever owned any product in general that you thought was awful?
Everyone has their own perspective when it comes to poorly designed tech products, but they aren’t just limited to products related to technology. Although, most complaints usually come from these types of products because of the advancements being made at a rapid pace. I find it a challenge to engage with new technology and I enjoy it as well. Let’s say, I’m the person who will use the product others give up on because I am determined to figure it out.
Further reading:
Microsoft’s Smart Marketing Angle
Microsoft Gives Away Free Software
Are All Mac Users Upgrading To Snow Leopard?
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Tags: office 2007, Technology, worst tech products
Posted in Technology | Comments (4)
October 8th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Frank, I agree with you on MS Office ’07…but you know we’re in a minority with that. This is why I use Open Office. The UI is very similar to MS Office ’03, though I know the Open Office folks are developing a UI overhaul (Project Renaissance) so we’ll have to see how it goes.
In other news, I’ve never been thrilled with iTunes resource hogging….Songbird for me!
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Frank Reply:
October 15th, 2009 at 12:20 pm
Usually the people that are in the same category with us in regards to MS Office ’07 are those that are tech enthusiasts like ourselves. Although, I can see it causing great frustration to the average user since the interface was a big change from ’03. I do use Open Office on my Mac computer. Not only is it just as good as MS Office, but it’s simple to use! Everyone likes simplicity! I have heard many complaints with iTunes before. Personally, besides the music on my iPod, I don’t use iTunes at all.
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October 11th, 2009 at 10:13 pm
“Are you willing to learn a new tech product that seems complex or will you give up after 20 minutes?”: well, it depends on the functionality provided by the product. I have spent days trying to figure out some of the products (for e.g., a wireless sensor network simulator that integrated in Matlab)that I found were complex because of the richness of their features. For others, like anti-viruses etc., I give up after 5-10 minutes as generally if these common-use technology products can’t be learned within a few minutes then probably it’s the due to the poor user interface.
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Frank Reply:
October 15th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
You are absolutely right. Poor interfaces can kill a product as well as the length of time a customer will spend trying to figure it out. There are many poorly made products out there, but people should try to figure them out and not give up because it requires a procedure to set up. Your reasoning makes perfect sense and the interface is definitely key for the success of a product if you are using Anti-Virus software.
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