Being Green

BUTTONS: Launch/Close

Snarky comment: You might think that the Launch button turns green when you hover over it. You'd be wrong. It's just...green.

What's wrong here? I'm all for using color judiciously, but AOL goes a bit far with this one. Launch is green not as a hover effect [it stays green when you move your pointer] and not to indicate it's the default or selected button [it stays green when you select the other button]. It would appear as if it's just green - perhaps for "go," which seems a bit indulgent.

Source: AIM Install

Prioritize Your Wants

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Snarky comment: If for some strange reason, you decide the iPhone isn't at the top of your shopping list anymore, be careful which button you push....

What's wrong here?

1. You can only move an item up or down one position at a time, which isn't so bad except that each click goes back to the server, redisplays the entire page, and takes you back to the top of the page. If you want a lot of stuff, re-prioritizing those items can get very cumbersome.
   
2. The buttons to move each item aren't aligned consistently. Better: right-justify the buttons so that each button is always in the same position on each line.

Source: my.cnet.com

Alarmist Messages

TITLE: MESSAGE

TYPE: Critical

MESSAGE: Remove the Disc in the Drive !!

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: Alright already...I'll remove the disc. There's no need to introduce so much stress.

What's wrong here?

1. Clearly this is a message. There's no need to explicitly label it as such. Or to do so in ALL CAPS.
   
2. Needing to eject a disc hardly qualifies as a critical condition.
3. The use of title case in the message is confusing and inappropriate. Maybe they just like to Capitalize Verbs and Nouns?
4. A space and two exclamation points is incorrect punctuation and further reinforces the artificial urgency of the situation. Better: no space and (optionally) a period.
   

Source: SFDNWIN (Samsung Firmware Download for Windows)

ATTENTION: Do Not Be Alarmed!

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MESSAGE: [In red text] Your account has been updated.
You can update your preferences, change your password, and more from this page.
To get back to this page, just go to 'My Account' in the upper right hand side of our menu.

Snarky comment: Stop! Everything is OK. We just wanted you to know that. Come back soon.

What's wrong here?

1. Red text is a confusing way to represent that everything worked as expected. It's a de facto standard for red text to signify an error condition. In this case, nothing's wrong.
   
2. That last sentence seems unnecessary. You found the page once - isn't it fair to assume you could find it again?
   

Source: www.hotels.com

Spanglish

Snarky comment: To use this ATM in Spanglish, press the button between English and Espanol....

What's wrong here? The image on the screen is so poorly aligned that the arrows point almost exactly between the physical buttons used to select the options.

Misaligned

Click image to enlarge

Snarky comment: This is like one of those word problems, right? If a page is 8 and 3/16 inches long and the top margin is 5/16 inch....

What's wrong here? It's just way too difficult to correct the page alignment of printed checks in Money. Way too difficult. First clue: there's a note and an example to get you through it. Plus/minus...up/down...sixteenths of inches. Seriously, what were they thinking? Why should I have to work so hard to make this work?

Source: Microsoft Money 2007 Home & Business

Awkward Options

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Snarky comment: Lots of grammar problems, lots of layout issues. This panel needs a UI makeover.

What's wrong here?

1. The tab and first group label are redundant. I'd argue the group boxes are unnecessary altogether [read on].
   
2. "Sort content after a folder gets explored." Perhaps it's the passive voice, but even after reading the online help for this option, I have no idea what this does.
   
3. "Always put folders on top." Better: Show folders first [which is how this option is described in the online help].
4. "Criteria to sort on" is awkward and unnecessarily wordy. Better: Sort by.
5. It's entirely unclear why the sort criteria and order are disabled.
6. The sort criteria group is pushing the upper bounds on the practical use of option (radio) buttons. Better: a drop-down list with the six options.
7. The sort order group looks like a demonstration of UI element equilibrium, as the options are spread out to take up all the available space. Better: Ascending and Descending options inline with the label.
   

Source: IsoBuster

Let's Install the DivX Together!

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TITLE: DivX for Windows Setup

MESSAGE: Welcome to this quick setup program, we are now going to install the DivX for Windows together!

BUTTONS: Next/Cancel

Snarky comment: A developer with writing skills this poor doesn't deserve to be so chipper. I feel like we should be singing Kumbaya or something now.

What's wrong here?

1. "Quick" seems not only unnecessary but also a little insulting. Are they suggesting we DivX customers are impatient? Given the actual product's performance, that could hardly the be case.
2. The comma should be a period.
   
3. "Install DivX together" is anthropomorphism to the extreme - it's just plain annoying.
4. "Install the DivX" is an incorrect (and odd) use of the definite article "the."
   
5. The copyright notice is not only oddly aligned, but it's redundant: Copyright and © mean exactly the same thing. [For the record, the correct form of a copyright notice is © or Copr. or Copyright followed by the year of publication and name of the copyright holder.]
   

Source: DivX for Windows Setup

Odd Translations

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TITLE: The page at http://www.samsungodd.com says:

TYPE: Warning

MESSAGE: This site is optimized in Microsoft Internet Explorer5 of 800 * 600 Pixel.

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: Internet Explorer5? That's so1999. Frankly, I prefer Firefox2.

What's wrong here?

1. samsungodd.com. Remember the stories of Nova translating to "it doesn't go" in some languages? Well, while it might not have actually hurt vehicle sales, you have to know that a lot of people enjoyed a good laugh at Chevy's expense over that name. Do you think the folks at Samsung just don't get the fact that abbreviating optical disc drive in English doesn't make for a good acronym?
   
2. In, for, of, at...what's a mixed preposition or two?
3. Pixel with a big P and no s.
4. But the main issue is that this message shouldn't even exists anymore. In 2007, this site will probably render properly in nearly any modern browser.
   

Source: www.samsungodd.com

Tsst...Iinquiring Minds Want To Know What This Is

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TITLE: TSST WIN IINQUIRY (1.03.1)

Snarky comment: This snazzy little utility gives me great confidence in Samsung's ability to flash my firmware safely.

What's wrong here?

1. Let's start with the title: As if the typo isn't bad enough, it's in all caps to scream at you. Oh, and the parenthetical version number adds a nice touch, too...very helpful. By the way, we still don't know what TSST means.
2. Some clue as to what the %&!@ this is would be nice - even just one sentence: This utility detects the firmware version and vendor of your optical disc drive.
3. Similarly, some instructions would be helpful: Select drive to detect.
   
4. A maximize button? Can you think of any reason, whatsoever, to maximize this window?
5. It's unclear what purpose the 3D ledge serves. In 1999, you might assume that it's to somehow group the fields, but this is 2007. Who uses 3D group boxes in 2007?
6. WHY ALL THE CAPS (EXCEPT FOR Code)?
7. Finally : spaces go after colons, not before them.

Source: WIN INQUIRY

Unable to Goodbye

TITLE: ERROR

MESSAGE: Unable to Send Contact Us

Snarky comment: There's just no better feeling, after attempting twice to submit feedback on an ironically named Answers page, than getting stuck at a modal, nonsensical error message that you can't close.

What's wrong here?

1. First off, it's unforgivable for a feedback form to result in an error message. In all likelihood, you're providing feedback because you're already unhappy about something. Anyone want to guess how we feel now?
   
2. Unable to Send Contact Us. That doesn't make any sense. Presumably they meant to reference the name of the form, and presumably that was supposed to be Feedback. That might have made sense. But the form isn't named Feedback. Nor is it named Contact Us. It is (ironically) named Answers. Unable to Send Answers - that makes sense. That's more believable.
3. Why is Send capitalized?
4. And the real kicker: this message is modal, meaning you can't do anything else until it closes. That's not so bad...until the second time the message appears. The second time this message appears, it lacks any mechanism for acknowledging or closing it. No OK button, no close box. Your's stuck. Anyone want to guess how we feel now?
   

Source: www.mycokerewards.com

Off Center

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TITLE: PCI Audio

MESSAGE: Complete PCI Audio Driver installation.
System need to reboot.

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: What happen now? System reboot by self?

What's wrong here?

1. Again with the gratuitous use of screen real estate.
2. The first sentence, as written, reads like a command. It's intent, however, is to present status.
3. No close button on the window chrome? Not even a disabled one? Seriously, what harm could you do here with a close button?
4. As is so often the case with these messages, it's unclear if the system is going to reboot automatically when you click OK or if you need to do it yourself.
5. Could someone please proofread messages and copy before these systems get shipped to different countries?
   
6. Apparently, this message is supposed to be centered. It's not.
   

Spaced Out

Click image to enlarge

TITLE: PCI Audio Installation

BUTTONS: Back(B)/Next(N)/Cancel

Snarky comment: It's a good thing screen real estate is inexpensive - this developer uses it like it's going out of style.

What's wrong here?

1. Why so much space? This is a very odd use of screen real estate.
2. The options are unevently spaced.
3. Meanwhile, the buttons are evenly spaced - which is a little odd for wizard buttons. Typically, Back/Next are ganged together, leaving more space between them and the Cancel button.
4. Speaking of space, why is there no space before the parenthetical shorcut cues?
5. More importantly, why are those parentheticals there? They're redundant. We only need the relevant letters in the button labels underlined.

TITLE

TITLE: MESSAGE

MESSAGE: Download Ok!!
Restart WINDOWS

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: The developer really couldn't think of a better message title than that?

What's wrong here?

1. The message title doesn't need to (and shouldn't) be in upper case. It should, however, be relevant. Better: Samsung Firmware Download for Windows.
2. Ok should be in upper case [as it is on the button].
3. There's no need for exclamation points, let alone two of them.
   
4. WINDOWS...again with the upper case...
5. ...but no ending punctuation on this line.
6. It's unclear if this is a warning that Windows is going to restart or advice for you to restart Windows. The only way to find out is by clicking OK.
7. Better: a warning message (with the appropriate accompanying icon) that states, "Firmware download complete. You must restart Windows to complete the installation. Close all programs and click OK to restart.
   

Source: SFDNWIN (Samsung Firmware Download for Windows)

50/50

Snarky comment: Try to guess which option is selected. Wait...maybe you should squint first.

What's wrong here?

1. The designer's interpretation of how these mutually-exclusive options should be represented challenges time-honored standards and various mental models.
2. To avoid confusion, these should at least be round to look like option buttons.
3. Which is selected? One box is more prominent, while the other appears to be filled in with a red block.
   

Source: www.mycokerewards.com

Awkward(ness)

Click image to enlarge

TITLE: Microsoft Internet Explorer

TYPE: Question

MESSAGE: Do you want to notify all attendees that you are cancelling this(these) meeting?

BUTTONS: OK/Cancel

Snarky comment: It kind of just rolls(stumbles) off the tongue, doesn't it?

What's wrong here? In the developer's effort to make this message as flexible as possible, it becomes so awkward as to be almost unreadable. Better: Notify attendees that you are cancelling the meeting(s)?

Source: Outlook Web Access

What a Cluster

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Snarky comment: While this product carries 2007 in its title, its design suggests this UI hasn't been rethought (or tested) since '98.

What's wrong here?

1. All of the (line-drawn grayscale) toolbar buttons are crammed to the right edge of the application window. So crammed, it seems, the value in the zoom-level box is getting clipped.
   
2. Even though the right-most item on each toolbar is the same control, somehow they don't align horizontally. And again, on the lower toolbar, the two lists don't align vertically.
   
3. The right edge of the toolbars don't display properly on a large monitor. The toolbar background seems to cut off just short of the full window width.

Source: Microsoft Money 2007 Invoice Designer

[I] Disagree

Click image to enlarge

MESSAGE: To begin, click I Accept

...

BUTTONS: I Accept/Disagree

Snarky comment: Who disagrees? Does anyone disagree?

What's wrong here?

1. The I Accept button has a subject ("I"), while the Disagree button does not.
   
2. These terms aren't good mutually exclusive options. I might accept something even though I don't necessarily agree with it. Better: Accept/Decline or Agree/Disagree.
3. Compared to the other text and controls on the page, the buttons look disabled.
   

Source: Microsoft Money 2007

Quit It

TITLE: Adobe Updater

MESSAGE: The updating process is complete.

BUTTONS: Quit

Snarky comment: (WHINING) Quit it...!

What's wrong here?

1. Better: The update is complete.
2. Spacing and sizing here are...unusual.
   
3. Quit. That's so...Windows 3.1. Not only is it outdated, but "quit" is inappropriate for this situation. Quit suggests leaving something in progress. Better: Close.
4. Quit doesn't need a shortcut key - it's the only button.
   

Source: Adobe Updater [for Adobe Creative Suite 3]

Collapsed

TITLE: Output Setting

Snarky comment: Why do application developers find it necessary to be "innovate" and "creative" with things that work well as they are...like the title bar?

What's wrong here?

1. Let's get the grammar out of the way first: you can adjust more than just one setting in this window.
2. The altered design of mainstay window buttons - minimize, maximize/restore, and close - makes you question what you're doing when you go to click one of them. The fact is, you shouldn't have to think about it. The gratuitous redesign of these standard icons makes this window unnecessarily confusing. More infuriating: they're not even attractive - they're amateurish, monochromatic symbols.
   
3. The orb on the left holds special powers: it expands or hides the window itself, leaving just the clunky title bar visible. On the left? Since when are Windows' control buttons on the left? And why is it purple? And why does it use nearly the same icon as the minimize button?
   

Source: PQ Apple TV Movie Video Converter

Blind Clicks

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Snarky comment: This makes me a bit concerned for my luggage. I mean, maybe the button was supposed to say, "Lose them!"

What's wrong here? The button on this form has no label.

Source: www.united.com

Restart Immediately!

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TITLE: Installing driver...

MESSAGE: driver was successfully installed!

Do you want to restart Windows immediately?

Yes/No

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: Do I need to restart Windows immediately?

What's wrong here?

1. The window title should be in title case: "driver" should be capitalized; also, the first word in the message should be capitalized.
2. An article ("the") at the start of the message would make it easier to read.
   
3. Despite the "immediate" urgency of this message, it's unclear whether it's really necessary to restart Windows.
4. The Yes/No options sometimes require an extra click (once to choose No and once on OK). Better: two buttons - Yes and No.
5. Lots of whitespace. Too much whitespace.
   

Small Adjustments

Click image to enlarge

Snarky comment: What size paper would you like for your photograph? Please specify the size in hundredths of an inch.

What's wrong here?

1. Most humans don't think in units like hundredths of an inch or hundredths of a centimeter. Even if that's what the printer requires, you shouldn't be expected to provide it that way. Better: decimals to the hundredth (e.g., 4.25 inches).
   
2. Regardless of what units are used, the unit should appear next to the width and height boxes. As it's designed, you have to look around to determine what units are used.
3. There shouldn't be spaces in front of the colons that follow the field labels.
4. OK and Cancel buttons don't need shortcut keys. In this particular case, the developer could have used C as a more logical shortcut to choose centimeter units.
   

Source: Epson Stylus Photo RX500 printer driver

Blind Decisions

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TITLE: Rules Wizard

TYPE: Warning

MESSAGE: The rules on this computer do not match the rules on Microsoft Exchange. Only one set of rules can be kept. You will usually want to keep the rules on the server.

Which rules do you want to keep?

BUTTONS: Client/Server/Cancel

Snarky comment: So let me see if I understand this right.... You need to decide which rules to keep (or, more specifically, which set of rules to eliminate) without knowing what those rules are?

What's wrong here?

1. This message asks you to make a decision between two options without giving you enough information to make that decision wisely. What are the rules that are currently defined?
   
2. It's possible that some Outlook users might not understand the client/server terminology on the buttons.
3. The message suggests that you probably want to keep the set of rules on the server, but Client is the default button. That seems contradictory.
   

Source: Microsoft Office Outlook 2007

What Path?

TITLE: Microsoft Money

TYPE: Information

MESSAGE: The path name is invalid. Please use a valid path name.

BUTTONS: OK/Send Error Report

Snarky comment: What path? And why is it invalid? Could someone please give me something to go on?

What's wrong here?

1. This message seems a little more than just informative. I'd assert that this should be a warning message, not an information message.
2. No, really...what path? This message is not very useful if you can't see what path it insists is invalid.

Source: Microsoft Money 2007

Persistent Link Exception

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TITLE: Account Link Exception

TYPE: Warning

MESSAGE: Page Error

An exception has occurred while processing your request. If this exception persists, then please report th....

Snarky comment: As if it's not bad enough to get bombarded with technical babble, the message gets cut off. For the record, the person at the other end of that number was unable to identify or resolve this issue.

What's wrong here?

1. What a lot of jargon: link exception, exception persists, ....
   
2. The pop-up window that opens to display this message isn't large enough, so it cuts off the message.

No Cars

Snarky comment: What do you think the red button in the lower left corner means? I'm not a car? Make me not a car? I forgot my car? I don't want a car?

What's wrong here?

1. Pressing the blue/green button prints a ticket. You might assume that the red thing under that big button is also a button - but its purpose and use is entirely unclear. The most logical conclusion, then, is that it's not a button but a signal light indicating that the garage is full, meaning "no more cars." In that case, it shouldn't look like a button. And they should have told us before we got this far.
   
2. The smaller square button under the intercom box...what's that do? You'd assume the button on the intercom calls for assistance, so why the additional red button? It should be labeled.
   

Source: Ticket machine at Colonial Parking

Minimize This

Snarky comment: I can minimize a modal window? Awesome!

What's wrong here?

1. The minimize button is out of scope. Specifically, its placement suggests that you can minimize this modal window. You can't, of course, because that wouldn't make sense. In fact, clicking this button minimizes the entire application - which is, arguably, confusing.
2. Overall what? Better: Overall progress.

Source: DVD Profiler 3.0

Crossroads of Failure

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TITLE: Installation Failed

MESSAGE: The installation process has failed.  Please choose from the following options.

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: How is it that the error is deemed 'unknown,' yet it is clearly identified by an error number?

What's wrong here?

1. It's likely that the problem here isn't so much unknown as it is hard to describe in a useful way. Regardless, a less obscure message would be helpful.
2. Under what failed installation conditions would the disabled option (Continue installing) ever be valid?
   
3. What's the difference between the first and last available options? The point being that without further context, it's hard to make an informed choice here.
4. I'm not a big fan of "please" and "sorry" in messaging - it's a bit too conversational.
   
5. The shortcut key on the OK button is unnecessary. OK is the only button, so ENTER should be its shortcut key.

Very Long Message

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TITLE: Information

MESSAGE: Your account will be expiring within a months time.  With an expired account, you will continue to be able to use *this* copy of Trillian, but will no longer be eligible for newer products or support.  If you wish to continue receiving support and product upgrades, please visit our web page to submit an online payment.

BUTTONS: OK

Snarky comment: Clearly, this message is too wordy and could use some editorial finesse, but c'mon...does the message box itself really need to be so long?

What's wrong here?

1. Missing apostrophe to indicate possession in "a months time."
2. "You will continue to be able to use..." is really awkward. Better: You can continue to use...
3. "*this*" is obscure techie formatting that's inappropriate for formal copy. The emphasis isn't necessary, and the word "this" isn't even really accurate.
4. "...copy of Trillian, but will no longer...." Either the comma should go, or the second clause needs a subject: "but you will no longer...."
5. The real blame here goes to Windows, which opens message boxes to take advantage of as much screen real estate as possible. As seen here, it can get a little ridiculous if you have a large, widescreen monitor.

Source: Trillian Pro