Usability Memes

Posts tagged with Usability

Web Development In A Nutshell

Web Development In A Nutshell
Ah yes, the classic pagination system that absolutely nobody uses. Those suspiciously precise version numbers masquerading as page numbers? That's what happens when the backend developer is also in charge of UI design. Nine decimal places of precision for page numbers is exactly what users need! And that "Go" button? It's just sitting there, judging your life choices, knowing damn well nobody's typing "page 3.023809523809" in that input field. This is what happens when you ask for "pagination" in the requirements doc without specifying further details. The developer technically delivered what was asked for... just with the UX sensibilities of a calculator.

When The UI Designer Has A Vendetta

When The UI Designer Has A Vendetta
This right here is what happens when your UI designer and frontend dev hate each other. The month selector is split into three columns of gibberish syllables that you have to mentally reassemble like some deranged word puzzle. "J-octo-ber"? "Nov-em-y"? And let's not forget the default values: day 0 of the year 1900. Because nothing says "user-friendly" like making people born on January 1st, 1900 feel right at home while everyone else suffers. This form is the digital equivalent of asking someone their birthday in interpretive dance.

Date Picker From The Ninth Circle Of UI Hell

Date Picker From The Ninth Circle Of UI Hell
Oh god, some frontend developer just had a stroke and created this monstrosity! Instead of a simple dropdown, they've split month names into three columns of syllables you have to piece together like a deranged puzzle. Want to select March? That's "m" + "a" + "rch". September? "sept" + "em" + "ber". And don't get me started on that default date - January 0, 1900. Perfect for when you need to book a time machine to visit the epoch time's slightly older brother. This is what happens when you ask for "innovative UI design" in a sprint planning meeting and someone takes it way too literally.

The Date Picker From Digital Hell

The Date Picker From Digital Hell
SWEET MOTHER OF FORM DESIGN, what unholy abomination is THIS?! Someone took perfectly normal month names and BUTCHERED them into a three-column massacre! January is "j-an-uary"?! MARCH is "m-a-rch"?! WHO HURT YOU, FRONTEND DEVELOPER?! 😱 And that day field set to ZERO? Because apparently being born on the 0th day of the month is totally a thing now! Not to mention defaulting to 1900 like we're all time-traveling vampires filling out paperwork. This isn't UI design—it's a crime against humanity's sanity!

When Your Date Picker Has An Identity Crisis

When Your Date Picker Has An Identity Crisis
Ah, the pinnacle of frontend design! Nothing says "we care about user experience" quite like a date picker that requires you to assemble your birthday like a ransom note cut from different magazines. The month selector is having an existential crisis with "j", "nov", and "febr" trying to coexist with "octo", "em", and "uly". Meanwhile, the day field defaulted to zero because apparently being born on the 0th day of the month is totally a thing now. And let's not forget the year 1900 - perfect for all those 124-year-old users filling out your form. This is what happens when you tell the intern "just make it work" without code review.

Good Job Security Team

Good Job Security Team
THE ABSOLUTE AUDACITY of these verification forms showing you the code right above the input boxes! Like, honey, if I can SEE the code, why in the name of all that is holy do I need to TYPE IT?! 🤦‍♀️ It's the digital equivalent of someone handing you a note that says "Please write down what this note says" while you're still holding the original note! Security theater at its most ridiculous! What's next? Asking me to screenshot the password and email it back for "extra verification"?!

We Are Improving Usability By Removing What You Love

We Are Improving Usability By Removing What You Love
The GNOME desktop environment strikes again! This meme brutally captures the classic open-source UX paradox where developers proudly remove features in the name of "simplicity" while users desperately cling to functionality they actually need. What makes this extra spicy is how the GNOME team cheerfully livestreams and blogs about their "improvements" while completely ignoring user feedback. It's the software equivalent of someone stealing your chair and then expecting applause for "decluttering your space." The true chef's kiss here is that this exact scenario has played out countless times in GNOME's history—from removing desktop icons to nuking system tray support. "It's not a bug, it's a feature removal!"

Always Think That Your User Is Stupid

Always Think That Your User Is Stupid
The classic developer-user relationship in its natural habitat. The programmer sits there in shock watching the user drink software straight from a cup like it's morning coffee. Meanwhile, the user has no idea why anything's wrong – they're just trying to use the product in ways no sane developer could have anticipated. After 15 years in this industry, I've learned that no matter how idiot-proof you make your interface, the universe just builds a better idiot. The real skill isn't writing code – it's predicting the creative ways users will break it.

The Golden Rule Of User Interface Design

The Golden Rule Of User Interface Design
The gospel truth of UI design hanging on a wall for all to see! If your users need a manual to figure out your interface, you've already failed. It's like dating someone who needs footnotes to understand your jokes - just painful for everyone involved. The number of "intuitive" interfaces I've seen that require a PhD to navigate could fill a library of disappointment. Remember folks: if your grandma can't figure it out after three glasses of wine, it's not user-friendly, it's user-hostile.

Top 5 Unsolved Problems In Computer Science

Top 5 Unsolved Problems In Computer Science
Forget P vs NP and the halting problem! The real unsolved mysteries of computer science are the everyday nightmares we pretend don't exist. That moving button that plays hard-to-get just as you're about to click it? Pure evil. And don't get me started on trying to send a simple file between devices—apparently easier than putting humans on Mars, yet somehow still impossible without sacrificing a mechanical keyboard to the tech gods. My personal favorite: web developers somehow making simple text and images consume more memory than the entire Apollo mission. Because nothing says "modern web" like needing 16GB of RAM to read a recipe.

You Can't "Skill Issue" Your Way Out Of Bad UX

You Can't "Skill Issue" Your Way Out Of Bad UX
The eternal battle between frontend and backend continues! Some software devs love to dismiss terrible UX as a "skill issue" – as if users should need a PhD to navigate your janky interface. "Oh, you can't find the submit button that's hidden behind three hamburger menus and requires a secret handshake? Sounds like a YOU problem." Meanwhile, that butterfly of awful design keeps fluttering away, ready to torture the next unsuspecting user. Pro tip: if your grandma can't use it, it's not the user who needs more skills.

The Cursor's Greatest Betrayal

The Cursor's Greatest Betrayal
OH MY GODDD! The cursor is NOT ALIGNED with the actual clickable area! 😱 The red lines expose this TRAVESTY of UI design that's been haunting us since the dawn of computing! Your mouse is clicking on a LIE! A COMPLETE FABRICATION! The pointer's tip doesn't match where it actually registers clicks, and now you'll notice this digital deception EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. you use your computer. Sweet dreams trying to unsee THAT nightmare! *dramatically faints onto keyboard*