A little bit about programmers
Inspired by a recent topic: Victory over OpenOffice? .
Imagine: you moved to a new apartment in a new house. In the evening after the move, you go to the switch, press it and ... the light does not light up, but instead water starts flowing in the bathroom. In shock, you call an electrician and, to calm down, go downstairs, talk to your neighbors.
What do the neighbors say? Oh, a lot of things. They say they are happy to live in a new house built according to unified rules that reject the outdated habits of an illiterate population. They mention a certain “apartment rental contract”, on page 125 of which, allegedly, it is said that, in accordance with the “semantic code of 2005”, everything in the apartment should be controlled only by identical switches. They say that this house is much better than the expensive house next door, because it was built with the money of the community. They claim that you yourself are to blame for not having previously not read all the 10,000 pages of the contract before pressing the switch.
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Finally, an electrician arrives. He delves into the wiring for some time, turns over the thick user guide of the apartment and attacks you: “Idiot! How was it possible not to open the window in the kitchen before turning on the lights in the room? ”
Fantastic, right?
All this is happening now, every time when the user - God forbid, of course - brings programmers into the company (forum, social network). It is worth a hint to the user that some kind of (for a particularly explosive effect - Open Source) program is not such a good thing, and sometimes in his, newbie, hands throws out strange forts, and how good it would be if she didn't do it ... A whole swarm of defenders will fly at him — programs that will recommend many things — and transplant your hands to the proper place, and go read the manual from cover to cover (and if it has already been read, then memorize it by heart), and go to hell because in the “alternate os OS l ugly ", but at best describe the mystical sequence (which often did not solve the problem), and express surprise that the user himself up to her did not make it.
(No, do not think anything superfluous - some programs can be scolded, and even fashionable. If you are smart enough and experienced, then in order to let off steam, you will pass over the bogus MS Office or Internet Explorer).
Is the user really so dumb and the advisers so smart? Unfortunately no. Modern programs are not works of art, but only tools for solving problems. And the fact that the user is interested in solving his specific task, and not the process of setting up and adjusting the tool that he needs every six months is right; time must be saved. Changing a light bulb, or getting into a new car, we don’t have to re-study volumes according to the rules for handling these specific light bulbs and four-wheel vehicles. Similarly, programs (yes, even those written by the community and allow the user to experience aesthetic pleasure from open formats and elegant software architecture) should not force the user to think about anything but his goal .
Computers in our lives are becoming more and more, and professions related to IT are increasingly losing the aura of mystery; Mysterious programmers and admins turn into ordinary attendants. Alas, many of them have not yet understood this and are still trying to behave like an “elite” - while becoming like an over-ripe forty-year-old beauty, still flirting with men. Will they adapt to change? Wait and see.
Information for the reader to protect themselves from the despicable label “underdeveloped user”: I myself am a programmer with six years of experience, who worked a lot with both closed and open software, who administered the Linux system and closely communicated with users personally.
Imagine: you moved to a new apartment in a new house. In the evening after the move, you go to the switch, press it and ... the light does not light up, but instead water starts flowing in the bathroom. In shock, you call an electrician and, to calm down, go downstairs, talk to your neighbors.
What do the neighbors say? Oh, a lot of things. They say they are happy to live in a new house built according to unified rules that reject the outdated habits of an illiterate population. They mention a certain “apartment rental contract”, on page 125 of which, allegedly, it is said that, in accordance with the “semantic code of 2005”, everything in the apartment should be controlled only by identical switches. They say that this house is much better than the expensive house next door, because it was built with the money of the community. They claim that you yourself are to blame for not having previously not read all the 10,000 pages of the contract before pressing the switch.
')
Finally, an electrician arrives. He delves into the wiring for some time, turns over the thick user guide of the apartment and attacks you: “Idiot! How was it possible not to open the window in the kitchen before turning on the lights in the room? ”
Fantastic, right?
All this is happening now, every time when the user - God forbid, of course - brings programmers into the company (forum, social network). It is worth a hint to the user that some kind of (for a particularly explosive effect - Open Source) program is not such a good thing, and sometimes in his, newbie, hands throws out strange forts, and how good it would be if she didn't do it ... A whole swarm of defenders will fly at him — programs that will recommend many things — and transplant your hands to the proper place, and go read the manual from cover to cover (and if it has already been read, then memorize it by heart), and go to hell because in the “alternate os OS l ugly ", but at best describe the mystical sequence (which often did not solve the problem), and express surprise that the user himself up to her did not make it.
(No, do not think anything superfluous - some programs can be scolded, and even fashionable. If you are smart enough and experienced, then in order to let off steam, you will pass over the bogus MS Office or Internet Explorer).
Is the user really so dumb and the advisers so smart? Unfortunately no. Modern programs are not works of art, but only tools for solving problems. And the fact that the user is interested in solving his specific task, and not the process of setting up and adjusting the tool that he needs every six months is right; time must be saved. Changing a light bulb, or getting into a new car, we don’t have to re-study volumes according to the rules for handling these specific light bulbs and four-wheel vehicles. Similarly, programs (yes, even those written by the community and allow the user to experience aesthetic pleasure from open formats and elegant software architecture) should not force the user to think about anything but his goal .
Computers in our lives are becoming more and more, and professions related to IT are increasingly losing the aura of mystery; Mysterious programmers and admins turn into ordinary attendants. Alas, many of them have not yet understood this and are still trying to behave like an “elite” - while becoming like an over-ripe forty-year-old beauty, still flirting with men. Will they adapt to change? Wait and see.
Information for the reader to protect themselves from the despicable label “underdeveloped user”: I myself am a programmer with six years of experience, who worked a lot with both closed and open software, who administered the Linux system and closely communicated with users personally.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/29100/
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