Why correcting spelling, grammar and punctuation errors in a product is very important
Having done an excellent job and having come up with a clear, concise title for the current text - and this, according to experts' assurances of writing texts, is already very much - I can immediately present my hypothesis. I once read that “a product can be well designed, effectively performing its functions, but incorrect terminology or the absence of commas in the right places undermine the user's trust in it”. Here is one of the versions why this happens.
Professional communities, often consisting of "narrow" specialists, are very sensitive to their area. This, of course, is not a unique feature, but rather a universal human desire to put its own world in order, including through the use of strict terminology within it. At least, a specific language within their professional field allows them to acquire some orderliness, to impart standardization and to achieve high efficiency in the surrounding chaos. Moreover, it helps for personal self-identification when certain group characteristics are carriers of belonging to a unique group. Through them, the person himself acquires a certain uniqueness. And episodes when someone from the outside, someone who does not belong to their circle, bursts into their sacred place, into their unique, unique group, bursts in making mistakes, can rightly be perceived as pronounced acts of disrespect, causing irritation and dislike. This is a well-known defensive reaction to the attempted value. No need to climb into someone else's kitchen without special training. In addition, and this is the second reason for the high level of irritation, which is caused not by some functional or usability defects, but by mundane “write“ chk ”,“ chn ”without a soft sign” - these are obvious and accessible errors. An inconveniently working functionality or grouping of buttons according to the “vinaigrette” principle brings considerable inconvenience to the user and does little to help them complete their tasks. However, it is not rare that they themselves do not know this and are content with what they have. This is one of the reasons for the large number of poorly designed software products. Alan Cooper called this phenomenon "Dancing Bear", and it lies in the fact that the user is using the program, completely unaware of its potential and how better it can serve him. It already works, and it seems to work not so bad. So why not enjoy it already? Blindly following instructions without a clear understanding of why certain actions are necessary can be called "computer magic", in fact, the best name for this is ritual. And he is inviolable. It is a different matter when a person sees a clearly missing comma in a certain message with one “Ok” button. He does not notice how just this mistake knocked him out of the work process and took over his main coin - attention. He does not notice that the senselessness of a non-informative message without the possibility of choosing a command for a computer other than “Ok” seems to reach its absolute status. He does not notice that the product spat in his face with his ugly message, accusing him of being stupid and putting his own fault on his neck. This user may not guess. Now he sees a clear punctuation error. And the only question that worries him now is the question of the professionalism of the developers.
Professional communities, often consisting of "narrow" specialists, are very sensitive to their area. This, of course, is not a unique feature, but rather a universal human desire to put its own world in order, including through the use of strict terminology within it. At least, a specific language within their professional field allows them to acquire some orderliness, to impart standardization and to achieve high efficiency in the surrounding chaos. Moreover, it helps for personal self-identification when certain group characteristics are carriers of belonging to a unique group. Through them, the person himself acquires a certain uniqueness. And episodes when someone from the outside, someone who does not belong to their circle, bursts into their sacred place, into their unique, unique group, bursts in making mistakes, can rightly be perceived as pronounced acts of disrespect, causing irritation and dislike. This is a well-known defensive reaction to the attempted value. No need to climb into someone else's kitchen without special training. In addition, and this is the second reason for the high level of irritation, which is caused not by some functional or usability defects, but by mundane “write“ chk ”,“ chn ”without a soft sign” - these are obvious and accessible errors. An inconveniently working functionality or grouping of buttons according to the “vinaigrette” principle brings considerable inconvenience to the user and does little to help them complete their tasks. However, it is not rare that they themselves do not know this and are content with what they have. This is one of the reasons for the large number of poorly designed software products. Alan Cooper called this phenomenon "Dancing Bear", and it lies in the fact that the user is using the program, completely unaware of its potential and how better it can serve him. It already works, and it seems to work not so bad. So why not enjoy it already? Blindly following instructions without a clear understanding of why certain actions are necessary can be called "computer magic", in fact, the best name for this is ritual. And he is inviolable. It is a different matter when a person sees a clearly missing comma in a certain message with one “Ok” button. He does not notice how just this mistake knocked him out of the work process and took over his main coin - attention. He does not notice that the senselessness of a non-informative message without the possibility of choosing a command for a computer other than “Ok” seems to reach its absolute status. He does not notice that the product spat in his face with his ugly message, accusing him of being stupid and putting his own fault on his neck. This user may not guess. Now he sees a clear punctuation error. And the only question that worries him now is the question of the professionalism of the developers.
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Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/334736/
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