1w ago

The trouble with making things idiot-proof is they‘ll just keep making better idiots

This is a voting community. Please give your opinions on if it's wise or unwise. Reasons behind it are welcome.

Is it:
“Mmm no very unwise”
or
“Mmm very wise”

5 comments

Which is the bigger idiot? The one who cannot understand how to use the thing or the one who made it?
- That's a good wise post too.
We should really stop catering to idiots. Their survival rate is too high.
I suggest we bring back the rite of passage where we send teenagers into the forest at night. The smart ones tended to get eaten by wolves less often.
I'm gonna say unwise.
The implication here is that systems and safeguards ultimately have no effect, and therefore it is not worth trying to bother accommodating or designing for "idiots".
In fact, quite the opposite is true in almost every domain of design.
Streets and roads designed to slow down drivers and better accommodate pedestrians and cyclists make better transit options for everyone.
Software designed to be more intuitive for new users ends up generally improving the quality of the application for all users.
Workplaces designed with accessibility in mind reduce injuries and improve working conditions for everyone.
Will there always be people who can't quite get it? Sure. But they don't make "better idiots". You just discover the kinds of people who don't mesh well with your own processes, workflows, or design ethos.
This matches a Douglas Adams quote I’m going to mangle. Something like “the problem with designing something to be completely foolproof is you underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.”