[TYPO3-hci] Open Source usability sucks?

[Troels Kjær Rasmussen]

> Hm, it takes much devotion to create something at all. If you work on a 
> large project it involves an obligation towards other to make good and 
> working code that improves things and doesn't break anything. A real 
> obligation is IMHO a bit much to aks (see below why).

Noone is questioning the the obligation of the developers towards the 
system and the code. I´m just advocating applying a concept of 
refactoring usability by the same principles that Robert and others have 
advocated refactoring code as a natural coding process.

> The problem is that the users rarely applaud. They usually complain and 
> DEMAND that things to be done - and even more, they want it done 
> quickly. I can live without that kind of interaction.

Well another approach is to turn the other cheek and consider the users 
input as a motivation. If he complains it´s because he's interrested in 
what you do - if he doesn´t complain it´s because he doesn´t care...

> If developers have obligations to users (make working and usable 
> programs), then please define what are the obligations of the users? 
> Send money, praise the coders, ...?

The respect of the enduser is hard to obtain and we will probably never 
reach a point where we can say that everyone is 100% satisfied - however 
it should still be a goal in itself to comply to enduser needs and 
thereby keep him obligated to TYPO3 (which he usually is by choosing it 
first of). The alternative resembles writing a 1000 pages political book 
only readable by the ones who already agree with you - this has never 
motivated a lot of the writers (especially not of the "great classics", 
which I think TYPO3 resembles)

regards

Troels Kjær Rasmussen, LinkFactory

> 
> Masi