Something very odd is happening to the LCD screens on the Notebook computers that play such a major role in our existence. The first aptly named “laptops” had small, low-contrast monochrome screens that had “eye strain” written all over them (well, not all of them did – the Grid Compass, in 1982, had a lovely … Read more
We already saw how overuse of pictorial instructions can be confusing. Well, I just ran into a wonderful victory of this trend. I passed a large office copier – the Konica 7222 – and here is what I saw on its document feeder: These guys spared no effort in their belt-and-suspenders approach: there is large … Read more
Electric car windows have become the norm these days; and one feature on them is “Auto”, where you can open or close a window all the way with only a momentary push on the actuator button. A useful feature, too. What I find strange is the stinginess with which this feature is applied. In most … Read more
Here is a box containing some medicine. As the law requires, it has the lot number and expiration date clearly marked. Well, OK, not clearly… in fact, the information is barely visible at all. The law, one can guess, says nothing about the information having to be Legible. It’s not like making the text visible … Read more
Remember those gloves with utterly superfluous instructions? Here is a new contender for “most unnecessary instructions”. This package of sunflower seeds, from the USA, bears the directive: Eating instructions: crack open shells, discard shells, enjoy the seeds! Nice try, Frito-Lay, but – Uh-oh! – you might still get sued by someone: you forgot to tell … Read more
I was in Berlin, where they have a subway system that, though it dates back to 1902, is as effective as it is pleasant (part of this last may have to do with the fact that the tunnels are close to the surface, so there is less of the “going down to the bowels of … Read more
We rented a Ford Galaxy minivan for a day. Nice car, if you need the space. And such sophisticated controls… way too sophisticated for its own good, or for its users’, if you ask me. Ford is very proud of its latest Human Machine Interface: Human Machine Interface (HMI) -An upgraded instrument cluster plus a … Read more
Back from NYC… I already reported on the big stuff I saw there; and here is a small but annoying thing I also saw. My hotel room had a drip coffee maker, a standard item in American hotel rooms (and much better than the old dependence on Room Service). But this one had one unusual … Read more
Have you had the experience, as a child, of discovering the optical properties of oiled paper? I remember it well… I was an avid reader as a kid, and when a smudge of oil from some snack would get onto my books I’d notice that the translucent oily spot that looked darker than the paper … Read more
We saw how Our car had a turn indicator lamp in the side trim, where it was vulnerable to damage. Even more interesting is the turn signal on some newer cars, which is put on the most smash-worthy part of any automobile: the side rear view mirror. And not at the base of the mirror … Read more
