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openjck | 11 years ago

Some people are saying that a warning would have helped.

Remember that warning functions are easy to ignore. Never use a warning when you mean undo.

http://alistapart.com/article/neveruseawarning

discuss

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hliyan|11 years ago

That won't help here. You cannot "undo" a workstation reset, or any other action that results in a state propagation.

openjck|11 years ago

Sure you can.

Pressing the button would start a timer. While the timer is running, the user would have the opportunity to review their selection (maybe even with a simulation of what effect the selection has) and could undo the request if necessary. Only after the timer expires would the action actually be taken.

This is how the "undo send" feature of Gmail works.

http://mashable.com/2010/08/22/how-to-undo-send-in-gmail/

_pmf_|11 years ago

I don't know whether armchair usability trivia helps here. Not every system deals with ephemeral web drivel; some systems interact with the real world and have impact.

openjck|11 years ago

Are you saying that usability does not need to be considered in the design of critical systems?

Human factors grew out of the need to build safe and error-resistant weaponry in World War II. Poor attention to human factors and user interface design was a factor in the Three Mile Island disaster.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_factors#In_aviation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Mile_Island_accident#Huma...

With respect, to call this armchair usability and to imply that some users are just stupid is to completely misunderstand what usability is.