Complexity

I guess it may be a function of my little grey cells dying off, but I am increasingly revolting against the complexity that technology is forcing upon me.  Recently, my e-mail supplier switched to AOL and, in order to use this new service, I have had to learn a whole new user interface ... one that is clumsy and non-intuitive. And, to do my income taxes this past Spring, I spent too many days trying to decipher the insane complexity of our tax code. Why am I being led by the nose into these labyrinths of what idiosyncratic designers think is the proper way of doing things? And, to place their brand on their designs, old protocols are eschewed for newer but not necessarily better ones.

Part of the genius of Steve Jobs was that he frequently got the user interface right ... one that was naturally intuitive. It didn't require a user manual to understand how things worked. Now end users seldom have manuals to educate them on the ins and outs of a new gizmo ... an unfortunate homage to Jobs.  Features that may be neat to the designers, become a bear to figure out. So I have become a bit of a Luddite. I wont use a smart phone ... an old clam shell works just fine. I do use an IPad, but grit my teeth much of the time. I do not look forward to autonomous cars because I don't really believe that they will simplify my life. When something goes wrong ... and it will ... many of us will be at a loss as to how to fix things.

In a way I am not too unhappy that I may not be around for this brave new world of increasingly complex technology. Matter of fact, I am thinking about buying an old Chevy Bel Air to get around in ... and hire H&R Block to do my taxes next year.