Archive for March, 2008

Bitch: passkey reader

Tuesday, March 18th, 2008

This is a short bitch, but a fundamental one.

Most modern offices have a security card reader to unlock doors. Our office has a proximity readers at hip level, when you swipe the card near the reader, it beeps, a green light flashes and the magnetic door lock releases.

Now what happens if the card is bad or the reader misreads? It beeps, a red light flashes and the door stays locked.

After the first week everyone knows where the readers are and no one looks to check the light anymore. So when (not if, when) there is a misread, you end up smashing face first into the locked door. Nice job dumbass.

“But it beeps right?”

Sure does. And here is my Bitch. The beeps are the same.

How to fix it? Make it a different beep, different tone, heck make it beep twice.

Until then I will continue to smash my face into the door as I rush to a meeting. Beep.

The customer is not always right!

Saturday, March 15th, 2008

Ah yes, the horrors of retail and customer service:

http://notalwaysright.com/

Pictures: Wolf and Firkin – Klug and Ricks going away party

Friday, March 14th, 2008

With special appearance by Jouni!

Link to pictures.

Bitch: iPod controls

Monday, March 10th, 2008

Do you touch type? The little bumps on the F and J keys help don’t they?

Can you use your phone without looking? I used to be able to set the timer on my Sony-Ericsson T-616 without looking.

How often do you look at your remote control? Probably not very often, you know the feel and location of the channel up and down buttons and I’ll bet the volume controls too.

The layout, the shape and the feel of these object help us to use the device without looking or if we are really good, without thinking.

Which brings me to todays Bitch, the iPod shuffle, specifically the second generation. Let me say I use mine all the time, great battery life, cheap (so I dont’ worry if I loose it) and the clip is a nice touch. However, the buttons are completely smooth, the only feature that lets you know the device’s orientation is the shape and maybe the way it is clipped on.

Now the apologists might say, ‘Well if you clip it on then you know the orientation dumbass.’ Sure. But sometimes it isn’t clipped on. Now what?

One option, like your keyboard, put a bump on the volume up button. In fact a drop of glue might do it.

Apple, specifically Jonathan Ive normally does some very beautiful work, but this oversight is irritating.