Re: Whither book "Developing Windows Error Messages"

[Chuck Martin <cwmartin -at- US -dot- ORACLE -dot- COM>]

Lani Hardage wrote:
>
> Chuck Martin wrote:
> Given a clear software interface, user really do, in general,
> know what they want to do.
>
> Sure, good UI design can obviate many error messages. But how about errors
> that can't be recovered, such as overwriting your really good file with a
> test. I prefer a program that helps me and doesn't assume I always know what
> I'm doing. I especially like programs that let you set the level of error
> messages or error checking, because in a program new to me, I need all the
> help I can get.
>
Unfortunately, the design of an interface simply can't anticipate users
who are careless. But design *can* make it more difficult to perform
truly dangerous acts. But the example of overwriting a "really good
file" isn't a dangerous act, just a dumb and/or careless one. If it was
truly a "really good file," there would be a backup. And if it was
software designed to produce nothing but "really good files," the design
would include mechanisms that would prevent such overwriting, and those
same mechanisms would also prevent the user from being interrupted with
needless and annoying messages.

--
Chuck Martin
Principal Technical Writer, Oracle Developer
Tools Division, Oracle Corporation

cwmartin"at"us.oracle.com

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