While watching Season 1 of Battlestar Galactica on DVD (it’s been a few years since I first saw it), I came across a positively idiotic menu design. You see, there’s a menu where you can turn on the audio commentary. That part works fine. But once you turn it on, you can’t turn it off. […]

I installed some backup software over the weekend, and it reminded me of the reasons why traditional computer software sucks: – Updates are a pain in the ass and the automatic ones never work right. – The user interfaces are typically very crude and confusing when compared to web-based software. – The pricing models don’t […]

If you’ve ever used a Polycom IP phone, you may be aware of a somewhat strange behavior. When you pick up the handset, you hear a dial tone. The problem is, you hear the same dial tone nearly all the time — even if the network connection is down and the phone can’t make calls. […]

At most supermarkets, you can choose which type of bag you want: paper, plastic, or both. You can even bring your own bag if you’re so inclined. But these choices are entirely absent from online shopping, and the packing materials tend to be pretty random as well. For example, my most recent Amazon order came […]

If your so-called “web application” only runs in Internet Explorer, it’s not a web application. Rather, it’s an “Internet Explorer application”. I was reminded of this simple fact while looking for a new software package the other day. One of the products on my short list was web-based and looked pretty solid. But when I […]

Maybe it’s the type of sites that I’ve been looking at lately, but the “Contact” link seems to be disappearing. Meanwhile, the contact page is getting buried several levels deep in weird places like Company or About Us. Or, they’ve moved it to a hard-to-find spot at the bottom of the page. Perhaps I’m old-fashioned, […]

I’ve noticed a lot of variance in how retailers report the sizes of their items. Usually, the dimensions shown will reflect the product itself, but sometimes they’re actually describing the shipping box or a carton that contains more than one unit of the product. Worse, for items that have an inside measurement or carrying capacity […]

Yesterday, I needed to make a purchase from a site that I’ve been doing business with for years. I added the products to my cart, proceeded through checkout, and submitted the order. Then things went south. The site generated a cryptic error code, and asked me to call customer service for help. I dutifully followed […]

Even when my company isn’t advertising any open positions, we get a steady flow of unsolicited resumes. One type of resume is particularly strange, though. The subject line reads “Resume of John Smith is attached”, with “John Smith” being replaced by the applicant’s name. The message doesn’t mention any specific position, and the resume itself […]

I’m not very well-versed in the area of webinars and online meetings, although it seems like a lot of people are doing them lately. The increasing cost and hassle of air travel is probably the main reason for this trend. But since these virtual meetings don’t require any travel, do potential attendees really need much […]