Ask HN: Client wants a bad user interface | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Client wants a bad user interface

1 pointanona-mouse11 comments

I'm working on a medical device user interface for a client and he has drawn up the design he wants.

I made some gentle suggestions and they were rejected. I was a bit pissed at first and intended to fire the client. Over the weekend it occurred to me that due to the way we were introduced, he didn't actually know that I have decades of experience making tool and device UI's [1] and probably thinks I am the software equivalent of a carpenter - not an architect.

I want to let him know in the nicest way possible, that he can take advantage of my decades of design experience to improve his UX without actually telling him "your design looks like ass". :-) Thoughts?

The area if the screen we're talking about is roughly 2" wide x 3 high - not a lot of room. His design isn't horrible but has some issues, namely:

4 different shades of blue, 5 if you count the background.

2 different fonts, one of which is a 7 segment display font

I suggested a single shade of blue, and a single font, cleaned up some stuff and made the readouts larger.

[1] Oscilloscope, CAD/CAM, laser controls, etc.

The statement, "I was a bit pissed at first and intended to fire the client" reeks of entitlement.... If anything, they are the one to fire YOU if you do not perform to their expectations. Clients pay others to complete their products, not the designer's. They came to you to complete a task scoped around the UI, not business guidance.

I don't see how entitlement comes into play. Petulance, maybe.

I am wary when customers refuse to listen to experience. Generally what I do is just create two UXes and do preference-testing, either internally, at the clients, or both.

I'd have to agree with davelnewton, people throw around the word entitlement WAY too often.

Call it entitlement or petulance; that's a fair criticism. This is first time I've done a non-greenfield project in over decade so perhaps I'm used to having more control. I usually create complete products or the main technology.

The poor design probably won't kill anyone (it's a surgical device) but it will cause a greater cognitive load than is necessary.

I have more than enough work for clients who can appreciate what I can bring to the table. I chose the clients I want to work with.

The client didn't knowingly treat me poorly and there aren't many people who work with this particular technology. (The last one they hired didn't know the technology so they hired me to fix it.) I really don't want to leave the guy in the lurch but, as an artist (metaphorically speaking), I'm not interested in doing paint-by-numbers work.

Just say what you said in italics minus the ass. Simple as that. Firing a client because they don't want what you want... that's certainly an approach. Same one my eight-year old tries. shrug

Regarding fonts/blues: impossible to know because no clue what it looks like. In some situations clear font differentiation is critical. In some situations, med devices need to look similar to existing devices to maintain familiarity. In some situations, it might look like ass, but be more functional than a pretty version.

Is that the case here? No way to tell.

I wish I could post the design but I can't for obvious reasons.

I've had this problem so many times. I'm so sorry. Build what the want visually, and then show them a better alternative after. Helps if you can separate the visual from the technical so you don't have to rewrite the backend when the front end changes.

I did just that so he could compare. I wrote "Spec" over the his design and "My Humble Suggestion" over my design along with explanations for the changes. Example: "4 different shades of blue; perhaps sub optimal for "at a glance" comprehension."

Instead of criticisms of his design (which are liable to just make him defensive), you may have more success providing explanations of the benefit of yours (“different colors for the Foo and Bar widgets make it easier for the user to find the information they’re looking for at a glance”).

Research and cite the negative cognitive effects of bad design in a bona fide psychological context. Care about the person using the application. Quite appropriate in a medical context.

I care deeply about the user. If I cared less this wouldn't be a problem. :-) The differences are subtle and to someone who can't "see" the issues, they are for all intents, invisible.

It's a little like trying to tell the client that adding Corinthian style columns to the front of Craftsman style house isn't a great idea. The client literally can not see why that would be a bad idea.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com