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Perhaps you could state that a bit more definitively - experts require a complex interface to perform optimally.

This violates every principle of mass-market user interface design - I love it!

No they don't. They require a powerful interface. Complexity just comes with more power, but there's nothing to suggest that an expert would perform better with a more complex interface than with a simpler one, if both offered the same functionality.

I think there probably is a principle at work to suggest that one of the properties of an expert-friendly 'powerful' interface is that it will be perceived as 'complex' by newbies.

Experts will need to have access to a large set of features (e.g. 10 different types of tire/track conditions) that newbies don't. Experts will also need ways to override interface logic which is in place to guide users automatically to the right settings (e.g. wizards, DWIMminess).

I think you're confusing "complicated" with "complex". The former is to be avoided, while the latter is sometimes unavoidable, and in some cases (as here) desired.

This also is a basic tenet of software design as well. I don't mind complexity, if it's necessary and clearly documented. Complicated code on the other hand is the hallmark of a broken development process or a lack of developer skills.

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