Has anyone noticed a trend in newer Microsoft products that their user messaging is going from neutral, businesslike, factual language, to cute, colloquial things like:
OneDrive: Your files are syncing as we speak.
Word spellcheck in 2010: The spelling and grammar check is complete.
Word spellcheck in 2013: Spelling and grammar check complete. You’re good to go!
Word 2013 on opening a previously edited document: Welcome back! Pick up where you left off.
Is this Microsoft’s attempt to reinvent itself by using the type of banter common from Google?
yes, I’ve noticed it. So what about it? is it a crime to use less formal language?
I didn’t see any bitching when the Mozilla devs put “Here be Dragons!” or “This might void your warranty!” in big bold text when you go to the about:config page.
Not at all. It is part of the genetic personality of companies like Google. But not Microsoft. It’s like they are adopting superficial things to convince us that they’re hip now.
It reminds me of a grandmother who decides to get a new hairdo and wardrobe and start saying, “What up, Bro?” to all the teenage boys.
Why is this such a sore spot for you? I never said it was a “crime” or a “problem.” It’s not a matter of who does what, it’s a matter of change.
I am wondering if it is a widely recognized trend that Microsoft was changing the personality of its user interfaces in a kind of coordinated makeover across its entire product line, or whether it was just my perception based on isolated cases. I happen to think that it’s notable that a company whose interfaces are known for being staid is now trying to loosen up.
To be fair, that would be a good response for it to give after it does the whole “The program has stopped responding… Searching for a solution to this problem” spinning wheel of uselessness. Has anybody ever had Windows come back with an answer there? I’d be happy if it just said “Whoa, you’re toast. Better reboot.”
I think it’s a smart decision and don’t understand the analogies given here (like grandma with a new laptop).
Most people are not “computer people”. I grew up with a computer-savvy parent and sibling, went on to get a degree in CompSci and have IT experience, including tech support. That tech support made me understand just how skewed my perspective and knowledge of computers was compared to most people.
People are freaking terrified of computers, man. It’s not like they think computers will plot to murder them or anything. It’s that computers are absolutely vital to modern life but they don’t know how they do the things they do. They know that there are millions of things that can go wrong that are said to be the user’s fault:
it got a virus!
it got a Trojan!
did a hacker get in?!
my computer crashed after I spent hours on this presentation without saving it yet because DUH I wasn’t finished and now it’s gone!
it broke and all of my saved files are gone!
all the text is suddenly super tiny and I can’t read it!
it’s suddenly upside down! (the display rotated 180°)
my password isn’t working and I can’t log in, oh my god I’m cut off from everything I need!
And this isn’t even touching how confusing and intimidating just using them can be. These are all obvious to me, but not to most people. And the important thing is that my experience level is outside the norm, NOT theirs. It’s not reasonable to expect everyone to know what I do. It’s also absolutely nothing to feel superior about: There are tons of things that confuse me just as much as computers do them and I sure as hell wouldn’t want to be mocked for it.
Microsoft has realized they NEED to market to these people. I’ve heard a lot of people planning/considering buying a Mac because it’s marketed as being easier to understand and user-friendly. In reality, both OSes are just as complex but in different ways. But our culture has reinforced messages that computers (i.e. first DOS and now Windows) are super confusing and user-hostile but Macs are safe and friendly computers.
Of course MS has control of the business sector. But it’d be stupid for them to just write off the consumer market when computer/smartphone/tablet use is skyrocketing. Making OS messages more informal and friendly may seem stupid or condescending to you, but I guarantee that a lot of people really will appreciate it and feel less intimidated.
As an aside, one of the things I really liked when I switched to Mac was that when it’s performing some long operation, it won’t say “4 minutes, 37 seconds remaining”; it’ll say “about 5 minutes”, because that’s about how precise those time estimates really are, anyway. Nobody’s going to say “OK, I’m setting my stopwatch for 4:38, and when it goes off, I expect that to be done”. They’re going to say “That’s about long enough for a bathroom break, I’ll be right back”.
I think Microsoft might be doing that now, too, in which case, good for them.
