IxD Fails

Chelsea Kurasz
Sep 4, 2018 · 3 min read

I found a new kind of Norman Door. I was in the Student Union and went to use the restroom. As I turned to exit the bathroom, I was presented with this atrocity:

https://www.americanbuildersoutlet.com/sanit-grasp-sg-101.html

My first instinct was to grab the handle and pull the door open but I had never seen one of these before. I then realized you are supposed to somehow hinge your arm inside the crook of the handle, pull the door and step out without breaking your forearm.

In theory, yes, a hands-free door handle is a good idea for a public restroom. However, this handle, in my opinion, violates several rules of interactive usability.

Such as in the case of the Norman Door, this door requires “special signage” to indicate how you’re supposed to use it.

Moreso, this design isn’t ideal for preventing errors, which is Rule 5 in Ben Shneiderman’s “8 Golden Rules of Interface Design”. If this handle is meant to keep people from using their hands, then a change in design is needed. My initial instinct was to use my hand to pull the handle. Then by that logic, the design’s purpose is defeated. I also believe Rule 7 from the above link is violated here. I chose not to use this door handle because I felt like I would be “out of control” by trying to maneuver my body around the open door with my arm still stuck in the handle.

I think just the general perceivability is an error because it looks more like a coat hook than a door handle. I do not think many people see that and perceive that as an arm door handle at first glance.

To fix this perception, I think the door handle could be shaped differently to fit an arm better, and not seem like it will be trapped there. I’m picturing the half-circle shaped wrist support of forearm crutches, rather than a metal rod that is nearly identical to a hand-operated door handle.


I also came across a digital UX fail. Instagram’s website.

Instagram’s website allows you to do most things that the mobile app does — view your home page, your Instagram page and settings, followers/following, stories. It basically lets you do everything except post to Instagram. This violates a need for consistency in interactive design. Instagram has social media competitors (think: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Reddit, etc.) Out of all of those, Instagram is the only one whose mobile and web application have such a disconnect between services.

There is also an issue with predictability and perceivability here — It is so unusual and inconvenient that a social media site will not permit posting to an account on a web page. People are so used to a world now where mobile and web are similar in function, that logging onto instagram.com and discovering there is no “plus sign” or “post” button, it comes as a surprise.

Without the complete range of function on the website, it almost seems useless. It is more of a mobile app modified for web than a stand-alone, functioning website.

I believe that if Instagram allowed images to be posted from the web, it would make for a more consistent and cohesive brand representation. Their website has been functional since 2013, and they refuse to allow photo posting from the web as a way to endorse the “on-the-go” attitude they believe their consumers should follow.

However, as shown by the image above, Instagram has become a cultivated hub for a variety of media. Comics, videos, and animation are some among many forms of art people are uploading to IG.

The needs of the consumers have changed, and IG should upgrade their systems to match those needs.