Terrible UI and the Hawaii Missile Alert

Freaked out by the Hawaii missile false alert? Blame terrible UI.

Around 8:05 a.m., the Hawaii emergency employee initiated the internal test, according to a timeline released by the state. From a drop-down menu on a computer program, he saw two options: “Test missile alert” and “Missile alert.” He was supposed to choose the former; as much of the world now knows, he chose the latter, an initiation of a real-life missile alert. (Washington Post)

Some creative programmers and designers imagined what this UI could have looked like, and posted their visions to Gfycat. We’ve selected some of the best examples for your amusement.

Don’t Dead Open Inside:

When you should have used ad-block

When you use basic HTML:

When you attempt to hit cancel:

When you need to make sure things are secure:

When you forget to read everything:

When you use listboxes:

Incredibly, the real system may have outdone them all:

(This is a facsimile meant to give an idea of the UI, since the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency won’t publicize the real screenshot for security reasons.)