There’s only one input box at the command line
July 20th, 2006 | Filed under Interface designCiting the thesis of The Paradox of Choice, the 37 Signals boys say too many input boxes can paralyze the user to the point of inaction.
Options seem like a nice idea. But each one adds up. Once you realize the evil impact they can have, you start to look at them differently.
They use the embarrassing “Add Event” screen from Yahoo! Calendar as an example of a paralyzing web form, and even though I’ve used Y! Cal for years now, I couldn’t agree more.
My three favorite software interfaces are:
- The Unix command line
- Google’s search box
- Mac OS X’s Quicksilver
And all three have only one input box.
Outsourcing choice [Signal vs. Noise]