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List:       kde-usability
Subject:    Re: [KDE Usability] Users cannot find where to "safely remove" USB
From:       Peter <gostelow () global ! co ! za>
Date:       2010-04-11 18:02:28
Message-ID: 201004111802.33957.gostelow () global ! co ! za
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On Sunday 11 April 2010 16:35, Dotan Cohen wrote:
> >> No, USB was intended for connecting peripherals, not removable
> >> storage. The connectors are not even reliable for repeated plug/unplug
> >> cycles, that is why one must take care to pull _out_, not to shake
> >> back and forth.
> >
> > That is of no interest for the user. Nowadays USB is highly used for
> > removable storage, operating systems need to adapt to that. All the
> > time some system is not used for what it was intended; but it is used
> > because it serves a need.
>
> I agree. My comments about "how to implement that" were not
> disagreement, rather, they were serious questions. Like I said, the
> machine should adapt to the user. Now come up with the technical
> implementation.

While I understand your interest, I question whether this list is appropriate 
for such a discussion. I raised the point that the problem was a system one 
so members would realize KDE (with other desktop developers) are attempting 
to resolve a problem they should not, imho, have to address.


> >> I do expect that the user will at a minimum know to wait until the
> >> computer says "you can remove the device now", whether that be due to
> >> the computer's instigation (as is the idea under consideration) or due
> >> to the user asking (by using the "Remove Safely" mechanism).
> >
> > You can not expect that. When I want my device removed, I remove it.
>
> You are reckless or irresponsible. Why you want to go through the
> intersection, do you not wait for the traffic light to indicate that
> it is safe?

I think you miss the point, here. The usb technology does not provide traffic 
lights, nor does it specify intersections. It is more like car manufactures 
who merely define what their cars do, not how they should be driven. It is 
the responsibility of operating systems to allow users to 'drive' their usb 
devices as they see fit and ensure they don't 'crash at intersections'. 
Installing 'traffic lights' requires users obey the system, not the reverse.

I would like to make it clear that users who do remove sticks unsafely, and 
fail to remedy the situation, get what they deserve - a useless stick. I am 
not suggesting the system must be able to guarantee perfect reliability, but 
that it can reliably detect and correct sticks that are removed 'at the wrong 
time', nothing more. 

If I gave the impression that users can act irresponsibly, that was not my 
intention. On the one hand users should know that devices should not be 
removed while the system is working with them, and on the other hand, 
removing a device, while the system is still busy with it, is not 
catastrophic. If systems could recover gracefully, I believe users will get a 
feel when sticks (or any peripheral) can be removed, without being 
technically the wiser.

Regards,

Peter
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