FasTrak Switches It All Up

Maybe I care more about this stuff than the average person, but this photo makes me physically cringe.  So, what happened here?  I think I know exactly what it is, and so does commenter Michael Zuschlag on the original post on Usability Forum:  "The simplest way to make a three-position slide switch is to make center be OFF and the outside positions each be ON for different circuits. The guts of the device treats Solo Driver as the default (no signal, thus OFF), while the other two carpool options require distinct electrical signals."  Basically, someone added this feature at the last minute - too late for the electronics to be redesigned to make "2 Person Carpool" the "OFF" position of the switch.  It happens all the time - and usually, industrial design and usability take the hit!

1 comment:

Jacky said...

Hi just wondering, are you a button designer? Interesting, its the first time I see a blog dedicated to buttons. I love good design!