Thursday, April 19, 2012

Changing Up

This morning I opened my blogging account only to discover that the website that hosts my blog (that would be Blogger.com, also known as Google) has helpfully changed the entire interface of the system.  It was one of those visual shocks where the screen portrays something that you haven't the least idea what it is, like watching a childhood movie you remember and suddenly seeing things you have absolutely no memory of.

I'm not really sure why companies feel the need to do things like this.

Does it look like there are more features?  I think so, judging by the parts ribbon at the top of my post right now and the plethora of options which greeted me when I logged into my account.  Do these features make my life somehow better or help me in my quest to improve my writing and my ability to get my thoughts down on paper?  I don't think so.

(Note to self:  as you continue to type into the box of text and reach the size limit, the box helpfully expands on its own instead of you having to scroll up and down.  It's useful - but slightly disconcerting).

The thought that always leaps to mind when things like this happen is "why?"  Was there a crushing need to improve the interface by users?  Or (as I suspect) is it more of an issue that programmers, like inventors throughout the ages, always feel the need to tinker with creations to make them "better" in their eyes - regardless of whether or not anyone has asked for it.

It's certainly not the end of the world, and I'm sure I'll learn to drive my way around this eventually as well as I did the previous version (e.g. what't the bare minimum I have to know to make an entry).  It's just one of those slightly off kilter events that leaves one concentrating more on the medium and how to work it rather than the actual words themselves - which, really, is the point of any blog.

Now, if I can just figure out how to post this....

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