http://www.usabilitybitch.com trying to make the world easier to use Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:01:12 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Flew into San Francisco Airport late last night and had to rent a car and drive to a hotel - thankfully, not very far. While still in the garage, I adjusted the rearview mirror so I could see out of it, then drove out into the dark to (eventually) find the ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2008/08/07/this-is-an-emergency-chevy-cobalt-mirror/ There are lots of ways to keep doors and windows closed, but what about when you want to keep them open on a windy day? Our home in Italy has many windows, and doors that open onto balconies, which I mostly like to keep open when the weather's not too ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/12/07/how-doors-are-kept-open-in-india/ Visiting an old high school friend in Colorado last spring, we discussed our rapid approach (or have we already arrived?) into middle age. "Did it come on fast with you?" "Yeah, it just seemed to happen overnight. All of a sudden, I can't see!" I've been extremely nearsighted most of my life. Now, ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/10/15/i-cant-see-you/ When the least interaction with a company causes heart palpitations, instant headaches, and screaming rage... well, that's not good for its customers. http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/10/09/user-friendliness-less-than-zero-telecom-italia/ Every time I come to the US I have a cellphone problem. International roaming from Vodafone Italy works inconsistently, if at all, with US carriers. The first time I landed in Denver I spent a very frustrating half-hour trying to contact the friend who was coming to pick me up: ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/08/11/virginmobileusa-missing-error-message/ Even if you have not travelled through the UK recently, you may have heard of the annoying new regulation that passengers going through airport security there may have only one bag. Security people and signs remind you of this multiple times en route to the scanners. For me, this means ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/08/06/security-in-a-single-bag/ I love online check-in, where I can select the seat I want and take care of some formalities before I ever get to the airport. So I checked in online for my British Airways flight to Denver, but didn't have an easy way (at my dad's house) to print the boarding ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/08/05/british-airways-online-check-in/ I recently had occasion to withdraw money from my US bank account using an Italian ATM. I was presented with a choice of amounts ranging from 10 to 250 euros, plus one item marked "Other Amount." I chose that one then, as prompted, entered the desired amount (500). I got a ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/08/04/atm-irritations/ Multilingual sites often trip over themselves with incomplete or incorrect translations. It's very hard to keep track of every detail of a site in multiple languages (I know, I've done it), but some things are so fundamental that you've got to double- and triple-check them for accuracy.Via Michelin, which I ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/07/25/what-language-am-i-speaking/ Another in the ongoing series "one million ways to screw up a password reminder page." This one's from the Austin American-Statesman, a site I only registered on because a friend forwarded an article I might enjoy, and this is one of those (extremely annoying) sites where you can only ... http://www.usabilitybitch.com/2007/07/23/forgot-my-password-austin-american-statesman/