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> I think this is a better analogy for ergonomics in programming languages.

While it may be a better analogy, it doesn't really reflect the way the term is used. In my (admittedly anecdotal) experience, most people's complaints about ergonomics are more of expecting difficult things to be easier than they inherently are than of the actual quality of the tools they are presented with. People think they are complaining about a mixer with too many settings, when in reality what they are complaining about is the fact that there are several variables that go into mixing batter and dough. They buy a mixer that's targeted at a baker or chef who wants complete control over how their batter comes out or who even needs a mixer versatile enough to also mill grain or roll pasta, then are predictably lost because it's not as immediately intuitive to use as a simple hand mixer. I don't think that makes the mixer not ergonomic, I think it just makes it not the right tool for that particular person.



Or maybe it's a poorly designed mixer, or it's trying to be a mixer and a blender at the same time and not doing a good job at either task.

Sometimes complexity is a necessary consequence of the domain, and sometimes it's simply the result of poor design.




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