Recent notes on UIX
ALTERNATIVES
I have been keeping notes on my thoughts about the bits of software I use on a daily basis and realised that I could combine them into one 'article'. I don't profess to be any authority on the subject and it is mostly from a design point of view and the way I personally use these things. We are subject to user interfaces constantly throughout the day and are therefore exposed to what you would hope are purposeful design choices.
I have a 2022 Pixel 7. Its a few years old but I am not prepared to buy a new phone just yet as it should get updates and security patches for a few more years. I do use my phone a lot but it tends to be for a limited set of apps (Camera, Alarms, Notes, BBCRadio, Bluesky etc) and I don’t really need a high end device.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t59jn-e8dwk&t=195s
PC CUSTOMISATION
Other than the dark theme and a repurposed Nothing wallpaper that’s all the ‘customisation’ I have on my PC.
I stopped using Microsoft Office 365 last year. Opting for alternatives like OnlyOffice and WinoMail instead. Which are great alternatives, avoiding all the telemetry, subscriptions and Ai shenanigans that have become associated with Microslop.
I could go all in on Linux Mint but Affinity Studio is not available there — yet. There are ways to get it running but the learning curve is steep and my time on Earth is limited.
Windows is fine but I like that there are alternatives. I have stuck with it through Windows 7 and 10 and even 11, it’s just the amount of turning things off to make it comfortable to use, that is annoying.
WITHDRAWAL
August 2025: Microsoft continues to screw the consumer with yearly subscription increases, meta data tracking and Ai training stealing content. The ‘contract’ is not in my best interests anymore and it will soon be time to think of alternatives to Microsoft 365 and Windows 11 default apps in general. After upgrading my computer set up last year so I can run Windows 11, there is now a second wave of subscription increases for the Microsoft software. Time to look for alternatives.
Windows OutLook (The free version). Contains advertising emails. Just avoid.
Word/Microsoft 365 has All Connect Experiences that displays OneDrive options throughout the Windows system. I have opted out which puts two apps in my Microsoft Connected Apps section in my Microsoft account. Deleting these trigger an Account Error. Too technical for me, in that I want to do other things other than troubleshoot my ‘typing’ software.
Windows telemetry wants to track everything, which might be slowing my computer down. I did buy a new computer with all the fear generated by the ending of support for WIndows 10. So I understand moving people on with Windows 11 and updating old hardware. Newer hardware usually provides a better experience although that experience seemingly wants to promote Ai adoption.
I cancelled my Office 365 subscription which at this point is a yearly renewal of £60. Not an easy process, I couldn't delete my card details from my Microsoft account for a few months, which was frustrating.
November 2025 Update: All’s good. MS Subscription and card details finally deleted. LibreOffice is great, as is Thunderbird which had a recent design update. I got Dopamine working which may have been down to a Windows 11 Runtime update and then they released Dopamine 3 for Linux and Windows so am giving that a go.
March 2026 Update:: OnlyOffice is my favourite desktop publishing software with a recent update making it the best alternative to Word, specifically the addition of Multiple Pages view. For email Wino Mail is light weight, looks good and works well too. I have stuck with Windows Media Player 11 for now.
In other News...
Affinity 3.0 was taken over by Canva who then made the app free to download and use. The concerns here are 1. The data mining by a company that is heavily invested in Ai and 2. the motive to mop up those consumers who are not with Adobe and then introduce pay walls to specific elements of the app. The other problem I see with this, is the dumbing down of a professional tool to consumer levels.
NOTE
THINGS
Nothing Event: Built Different
Distinctive and affordable. They are talking - pardon my French - design bollocks. Nothing Phone (4a) Pro has already reached the point where it’s discarding the Nothing retro future aesthetic of exposed industrial components on the rear for mass consumption smooth surfaces and they are calling it ‘evolution’.
Aimed at a younger audience of fashion, music and tech users and designers.
Competitors Inflate the specs. We (Nothing) have ‘Eye catching design with power packed performance’. Not trying to make it a glossy dream box. It looks like a working device.
I am not in the market to buy a new phone preferring to extend the life of the phone I have. I think by the time I am ready to replace my phone the Nothing brand will be in its stale phase.
Essential Apps sounds like more Ai promising everything and delivering nothing of substance. I want a clean looking, thought out app that works, not a child's drawing of what it thinks you need.
We are overwhelmed by choice masquerading as luxury and in reality it’s delegated work, so Carl Pei’s vision of ‘A million different operating systems for a million different people’ sounds ghastly.
Introducing ‘Magic Eraser’ was a bit cringe as Google had it in 2021! Although the True Lens Engine 4 Nothing’s computational photography that gives a ‘Kodak’ processed effect to photos, is... very desirable.
I have been luke warm on the ‘day of release’ to most of the Nothing phone designs, they do grow on you over time to become classic looking bits of tech.
An admirer from afar I like the company design philosophy. It's still an evil tech company that by necessity out sources to manufacture but I would like to think they are a better bet than American Google or Apple, or Korean Samsung or Chinese OnePlus.
London based, Nothing have a fresh outlook from their competitors who have been developing their tech for the past 20 years and it feels like it. Stale Android is, and always will be a fragmented mess for lower incomes and stale iOS affordable affluence for the rest.
Their transparency is literally reflected in the products they make. This is how most creators start out, with honesty and integrity. Scaled over time to compete in the market introduces murky corporate layers which dilute the original intention, you know, for mass appeal and units sold. I guess what I am trying to say is, now would be a good time to consume the design before it’s corrupted.
Comments
Post a Comment