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Comment by neobrain

3 months ago

Playing devil's advocate here: Isn't one advantage of "not now" that it conveys "I don't want to worry about this now, don't change anything and get out of my way" whereas "no" burdens the user with a conscious choice?

I see your point, but I'd argue the opposite.

If I say no, that's an optional feature that I didn't ask for, and no longer need to think about it.

If I say 'not yet', it's one more thing I know I'm going to be reminded about, one piece of software that has no respect for me or consent.

  • Are you perhaps more concerned about software that keeps nagging you about the same thing over and over again than about the wording in particular? Because badly designed software will do that whether you told it "not yet" or "no".

    While I can see the frustration by repeatedly using such software, it seems fair that a well-intentioned UX designer would use "not yet" if they found it works better for a majority of people. What then matters is that they respect the intent of everyone by not bringing the choice up again.

    • I think 'well intentioned UX designers' who do this are in the minority, honestly. Or naïve. Per derefr and latexr's comments, it's a dark pattern with an ulterior motive.

      To your question, I'd say it's a false dichotomy.

      The repeating behaviour and the 'not now' are two sides of the same coin. Per the original post, and my experience, those 'not now' buttons keep coming back.

      And, for the sake of argument, how should respectful software behave? If I clicked 'not now', are you _ever_ going to ask me again? If so, how do you decide on the time-period? If not, why make 'no' more complicated than 'yes'?

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