Term of the Moment
flash mob
Definition: user friendly
A system that is easy to learn and easy to use. In the past, this term was so abused that software vendors have become reluctant to use it today. Except for phone applications, which due to their tiny screens force developers to design the user interface with a bit more thought, a great amount of software no matter the platform is downright "user hostile." See first-time user, user interface and user-friendly crypto address.
A Century of Experience Didn't Help
One would think a home theater receiver would be user friendly. Hardly. With nearly 100 years of audio experience between them, Alan Freedman, author of this encyclopedia (right), and his colleague Pete Hermsen, who built his own radio at age eight, struggled in vain to balance the speakers on Freedman's new receiver. The manual was worthless (see RTFM).