Tech Pet Peeves

[singaporesoxfan]

Much like the equivalent thread in P&G, this is a thread to vent and gripe about tech-related pet peeves, little things about your devices and software that bug you even though you know in the grand scheme of things they're minor. Not necessarily looking for a fix, though hopefully the SoSH geek community / hivemind can help fix some of these peeves.
 
Here's a couple of mine:
 
1. About once or twice a day, the "scroll to top" on my iPhone stops working on the Google Chrome app. Same happens with my Facebook app, though more rarely. It's no biggie - I shut down Chrome and reload it again and it works, but it annoys me, particularly when reading SoSH.
 
2. Every now and then, if I type in a generic chain name on Google Maps on iPhone - e.g. "CVS" - and I choose a particular CVS, it insists I want another CVS and directs me to that one, and the only way I can force it to give me directions to the branch I want is to actually type in the physical address of the branch that I want.
 
What are your tech pet peeves?

 

[glennhoffmania]

My phone will connect to a public wifi that has a very, very weak signal, and then when I try to do something it'll tell me that I'm not connected.  So I have to either turn off wifi or block that network to get data.  If the signal is too weak to do anything then don't connect to it.

 

[jayhoz]

When I am typing an email address into a username field on my mobile device and it adds a space after the period that is between my first and last name.

 

[jayhoz]

Oh...and anyone who uses a Blackberry Bold.

 

[glennhoffmania]

Hey it wasn't my choice.  If it was up to me I'd add my work account to my personal phone but they block it.  IT nazis.

 

[jayhoz]

You could get a new job.

 

[glennhoffmania]

That's true.  I should look into that. 

 

[singaporesoxfan]

When I am typing an email address into a username field on my mobile device and it adds a space after the period that is between my first and last name.

Not sure which phone you use, but I had that issue and on my iPhone I set a keyboard shortcut so that typing three letters expands out into my full email address

 

[ifmanis5]

Updating to the newest version of the software/app, only to find out that the new version sucks and you can't go back to the old one.

 

[Seven Costanza]

Fanboys.

 

[ifmanis5]

Fanboys.

Such a good one. Extends to all facets of life these days, sadly.

 

[amlothi]

Any time a company redesigns a user interface and hides (or removes) functionality at the expense of appearance.
 
Google has done this on several items recently, and as a dedicated Android user, it drives me insane. They've done this repeatedly with Google Maps (on PC and Android). Another example: Chrome browser for android auto-hides the address bar, and doesn't show me tabs I have open without pressing the "show tabs" icon. 

 

[Couperin47]

Any time a company redesigns a user interface and hides (or removes) functionality at the expense of appearance.
 
Google has done this on several items recently, and as a dedicated Android user, it drives me insane. They've done this repeatedly with Google Maps (on PC and Android). Another example: Chrome browser for android auto-hides the address bar, and doesn't show me tabs I have open without pressing the "show tabs" icon. 

 
For the sake of everyone in your neighborhood don't look at what's happened to Firefox since version 28 or you'll go postal and there will be a massacre.

 

[Red(s)HawksFan]

 
For the sake of everyone in your neighborhood don't look at what's happened to Firefox since version 28 or you'll go postal and there will be a massacre.

 
The Classic Theme Restorer add-on has been a godsend in this regard.

 

[Couperin47]

 
The Classic Theme Restorer add-on has been a godsend in this regard.

 
CTR is a noble effort, but like the Maginot Line, it's bound to be a failure, with every iteration the powers that be at Mozilla make it more and more difficult, if not already impossible, to undo their Bataan Death March to Chromeclone and a locked down interface you cannot meaningfully customize. Triumph can only be won at Alamogordo where one can clearly apprehend Palemoon in the heavens.

 

[mt8thsw9th]

When I'm alt-tabbing through workbooks in Excel, and Windows decides that the workbook I was just in isn't the best thing to have as my next option and buries it like 15 windows away behind stuff I haven't used all day.
 
When Windows has alerts that pop in front of applications, that can be activated by hitting the space bar. Too many times I have spaced a restart or install. Or Windows popping in front of applications ever. Just flash on the taskbar, there's no reason for a PDF or anything else to pop in front of what I'm doing when I am trying to get other things done.
 
Basically, Windows.

 

[NortheasternPJ]

Doing a save as in excel automatically appends copy of to the name. No other apps do this.

The olk64 outlook hidden directory.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

WTF is with Facebook insisting you download a separate app for Facebook messages? I still haven't got a very good explanation for why it has to be a separate app.

 

[soxhop411]

WTF is with Facebook insisting you download a separate app for Facebook messages? I still haven't got a very good explanation for why it has to be a separate app.

Speed up the main app?

 

[NortheasternPJ]

I'll add the fact that windows can't enforce a fucking scheme for popups. It occurs even within their own apps. I have 30 windows open and under 29 of them is a mandatory dialogue screen. I can't see it. I can't find it. But either the app or widows explorer acts really odd. So basically windows.

 

[Foulkey Reese]

Smart phones with smooth, slippery backs that are just dying to fall out of your hand and smash.
Thanks a lot assholes.

 

[Al Zarilla]

Smart phones with smooth, slippery backs that are just dying to fall out of your hand and smash.
Thanks a lot assholes.

You could rough it up with one of these:
 

 

[timlinin8th]

WTF is with Facebook insisting you download a separate app for Facebook messages? I still haven't got a very good explanation for why it has to be a separate app.

Speed up the main app?

They couldn't figure out a way to do that without losing basic functionality? All it did was prompt me to remove the bloated FB main app, I have the Facebook webpage bookmarked in the same spot my app lived and I get to have the two features AND it runs a lot smoother. I hardly need my facebook stuff to be integrating into my other apps on my phone, so for me, its outta here. Freed up a half a Gb.

 

[canderson]

They do it for $$$. Double the advertising.

The FB app is fucking awful for battery drain. I killed it months ago and pinned the site. The app is really terrible.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

What I don't get is Facebook's rationale: "you can get messages 20% faster". I don't think I've ever heard someone gripe that Facebook messages were too slow.

The other ridiculous part is that if they wanted people to use a messaging app that people liked, they could've just asked the Whatsapp people to add in the ability to message Facebook friends. Now Facebook has 3 different messaging programs: Messenger, Whatsapp, and Instagram Bolt.

 

[canderson]

What I don't get is Facebook's rationale: "you can get messages 20% faster". I don't think I've ever heard someone gripe that Facebook messages were too slow.

The other ridiculous part is that if they wanted people to use a messaging app that people liked, they could've just asked the Whatsapp people to add in the ability to message Facebook friends. Now Facebook has 3 different messaging programs: Messenger, Whatsapp, and Instagram Bolt.

... so they can charge advertisers three times instead of once.