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Often you have to “communicate” with ATMs of various organizations. Receiving cash, paying loans, etc. And you have to feel firsthand all the inconveniences that are built into the interface of programs installed in ATMs. I am a fairly advanced user, so it is not difficult for me to understand the menu structure in a couple of minutes, as well as determine the sequence of actions. But, for example, such ATMs simply stupefy my mother.
Now, actually, about the ATM itself. As an example, let's take the ATM (unfortunately there are no photographs).
The first bad solution is to use the touch screen and a physical numeric keypad at the same time. Some actions must be performed using the screen, and some (for example, entering an account number) using a physical keyboard.
Now the keyboard itself. For some reason, most ATMs are equipped with keyboards whose key travel is very small, which makes it difficult for the user to understand whether the button has been pressed or not. This particular keyboard has two buttons - cancel and reset. The first one cancels one character, and the second one completely resets the entered numbers. Everything would be fine, but on the “Cancel” button it says “Cancel”, and on the “Reset” button there is an arrow “<”. As a result, the user needs to determine (often through negative experience) which button is intended for what.
Now the structure of the program itself. Schematically, it looks something like this:
1. Select a menu item (for example, “Loan payment”). Ok, everything is clear here. Selectable on the touch screen.
2. You must enter your account number. Ok, everything is clear here too. By the way, at this stage problems with the keyboard begin. Here you need to click the “Pay” button (!).
3. After clicking on the “Pay” button, a new screen opens where you need to indicate the amount to be paid (!). Enter the amount, click the “Continue” button (strange, why not “Pay”, hmmm).
4. We get to a new screen where the details of the account owner are displayed (brilliant! If I made a mistake when entering the account number, I will find out about it only after two (!) screens). Click “Continue”.
5. Hallelujah! We went through 2 circles of hell, but it doesn't end there. At this stage, the video shows that you need to put money into one of the three holes in the ATM. What's funny is that the ATM in the video doesn't match the one in front of the person.
6. We begin to look for the slot where we need to put the money. There are three of them in the ATM - for a card, for a check and, in fact, for cash. The slots for the card and for the receipt are on the same level (only one on the left, the other on the right). The slot for cash is located very low (separate from everything) and, in fact, is not highlighted by anything, only there is a sticker.
Actually, that's all. The saga of paying off the loan ends here.
On average, it takes me 5 minutes to pay off a loan, because... I already know all the underwater boulders of this ATM. And I had to write instructions for my mother and aunt.
So I would like to appeal to the manufacturers of such ATMs and terminals with a request not to cheat, but to spend some money on a usability specialist who will create a convenient and friendly interface.
Now, actually, about the ATM itself. As an example, let's take the ATM (unfortunately there are no photographs).
The first bad solution is to use the touch screen and a physical numeric keypad at the same time. Some actions must be performed using the screen, and some (for example, entering an account number) using a physical keyboard.
Now the keyboard itself. For some reason, most ATMs are equipped with keyboards whose key travel is very small, which makes it difficult for the user to understand whether the button has been pressed or not. This particular keyboard has two buttons - cancel and reset. The first one cancels one character, and the second one completely resets the entered numbers. Everything would be fine, but on the “Cancel” button it says “Cancel”, and on the “Reset” button there is an arrow “<”. As a result, the user needs to determine (often through negative experience) which button is intended for what.
Now the structure of the program itself. Schematically, it looks something like this:
1. Select a menu item (for example, “Loan payment”). Ok, everything is clear here. Selectable on the touch screen.
2. You must enter your account number. Ok, everything is clear here too. By the way, at this stage problems with the keyboard begin. Here you need to click the “Pay” button (!).
3. After clicking on the “Pay” button, a new screen opens where you need to indicate the amount to be paid (!). Enter the amount, click the “Continue” button (strange, why not “Pay”, hmmm).
4. We get to a new screen where the details of the account owner are displayed (brilliant! If I made a mistake when entering the account number, I will find out about it only after two (!) screens). Click “Continue”.
5. Hallelujah! We went through 2 circles of hell, but it doesn't end there. At this stage, the video shows that you need to put money into one of the three holes in the ATM. What's funny is that the ATM in the video doesn't match the one in front of the person.
6. We begin to look for the slot where we need to put the money. There are three of them in the ATM - for a card, for a check and, in fact, for cash. The slots for the card and for the receipt are on the same level (only one on the left, the other on the right). The slot for cash is located very low (separate from everything) and, in fact, is not highlighted by anything, only there is a sticker.
Actually, that's all. The saga of paying off the loan ends here.
On average, it takes me 5 minutes to pay off a loan, because... I already know all the underwater boulders of this ATM. And I had to write instructions for my mother and aunt.
So I would like to appeal to the manufacturers of such ATMs and terminals with a request not to cheat, but to spend some money on a usability specialist who will create a convenient and friendly interface.
