Against UI standardization

A user interface is a translation layer that sits between the user’s mental model of a problem and the developer’s mental model of that same problem. UI design is, therefore, trying to solve the same problem as programming language design: how do we represent all of the details relevant to the problem domain in an unambiguous way while avoiding the need for awkward manipulations on the part of the user? Language design makes certain assumptions about the type, breadth, and depth of the user’s knowledge on certain subjects: notably, that the user is willing to read some documentation and expend some effort…