In our endless quest to make everything easier to use, what are we losing? Is our fetishism of high-touch, manual, artisanal experiences actually making life richer, or just indulging our nostalgia? The answer, as with so many dichotomies, lies not in one approach or the other, or even some hybrid of the two, but in discerning when each is right.

There’s an onus upon designers, and on us as users, to stop mindlessly insisting that everything be easy—or conversely, that only the most manual option will do. I, for one, am grateful that a snapshot of my son no longer requires a roll of film and a working knowledge of apertures and f-stops. But I wouldn’t trade our banjo practice sessions for the world.

Just Easy Enough – designweekportland.com

image: skinny ships