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917 points cryptophreak | 3 comments | | HN request time: 0.523s | source
1. brian626 ◴[] No.45763752[source]
Someone once told me “every setting you expose to your users is a decision you were too scared to make.”
replies(2): >>45764326 #>>45765813 #
2. Capricorn2481 ◴[] No.45764326[source]
User: I'd like to be able to change my password

Dev: I'm too brave to let you do that

3. autoexec ◴[] No.45765813[source]
That gets less true the more utility your software is expected to have.

When it comes to software intended for the general public it doesn't take bravery to decide that every user should only ever be allowed to do things exactly how you'd want them done. I might be more likely to attribute that to arrogance. Really, for something like converting audio/video I'd just see the inflexible software with few if any options as too limited for my needs (current, future, or both) and go looking for something more powerful.

It's better to not invest my time on software that is overly restrictive when more useful options are available, even if I don't need all of those options right now because it'll save me the trouble of having to hunt down something better later since I've already got what I need on my systems.