Dpreview wants to cater to the simple people

On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:10:25 -0800 (PST), RichA
wrote in
:

Boo hoo hoo! The interfaces on the DSLRs and current P&S's confuse
them. They long for the simplicity of their iphones. Figures an
Apple fan would be crying about not understanding technology.

http://blog.dpreview.com/editorial/2...ase-for-a.html

I think the editorial is spot on.
--
Best regards,
John Navas
[PLEASE NOTE: Ads belong *only* in rec.photo.marketplace.digital, as per
http://bobatkins.photo.net/info/charter.htm http://rpdfaq.50megs.com/]

"John Navas" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:10:25 -0800 (PST), RichA
wrote in
:

Boo hoo hoo! The interfaces on the DSLRs and current P&S's confuse
them. They long for the simplicity of their iphones. Figures an
Apple fan would be crying about not understanding technology.

http://blog.dpreview.com/editorial/2...ase-for-a.html

I think the editorial is spot on.

Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling teeth.

"RichA" wrote in message
...

"John Navas" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:10:25 -0800 (PST), RichA
wrote in
:

Boo hoo hoo! The interfaces on the DSLRs and current P&S's confuse
them. They long for the simplicity of their iphones. Figures an
Apple fan would be crying about not understanding technology.

http://blog.dpreview.com/editorial/2...ase-for-a.html

I think the editorial is spot on.

Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling teeth.

count me as one of those who reads the manuals, but hates the interfaces and
menu systems on pretty much all digital cameras. I put up with them, but
truly hate them and would welcom a few knobs and dials in lieu of drilling
down a menu system for a simple comand.

On Sun, 14 Dec 2008 10:02:13 -0500, "bowser" wrote:


"RichA" wrote in message
...

"John Navas" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:10:25 -0800 (PST), RichA
wrote in
:

Boo hoo hoo! The interfaces on the DSLRs and current P&S's confuse
them. They long for the simplicity of their iphones. Figures an
Apple fan would be crying about not understanding technology.

http://blog.dpreview.com/editorial/2...ase-for-a.html

I think the editorial is spot on.

Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling teeth.

count me as one of those who reads the manuals, but hates the interfaces and
menu systems on pretty much all digital cameras. I put up with them, but
truly hate them and would welcom a few knobs and dials in lieu of drilling
down a menu system for a simple comand.

Then you need to learn to shop. One of my most favorite P&S cameras has one
button under every finger when holding the camera as one normally would. Manual
zoom and focus rings included. It's like having a keyboard with all fingers on
home-row. No need to ever enter any menu to change all the settings normally
used. Change any setting you need quicker than blinking an eye when you get your
eye-hand coordination worked out after a few days of use.

You would do well with reading manuals before buying any camera. This is why I'd
never buy a Nikon anything. The last time I was making a decision I did just
that and quickly ruled out Nikons. Their menu systems are so convoluted and
annoying, just reading the Nikon manual is a major headache. I can only imagine
how many missed shots you'd get by trying to use their menus. Buying a Nikon
digital would be just as good as not having any camera at all. I didn't even
have to test-drive one to know it would be a huge mistake.

On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 23:58:23 -0500, "RichA"
wrote in :

"John Navas" wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:10:25 -0800 (PST), RichA
wrote in
:

Boo hoo hoo! The interfaces on the DSLRs and current P&S's confuse
them. They long for the simplicity of their iphones. Figures an
Apple fan would be crying about not understanding technology.

http://blog.dpreview.com/editorial/2...ase-for-a.html

I think the editorial is spot on.

Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling teeth.

It shouldn't be necessary to read an owner's manual to use the product.
I can get in any car and drive it without reading the owner's manual.
It's called standardized controls.
--
Best regards,
John Navas
[PLEASE NOTE: Ads belong *only* in rec.photo.marketplace.digital, as per
http://bobatkins.photo.net/info/charter.htm http://rpdfaq.50megs.com/]

John Navas wrote:
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 23:58:23 -0500, "RichA"
[]
Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling
teeth.

It shouldn't be necessary to read an owner's manual to use the
product. I can get in any car and drive it without reading the
owner's manual. It's called standardized controls.

People should test-drive the camera they are interested in. I've had no
problems with any of the Nikon digital or film cameras I've owned - SLR,
compact and DSLR. I chose Nikon DSLR over Canon because of the handling -
much more important than how the manual is written, at least to me. Most
of the controls of today's cameras are fairly standardised, perhaps not
quite as much as those of a car.

David

On Sun, 14 Dec 2008 16:31:56 GMT, "David J Taylor"
wrote in
:

John Navas wrote:
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 23:58:23 -0500, "RichA"
[]
Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling
teeth.

It shouldn't be necessary to read an owner's manual to use the
product. I can get in any car and drive it without reading the
owner's manual. It's called standardized controls.

People should test-drive the camera they are interested in.

Good advice, but how do you think they should do that? I think that
generally means going to a local dealer, and I think that creates an
obligation to buy from that dealer -- doing that and then buying online
to get a cheaper price (from a seller that's not paying for a retail
storefront and demo equipment) isn't reasonable or fair. How many
people do you think are prepared to do that?

I've had no
problems with any of the Nikon digital or film cameras I've owned - SLR,
compact and DSLR. I chose Nikon DSLR over Canon because of the handling -
much more important than how the manual is written, at least to me.

The point of the editorial is not so much a matter of problems or how
well the manual is written as a matter of how hard it is to use a new
camera without having to read the manual and learn the control layout.

Most
of the controls of today's cameras are fairly standardised, perhaps not
quite as much as those of a car.

My own take is that they aren't even close to that kind of
standardization, that camera controls vary greatly, especially from
manufacturer to manufacturer, and that it all too often takes
considerable time and effort to learn a new layout.
--
Best regards,
John Navas
[PLEASE NOTE: Ads belong *only* in rec.photo.marketplace.digital, as per
http://bobatkins.photo.net/info/charter.htm http://rpdfaq.50megs.com/]

John Navas wrote:
[]
Good advice, but how do you think they should do that? I think that
generally means going to a local dealer, and I think that creates an
obligation to buy from that dealer -- doing that and then buying
online to get a cheaper price (from a seller that's not paying for a
retail storefront and demo equipment) isn't reasonable or fair. How
many people do you think are prepared to do that?

My takes on that has been that I am prepared to pay a small markup for
local service, and the prices at my local Jessops (UK chain store) are
reasonable. When I last checked, the prices at the small independant
shops were a lot higher and when I asked the shops about this they said
that the Internet price I could get was cheaper than the price they paid
wholesale. At least one of those shops has now closed.

Most
of the controls of today's cameras are fairly standardised, perhaps
not quite as much as those of a car.

My own take is that they aren't even close to that kind of
standardization, that camera controls vary greatly, especially from
manufacturer to manufacturer, and that it all too often takes
considerable time and effort to learn a new layout.

I happened to be in the situation of having a new compact camera one
evening, and needing to use it for a one-off event the next day. It was
very similar to other cameras - a four way dial, on-off switch, menu to
disable flash, zoom control, image replay function. Of course, learning
the fine points may have required some time, but basic usage was there
right away (in fact the camera might have failed for its target audience
otherwise). Another occasion - I was helping a friend buy their first
digital camera. They had decided on a Canon A640 (IIRC). I had no
problems just picking that camera up and using it. I'm sure you could
have done the same.

Cheers,
David

In rec.photo.digital.slr-systems John Navas wrote:
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 23:58:23 -0500, "RichA"
wrote in :

"John Navas" wrote in message
. ..
On Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:10:25 -0800 (PST), RichA
wrote in
:

Boo hoo hoo! The interfaces on the DSLRs and current P&S's confuse
them. They long for the simplicity of their iphones. Figures an
Apple fan would be crying about not understanding technology.

http://blog.dpreview.com/editorial/2...ase-for-a.html

I think the editorial is spot on.

Only for people for whom reading an owner's manual is like pulling teeth.

It shouldn't be necessary to read an owner's manual to use the product.
I can get in any car and drive it without reading the owner's manual.
It's called standardized controls.

And that's the reason one needs to read camera manuals: lack of
standardised controls.

--
Chris Malcolm

On Sun, 14 Dec 2008 17:23:09 GMT, "David J Taylor"
wrote in
:

John Navas wrote:

My own take is that they aren't even close to that kind of
standardization, that camera controls vary greatly, especially from
manufacturer to manufacturer, and that it all too often takes
considerable time and effort to learn a new layout.

I happened to be in the situation of having a new compact camera one
evening, and needing to use it for a one-off event the next day. It was
very similar to other cameras - a four way dial, on-off switch, menu to
disable flash, zoom control, image replay function. Of course, learning
the fine points may have required some time, but basic usage was there
right away (in fact the camera might have failed for its target audience
otherwise). Another occasion - I was helping a friend buy their first
digital camera. They had decided on a Canon A640 (IIRC). I had no
problems just picking that camera up and using it. I'm sure you could
have done the same.

I care about the fine points -- hit or miss (aka basic usage) isn't good
enough. I rarely rely entirely on the camera -- I'm usually tweaking a
bit, exposure compensation, forced flash, backlighting compensation,
selective focus, depth of field control, shutter speed control.
I suspect you're much the same.
--
Best regards,
John Navas
[PLEASE NOTE: Ads belong *only* in rec.photo.marketplace.digital, as per
http://bobatkins.photo.net/info/charter.htm http://rpdfaq.50megs.com/]