Design of Everyday Things - Norman, Don [52]
4.2 The Design of Doors. The doors at the left show two excellent examples of design: different handles, side by side on the same automobile, each neatly signaling its proper operation. The vertical placement of the lever on the handle to the left causes the hand to be held in a vertical plane, signifying a slide. The horizontal placement of the lever on the door handle to the right, coupled with the overhang and indentation that neatly afford entrance by the hand, signifies a pull. Two different types of doors, adjacent to one another, and yet there is no confusion between them.
The handle depicted at the left shows inappropriate signals. This form of handle clearly marks grasp, twist, or pull—except that this particular door slides: a classic case of inappropriate design.
At left and below are photographs of hardware for doors that open by being pulled. The large plates at the left are a signal to push, but in fact the door is supposed to be pulled: no wonder the door needs the signs. The simple U-shaped brackets below is a much better design, but they are ambiguous enough that a sign still seems to be needed. Contrast with the two handles at the top, neither of which needs a sign yet is always operated properly. If a door handle needs a sign, then its design is probably faulty.
4.3 Doors in Two Commercial Buildings. Pushing the bar opens the door, but on which side do you push? Bar A (above) hides the signal, making it impossible to know on which side to push. A frustrating door. Bar B (below) has a flat plate mounted on the side that is to be pushed; this is a naturally interpreted signal. A nice design, no frustration for the user.
Some doors have appropriate hardware, well placed. The outside door handles of most modern automobiles are excellent examples of design. The handles are often recessed receptacles that simultaneously indicate the place and mode of action: the receptacle cannot be used except by inserting the fingers and pulling. Horizontal slits guide the hand into a pulling position; vertical slits signal a sliding motion. Strangely enough, the inside door handles for automobiles tell a different story. Here, the designer has faced a different kind of problem, and the appropriate solution has not yet been found. As a result, although the outside door handles of cars are often excellent, the inside ones are often difficult to find, hard to figure out how to operate, and difficult to use.
Unfortunately, the worst door hardware is found where we spend most of our time: at home and in the office. In many cases, the choice of hardware appears haphazard, used for convenience (or profitability). Architects and interior designers seem to prefer designs that are visually elegant and win prizes. This often means that a door and its hardware are designed to merge with the interior: the door may barely be visible, the hardware merges with door, and the operation is completely obscure. From my experience, the worst offenders are cabinet doors. It is sometimes not even possible to determine where the doors are, let alone whether and from where they are slid, lifted, pushed, or pulled. The focus on aesthetics may blind the designer (and the purchaser) to the lack of usability.
A particularly frustrating design is that of the door that opens outward by being pushed inward. The push releases the catch and energizes a spring, so that when the hand is taken away the door springs open. It’s a very clever design, but most puzzling to the first-time user. A plate would be