Ahmed Shuja is a UX Designer!

Advice for Google and Google+ Team

Here’s the thing guys… if your product is not really ready for launch, then DON’T launch. 

First of all, why exactly are you shoving Picasa photo albums down my throat? Why do I HAVE to link it? And if I HAVE to link it then why exactly are you asking me to press a button? It was the only possible button to be clicked for joining Google+ after I clicked the “Join” button! How about you just tell me… “Hey Ahmed, we will be linking Picasa photo albums”. Oops! You couldn’t really say that now could you? Especially the part where you say my name? It’s the name bit by the way that really ticked me off… keep reading… 

My name is “Ahmed Shuja”. First name “Ahmed” and Last name “Shuja”. It has been this for more than 3 decades. Search for this name on your search engine (probably the only Google product that actually works) and you’ll find out this is the name I am “commonly referred to in real life”. 

Guess what, you picked up my name YOURSELF from my Google Account information. I didn’t even have to type it into any text fields myself. How come my name doesn’t comply with your naming policy? You should probably talk to my parents about this one any way. Probably they didn’t review your extremely ambiguous naming policy back then. 

Check out the screen capture below.

There’s a neat link, which says that I should provide more information if you’ve made a mistake. I clicked it. To my surprise and horror I ended up on a contact page that was so confusing that, yes, you guessed it, I closed it! hoping that you will figure out that my name is OKAY on your own some day and un-suspend my profile! because currently as per Google+ the brief description of Ahmed Shuja is “Your Profile is suspended”

Sorry lads, if not too much, I’m a little more than that. 

Here’s the bottom line. I do not wish for Google to “Approve” my name. Even in the online world, my name is “accepted” by every other possibly website and social network. Yes that includes Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and many others. 

I really don’t have so much time to wait for Google+ to “Approve” my name. Or even to delete my profile. I’d be happier ignoring it completely, considering the fiascos that I have had with the same some time back. 

My last bit of Advice to you… Joining a web application is supposed to be the easiest for users, not the hardest. Focus on that in your product design if your product really is just a me-too product! 

Best Wishes,

First name:”Ahmed” Last name: “Shuja”

I miss the 80s and the 90s

What I am trying to say is, that I almost hate this modern connected world we now live in. It is killing the joy of reality. The multidimensional interaction we have with people face to face is extremely rich. It literally excites us at all active senses.

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