There’s no way to figure out the radio or the guidance system on a modern car without taking your eyes off the road long enough to get yourself killed. From Eric Peters at ericpetersautos.com:
Perfection can be achieved.
Or – at least – it is sometimes the case that there’s no better way to do something. How many different ways – how many better ways – can there be to turn something Off that was On?
Is there a better way than turning a knob left or right to turn up – or down – the volume? How about changing the station?
Arguably, there are few. And fewer that constitute an improvement.
And yet, the car companies continue to try coming up with new ways that are not better ways.
If you have tried to listen to or adjust the radio in almost any new car – there are still, gratefully, a few exceptions – you will already be familiar with this.
Rather than a knob – or a button – or some other self-evident, simple control mechanism – you have a screen with a menu that must be scrolled through. Often there are inscrutable icons the meaning of which must first be deciphered – and then remembered. These vary from car-to-car, adding another layer of gratuitous complexity. (Imagine a world in which you had to figure out which symbol stood for the Men’s room and which for the Women’s. We’re getting there, too.)
