Ask HN: Easiest UX for Seniors

I help my grandparents out with computer stuff quite a bit, but I live far away, so I usually have to help over the phone. So having an interface that you can easily describe over the phone is pretty important to me.

When I try to sign in to most apps on my TV, it usually displays an code that you can type in on another device so that you don't have to type in a long password using the D-pad on the remote. Could you maybe implement something similar for your website? This way, my grandmother could just call and read me a code, and then I could handle the sign in remotely. As long as you only need to sign in ~once a year, this would be my preferred option.

Not all seniors have trusted friends/family who can help them, but lots do, so making it easier for the helpers will in turn make it easier for the seniors. Plus, there's no phishing risk for the senior with this method, so it's a relatively secure option too. (There is a phishing risk for the helper, but presumably they're the least vulnerable person in this scenario)

My dad is in his 80s. He keeps careful notes on how to use devices like tablets and TVs. There might be a touch of engineer-brain at work here, but the struggle is very real. He generally wouldn't take in all of the text and symbols on a screen if there is a lot of going on, or might get hung up on the wrong parts of it. He generally wouldn't find a modern interface at all "intuitive".

Any change to an interface is going to disrupt this, so one thing would be to change the interface only very rarely and carefully.

Facebook must have optimized for this. Do whatever they do.

And make it so they don't have to log back in frequently.

I like the AAA WCAG recommendation. I'd also recommend from my casual experience listening to lots of old people...

- a large font size by default, and maybe a font size slider on the homepage. Test everything at 200-300% scale as WCAG recommends

- don't change the UI! Or change as little as possible, at least for existing users. Which kinda upturns the whole always-updating nature of web SaaS but I think it can be done

- hire a good designer who can streamline your UX and screens and keep only the bare minimum features

- maybe offer human support? Like a phone number? Probably unreasonable for you tho

Wish I had ideas for simpler login and auth.

Have you found any successful design strategies in your 10 years? Any insights from user testing?

I can relate because my dad is 84 and he really struggles with simple things like entering a password to sign in to Gmail. He forgets what he did last time and so I'm back to explaining how moving his mouse causes the pointy-arrow thing move around on the screen, to get it pointed at the wide rectangle near the middle of the screen, etc. No UI library is going to solve his struggles.

I solved most of the sign-in problem for my dad by picking a simpler browser than Google Chrome, and by tweaking his browser settings to be just-so. That's not going to be much help for you, the website creator...

Maybe allow passkeys for login? These days, passkeys usually get stored/supplied by the underlying OS. (By usually, I mean that's the statistically most common source of the passkey today. They can also come from a browser plugin or a hardware key.)

I quite like the new trend where you can login just by entering the 2fa on SMS or email. Skip the whole username/password.

A valuable approach is to aim for AAA WCAG conformance. Obviously it isn't a perfect way to go about it and there are other considerations here, but at level AAA you're more likely than not ensuring an extremely clear and usable interface.

Put in phone number, get sent an SMS with a code.

I am really interested in the concept of elder/senior citizen technology. The basic design concept for them is answering "what am I looking at?"

I created this tool (https://anftr.com/) for some of my ex-colleagues in their early 50s who were trying to navigate the world of office software. They were struggling with Microsoft Word and Excel, and I have seen them yell at ChatGPT and bash their mouses constantly, hoping the computer will load files faster.

Essentially, you focus on text and video demos. The foundational design concept for elder tech is providing clear instructions and minimizing interactions.

If you want them to sign in, you should not require them to press a button more than two times.

To address things they tend to forget, consider a human custodian or "IT concierge" model, please. The reality is that after a certain age, people really struggle to learn new things and prefer talking to a person for help. Technology has its limitations.

If you are working with users aged 50 to 80, provide them with a phone number and charge a subscription for the service or a one-time payment. It might be borderline exploitative, but I have noticed that elderly individuals want a "solution" rather than a lesson.

You explain how to do something, and if they are eager to learn, they will. You offer them a solution either way. Please do not create a monetization model for this custodian service and keep the charge as low as possible.

The money you receive from this serves purposes: it is designed to help them second guess and try to help themselves. If you do not charge for something, they will just keep asking you questions. When you charge for something, they perceive it to have more value compared to it being free.

Do not prioritize ease of operation that compromises their security.

1. bind user to email

2. allow login via magic link via email, after login the jwt/cookie/whatever should have no expiration date

3. (optional) allow one user to have multiple emails + merging accounts/users (call it backup email to collecr multiple user emails in advance, soft nudging only, not mandatory to use the product!)

4. (optional) offer any other way to login (un+pwd), google oAuth…

It‘s THAT easy.

easiest ui is no ui

I mean the UX is not having dementia and that's entirely another matter. I hate the idea that if you're old you can't use computers like a normal person.