An older person stands at a hospital gate and cannot find the code for the health form. The words on the screen are small and grey. A finger that has lost some of its touch presses the wrong box, and the page changes to something new. In a few seconds the phone has stopped feeling like a helper.
About one in five people in China is over sixty, and the number is rising. Most of them use a phone, but a large share use only part of it. Surveys repeatedly find the same three complaints: the letters are too small, the steps are too many, and when something goes wrong there is nobody to ask.
Designers are beginning to change the way they work. Instead of simply making the interface louder and larger, some teams now watch older users struggle with the real device and then rebuild the flow. A payment might drop from seven steps to two, or a single press may be enough to call a family member.
There is also a lesson about language. Ordinary words work better than technical ones. An elderly user does not look for a cache or a setting; they look for a word that means the thing they want to do. Labels like pay the water bill and call my son are understood far more quickly than the names used in the software.
Technology will never remove every difficulty, and some tasks are better done face to face. But a product that expects the user to adapt to it has got the direction of the change the wrong way round. A design that changes itself to fit the person is not a kindness. It is simply good engineering.
Words to know:
- interface (n. 界面，接口)
- elderly (adj. 年长的，上了年纪的)
- complaint (n. 抱怨，投诉)
- label (n. 标签，标识)
- adapt (v. 适应，调整)
- survey (n. 调查，调研)
- struggle (v. 挣扎，费力应对)
- design (n./v. 设计)
长难句拆解 · instead of 引导的介词短语 + 时间状语从句 + 并列谓语
原文：Instead of simply making the interface louder and larger, some teams now watch older users struggle with the real device and then rebuild the flow.
拆解：主干是 some teams watch older users struggle with the real device and then rebuild the flow（一些团队观察年长用户在使用真机时的犯难，然后重新设计流程）。句首的 Instead of … 是介词短语作状语，instead of 后接动名词 making，表示「不是……而是……」。主句主语是 some teams，谓语有两个并列动作：watch 和 rebuild。watch sb do sth 是固定搭配，watch 后接不带 to 的不定式 struggle，表示观察到整个动作过程。the flow 在此指操作流程，是设计行业的常用说法。
直译：一些团队不再只是把界面做得更响更大，而是观察年长用户在使用真机时如何犯难，然后重新设计流程。
同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器
雅思阅读最爱把原文的词换成另一个说法来出题，认出这些替换，定位就能快一半。
- cannot find the code for the health form → is unable to locate the form’s QR code（find ＝ locate）
- A finger that has lost some of its touch → a finger that is no longer fully sensitive（lose touch ＝ 失去灵敏）
- the phone has stopped feeling like a helper → the device no longer seems helpful（helper ＝ 帮手）
- use only part of it → make use of just some of its functions（part ＝ 一部分功能）
- watch older users struggle → observe elderly people having difficulty（struggle ＝ have difficulty）
- a single press may be enough → one touch may be all that is needed（press ＝ touch）
- has got the direction of the change the wrong way round → has understood the change backwards（the wrong way round ＝ 弄反了）
阅读自测 · 3 题
- T / F / NG：中国目前约五分之一的人口超过六十岁，且这一比例仍在上升。（判断正误并说明依据）
- 简答：调查反复发现的老年人对手机的三条抱怨是什么？
- 选词填空：A product that expects the user to ____ to it has got the direction wrong.（供选：adapt / adopt / add）
参考答案与解析
- TRUE。原文第一段之后说 About one in five people in China is over sixty, and the number is rising。one in five 即五分之一，与题目一致；and the number is rising 对应「这一比例仍在上升」。
- 字太小、步骤太多、出了问题没人可问。原文说 Surveys repeatedly find the same three complaints: the letters are too small, the steps are too many, and when something goes wrong there is nobody to ask。三条抱怨须完整答出。
- adapt。adapt to 是固定搭配，意为「适应……」，与原文 a product that expects the user to adapt to it 完全一致。adopt 意为「采用、收养」，add 意为「增加」，都不能与 to 搭配表达「适应」。
中文译文
一位老人在医院门口站着，找不到健康登记表的二维码。屏幕上的字又小又灰。一根已经不太灵便的手指按错了按钮，页面随即跳到了陌生的地方。几秒钟之内，这部手机就不再像一个帮手了。
中国约有五分之一的人口超过六十岁，这个比例还在上升。他们中多数人用手机，但很大一部分只用到其中一小部分功能。多项调查反复发现同样三条抱怨：字太小、步骤太多、出了问题没人可问。
设计者开始改变工作方式。一些团队不再只是把界面做得更响更亮，而是观察老年用户在使用真机时如何犯难，再重新设计流程。一次支付可能从七步减到两步，或者只按一下就能拨通家人。
关于语言也有一课。日常词汇比专业术语更好用。年长用户不会去找什么缓存或设置，他们找的是一个能说明自己想做什么的词。像「交水费」「打电话给儿子」这样的标签，比软件里那些名称更容易被立刻理解。
技术不可能消除所有困难，有些事面对面做确实更好。但一款要求用户去适应它的产品，把改变的方向弄反了。一个主动改变自己来适应人的设计，不是一种恩惠，而只是好的工程。