A designer I worked with years ago had a great explanation for why consistency is important.
It’s not about a limited colour palette or a careful selection of fonts no one will ever notice. Chasing the specifics makes horrible software. Some people equate less diversity in their UI to more consistency.
It’s about letting someone become an expert in your software.
Microsoft office was always his example. People pride themselves on “knowing” Microsoft office. They jump between all of the apps because they have a feel for the inertia of “office”. I have the exact same feeling in Vim. I just know how things are expected to be, and new (well made) plugins tend to respect those patterns.
Office and (Neo)Vim aren’t exceptional examples of UI, but they are uniquely stable.
It’s not about a limited colour palette or a careful selection of fonts no one will ever notice. Chasing the specifics makes horrible software. Some people equate less diversity in their UI to more consistency.
It’s about letting someone become an expert in your software.
Microsoft office was always his example. People pride themselves on “knowing” Microsoft office. They jump between all of the apps because they have a feel for the inertia of “office”. I have the exact same feeling in Vim. I just know how things are expected to be, and new (well made) plugins tend to respect those patterns.
Office and (Neo)Vim aren’t exceptional examples of UI, but they are uniquely stable.