In Norway, one of the regional health authorities have recently replaced its old software. The replacement, Helseplattformen (The Health Platform, based on Epic Systems’ software) has been making headlines since before its introduction. Doctors and nurses first warned about bad usability and seeming instabilities which would lead to data loss and lower quality treatment. Their warnings were ignored, but have since become a reality. You can follow the news about the system on https://helvetesplattformen.no (“the hell platform”)
While there is certainly such a thing as bad software, a lot of old software actually has its merits, and its users will often tell you about them if you ask. In my experience, developing a desktop app for a point of sales/backoffice, the users were often very satisfied with the old software we were replacing. They liked how fast they got things done with it: For instance, the old software had keyboard shortcuts for everything. Its layout was more information dense.
While there is certainly such a thing as bad software, a lot of old software actually has its merits, and its users will often tell you about them if you ask. In my experience, developing a desktop app for a point of sales/backoffice, the users were often very satisfied with the old software we were replacing. They liked how fast they got things done with it: For instance, the old software had keyboard shortcuts for everything. Its layout was more information dense.