How many times have I seen a user get into a screwed up state on their computing device only to immediately blame themselves for their predicament. The software industry has relied on this technological insecurity for decades now. Why bother making software that doesn’t screw over the user, when the user will never blame the manufacturer anyway?

This stroke of luck won’t last. And software creators that take care to never let the user get screwed will have a leg up.

But this problem doesn’t end with users realizing that a product is crappy. The real problem is more insidious.

By creating software tool that let the users delete their own data, reconfigure their computers into undesirable states that they can’t get out of, or other manner of self-inflicted problems, we are teaching the users to tread carefully. Very carefully in fact. Software users are often afraid to click on anything. And clicking on things (or tapping, or speaking, or waving) is how users discover the magic of software. They need to try stuff.

Things are getting better with consumer grade technology products like the iPhone or the XBOX. But they’re still far from perfect. Of course you can’t babysit in every single case. If they want to delete an app from their iPhone, and they’re going to lose the data, they’re going to do it. Our tried and true solution to this issue as software professionals is… The CYA Dialog. That’s technical talk for the “Cover-your-ass dialog”.

Deleting this app will delete any data stored in the app. Do you want to continue to delete your app?

Data stored in my app? Huh? Most users will gloss right over that. And of the few remaining users that understood the instruction, the bulk of them knew this fact before they tried to delete the app. So what has happened? We’ve put an unintelligible speed bump in front of most users, and a redundant one in front of the rest.

As with so many difficult situations in life, the answer is forgiveness. Essentially… undo. Ubiquitous undo. Of course, the best option is to not let the user get into trouble. But once you’ve eliminated those cases, provide some forgiveness for the user so if they do head down an unintended path, they can get out of it in a reasonable and straightforward way. This doesn’t have to be an undo that lasts forever. It could last a few seconds, minutes, or even days. But it’s something that just happens.

The beauty of forgiveness is that once it becomes a feature that users come to expect, they’ll be able to click, tap, speak, and wave with impunity. Exploring software will once again be a magical experience instead of one fraught with potential landmines. And that’s good for everyone.