Recently i wrote about the design of the hot water dispensers in offices, which are functional but are not pragmatic. Here's another example of a bad design
After some years, i went to the railway reservation office in central station, chennai to book travel tickets for self and family. I also wanted to see my brother who is employed with southern railways, his work place that day was situated inside the platform, the access to which is normally, either with a valid travel ticket / platform ticket. Since i did not have a valid ticket for that day, i decided to buy a platform ticket, when i approachedd the counter, there was a queue of about 6-7 people, i also saw a little box titled automatic platform ticket issuing machine, the tender for the platform ticket was Rs.3/=. I promptly dropped a two rupee coin and a one rupee coin, then waited for the ticket, ticket did not come, i gently tapped the machine, hoping it would realise its folly and issue a ticket, then saw the display, to my dismay, it showed only Rs.2/, I had to part with another rupee. so here i was paying Rs.4 for a Rs.3/= ticket and because someone had designed the machine that way.
Things that could have been better.
1. The facility could have been designed to take in various rupee tenders into account.
2. In the absence of such design, which would have been known during the design / testing phase, atleast put up a notice of what constitutes a valid tender on the machine.
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Friday, March 10, 2006
Parental Pride
We(self and wife) had the privilege of observing our 3 year old son Anush in school today. It is an experience that would be etched in our memory for a long time. There were mixed emotions for me.
The class Duration is for about 3.00 hours (8.30 AM to 11:30 AM).
Everything about the class was interesting and in a sense intriguing to us.The way the teacher engaged the class, the way the toddlers hung on to everything their teacher said or did. It reminded me of an observation a friend made a while ago, "Almost Every virtue a person needs to lead a good life is taught in the kinder garden /primary education, - Respect Elders, Cleanliness, eat & sleep at appointed times, help others in need, say thank you, be polite, say the truth...". I realised how true our observation was today, as the class teacher, in her stride, taught her pupil to thank, to respect, to wish.
The Session was packed with activities galore, Kids learnt to say something is on the table, something is under the table., however i was astonished when the teacher introduced 'Abra-ca-dabra' to the class in a game on finding missing items. The teacher and her support staff do an admirable job of keeping this bubbly, energetic, enthusiastic kids engaged for three hours. I have always had a special place for teachers in my heart, they play such an important role in imparting priceless traits year after year to the society.
For most of the session, my eyes and attention remained fixated on Anush and his teacher, occasionally batting my lid. I noticed that the pride in me rose with every correct thing that anush did /said. To his credit, Anush kept the pride at dizzying heights.
C'mmon Parents, how about not loading your mind with expectations and then goading your ward about it?
The class Duration is for about 3.00 hours (8.30 AM to 11:30 AM).
Everything about the class was interesting and in a sense intriguing to us.The way the teacher engaged the class, the way the toddlers hung on to everything their teacher said or did. It reminded me of an observation a friend made a while ago, "Almost Every virtue a person needs to lead a good life is taught in the kinder garden /primary education, - Respect Elders, Cleanliness, eat & sleep at appointed times, help others in need, say thank you, be polite, say the truth...". I realised how true our observation was today, as the class teacher, in her stride, taught her pupil to thank, to respect, to wish.
The Session was packed with activities galore, Kids learnt to say something is on the table, something is under the table., however i was astonished when the teacher introduced 'Abra-ca-dabra' to the class in a game on finding missing items. The teacher and her support staff do an admirable job of keeping this bubbly, energetic, enthusiastic kids engaged for three hours. I have always had a special place for teachers in my heart, they play such an important role in imparting priceless traits year after year to the society.
For most of the session, my eyes and attention remained fixated on Anush and his teacher, occasionally batting my lid. I noticed that the pride in me rose with every correct thing that anush did /said. To his credit, Anush kept the pride at dizzying heights.
C'mmon Parents, how about not loading your mind with expectations and then goading your ward about it?
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