One of the things I’ve been very happy about in newer web interfaces is that I don’t have to use a “Save” button. Google docs and GMail are good examples of these. The system backs up the changes I make while I’m making them – or at least frequently enough that I don’t feel compelled to use the save button. I like this a lot. It frees me from worry and from an additional step. Apple has also been using this for a while in system settings. You make a change to your system preferences and those changes are simply made. No saving involved. You aren’t doing anything that can’t be undone, so why worry about the additional step?
That’s why I was really surprised when I went to change my connected sites in Google Buzz and, completely ignoring the save button (like banner ad blindness, I guess I’ve become blind to save buttons as well?) I got an alert that prompted me to either lose the changes I made or go back to the previous screen and hit the save button. WHAT?
The changes I’m making here are simple and certainly aren’t permanent. The task is simply moving a finite number of items from one bucket (not connected) to another (connected). And rather than closing the dialog after making changes, I am forced to use the save button.
It’s really strange for Google, being outside of their general UI metaphor, and kind of a backward step in online applications.
Go back! In time.
