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Ask HN: What is a frustrating paid software/service that you/your company use?

18 points by ideaslist ↗ HN
I'm curious to hear about what paid software or service is causing frustration among users - to the point that you are seriously considering alternatives.

I'll pick a random idea from here that sounds interesting, feasible, and build an alternative.

Edit: If it would be uncouth for you to name a specific software/service, even learning what it is supposed to do, why it is a frustrating experience, and the price tag would be very helpful.

18 comments

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gregmorton
Windows?
ideaslist
Could you clarify what specifically about Windows is causing you frustration? Are you forced to write code on Windows machines, do you do business work on Windows machines, pesky management that won't let you try other options?
BjoernKW
Few people probably use Windows for its own merits but rather because it's either required in order to be able to use a specific software or mandated by the environment you're working in. There are better alternatives (macOS and Linux being the most widely used ones) but you can't always use those.
dukeflukem
I admit I prefer windows for home and work use. Might be because I am more used to the UI etc. and I'm not a command line animal. Although happy to use shell and vi when appropriate
badpun
Skype for Business. Much worse than the free Skype.
billconan
confluence is too slow.

workday is difficult to use, doesn't allow selecting multiple positions at once.

webex, improved recently, but has usability issues.

fern12
We use Concur for reimburseable travel. I can't stand it. The interface is very confusing, especially when it comes to approving a travel voucher. I work at a large government agency, so change occurs at a glacial pace, but I imagine other employers face similar frustrations.
bradknowles
I am not currently forced to use Concur, but I did have that problem at a previous employer.

So, IMO, anything that helps kill Concur is a winner in my book.

muzani
The whole MS Office suite. Their competitors are worse though.

They're very slow and tedious. It takes a while to draw a border, adjust an image. I write my business plan in Sublime instead of Word because of how much easier it is. I think this has been why so many people have adopted Markdown. It would be nice to see a Word style text editor that's as easy to modify as Markdown, or even a more user friendly version of LaTeX.

kull
I live in Google Docs and I love it. Did you know in google spreadsheet you can use things like =GoogleTranslate("dog","en","es") ?
btschaegg
On the LaTeX part: Do you know about BaKoMa TeX[1]?

Disclosure: I've never actually used it myself, but I've been thinking about buying a license to show it off (back in my masters degree, I had a couple of discussions about the merits of LaTeX vs MS Word for writing a thesis).

[1]: http://www.bakoma-tex.com/

tedmiston
Honestly, Slack is so slow and resource intensive for what it does. I've been using the web app version more lately which fixes a lot of the issues but it also comes with significant limitations like not showing you as online if the tab is backgrounded.
matt_the_bass
Quickbooks enterprise! The web version of QB fries not meet out inventory needs. The desktop version sucks! But it is industry standard.
PeOe
My team and I have been using JIRA a few years back. We weren´t really happy with the developer-features but the general usability for anyone else in the company (marketing etc.)was even more antagonizing. Now we use http://zenkit.com and everyone´s happy!
gesman
Vidyo for conferencing. Constantly rotating mugshots as people join and leave. CPU hog.

I use Webex whenever I can.

jackgolding
Any HR system - only thing that has been broken every single job I've had.