This post seems to show the limitations of malleable systems: https://medium.com/diesdas-direct/notion-encourages-busy-work-and-im-tired-of-it-b1e049edb663

interesting, I feel like a takeaway is, even when we have tools that remove as much accidental complexity as possible from software creation, there’s still the essential complexity of how to actually design the app well. Whether everyone can/should be an app creator is an open question

I read this before and had a different take. Caveat: I haven't used notion, and my project is a malleability project, so I'm bought in. The first two points (notifications and lack of design) actually seem like notion just isn't malleable enough. Notifications should be customizable based on the meaning of the way something is being used. Same with the graphical components. I want a sane default appearance and the ability to relayout things according to my preferences. As for the endless tweaking, I have two thoughts: it's good that people are able to customize things and explore new workflows, and it's bad that existing work isn't being discovered and repurposed. It sounds like reinvention (and some amount of incompatibility/churn) is the problem, more than the inclination to tweak things. Which is why I think any kind of malleability project should also have, like, an app store or component library, or some good way of sharing the work that has been accomplished.

“Too often people can’t handle the great power Notion gives them: they frequently build the most sophisticated, most complex solution for a problem because that makes them look smart. “ A good description of the problem of software in general.

There are three levels to information management: 1. Information is lost 2. Information is disorganized 3. Information is usable The writer appears to be looking at the growing pains between 2 and 3, and asking why can’t we just go back to 0?

I'm trying to take my rigid project management system and make it something much more malleable, so the last point hits home with me. My biggest fear is I'm dumping too much work on the user and designing these systems is not their area of expertise. I'm hoping that that I can provide enough structure to guide the user but also keep the system flexible enough for them to fullfil their needs.