I can’t speak to it but just because something is tested occasionally doesn’t mean the testing budgets are the same or serve the same purpose.
For example, the feature set required to support the HTML page could be frozen and the APIs backing them stable with no need to change. So testing isn’t really necessary. Alternatively, there’s just API changes being made to remove dependencies on deprecated code and so the testing coverage comes from the testing that happens of that API surface through other means. Finally, it could be that the HTML page is even fully staffed to support emerging markets. That’s a different budget potentially than the budget for the “rich” UI.
Again, my point isn’t to argue over the specific business pressures and practices Google has for their email UI. This requires a level of knowledge I don’t think either of us possess. All I’m trying to do is illustrate that there could be all kinds of pressures why the system is the way it is, but dismissing it as “laziness” or “stupidness” on the part of the designer is itself a lazy and stupid conclusion to make without concrete evidence. I generally assume that’s not the case and look for the incentives/pressures those people are under until there’s overwhelming evidence those people are actually stupid/incompetent (and even then, the question becomes what structures, incentives, pressures were in place to put those people in positions they shouldn’t occupy).
For example, the feature set required to support the HTML page could be frozen and the APIs backing them stable with no need to change. So testing isn’t really necessary. Alternatively, there’s just API changes being made to remove dependencies on deprecated code and so the testing coverage comes from the testing that happens of that API surface through other means. Finally, it could be that the HTML page is even fully staffed to support emerging markets. That’s a different budget potentially than the budget for the “rich” UI.
Again, my point isn’t to argue over the specific business pressures and practices Google has for their email UI. This requires a level of knowledge I don’t think either of us possess. All I’m trying to do is illustrate that there could be all kinds of pressures why the system is the way it is, but dismissing it as “laziness” or “stupidness” on the part of the designer is itself a lazy and stupid conclusion to make without concrete evidence. I generally assume that’s not the case and look for the incentives/pressures those people are under until there’s overwhelming evidence those people are actually stupid/incompetent (and even then, the question becomes what structures, incentives, pressures were in place to put those people in positions they shouldn’t occupy).