Confusing Door Lock Instructions: Reddit Reacts to 'How Do You Lock It?' Image

A recent image posted on Reddit titled "How do you lock it?" has sparked a mixture of frustration and humor among users. The image depicts a wooden door adorned with numerous signs, all attempting to convey a simple message: to lock the door by pushing a button without turning it.

The door, featuring a cylindrical lock and a horizontal handle, bears six signs, with another sign posted on the adjacent wall. Every sign is printed on white paper with black text formatted in various ways. The repetitive instructions include phrases like "JUST PUSH TO LOCK DO NOT TURN!!!", "PUSH TO LOCK DO NOT TURN!!!", "IF YOU JUST PUSH THE BUTTON STRAIGHT IN, WITHOUT TURNING, THE DOOR IS LOCKED.", "PLEASE DO NOT TURN THE LOCK. PUSH TO LOCK.", and "SIMPLY PUSH TO LOCK."

User comments reflect a range of reactions. One user, with a background in science museums, humorously noted, "I believe no one reads signs- not the visitors, not the staff (including the people who wrote the signs)." Another user pointed out, "Without the bottom left instruction I genuinely wouldn't know how to lock the door," highlighting the confusion caused by the multitude of signs.

The debate continued with suggestions for improvement. One user commented, "Maybe..change the lock to one people understand. If you need this much instruction you f***ed up," while another suggested, "The lower left sign is the only good one. I read all the other ones and thought they were talking about the door, not the button on the handle."

A particularly insightful comment mentioned, "If you turn it then every time the door is shut it locks automatically so when the person leaves the bathroom the door locks behind them. The signs are from a frustrated maintenance man who is tired of having to unlock the door after every person uses the bathroom. What maintenance needs to do though is get a different kind of lock."

The redundancy of the signs was also a point of contention. Users expressed confusion over the necessity of so many instructions, with one user stating, "Reads signs 1-4: OK so I push the door shut and it locks automatically? Not sure why so many signs? How are people getting this wrong?" and another adding, "Doesn't read sign six. Who reads six signs? I already simply pushed. I don't know anything about any button."

Ultimately, this Reddit post serves as a humorous yet telling example of how overly complicated instructions can lead to confusion rather than clarity. The consensus among users seems to be that a simpler lock design would eliminate the need for such extensive instructions, making life easier for everyone involved.