Even microwave ovens have become prey to the hellscape of nested menus! How did we get here, how do we fix it, and what does any of this have to do with software?

Through the lens of microwave ovens, we cover: (1) how minimalist interface design conflicts with engineering and business constraints, (2) how/why to measure customer latency from initial desire to end results, (3) how to identify and expose "essential" variables in systems, and (4) common tools/patterns for implementing minimal interfaces.