Interesting example. That's what I would call quite good design. Bear with me.
Yes, it does look overwhelming on first impression. But that's just a first impression. Look at it more closely.
What this software implements is a multi-step pipe, where each step is configurable. Every UI element you see represents a useful feature in minimal way. They're all, arguably, essential complexity of the task. The steps are both ordered spatially and explicitly numbered. They can be configured both by mouse and by keyboard. You have an interactive live preview at the top, telling you what the current configuration will change and how. Most important here, however, is that you always see the entire configuration. There are no hidden dialogs, no steps or tabs - what you see on the screen is what's going to be done to the data.
Is it pretty? Not really, though I'd say they've done a good job given the constraints of native Windows UI. Is it useful? You bet. Is it hard to learn? Not really (as long as you speak English). I assume there's a manual attached to the program that will at least guide less tech-savvy people towards basics of regular expressions, but beyond that, the software seems to support both manual-based and interactive "trial&error" learning.
In all honesty, this is an extreme case of what I call UI optimized for utility. Good POS software looks like that. Good inventory management software looks like that. This kind of design is appreciated by people who have to work with an application frequently - e.g. as a part of their dayjob - because it saves time while playing into strengths of human perception.
Yes, it does look overwhelming on first impression. But that's just a first impression. Look at it more closely.
What this software implements is a multi-step pipe, where each step is configurable. Every UI element you see represents a useful feature in minimal way. They're all, arguably, essential complexity of the task. The steps are both ordered spatially and explicitly numbered. They can be configured both by mouse and by keyboard. You have an interactive live preview at the top, telling you what the current configuration will change and how. Most important here, however, is that you always see the entire configuration. There are no hidden dialogs, no steps or tabs - what you see on the screen is what's going to be done to the data.
Is it pretty? Not really, though I'd say they've done a good job given the constraints of native Windows UI. Is it useful? You bet. Is it hard to learn? Not really (as long as you speak English). I assume there's a manual attached to the program that will at least guide less tech-savvy people towards basics of regular expressions, but beyond that, the software seems to support both manual-based and interactive "trial&error" learning.
In all honesty, this is an extreme case of what I call UI optimized for utility. Good POS software looks like that. Good inventory management software looks like that. This kind of design is appreciated by people who have to work with an application frequently - e.g. as a part of their dayjob - because it saves time while playing into strengths of human perception.
I want more software to look like that.