![bloomberg terminal interface bloomberg terminal interface](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/LE8HiHZcgEE/maxresdefault.jpg)
BBG is the most elite social network in the world, and if you don't have a BBG terminal, you're not able to participate. It's about workflow and speed to insight. Why would people whose jobs depend on extreme efficiency and accuracy in the face of incredibly high stakes use tools that aren't extremely efficient and accurate? Yes, of course, Bloomberg terminals are ugly by today's visual design standards. Having worked as a designer in finance for the past five years, and having done a lot of primary ethnographic research with traders and portfolio managers, I can tell you that this idea that users "like tools that suck" is patently wrong. I get so tired of designers with no direct experience in the industry writing this same article over and over. The genius of the Bloomberg terminal onscreen interface and keyboard is that they hit a sweet spot in functionality providing a familiar place to rest your fingers and also provides dedicated functionality to their own application with a moderate learning curve.
BLOOMBERG TERMINAL INTERFACE CODE
It's most powerful when seemlessly integrated into a trader's work-flow all on a single machine which usually includes Excel, Outlook, Twitter and every IM service out there on top of order-execution interfaces tied to assisting algorithms that many traders code themselves. Dedicating a single computer to Bloomberg might sound sexy, but in reality that's a setup that helps few. Specifically, one must realize that the Bloomberg keyboard must function as a standard computer interface, not as purpose-built control panel. Bloomberg terminals remain relevant in a difficult economy despite its price because they succeed where many other services fail. Gone are the days when traders could spend piles of someone else's money on tools they don't need.
![bloomberg terminal interface bloomberg terminal interface](https://images.fastcompany.net/image/upload/w_596,c_limit,q_auto:best,f_auto/fc/3051883-inline-vintagebloomberg.jpg)
Unfortunately, critical posts and articles often over-simplify the multitude of factors that need to be taken into account which invariably allows for an uncompromising attitude by the author/critic often leading to superior tone.