"There are of course situations where choice is needed, as indeed in the case which spawned this discussion. The key realisation is that there are different ways to present choice. Too often, we’re given choice as a first resort; instead, present choice as a last resort. If the user must be able to choose, then let them do so by overriding a sensibly-chosen default behaviour – and ensure that such situations are as rare as you can make them."

Engineer Thinking » Matt Legend Gemmell

This is a truly insightful post on how user experience design and engineer thinking seem to be at odds. Great read.