03 November 2011

Design FundamentalsUser Experience, Aesthetics, Process

Tonight What Is Design Design Principles Design Process

What Is Design?

Quote:

A designer is a visually literate person, just as an editor is expected by training and inclination to be versed in language and literature…

Douglas Martin, Book Design,quoted in Designing Visual Interfaces (8)

The KeyGood interface design enables increased productivity, reduces errors, and provides a “better” user experience

Our Goal

Obvious Design = “Don’t Make Me Think” Design

Design Principles

1. Schneiderman

2. Norman3. Krug

We Scan, We Don’t ReadHeat map from eyetracking research via Jakob Nielsen:

http://www.useit.com/alertbox/reading_pattern.html

How We Really Use The Webhttp://www.wdvl.com/Authoring/Design/Dont/index.html

Ben Schneiderman• Strive for consistency

• Offer informative feedback

• Reduce short-term memory load

• Enable shortcuts

• Offer simple error handling

• Make actions reversible

Don Norman• Visibility – Can we see it?

• Feedback - What is happening?!?

• Mapping – Do the controls do what I think they will do?

• Consistency – Does the widget do the same thing this time as it did last time? Is this how things work on other sites? Is that navigation element in the same place?

Steve KrugDon’t make me thin

Quote:

When I’m looking at a page that doesn’t make me think, all the thought balloons over my head say things like “OK, there’s the ____. And that’s a _____. And there’s the thing that I want.”

Steve KrugDon’t Make Me Think

Kathy’s Rule: Be Polite aka

Don’t Be Rude!

Understand who I am and why I’m here

Implementing Kathy’s Rule

1. Know why I’m here and greet me appropriately

Less than a quarter of the visible portion of the page is devoted to actions that might have triggered a citizen visit.

Contrast Illinois With Utah

Then there’s NSW

2. Where am I, where can I go, where have I been?

Contrast is important for readability. So are “you are here” signals.

Contrast with CNN

Ahem. Any idea what this is?It’s the Washington Post redesign.

3. Is that a link?

If you have to tell someone where to click … rethink the design!

4. Practice appropriate consistency

5. Be personable. That means human!

Don’t write like lawyers!

Let me know what others think.

Make it easy for me to talk to you.

Implementing Kathy’s Rule

Summary

1. The page/screen should be self-explanatory, obvious

2. I should be able to easily tell where I am, where I’ve been and where I can go

3. A link should look like a link. If something looks like a link, it should be a link.

4. Practice appropriate consistency (header, footer elements in particular)

5. Be personable

A Quick Check

1.What is the key info people are seeking (what are they trying to do)? List 6-10 things.

2.Rank them in importance.

3.Now go look at the website

4.Compare your rankings of information to the website

ContactKathy E Gill

@kegill

kegill at uw dot edu

http://faculty.u.washington.edu/kegill

Resources

• Ask Tog, First Principles of Interaction Design, http://www.asktog.com/basics/firstPrinciples.html

• OneExtraPixel, 10 principles of navigation design, http://www.onextrapixel.com/2009/07/03/10-principles-of-navigation-design-and-why-quality-navigation-is-so-critical/

• Smashing Magazine, 10 principles of effective web design, http://uxdesign.smashingmagazine.com/2008/01/31/10-principles-of-effective-web-design/

• WebDesign, Understanding visual hierarchy, http://webdesign.tutsplus.com/articles/design-theory/understanding-visual-hierarchy-in-web-design/