UI/UX Articles and Interesting Tidbits of the Week
August//17//2018
Here are some interesting finds on UI/UX of the week!
1.https://www.subtraction.com/2018/08/09/designers-are-defining-usability-too-narrowly/
Are Designers Defining Usability Narrowly. Very pertinent article focused on product design and usability, and how this convergence can effectively create successful products, but also dangerous habits, depending on the target audiences it purposefully aims at. It’s an article filled with thoughtful questions, alluding to the ethics in Design. Highlight of the article includes:
“Habits are formed around the usability of a product; if an app or website makes it easy to complete a task, users are likely to do it more often than not. Usability advocates often treat this as an inherently good quality; by and large every business wants their products to be easier rather than more difficult to use. But as the aforementioned research suggests, it’s become clear that guilelessly encouraging longer, more frequent sessions isn’t necessarily better for kids. I would contend that it’s really no longer useful — or responsible — to think of the work we as designers do in such narrow terms. You don’t even need much imagination to expand the definition of “usability” in this way. Beyond just the study of practices that make digital products easier to use, it’s reasonable to think of usability as a field that considers what’s in the best interests of the user. Clearly, there are best practices to be learned when it comes to limiting children’s time, signaling danger to parents, discouraging successive sessions over short spans, and even for encouraging physical movement. That all sounds like usability to me.”
2.https://producttribe.com/ux-design/ux-writing
UX Writing. Great article focused on UX Writing and the importance underlining it for the creation of relevant experiences. The article details the importance of microcopy, and how that is surfaced throughout the product experience that is being created. Highlight of the article includes:
“Remember, UX writers focus on users’ emotions, and their primary job is to make sure everything in an interface is clear, informative and doesn’t make users google How to…? questions. It requires great empathy and knowledge about user behavior. Apart from that, best UX writers have a good command of the language. If your major was English and you like to use all sorts of fancy words and idioms, you’ll have to revise your approach. Good UX writers always bear in mind that their users may not be proficient in English, so the language they use must be simple. Writing great copy typically involves plenty of research and testing.”
3.https://medium.com/asana-design/the-key-lessons-i-learned-creating-a-popular-design-system-d078c817b4dd
Lessons from Creating Design Systems. Fantastic article focused on Design Systems. The author, Matt Bond, showcases throughout the article applicable lessons that any designer and organization should bear in mind, when tackling an initiative of this dimension and kind. Highlight:
“It’s really important to not throw the rule book at people and police it to death. Instead, try to approach the system with the philosophy that a design system is a tool to democratize design across your company. This approach really opens up the doors so that people want to contribute and be part of it. Remember, a design system is a tool for empowerment, not a weapon to control design.”
