[ conversation: #mxf, #mxf @giodif ]
When design isn’t participating in the experience:
- you have to put a label on it [ this really begs a Single Ladies reference ]
- you rely on discovery (excludes discovery-centric experiences)
- you rely on symbols alone (cross-culture differences can create confusion connections)
- you aren’t repeatedly distinguishing between the interactive and non-interactive (aim for complementary visual schemes)
- you ignore the prior experiences users may bring to your UX (there needs to be an appropriate balance between logic and intuition of the design)
- you ignore user behaviors (observe users using your product) [ but also design for yourself—your job is to know your own behavior extremely well as well as acknowledge repeated observed patterns ]
[ remember: rules are meant to be broken, but only after they aren’t supporting the experience anymore ]
Design can draw positive attention to your site for the novelty of the experience, and can also draw negative attention when pieces of the UX model are left out of a design.
Recommended reading
The Design of Everyday Things, Donald Norman
An aside on aesthetics
Aesthetics: the interplay of beauty, goodness, and usability in interactive products (Hassenzahl). The impact of beauty is less effective after multiple use, but it is highly effective for initial/first use. Sliding scale between design and usability.
- attraction: surface beauty, implied meaning, visual narrative
- elegance: process/solution-oriented, economy & succinctness
[ I’d like to see an aesthetics overlay of the UX Model. ]