Although this book is already 20 years old, surprisingly the design advices and observations still hold true for software UI today. I have not finished reading the book, but these seven principles are so useful that I owe it to myself if I don't post it somewhere.
Have you read any good books on software UI?
Quote from The Design of Everyday Things , page 188-189
- Use both knowledge in the world and knowledge in the head.
- Simplify the structure of tasks
- Make things visible: bridge the gulfs of Execution and Evaluation
- Get the mappings right
- Exploit the power of constraints, both natural and artificial
- Design for error
- When all else fails, standardize
If you don't want to buy the book, look it up from your local library! I am pretty sure they have it!
3 comments:
I loved this book.
It has been 10 years since I read it and I still reflect on it in my day to day development.
Actually I quoted the book today in a meeting with clients [relating to discover ability].
To this day I can't go through a door with a horizontal push bar without a chuckle.
I also recommend -
1) "The Tao of Leadership" by - John Heinder
2) "The One Minute Manager Meets the Monkey" - Quill Press
I think I quote that push bar section more then anything else when it comes to design and what it communicates...
Great book! I need to read it again.
I've not heard of or read this book, and the principles you quote aren't overly self-explanatory without context or example.
Obviously you can't copy from the book verbatim but can you flesh each point out a little?
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