Title: Authentic Design
Context: There are lots of competing theories on what digital design should be. And approximately 0 ways of knowing which one is right.
Synopsis: Arguments over the correct way to design things is as old as our objects themselves. Everyone is a critic and everyone’s opinion is equally valid. Don’t believe me? Try reading some architectural criticism one of these days, but be sure to hide the razor blades first. Is it possible to be “right” in design? Since so much of it is “wrong” (depending on who’s opinion you are listening too) how can we be sure that what we are doing is a net positive for design as a whole? It is not easy. Authenticity never is. Derivation and flourish are exceedingly simple on the other hand. Abusing inspiration and ornamental masking can–and often are–used as a screen to hide our uncertainty behind. And this is the real problem; archetypical digital authenticity is a nebulous and ill defined concept at the best of times. As everything becomes digital in one sense or another, how will we articulate its core essence?
Best Bit: “But removing visual cues that help the user mentally process the interface — such as graphical elements that group items, that differentiate buttons and labels and that make things stand out — could do exactly the opposite by giving the user more work to do.”
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