CATALOGING THE ART AND SCIENCE OF USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN
Title: How to Effectively Address the Usability Debt Within Your Product Context: Never put off until tomorrow any usability debt you can clear off your backlog today. Synopsis: There are lies, damn lies, and the promise we make to ourselves … Continued
Title: Before You Plan Your Product Roadmap Context: Some of your users may use some of your features some of the time but if none of your users are using all of your features any of the time, you’ve got … Continued
Title: The Obvious, the Easy, and the Possible Context: It’s not a question of minimizing complexity, it’s rather about optimizing obviousity [sic]. Synopsis: They never said it would be easy. In this case, “they” are most likely “us” (if “us” … Continued
Title: The Next Feature Fallacy: The fallacy that the next new feature will suddenly make people use your product Context: “C’mon man! just one more hit…” —Junkies and people arguing for more features in your software Synopsis: There is only … Continued
The team that designs a product for themselves has an idiot for an end user. via twitter.com
Know those big, chunky, UK electric plugs? Apparently they designed a heck of a lot of safety features into those 3-pronged-foot-daggers-in-the-night. Except for the whole foot-dagger thing. via youtube.com
Title: User Expertise Stagnates at Low Levels Context: All those hours you spent building out those new product features? Yeah, you wasted most of them. Synopsis: ROI. NPV. Benefit deferment. There are times that we sound more like economists than … Continued
Title: Experience Rot Context: Feature creep = User experience rot Synopsis: The high point – user experience wise – of any software is its first release. This will be the simplest, most economical, singular realization of the product vision that … Continued
Title: The Next Big UI Idea: Gadgets That Adapt To Your Skill Context: Using UI adaptability to appeal to both power users and novices without alienating either. Synopsis: Every new feature adds complexity. Only a fraction of your users will … Continued
Title: Product Strategy Means Saying No Context: “No” means “no”. Except when planning a product. In which case no one ever says “no”. Synopsis: The reasons to put that new feature in your product are endless. “Customers are demanding it!” … Continued
Title: Complexity and User Experience: Understanding features in terms of complexity instead of functionality Context: Reducing complexity involves ruthless editorial control over feature inclusion. Now if we can just convince the sales guys that this is the right thing to … Continued
Title: How To Achieve Simplicity In Design Context: The desire for simplicity is not the same as a commitment to simplicity. Synopsis: Everyone claims to love simplicity. “Things shouldn’t be difficult to use! Make it simple.” But dare to ask … Continued
Title: Swiss Army Knives Context: When you try and do everything, you rarely have time to do everything right. Synopsis: Your project manager wants it all. Your marketing and sales teams want it all. And of course your customers certainly … Continued
Title: How to Create Compelling Brand Experiences Context: Features? So what. Experiences? Yes please. Synopsis: Many companies, agencies and consultants spend hour upon hour with customers asking them what new features they want to see in the products they use. … Continued
Who has time to come up with new features what with all the old crappy ones that need to be fixed? via dilbert.com