Define “innovative.” Yes, I know, I can go look it up, but I ask in all seriousness. Innovation is a term that is being bandied about so much lately it’s about to become a business cliche, like “paradigm” and “synergy.”…
Category: UX Articles
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What do users expect on the mobile website of a bank?
Depends on the user and their intent. When you ask what their expectation is, if you do not keep their goals in mind you can’t get a definitive answer. I’ll try and propose some potential goals and then respond with…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What should be considered in terms of accessibility standards when designing mobile apps?
First, try and keep things simple. Don’t go nuts with a lot of the interactive elements that touch devices enable. Use structured hierarchies that are obvious and short, and follow the base design conventions of the platform you are designing…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What is the difference between user experience and user interface design?
User experience is something we understand, support and design. User interfaces are small windows into the total experience. Here's a story/metaphor I think is useful to explain the difference: You are walking past a storefront, and you see an item…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Do banks hire UX designers to work on their websites?
As someone who is working for a large bank in Australia on an aggressive, user-centered refresh of their online system, I'm getting a kick out of this question. Yes, banks hire UX designers. Many banks don't. Some banks hire designers…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What are some examples of good interactions for adding tags to an item?
It depends on the platform you are designing the control for. If you are doing it in a touch interface the best mechanism for creating may not be the same for an online application or a desktop application. That being…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
How does your UX team generate Design Patterns (which become specifications) and communicate the specs across product teams during parallel product development cycles?
Iterate and collaborate. Define a draft design pattern for a particular aspect of the experience and then collaborate with developers as to behavior and the specificity of the pattern. Make it work, play with it, then refine the documentation. Be…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
If the next president of the United States was a professional UX designer, how would he change the country?
The following is a portion of an inauguration address I think a UX professional would deliver if he/she was elected president: My fellow Americans, I thank you for your trust in me and electing me to this great office. As…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Is the explosion in demand for User Experience experts a trend or a bubble?
It's definitely a trend but it CAN become a bubble. I'll explain. Over the past five years I've seen UX go from an isolated discipline to a field where UX talent is in high-demand. The primary reason this happened is…
Apple, My Quora answers, UX Articles
What problems do you experience/encounter when you search for apps on the iOS App Store? What are the main flaws of the Genius for the iOS App Store?
Auto-complete/suggestions on app search can be frustrating. If I am looking for a particular app by name it's great, but if I am searching by a type of app or a free-form term then I get lots of false or…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What is the most enjoyable part about being a UX/UI designer?
Solving problems that people never knew they had. I go back to what Henry Ford said, when asked about his "horseless carriage": "If I had asked what people wanted, I'd have made a faster horse." I have done numerous user…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What are the specific parts and pieces in a UX Architecture?
As I've created a couple of these in my time, I think I have a pretty good take on what should be in a UX Architecture. Here's the highlights: Foundational Research: How did you come to the design direction that…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Are personas necessary for smaller web projects?
Should you develop them for a small $10,000 project? No. Should you use them if they have already been developed and are appropriate to what you are doing? Absolutely. That being said, if you can spend any time at all…