I am a very very strong advocate of usability testing of UI designs (note to self – add an extra ‘very’ into that sentence). It helps you validate that users can understand the interface you are presenting them, it gives…
Tag: UX
My Quora answers, UX Articles
How do you articulate and demonstrate the actual business value of your UX designs?
It's tricky, but a key success metric is and always shall be one thing: money. Did the design, when implemented, save the company money (by reducing costs) or make the company money (by increasing sales of an item). I have…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Is a UX Architect just ‘half’ a Designer?
Interesting questions since my current job is… (checking) a UX Architect for a Fortune 500 company. I'm reminded of a joke from the classic Woody Allen movie Love and Death: Girl: I'm half saint, half whore.Woody: Let's hope it's the…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What tools and processes do you use to prepare wireframes and other interaction design documents for iPhone applications?
There are two aspects of the question: one is around tools (“what tool do you/should you use?”) and the secondary question is around process (“how do you go about using your tools?”) I’ll answer the second question first and then…
UX Articles
Lessons in UX: How businesses should use social networks
A colleague and I were discussing social networks and how businesses should work and/engage with them and I realized I’ve never actually written my thoughts on the topic down. Hence, this post. Years ago, I did ethnographic research for AT&T…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What are some good ways to plan a UX project?
A primary thing I would find out is who the client’s customers are. Are they middle-class housewives? Gen Y hipsters? If you don’t have an understanding of who the customers are then you will have a hard time designing a…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What did Dieter Rams mean when he said “good design is honest”?
I think he means that good design aligns with the materials used and is straightforward about it’s purpose. A coffee pot isn’t made of wax paper, it’s made of materials that support the heat and liquids that you put through…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
What are some arguments against user experience testing?
This is an interesting question. "What are arguments against user experience testing?" My initial response is that there are existing patterns that users are accustomed to, that if you make the controls and experience align to those patterns, you will…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What should an ideal User Experience Design lab have?
I’ve set up a couple of usability labs in my time, so I’ll give you some of my advice/lessons learned in that space. First the practical – get lots of wall space. I mean LOTS of wall space. Almost all…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
How would you describe your user experience design philosophy in one sentence?
Help people live better lives, by letting them do what they want to do quickly and easily… And solve problems for them, sometimes problems they never even knew they had. See question on Quora
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What can be included in an aspiring UXer’s portfolio to show off UX skills?
Identify a problem space, evaluate products that try and solve/work in that particular problem space (against some best practices/design principles), and then ideate some solutions/products of your own. Document HOW you approached the problem space – many times the approach…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Which is a better trait for an interaction designer — perfectionism or the willingness to compromise?
Joseph Dickerson, Been a hands-on interaction designer for many y… I think that it's not a question of should you be a perfectionist but WHEN should you focus on making the details crisp and perfect. If you are exploring ideas…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
How can the user experience community evangelize to a broader audience?
Joseph Dickerson, I'm a practitioner and advocate of User Experie… I think that conferences like SXSW is a good opportunity to spread the UX "gospel" – but you need to make the topic have broad appeal. Also look into conferences…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
Does usability really make the world a better place?
Joseph Dickerson, I've been a graphic or software designer for 20… The way I have always looked at it is this: if you make an experience as elegant and as usable as possible then you are making life just a…
My Quora answers, UX Articles
Should a professional UX designer have their own website?
Joseph Dickerson, I'm a UX Design professional. It depends. Do you want the website to be about your passions or a promotional vehicle for your career? If your website is about your love for knitting and you also happen to…
My Quora answers, UX 101, UX Articles
What qualities do the best UX professionals have?
Joseph Dickerson, Not a Top UX Designer though I aspire to be… The same ability that lawyers have – to be very adept at the core discipline of a domain (user experience design) but also the ability to learn the…