Designing the Obvious: A Common Sense Approach to Web Application Design

by Hoekman, Robert

• ISBN13: 9780321453457
• ISBN10: 032145345X
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-01-01
• Publisher: New Riders Press

Summary

Designing the Obviousbelongs in the toolbox of every person charged with the design and development of Web-based software, from the CEO to the programming team. Designing the Obvious explores the character traits of great Web applications and uses them as guiding principles of application design so the end result of every project instills customer satisfaction and loyalty. These principles include building only whats necessary, getting users up to speed quickly, preventing and handling errors, and designing for the activity.Designing the Obviousdoes not offer a one-size-fits-all development process--in fact, it lets you use whatever process you like. Instead, it offers practical advice about how to achieve the qualities of great Web-based applications and consistently and successfully reproduce them.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Author Biography	xi
Chapter 1: Defining the Obvious	3	(14)
What Is 'the Obvious'?	6	(4)
Qualities of a great application	8	(2)
How Do You Design the Obvious?	10	(2)
Turn qualities into goals	10	(2)
The Framework for Obvious Design	12	(5)
Know what to build	13	(1)
Know what makes it great	14	(1)
Know the best ways to implement it	14	(3)
Chapter 2: Understand Users, Then Ignore Them	17	(36)
Understand How Users Think They Do Things	19	(2)
Understand How Users Actually Do Things	21	(4)
Mental models	23	(2)
Know How to Uncover Reality	25	(14)
Assume nothing	27	(1)
Use surveys	28	(1)
Contextual inquiry	29	(4)
Remote-user research	33	(1)
To persona or not to persona?	33	(6)
Design for the Activity	39	(6)
Task-flow diagrams	43	(2)
Write Use Cases	45	(8)
Faster than code and capable of producing real results	45	(1)
Writing exceptions	46	(4)
The argument against use cases	50	(1)
My advice	51	(2)
Chapter 3: Build Only What Is Absolutely Necessary	53	(22)
More features, more frustration	54	(1)
So what's a geek to do?	55	(1)
Think Different	56	(4)
The dashboard and New Invoice screen	57	(1)
The finished invoice	58	(1)
Goodies for experts	58	(1)
The result	59	(1)
Drop Nice-to-Have Features	60	(15)
The Unnecessary Test	61	(1)
The 60-Second Deadline	62	(2)
Less is more	64	(1)
Interface Surgery	65	(6)
Reevaluate nice-to-have features later	71	(1)
Let them speak	72	(3)
Chapter 4: Support the User's Mental Model	75	(34)
Design for Mental Models	78	(12)
Making metaphors that work	81	(4)
Interface Surgery: Converting an implementation-model design into a mental-model design	85	(5)
Eliminate Implementation Models	90	(7)
Create wireframes to nail things down	90	(7)
Prototype the Design	97	(3)
Test It Out	100	(9)
Chapter 5: Turn Beginners Into Intermediates, Immediately	109	(38)
Use Up-to-Speed Aids	111	(19)
Provide a welcome screen	115	(1)
Offer tips	116	(2)
Fill the blank slate with something useful	118	(2)
Give instructive hints	120	(4)
Interface Surgery: Applying instructive design	124	(6)
Choose Good Defaults	130	(4)
Integrate preferences	133	(1)
Design for Information	134	(4)
Card sorting	136	(2)
Stop Getting Up to Speed and Speed Things Up	138	(6)
Reuse the welcome screen as a notification system	140	(1)
Use one-click interfaces	141	(1)
Use design patterns to make things familiar	142	(2)
Provide Help Documents, Because Help Is for Experts	144	(3)
Chapter 6: Handle Errors Wisely	147	(32)
Prevent and Catch Errors with Poka-yoke Devices	149	(16)
Poka-yoke on the Web	150	(1)
Prevention devices	150	(3)
Detection devices	153	(6)
Turn errors into opportunities	159	(5)
Feeling smart	164	(1)
Ditch Anything Modal	165	(4)
Redesigning rude behavior	166	(1)
Replace it with modeless assistants	167	(2)
Write Error Messages That Help Instead of Hurt	169	(4)
Interface Surgery: Using the inline-expand design pattern	171	(2)
Create Forgiving Software	173	(6)
Good software promotes good practices	175	(4)
Chapter 7: Design for Uniformity, Consistency, and Meaning	179	(28)
Design for Uniformity	182	(9)
Be Consistent Across Applications	191	(5)
Understanding design patterns	192	(4)
Intelligent inconsistency	196	(1)
Leverage Irregularity to Create Meaning and Importance	196	(11)
Interface Surgery: Surfacing the bananas in a process	200	(7)
Chapter 8: Reduce and Refine	207	(26)
Cluttered task flows	208	(1)
The path to simplicity	209	(1)
Clean Up the Mess	210	(11)
Reducing the pixel-to-data ratio	211	(1)
Minimizing copy	212	(2)
Designing white space	214	(3)
Cleaning up task flows	217	(4)
Practice Kaizen	221	(4)
The 5S approach	223	(2)
Eliminate Waste	225	(2)
Cleaning up your process	226	(1)
Put Just-In-Time Design and Review To Work	227	(6)
Chapter 9: Don't Innovate When You Can Elevate	233	(14)
Innovation	234	(1)
The problem with innovative thinking	234	(2)
Elevation	236	(1)
Elevate the User Experience	236	(5)
Elevation is about being more polite	237	(1)
Elevation means giving your software a better personality	238	(2)
Elevation means creating "On-Demand Interfaces"	240	(1)
Seek Out and Learn from Great Examples	241	(1)
Inspiration	241	(1)
Elevate the Standards	242	(2)
Take Out All the Good Lines	244	(1)
Get in the Game	244	(3)
Index	247