Mark Calkins
I am a software product manager. I also have expertise in product marketing, marketing, UX design, prototyping and web development.
UX Principles
MAKING APPS SIMPLY USABLE
Mark Calkins
mcalkins@gmail.com
Outline
WHAT IS USER EXPERIENCE?
Good user experience is all about making apps extremely easy to use
You want your users to:
UX is the measure of
FRICTION
between a user and their goal
Two Types of FRICTION
Both slow the user down and make the user experience more painful
Great UX Yields Three Feelings
Delighted
Satisfied
Productive
=> word of mouth
=> increased loyalty
=> become proponents
Left Brain
Logical
Sequential
Rational
Analytical
Objective
Looks at parts
Right Brain
Random
Intuitive
Holistic
Synthesizing
Subjective
Looks at wholes
DEVELOPER
UX DESIGNER
Why is this a challenge?
It Might Be More Like This
solve problems with code
facilitate user goal achieve-ment
MINDSET SHIFT
Information Architecture
Visual
Design
Functionality
Usability
Typography
User
Interface
Content
Strategy
Interaction
Design
REDUCE COGNITIVE FRICTION
COMMON UX TRAPS
Jam as much on the screen as possible
Forcing the user to think like a dba
Coding for the power user
Expose technical jargon to the user
Being inconsistent
Creating a messy UI
Good UX Requires Us To
UX MYTHS
some rules have changed
W h i t e s p a c e i s w a s t e d s p a c e
small details don't matter
OK to give users a lot of choices
Users know what they want
users don't care what your app/site looks like
WHAT IS OUR GOAL?
Lower cognitive friction
COGNITIVE FRICTION
WHAT CAUSES COGNITIVE FRICTION?
Slow app performance
App is difficult to use
App is difficult to use
App becomes too complex over time
App has too many choices, too many options
REDUCING COGNITIVE FRICTION
VISION AND MENTAL HACKS
CENTRAL VISION =
High Res
PERIPHERAL VISION =
Low Res
The brain loves easy to recognize shapes
White space creates low cognitive friction
GROUP
HACK
space,
color
& shapes
delineate
groups
repeating
elements
need
clear
spacing
ALIGNMENT HACK
a single pixel alignment issue increases friction
ATTENTION
HACK
user movement
in user's
peripheral vision
to get their
attention
COLOR HACK
avoid color combinations that create cognitive friction
LEADING HACK
Help the user's brain work less by leading them to their goal
PROGRESSIVE HACK
Not overwhelming the user — only show what they need when they need it
STATUS HACK
Keep the user's brain calm by keeping them informed
RECOGNITION HACK
Always rely on recognition, not on recall
WORKFLOW HACK
Identify the simplest workflow for the user to achieve their goal
PROCEDE SOFTWARE CONSIDERATIONS
Workflow
UX Design Process
Empathize
Define
Tech Possibilities
Needs of User
Business Goals
Ideate
Prototype
Test
In Conclusion
Resources
More Resources
Questions?
By Mark Calkins
User experience is a much neglected aspect of developing software applications. This presentation will explore what UX or user experience is, UX myths and many key principles that can help involve UX principles into your apps. We’ll review both good and bad examples of apps and how they use or ignore good UX principles. Finally, we’ll discuss how to add UX testing into your development to give you the information to improve your apps.
I am a software product manager. I also have expertise in product marketing, marketing, UX design, prototyping and web development.