EDGE
TATIANA MAC
@TatianaTMac
CASES
TatianaMac.com/EdgeCases
@TatianaTMac
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THANK YOU TO SPONSORS
First Name
Tatiana
Last Name
Mac
Gender
Male
Female
Prefer not to say
Race
White
African American
Hispanic
Native American
Asian/Pac Islander
Other
Meh
😕
First Name
Yong-mi
Given name
Last Name
Kim
Family Name
Yong-Mi Kim
Kim Yong-Mi
Printed Name
Actual Name
Defeated
😔
Gender
Male
Female
Prefer not to say
Nonbinary, prefers to say
Gender Breakdown
78%
30%
2%
MALE
FEMALE
?
Undisclosed Males
Undisclosed Females
Undisclosed Nonbinary Folks
Disclosed Nonbinary Folks
Erased
🥺
Race
White
African American
Hispanic
Native American
Asian/Pac Islander
Other
Confused
🤔
Confused
🤔
Erased
🥺
Defeated
😔
Derafused
™
Annoyed
🙄
Those are statistical anomalies, uncommon.
Yeah, but she planned it that way.
I've never met a
Black Korean trans person before.
This is too confusing—why can't we make it simpler?
EDGE
CASES
a problem or situation that occurs only at an extreme (maximum or minimum) operating parameter
edge cases
problem or situation
causes issues,
merits solving
temporary,
defined by surroundings
You cause issues.
You are a problem to be solved. Your identity is temporary and defined by your surroundings.
How derafusing
™
a problem or situation that occurs only at an extreme (maximum or minimum) operating parameter
edge cases
What creates extremes?
Extremes require parameters.
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
GROUP
CONTRAST
SKIN TONE
DEVICES
$
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NYC
PDX
BER
23:00
14:00
17:00
Every new beginning comes from some other
beginning's end
🎶
🎶
SEMISONIC
One-hit wonders,
Not-wrong UX Designers
Parameters are arbitrary.*
GROUP
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
GROUP
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
Who picked the shape?
Who determined its size?
Who decided that was enough?
GROUP
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
ME
$
$$$
We test rigorously
on ourselves.
Who are we?
THE REST
OF US
NEURO-
TYPICAL
MALE
HETERO
CIS
WHITE
ABLE-BODIED
GROUP
WEALTHY
So, let's just make the parameters bigger?
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
GROUP
CONUNDRUM
🥁
Why do we define
edge cases?
Limitation
Boundary
Budget
Limitations means exclusivity,
which means premium costs, which means triple bottom line, babyyyyyyy.
👃🏾
sniff
sniff
KAPITALI$MU$
Kapitalismus scares
us with scarcity.
(Not fabricated out of thin air.)
Limitations means exclusivity,
which means premium costs, which means triple bottom line, babyyyyyyy.
triple bottom line
NEURO-
TYPICAL
MALE
HETERO
CIS
WHITE
ABLE-BODIED
GROUP
WEALTHY
We are not
immune to this.
YOU
THEY
I
SHE
HE
White
supremacist
capitalist
patriarchy
Keeping meritocratic mediocrity in power since the 17th century!™
You can contribute
to systems that harm you.
YOU
THEY
I
SHE
HE
(And they can simultaneously
benefit you.)
We are not at
fault for this.
But we are
responsible.
...Regardless of
our intent.
Intent does not erase impact.
Intent
impact.
USER
CREATOR
Intent does not erase impact.
EXCLUSION
LIMITATION
The system isn't broken,
it's working as intended.
Intent does not erase impact.
MARGINALIZATION
LIMITATION
REPEATED
Sigh.
HOW TO FIX
BREAK
🤓 MATH 🤓
Topology
STRETCH
COMPRESS
BEND
TEAR
GLUE
COLLAPSE
Topology
Recentre the circle.
STEP ONE
A
B
B
A
Recentres the marginalised.
A
But doesn't that just
marginalise someone else?
B
A
Nope.
A
B
B
A
NEURO-
TYPICAL
MALE
HETERO
CIS
WHITE
ABLE-BODIED
GROUP
WEALTHY
Centring the most vulnerable ensures that everyone is included.
Accessibility helps everyone.
Embrace contradiction.
STEP TWO
Do I contradict myself?
Very well, then I contradict myself,
I am large, I contain multitudes.
WALT WHITMAN
B
A
A
B
In the middle,
At the edge
Things will seem contradictory.
Capitalism tells us there is one truth.
One truth is simple.
Abundance allows for nuance.
Abundance allows for simultaneous truths.
What is good for one user, might be bad for another.
Minimise harm to all
Flip the script.
STEP THREE
Intent
defines
Impact
USER
CREATOR
Form
follows
function
LOUIS SULLIVAN
Intent
follows
Impact
USER
CREATOR
Intent
follows
Impact
USER
CREATOR
EXCLUSION
LIMITATION
of the
of the
Intent
follows
Impact
USER
CREATOR
INCLUSION
EXPANSION
of the
of the
Knowledge
Understanding
Compassion
CREATOR
EXPANSION
of the
Empathy,
a word
Empathy is
a scam.
the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference, that is, the capacity to place oneself in another's position.
empathy
Empathy seeks to validate someone else's lived experience
by centring our own.
GROUP
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
USER
ME
$
$$$
Define the impact you want to have first.
Ask "who is missing?"
STEP FOUR
Who holds the power to define who is missing?
Find new edges. Make new centres.
Edge Cases: Out of the margin and into view
By Tatiana Mac
Edge Cases: Out of the margin and into view
The term edge case is used to describe something rare that only occurs at an extreme. In praxis, we often use the term to dismiss a use case's relevance to the broader success of our product or service. But edge cases can be portals to safety leaks, unserved populations, and unconsidered journeys. By centring edge cases in our process and examining what they can tell us, we can work towards more ethical, inclusive, and considered products
