In a complex world, products that are easy to use win favor with consumers. This is the first book on the topic of simplicity aimed specifically at interaction designers. It shows how to drill down and simplify user experiences when designing digital tools and applications. It begins by explaining why simplicity is attractive, explores the laws of simplicity, and presents proven strategies for achieving simplicity. Remove, hide, organize and displace become guidelines for designers, who learn simplicity by seeing before and after examples and case studies where the results speak for themselves.
Reviews
A great read. Full of tips and techniques. Like "Don't make me think!" it's the kind of book you'll want to pass on to the people you work with. I highly recommend it.
– Gerry Gaffney, Author Forms that work: designing Web forms for usability
Next time someone says to just "make it simple," show them a copy of this book. Simple and Usable is a delightful afternoon read full of short, memorable examples that remind us why simple isn't always easy.
– Stephen P. Anderson, Author Mental Notes
Think things have to be complicated to be powerful? Think again. In this clear, compelling (and beautiful) book, Giles Colborne makes the argument for simplicity. He shows us design as a process of thoughtfully crafting a product that is just simple enough, but no more.
– Whitney Quesenbery, Author Storytelling for user experience
Packed with practical strategies for achieving simplicity—and an enjoyable read. Giles manages to infuse frequent examples into the book's impressively concise 1-page sections. As an advocate of simplicity, I highly recommend this book to anyone who has a hand in building websites, software, or products.
– Tyler Tate, Twigkit
An amazing book. Just buy it, consider it a $20 2-hour brain upgrade.
– Brandon Hays, The Daily Flux
This book is a delight. Everything about it is Simple and Usable – the layout, the beautiful illustrations, and the text. This is a book I will return to again to deal with specific questions. I'd recommend Simple and Usable to anyone involved in physical or digital product design.
– Annie Dryden, Senior Interaction Designer, BBC
About the Author
Giles Colborne has been designing interactive user experiences since the early 1990s and it's about time he did something useful like writing a book.
When he's not doing that he he's busy with cxpartners, a design consultancy based in Bristol and London that specialises in web and mobile user interface design for companies such as Marriott, Nokia and eBay. Giles and Richard Caddick founded cxpartners in 2004.
Book Details
- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: New Riders Press; 1 edition (September, 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0321703545
- ISBN-13: 978-0321703545
- File Size: 7.4 MiB
- Hits: 1,800 times
