“Ironically, the thing that will likely make the least improvement in the ease of use of software-based products is new technology. There is little difference technically between a complicated, confusing program and a simple, fun, and powerful product.” – Alan Cooper
This quote is from Alan’s book “The Inmates are Running the Asylum.” This quote was also mentioned in Interaction-Design.org’s quote of the day.
“Something is elegant if it is two things at once: unusually simple and surprisingly powerful.” – Matthew E. May
This quote is from Guy Kawasaki’s interview with Matthew called “In Pursuit of Elegance: 12 Indispensable Tips.”
Thanks to @ellenking for sending me this quote via Twitter!
“Simplicity is not the goal. It is the by-product of a good idea and modest expectations.” – Paul Rand
Find more articles, interviews, and videos from Paul Rand here.
“If you want to reach the greatest number of users possible, it’s best to write clearly and simply and design your interfaces to be consistent from page to page. For some people, simple usability advice like this is an absolute accessibility need… And anyway, people of all abilities fail tasks that are confusing. Why should we all suffer an interface that proves itself to be unusable?” – Matt May
Read Matt’s article “Accessibility From the Ground Up” from Digital Web Magazine for his thoughts on creating accessible designs.
“It’s easy to forget, in a world of incredible possibility and infinite creativity, the power of simplicity and the importance of a solid customer experience foundation. This is especially true related to online user experience… As we look forward in anticipation of what’s to come, it’s important not to lose sight of managing the founding elements of customer experience.” – Leigh Duncan
Read Leigh’s article “Five Experience Fundamentals” from gotomedia for her proposed founding elements of customer experience.
“The argument is not between adding features and simplicity, between adding capability and usability. The real issue is about design: designing things that have the power required for the job while maintaining understandability, the feeling of control, and the pleasure of accomplishment.” – Don Norman
Read Don’s article “Simplicity is Not the Answer” for more thoughts on the importance of making understandable designs.
Catriona Cornett
