Instead of reading the book, I decided to try a course for The Design of Everyday Things. This is a really popular book by Don Norman. The course on Udacity isn’t quite as well known and for a good reason. Ironically, it isn’t designed well. Still, there’s a lot of valuable information that Norman and crew provide when teaching designers how to think about the world around them.

Summary of the Course

The Udacity course covers Affordances, Signifiers, Conceptual Models, System Image, Gulf of Evaluation, and Gulf of Execution.

I won’t waste your time defining each of these, but here are a few takeaways:

All products must be designed with the user in mind.
Users need clear design features that show them how to use the product.
If a function isn’t clear in the user’s mind, send them a sign!
Provide users with some type of instruction or guide.
When a user interacts with a product, they expect some feedback to know that they’re using it right.
To make sure that you cover all of these goals and objectives, be sure to test your ideas regularly.

Design of Everday Things in the Real World
Example 1

I’m not the smartest man on the planet. To be more specific, I’m the idiot that ignores the handle on the mug because … I’m not smart. As you can imagine, I hurt my hand for mishandling the handle.

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The maker of the mug put that handle is there for a reason. Its design is meant to keep your hand safe from the mug’s heat. And anyone who uses a coffee mug shouldn’t need instructions to know how to use it (unless you’re me).

Example 2

When I consider how these concepts can be used in the real world, I think of my children. Parents are a product and their kids are the clients. My wife is a source of food, discipline, love, and entertainment.

If she gets on all fours and neighs, the children know that she’s a horse. If she scrunches her face and speaks with a sharp tone, they know that they need to listen and alter their behaviors.

I’ve personally stomped toward my children and realized that the action can represent a friendly monster or a scary one. Therefore, designers need to know that the usability of designs can change based on a user’s situation or settings.

Course Review

I took some valuable information away from this course within two or three hours. But–like always–the book is better than the film.