November-December 2019 | The comfort of progress
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2020, HERE WE COME
The ever-evolving world of design trends is, well, evolving. Of course. Such is life.
When we’re in the middle of designing, we think, “This is it! We’re slaying with these [futuristic, retro, modern, imaginative, fill-in-the-blank] designs. We finally nailed it.” And yet, new trends emerge. Technology changes. Some platforms sprout while others wither, the youngest generation pushes old boundaries, rebuilding the world yet again. So here we are, on the brink. What’s next for UI and UX?
The screen of your smartphone is giant. It’s no longer contained by a border. And they’ve done away with buttons. Gesture is the new nav. Apps and the mobile web will have to adjust.
Artists, it is your time to shine. No longer are we seeking clip art. No. We seek artistry in our illustrations, we want to set ourselves apart, we want to be seen.
Storytelling has been a growing field for a few years now, and it’s getting more important. The power of strong UX writing is finally being seen.
AR: Blending real life and digital life is getting more seamless, which is super-handy if you’re, for example, designing your living room with IKEA’s augmented reality app or using a HoloLens to learn how to use a piece of machinery.
VR: Stepping into another world can help generate empathy, improve our understanding of systems, and feel together even when we’re apart.
AI: AI is here and it’s growing really fast, but I don’t think the author of this article nailed the topic. Yes, personalization is improving, but personalized online experiences fall more under machine learning than artificial intelligence. AI, at its most over-simplified, is about getting machines to think so that they can evolve their “thought” and come up with new ideas of their own.
Brands have long stuck to a single color or set palette, but now they’re changing things up by embracing chameleon-like bold new ranges of color.
Bold typography is eye-catching but hard to read. It’s sticking around for now, but usability may win out soon.
Similarly, asymmetrical layouts look cutting edge, but they aren’t highly usable.
Skeuomorphic (hyper-realistic) elements are making a comeback, so it’s time to add 3D artists to your design team.
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IN PRAISE OF PROGRESS
Progress bars give us a false, but much needed, sense of security. “I clicked a button, and now things are happening. Work is being done! I feel good!”
Scene 1: You fill your shopping cart, enter your payment and delivery details, click Submit order, and then … nothing. You wait. You start to get nervous. WHAT IS HAPPENING? Finally, the page refreshes, and your order number pops up. You find sweat on your brow.
Scene 2: You fill your shopping cart, enter your payment and delivery details, click Submit order, and then a spinner shows up. As it spins, words appear: Preparing your order …; Verifying your payment information …; Confirming your order ….
Which fills you with ease?
Exactly. That’s why we have progress bars.
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A QUIET PLACE
In 2011, researchers in London ran a study to find out how people’s ability to perform cognitive challenges improved or declined when undertaken in noisy environments. Everyone in the study performed the series of cognitive tests best when they did so in silence. But generally, the introverts had a harder time focusing in loud environments than the extroverts.
As an introvert seated in an open office (a snazzy open office surrounded by delightful people, but still), these research findings didn’t surprise me, but they did help me understand why some of my colleagues adore the open floor plan and why I have more of a love-hate relationship going on (and sometimes am found hunkered in a focus room alone): Introverts arrive with their stimulation dials full—more is too much—while extroverts want to be energized, lifted up, filled.
Hello to all my fellow delicate flowers out there in open office plans ‘round the world. I see you.
When I was a kid, I thought that adulthood would bring with it a magical sense of peace, ease, and fulfillment. I’d have autonomy over all things, and life would be effortless.
While I certainly enjoy the freedom to eat a bowl of ice cream anytime I want, in general adulthood hasn’t been the golden ticket to satisfaction my six-year-old-self expected … and I feel like I’m one of the more contented people I know.
I think often of my many unlived lives—unexplored lands, flavors, homes, programs of study, career paths (just kidding … my career is one of the places I feel like I’m sticking the landing)—consider the splintering story lines I’ll never know.
It turns out that doing this type of work—delving into our lives unlived, reckoning with our missed opportunities, probing memory and desire to discover who we wish we’d been—can uncover the “true” self, as it were. The “false” self may be defined as the person you became because you thought other people wanted you to be that way, so peel back those layers, peer beneath, seek your true self, then walk that way.
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AN UNLIVED PEACE
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DAD CONNECTION
Paternity leave: If your company offers it, take it (all of it), and if your company doesn’t, advocate for it until you get it.
Households in which fathers take paternity leave are more stable, satisfactory for both partners, healthy, and egalitarian over the short and long term than families whose fathers can’t or don’t take paternity leave when a new child is born.
As more American men take paternity leave, the stigma of taking time off for one’s family lessens, which paves the way for all the dads that follow to strengthen their bond with own families.
Choose a better future for your family now, and you help lay the foundation for a better world.