what is design? why does it matter? david vronay research manager windows ui strategy microsoft, inc
TRANSCRIPT
What is Design?Why does it matter?
David VronayResearch ManagerWindows UI StrategyMicrosoft, Inc.
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Dave Vronay
• Current Role– Research Manager, Windows UI Strategy (MSX)
• Previous Roles– Research Manager, Microsoft Research Asia Center fo
r Interaction Design– Researcher, Social Computing Group, Microsoft Rese
arch– VP Technology, ImaginEngine (children’s software)– Researcher, Human Interface Group, Apple Computer,
Inc.
• Educational Background– Philosophy– Cinema Production– Game Programming (self-taught)
Class Process and Agenda
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Class Structure
• Five day seminar• No Previous Design Experience
Necessary• No programming required– But the lectures will assume a
knowledge of programming concepts
• Participation both inside and outside of class– You will only learn this stuff by trying it
yourself
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Assignments
• Every Seminar ends with an assignment
• Each day’s lecture builds on the assignments of the previous day
• Assignments can be done individually or in groups– I recommend diverse groups
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Getting the most out of the seminar
• Do the assignments• Use the TAs• Take advantage of your instructor– Ask questions!!– I am around outside of class– [email protected]
• Embrace the concepts– Don’t just focus on the work– Make it relevant to what you do every da
y
What is Design?
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
MSX and Design at Microsoft
• MSX = Microsoft User Experience Team
• In reality, MSX focuses on Windows, not all Microsoft products– Shell, IE, Media Player– Not MSN, Office, Money, Halo, etc.
• Set & enforce style guidelines• Define the computing experience
for the rest of the world
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What does MSX do?
• Interaction Design of Windows!
• What is interaction design?
• Making something look good
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
What is Interaction Design?
Device Capabilities
& DeviceLimitations
User Needsand
User Abilities
USER INTERFACE
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What designers do
• Understand the user– Needs, capabilities, desires
• Understand the problems– Frustrations, confusions, inabilities
• Propose solutions– enable technology to meet the user’s needs without
exceeding the user’s capabilities
• Test Everything– Design decisions are not opinions, but are
strenuously tested in formal usability studies
• Iterate as necessary– Design is a process of moving ever closer to (but
never reaching) the mythical ideal solution
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Common Design Myths
• MYTH: Designers are artists– Truth: most designers are not particularly good artists, and most
artists are not good designers• MYTH: Designers are really creative
– Truth : Design is much more about being methodical than creative. Designers want to test and measure every possible approach and variable
• MYTH: Designers come in at the end to polish the final work– Truth : Design should start as early as possible. The longer you
wait, the less benefit you can get from design. Ideally, design should start before any other work.
• MYTH: Designers are aloof and in their own world– Truth: Designers do not do any technology! Therefore, it is essential
that we collaborate with other groups (like yours).• MYTH: Design is a luxury
– Truth: Actually, design can be especially valuable in cost-conscious projects because it can stop you from going down dead-ends
• In general, design is just a method for solving problems!
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Roles in Design
• Interaction Designers– Design the user model and overall flow
• Visual Designers– Design the look and feel
• Industrial Designers– Design the hardware
• Usability Experts– Psychologists, sociologists, anthropologists
• Prototypers– Fast programmers who help realize designs
• Production Team– Artists, Animators, Musicians– Production Managers– Internal Tools
Why does design matter?
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
A History of the World
• Stone Age
• Bronze Age
• …
• Agricultural Age
• Industrial Age
• Information Age
• And now, the Conceptual Age
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Welcome to the Conceptual Age
• Programming has become a commodity– Today China & India– Tomorrow, Vietnam– Soon, gone all-together
• Technology is not enough– How the technology fits into the human l
ifestyle is what determines success
• Example: iPod, cell phone, etc.
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What skills are needed?
• Everything that was needed before, plus…
• Deep Understanding of Technology
• Sense of Aesthetics
• Concern for the human condition
• Love of perfection
Design in the Software Development Process
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The Old Way
Code Ship!
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
The Old Microsoft Way
Write Spec
Coding Testing Ship!
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The Current Model
Design and Write Spec
Coding Testing Ship!Usability
Serious problem discovered!
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
A Design-Centric Model
Coding Testing Ship!
Write Spec
DefineProblems& Goals
Design Solutions
RapidPrototype
UserTest
Less than perfect
Close to perfect
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
In summary…
• Design produces a better product– Iterate and test many versions instead of
just one
• Design saves money– Rewrites and changes are discovered
during prototyping, while they are still cheap to fix
Now it is your turn!
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Current calculator is unchanged from Windows 1.0
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Time for a redesign
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Let’s design Calculator XP!
?
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Assignment 1: Calculator XP
• Redesign the calculator to make it better than the one currently shipping in XP
• Produce a simple walkthrough that explains your design– PowerPoint, Acrobat, HTML, etc.– No more than three pages
• Do not write code
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
Understanding the space
• Problems with current design
• Limitations with current product
• Capabilities of the computer
• Features we could have
• Uses and users
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.
© 2005 Microsoft, Inc.