Design, Digested 35 – “Blanding”, vestibular disorders, diaries

Why everything looks the same

In the natural follow-up to Design, Digested 34’s first article, Ryan Duffy explores the reasons why everything looks the same. From interior spaces to websites, via logos and cars, find out about what he calls “blanding”.

🔗 Read the article Why everything looks the same on Scribe

When life gives you lemons, write better error messages

Error messages are often overlooked by companies and loathed by everyone. Wix analised and fixed thousands of error messages across their platform in one month. It’s a massive effort that involves the whole company, and it’s definitively worth it. Jenni Nadler, UX writer and team lead, explains how they did it.

🔗 Read the article When life gives you lemons, write better error messages on Medium

Why color contrast is not as black and white as it seems

Roger Attrill takes a look at the contrast checker, one of the most fundamental tools in the designers toolbox. What if the contrast ratio algorithm used to meet the WCAG 2.1 guidelines (rules 1.4.3 and 1.4.6) are not telling the whole truth? Go deeper into the science of colour perception and see what’s next in WCAG 3.0.

🔗 Read Why color contrast is not as black and white as it seems on Scribe

Accessibility for vestibular disorders: how my temporary disability changed my perspective

A bad case of vertigo caused by labyrinthitis made Facundo Corradini reconsider his abled life and the way he approached design and development. He explains what he learned and what he’s doing differently now. Facundo’s observations reminded me of the problems many people experienced with the 2020 redesign of the Raverly website.

🔗 Read Accessibility for vestibular disorders: how my temporary disability changed my perspective on A List Apart

Designing an accessible future

Speaking at this year’s WDC in Bristol, Geri Reid applied the principles of WCAG 3.0 to some of the current visions we have of the future. It’s probably going to be 5 years before the new version will be rolled out: what will the state of the internet be by then?

🔗 Watch or read Designing an accessible future on Geri Reid’s website

Italy’s town of diaries: where ordinary people’s memoirs are salvaged and celebrated

The national diary archive in Pieve Santo Stefano, Tuscany, holds about 9,000 diaries, letters and memoirs. The archive accepts every Italian text that it receives, regardless of literary merit.

🔗 Read Italy’s town of diaries: where ordinary people’s memoirs are salvaged and celebrated on The Guardian