Design, Digested 43 — Design thinking went wrong, Fitts’ Law, visual frameworks

Design thinking was supposed to fix the world. Where did it go wrong?

An approach that promised to democratize design may have done the opposite.

A lenghty, compelling article that Rebecca Ackermann wrote after months of research.

🔗 Read the article Design thinking was supposed to fix the world. Where did it go wrong? on MIT Technology Review

Also listen to UX Podcast episode #309 talking about the same article.

36 seconds that changed everything

36 Seconds That Changed Everything is an audio documentary, written and produced by Texas-based writer, Shelly Brisbin. It tells the story of how a device that once excluded people with disabilities – the iPhone – became one of the most transformative forces in the lives of those same people, once the barriers its software had created were removed.

🔗 Listen to or read 36 seconds that changed everything on 36 Seconds

Fitts’ Law in the touch era

In this article, Steven Hoober shines the spotlight on Fitts’ Law and explains why we should always ask questions and consider what particular guidelines and lessons mean to our users and our products.

🔗 Read the article Fitts’ Law in the touch era on Smashing Magazine

Formulas for optical adjustments

A long-standing trope of the design world is that computers are bad at aligning and balancing the relative scales of elements. This is incorrect.

🔗 Read the article Formulas for optical adjustments on Bjango

Accessible but never boring

There’s a misconception that making a product accessible means sacrificing the visual design. Your UI will look too plain, they say. Your branding too dry, or too ugly. But gone are the days when you had to look like a boring bank to build a product that can be used by all. It’s time to think bigger. Bold brands embrace accessibility.

🔗 Read the article Accessible but never boring on Design at Wise

Visual frameworks

Visual frameworks are pictorial mental models that can help you clarify your thoughts. Each visual framework is like a building block. You can combine and configure them in different ways to think and build shared understanding about situations, challenges, strategies and plans.

🔗 Consult them on Visual Frameworks