The Articles
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User Interfaces for Variable Fonts
The tools we design with have a unique effect on the way we work, constraining and empowering us while we explore, examine and create. Variable fonts give us a new, wide open typographic space with which to work. Instead of prescribing value to individual UI elements in a vacuum, we should take a hybrid and calculated approach to variable font interfaces. How do we structure our design tools to adapt to the new advantages variable fonts provide us with?
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Integrating Animation into a Design System
Like color and typography, a cohesive animation system can help express a product’s personality and make the interface feel connected and whole. To achieve that, animation should be established holistically, almost as a system in its own right. Alla Kholmatova shares a way to approach interface animations in a systematic way.
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Practical User Research: Creating a Culture of Learning in Large Organizations
User research doesn’t have to be a big dollar, corporate initiative. Sam Moore shows how, by paying attention to the people, tools, and work practices within an organization, your team can demonstrate the value of user research on the ground—which will open doors to additional resources in the future.
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Team Conflict: Four Ways to Deflate the Discord that’s Killing Your Team
Interpersonal relationships and team dynamics can be tricky. We often eschew the values of team work and working together, but balancing relationships when everyone has a good idea is tough. Jessica Hall shares some thoughts on how to navigate those tricky spots so your team can start communicating and get back to what they do best.
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Color Accessibility Workflows
Color is a powerful tool that allows for an almost infinite array of design options. Yet when applying color to our work, we can have a “myopic” viewpoint that puts us, rather than our audience, front and center. Author Geri Coady discusses some solid color considerations we can make for our audiences in this excerpt from her new book, Color Accessibility Workflows, available from A Book Apart.
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The Mindfulness of a Manual Performance Audit
Sometimes we need to go through the clothes in our closet item by item to separate the chaff, cruft, and impulse buys from what we truly need. An occasional performance audit done by hand, argues Chip Cullen, gives us a detailed picture of our work, increases our awareness of what we ask of our users, and allows us to shape our findings in ways that make sense to stakeholders.
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Web Maintainability Industry Survey: How Do We Maintain?
Maintenance is an ever-present aspect of web development, but there simply isn’t much data about what we do industry-wide. To uncover what developers consider best practices and great resources, we’re all taking the (very short!) Great Web Maintainability Survey from Jens Oliver Meiert.
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Fait Accompli: Agentive Tech Is Here
Artificial Intelligence is an extremely hot topic. The process in which everyday devices become more aware of our needs and “learn” to adapt to those needs will play a big part in the future of user experience. In this excerpt from Designing Agentive Technology, AI That Works for People Chris Noessel, examines agentive technology and how it works in behalf of the user.
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User Research When You Can’t Talk to Your Users
User research is about understanding people. But how can we do that when frontline methods of research aren’t an option? Jon Peterson offers up several “outside the box” methods for getting to know users when access and funding is limited.
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Focus on What You Do Best and Outsource the Rest
There’s all this other “stuff” that has to get done in support of what you actually do for a living. It slows you down and takes away from overall productivity in your specialty, yet you think you have to do it yourself no matter how hard it is for you. Suzanne Scacca says it may be a good investment to offload and outsource some of the tasks that aren’t in your wheelhouse. It just might free up your time to do more of what you do best.
