Hey everyone, check out this post on Color Theory!
This post really delves into what each color means. It’s really interesting to see the differences between the warm colors vs the cool colors. Even further in that, the warm colors themselves or the cool colors themselves each hold a different meaning.
I think this can help you all out if you want to really understand how to fit colors together and how to use them in your designs. Happy creating!
——User First, Designer Second——
Good evening ladies and gents! Today I’ll be delving into Jakob Nielsen‘s Heuristic 6, Recognition Rather that Recall. Now, this one is REALLY important (I mean they all are), so I want you to pay attention to this one. I’ll be using an example I used before: Amazon Shopping Cart.
Let’s recap:
Recognition rather than recall
“Minimize the user’s memory load by making objects, actions, and options visible. The user should not have to remember information from one part of the dialogue to another. Instructions for use of the system should be visible or easily retrievable whenever appropriate.”
REMEMBER THIS ONE. REALLY. People do not like to read. So…don’t force them to. People can recognize certain symbols simply because that’s what they’ve learned. Using a house symbol as “Home” or using a Cart symbol as “Cart” for example. A progress bar’s position is another example.
Amazon exceeds expectations well with their checkout process bar. The long orange bar above the steps with a black cart at end signifies how far you have come in the entire process and where you are now. The slightly lighter steps (sign in, shipping & payment, gift options) show what have been completed up to this point. The darker step (along with the cart) displays your position in the checkout process. Even just the cart icon displays your place in the entire website (e.g. checkout process). Excellent usage of this heuristic.
Alright, so why is this important?
Ladies and gentlemen, People do not like to read, and recognition is easier than recall. Think about this for a sec: reading “View Cart” on a button takes time to go into your head, processing, then an understanding to occur. That’s a four step process. That’s hard. If there is simply an icon of a cart, that registers in a person’s mind as “cart” and immediate understanding occurs. One to two step process. See the difference?
Don’t make recognizing something inside an interface harder than recalling what it could mean. As a designer, you need to create something that comes second nature to a user, or easily taught.
——User First, Designer Second——
Mad Hatter 