8 ms·

Designer as Writer

39 points by omarchowdhury 6y ago

rojcyk 6y ago
But if we overdesign our writing, it becomes extremely hard to read as this one.
ZephyrBlu 6y ago
I'm not saying this to be ironic on purpose, but the design of this website makes it very hard for me to read. - Oversized font which means I can't skim the article - Sliding columns for seemingly no reason other than to confuse the reader (Also makes it impossible to skim the article) - Really unintuitive navigation system (Click on a part of the paragraph) that I didn't find until I randomly hovered my mouse over it I didn't read the article, the design and layout actively put me off, which is kind of a shame because I think the topic is interesting.
- eyelidlessness 6y ago
  > Sliding columns for seemingly no reason other than to confuse the reader (Also makes it impossible to skim the article) FWIW, every time I’ve looked at the state of the art for column flow content on web, this is how it’s felt. Even as browsers have supported it, even web design people barely talk about it because it’s basically bad. Column flow content in design is managed and carefully laid out for the specific content. The idea that it could be a few css properties was hubris.
farleykr 6y ago
I agree with the other comments about the article being difficult to read. But kudos to the author for taking the time and effort to put their words into practice and attempt to make an interestingly designed piece of writing.
tomcam 6y ago
Design must be subservient to usability. It was painful for me to scroll, so much so that I gave up. It may have been acceptable on a wide desktop, but his article was so janky on my 2020 iPad that I had to stop reading.
- kranner 6y ago
  It is bad on a wide desktop as well. The copy font is too large and could use more space between letters. The font size should have been capped.
- taphangum 6y ago
  > Design must be subservient to usability. I really really like this quote. Did you come up with this? Hits the nail right on the head, and is actually a key to helping developers better understand how to design effectively. Namely, to come at design from the perspective of an interface as an 'information architecture'. And how this is key to making design easy and more understandable for a engineering oriented mind. I wrote a short article about this here: https://simpleprogrammer.com/information-architecture-developers-learning-design/ https://simpleprogrammer.com/information-architecture-develo....
  - KineticLensman 6y ago
    > Design must be subservient to usability. Not OP, but it seems related to 'form follows function' [0]. Incidentally, my favourite graphic design rule is 'communicate don't decorate'. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_follows_function https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_follows_function
    - taphangum 6y ago
      > communicate don't decorate Is another fantastic one. I'm really getting into the idea that design is basically all about guidance. Mapping a goal-worthy journey for the user. Which is why we use words like 'journey' and 'story' often when describing UX issues. Thanks for the comment and the link! Very enlightening.
      - ayewo 6y ago
        Mentally, I add the prefix “communication” whenever I see references to (graphic) designers. It helps me keep what their ultimate responsibility should be in any software project: to communicate, as clearly as possible, within the chosen mediums of expression. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication_design https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication_design

39 points by omarchowdhury 6y ago

But if we overdesign our writing, it becomes extremely hard to read as this one.

I'm not saying this to be ironic on purpose, but the design of this website makes it very hard for me to read. - Oversized font which means I can't skim the article - Sliding columns for seemingly no reason other than to confuse the reader (Also makes it impossible to skim the article) - Really unintuitive navigation system (Click on a part of the paragraph) that I didn't find until I randomly hovered my mouse over it I didn't read the article, the design and layout actively put me off, which is kind of a shame because I think the topic is interesting.

eyelidlessness 6y ago
> Sliding columns for seemingly no reason other than to confuse the reader (Also makes it impossible to skim the article) FWIW, every time I’ve looked at the state of the art for column flow content on web, this is how it’s felt. Even as browsers have supported it, even web design people barely talk about it because it’s basically bad. Column flow content in design is managed and carefully laid out for the specific content. The idea that it could be a few css properties was hubris.

farleykr 6y ago

I agree with the other comments about the article being difficult to read. But kudos to the author for taking the time and effort to put their words into practice and attempt to make an interestingly designed piece of writing.

tomcam 6y ago

Design must be subservient to usability. It was painful for me to scroll, so much so that I gave up. It may have been acceptable on a wide desktop, but his article was so janky on my 2020 iPad that I had to stop reading.

kranner 6y ago
It is bad on a wide desktop as well. The copy font is too large and could use more space between letters. The font size should have been capped.
taphangum 6y ago
> Design must be subservient to usability. I really really like this quote. Did you come up with this? Hits the nail right on the head, and is actually a key to helping developers better understand how to design effectively. Namely, to come at design from the perspective of an interface as an 'information architecture'. And how this is key to making design easy and more understandable for a engineering oriented mind. I wrote a short article about this here: https://simpleprogrammer.com/information-architecture-developers-learning-design/ https://simpleprogrammer.com/information-architecture-develo....
- KineticLensman 6y ago
  > Design must be subservient to usability. Not OP, but it seems related to 'form follows function' [0]. Incidentally, my favourite graphic design rule is 'communicate don't decorate'. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_follows_function https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_follows_function
  - taphangum 6y ago
    > communicate don't decorate Is another fantastic one. I'm really getting into the idea that design is basically all about guidance. Mapping a goal-worthy journey for the user. Which is why we use words like 'journey' and 'story' often when describing UX issues. Thanks for the comment and the link! Very enlightening.
    - ayewo 6y ago
      Mentally, I add the prefix “communication” whenever I see references to (graphic) designers. It helps me keep what their ultimate responsibility should be in any software project: to communicate, as clearly as possible, within the chosen mediums of expression. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication_design https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication_design