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For the same reasons being a coder isn't necessary to criticize code. Anybody can do it, but chances are your opinions are a lot less informed than you realize

For the same reasons being a coder isn't necessary to criticize code. Anybody can do it, but chances are your opinions are a lot less informed than you realize.

booleandilemma 5y ago
I think even a lowly non-designer is capable of saying whether a website is trash or not, and I don’t think the same is true for code at all.
ALittleLight 5y ago
It depends. If you don't know how to code and you're commenting on language or framework choice (e.g. "it's electron therefore bad") or something like that, then your opinion is probably invalid. On the other hand, if you're comment is something like "This app doesn't work like I want" then it really doesn't matter if you have the slightest idea how to implement what you want. Likewise, a non-designer offering opinions on design philosophy or alternate styles is probably pretty useless. A non-designer saying the thing is awkward/ugly/confusing/whatever is informative though.
p1necone 5y ago
This isn't a great comparison. The only people that need to read (and know how to read) code are coders. A non-coder can't criticize code. This is not the same for UX (or restaurants, films or cars from my other example) as these are things that everyone interacts with and understands to some extent despite not doing so in a professional capacity.
- seumars 5y ago
  That is the problem though. As a consumer you’ll never get to know the intricacies of how things are made and why. The biggest problem at least here on HN is that hardly anyone knows how to articulate their (however valid) critiques, and therefore fallback to cliches and easy-to-quote “laws” that are quite irrelevant among design practitioners.
  - p1necone 5y ago
    You don't need to know how something was built in order to critique the experience of using it. A non designer is not going to be good at identifying solutions to problems because that does require knowledge about how the sausage is made, but they should certainly be listened to when identifying problems. Not doing so would be madness. (Not to mention a lot of the commenters on here that you're decrying as "non designers" probably do have experience with design, considering the userbase of HN)
  - robjan 5y ago
    The whole point of UI/UX is to provide a good experience for users. Users know when they are having a good experience and part of the role of a UI/UX practitioner is to collect and synthesise this feedback. A practitioner who ignores feedback and says "who's the UX professional here?" is not a very good one.
  - WalterBright 5y ago
    I may indeed not know the intricacies of web design. But I do know when the "modern" UIs are unable to scroll smoothly. It's full of not moving, then a giant lurch to somewhere else. Worse, random new content will suddenly appear causing my view to randomly move to some other part of the page. This disease infects an awful lot of "modern" web sites.
asldihgiyug 5y ago
Code is not meant for public consumption, but a website is. This is not a good analogy.

For the same reasons being a coder isn't necessary to criticize code. Anybody can do it, but chances are your opinions are a lot less informed than you realize.

booleandilemma 5y ago

I think even a lowly non-designer is capable of saying whether a website is trash or not, and I don’t think the same is true for code at all.

ALittleLight 5y ago

It depends. If you don't know how to code and you're commenting on language or framework choice (e.g. "it's electron therefore bad") or something like that, then your opinion is probably invalid. On the other hand, if you're comment is something like "This app doesn't work like I want" then it really doesn't matter if you have the slightest idea how to implement what you want. Likewise, a non-designer offering opinions on design philosophy or alternate styles is probably pretty useless. A non-designer saying the thing is awkward/ugly/confusing/whatever is informative though.

p1necone 5y ago

This isn't a great comparison. The only people that need to read (and know how to read) code are coders. A non-coder can't criticize code. This is not the same for UX (or restaurants, films or cars from my other example) as these are things that everyone interacts with and understands to some extent despite not doing so in a professional capacity.

seumars 5y ago
That is the problem though. As a consumer you’ll never get to know the intricacies of how things are made and why. The biggest problem at least here on HN is that hardly anyone knows how to articulate their (however valid) critiques, and therefore fallback to cliches and easy-to-quote “laws” that are quite irrelevant among design practitioners.
- p1necone 5y ago
  You don't need to know how something was built in order to critique the experience of using it. A non designer is not going to be good at identifying solutions to problems because that does require knowledge about how the sausage is made, but they should certainly be listened to when identifying problems. Not doing so would be madness. (Not to mention a lot of the commenters on here that you're decrying as "non designers" probably do have experience with design, considering the userbase of HN)
- robjan 5y ago
  The whole point of UI/UX is to provide a good experience for users. Users know when they are having a good experience and part of the role of a UI/UX practitioner is to collect and synthesise this feedback. A practitioner who ignores feedback and says "who's the UX professional here?" is not a very good one.
- WalterBright 5y ago
  I may indeed not know the intricacies of web design. But I do know when the "modern" UIs are unable to scroll smoothly. It's full of not moving, then a giant lurch to somewhere else. Worse, random new content will suddenly appear causing my view to randomly move to some other part of the page. This disease infects an awful lot of "modern" web sites.

asldihgiyug 5y ago

Code is not meant for public consumption, but a website is. This is not a good analogy.