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Design is really NOT a big deal. It has been overhyped over the last decade. It is NOT a competitive advantage and if anything it hinders innovation. Please ST

Design is really NOT a big deal. It has been overhyped over the last decade. It is NOT a competitive advantage and if anything it hinders innovation. Please STOP putting such a high importance on design. Much more important aspects of products that have been widely neglected over the past decade: - data portability - privacy - reliability - extensibility

jawns 3y ago
I think you might be using "design" to refer to visual design or UX design. But this article is about system design, which encompasses the factors you've described above.
- jsunderland323 3y ago
  It’s not about system design. It’s about design systems, which are custom UI component libraries used across a product or set of products to enforce UI consistency and code re-usability.
jahewson 3y ago
Design = thinking things through. If that’s not a competitive advantage, I don’t what is. You must see the irony in advocating for 4 things that the market has proven it doesn’t particularly value as being some kind of advantage?
- julienreszka 3y ago
  I think you missed my point entirely. The value of design is in a bubble (hype) and the data portability, privacy, reliability, extensibility are undervalued. There is a huge market distortion caused by incumbent big companies who benefit from the bubble and the undervaluation of data portability, privacy, reliability, extensibility.
- yencabulator 3y ago
  I've yet to see a web designer or graphic designer think things through. My experience is that they're entry level freelancers that perform the exact task requested, nothing else, and e.g. consistency has to be handled above their pay grade. I don't think I can agree to your definition of the word design. Checking https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/design https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/design, these two sound like what you're talking about: > 1. A specification of an object or process, referring to requirements to be satisfied and thus conditions to be met for them to solve a problem. > 2. A plan (with more or less detail) for the structure and functions of an artifact, building or system. But these sound like what a web designer or graphic designer do. And they are more about being artistic than about thinking things through: > 3. A pattern, as an element of a work of art or architecture. > 4. The composition of a work of art. > 6. The shape or appearance given to an object, especially one that is intended to make it more attractive. > 7. The art of designing > Danish furniture design is world-famous.
uxcolumbo 3y ago
Design has many facets. Are you purely referring to visual design? Because I wouldn’t call focusing on usability, accessibility and solving the right problems for users is a waste of time or being overhyped. These will increase your competitive advantage.
- julienreszka 3y ago
  > solving the right problems for users Your vision of design is too wide. The deliverable of design is a prototype with more or less refinement that the engineering team can get inspiration from. It's hardly THAT important. Engineers are the ones who really are solving the problems. Whether it's the right problems is a matter of opinion.
- yencabulator 3y ago
  How many company design systems have actually improved usability or accessibility over the standard widgets?

jawns 3y ago

I think you might be using "design" to refer to visual design or UX design. But this article is about system design, which encompasses the factors you've described above.

jsunderland323 3y ago
It’s not about system design. It’s about design systems, which are custom UI component libraries used across a product or set of products to enforce UI consistency and code re-usability.

jahewson 3y ago

Design = thinking things through. If that’s not a competitive advantage, I don’t what is. You must see the irony in advocating for 4 things that the market has proven it doesn’t particularly value as being some kind of advantage?

julienreszka 3y ago
I think you missed my point entirely. The value of design is in a bubble (hype) and the data portability, privacy, reliability, extensibility are undervalued. There is a huge market distortion caused by incumbent big companies who benefit from the bubble and the undervaluation of data portability, privacy, reliability, extensibility.
yencabulator 3y ago
I've yet to see a web designer or graphic designer think things through. My experience is that they're entry level freelancers that perform the exact task requested, nothing else, and e.g. consistency has to be handled above their pay grade. I don't think I can agree to your definition of the word design. Checking https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/design https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/design, these two sound like what you're talking about: > 1. A specification of an object or process, referring to requirements to be satisfied and thus conditions to be met for them to solve a problem. > 2. A plan (with more or less detail) for the structure and functions of an artifact, building or system. But these sound like what a web designer or graphic designer do. And they are more about being artistic than about thinking things through: > 3. A pattern, as an element of a work of art or architecture. > 4. The composition of a work of art. > 6. The shape or appearance given to an object, especially one that is intended to make it more attractive. > 7. The art of designing > Danish furniture design is world-famous.

uxcolumbo 3y ago

Design has many facets. Are you purely referring to visual design? Because I wouldn’t call focusing on usability, accessibility and solving the right problems for users is a waste of time or being overhyped. These will increase your competitive advantage.

julienreszka 3y ago
> solving the right problems for users Your vision of design is too wide. The deliverable of design is a prototype with more or less refinement that the engineering team can get inspiration from. It's hardly THAT important. Engineers are the ones who really are solving the problems. Whether it's the right problems is a matter of opinion.
yencabulator 3y ago
How many company design systems have actually improved usability or accessibility over the standard widgets?