I'm an engineer too, and many years ago I read a book that I really found illuminating: http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Visual-Interfaces-Communication-Techniqu

I'm an engineer too, and many years ago I read a book that I really found illuminating: http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Visual-Interfaces-Communication-Techniques/dp/0133033899 http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Visual-Interfaces-Communicat... The examples about applications design are outdated, but the principles and clarity of exposition are still top notch.