UX Design Fundamentals

Back-end Developer

A developer who focuses mainly on the data, modeling, and server side of code for a website

Full Stack Development

A developer who is knowledgeable in both the data and visual sides of web design

Problem Statement

A part of a design brief that clearly and concisely identifies a client's or target consumer's problem, need, or want.

Wireframing

Blueprints that define the layout, behavior, and functionality of a website

UX Researcher

Champion of user's needs Answer "who are our users?" and "what do our users want?" Interview users, research market data, gather findings Test alternate designs with users Deliver: Usability plans, usability reports

Information Architect

Clarifies the mission and goals of the design; assists in determining the functionality of the product; instrumental in defining the organization, navigation, and labeling

Elements of Visual Design

Color/lines/space/shape/typography/texture/alignment

Responsive Design

Designing a website so that it changes depending on the device it is displayed on; understanding the differences between the features and elements that are used on a smartphone and those that are used on a tablet or computer

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

Developed by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) to provide a universal set of standards promoting accessibility.

UI Designer

Establishes the look, feel, and experience of a product from layout and placement to the visual nitty-gritty such as buttons, colors, and fonts

Interaction Designer

Focuses on how a user interacts with a product and how they experience using it; designs the details of an interface, including movement, animation, user flows, and visual aesthetics.

UI Design

Focuses specifically on the screen. It incorporates visual design, including layout, color theme, and use of negative space between elements

T Shaped Designer

Has an arsenal of skills and depth in one discipline but a breadth of experience across other disciplines.

Empathy

Identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, needs, and motivations

User Research

Obtaining users' responses through questionnaires/surveys and interviews.

Design Thinking

Research, question, and understand the user the product or service is is designed for by observing, engaging, reframing, and experimenting; empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test

Front-end Developer

Take the designs from UI and UX, and combine with the Interaction and Visual Designs Tools: CSS, HTML, JavaScript Deliver: Working website

Deliverables

Tangible records of work throughout the process of a design such as data, reports, presentations, sketches, wireframes, prototypes

Usability Testing

Testing to determine the extent to which the software product is understood, easy to learn, easy to operate and attractive to the users under specified conditions.

Accessibility

The analyzation of how well a product has been designed for a vast array of peoples; ensuring that a design is usable by as many people as possible; Inclusive

Usability

The extent to which users can attain goals.

Color

The perception of light reflecting off an object.

UX Design

The practice of designing products, processes, services, events, and environments with a focus placed on the quality and enjoyment of the total experience; concerns the way that users interact with a product and focuses on the user's onscreen and offscreen experience.

UX Research

The systematic study of users to determine and better understand their needs, behaviors, and motivations.

Divergent Thinking

Think broadly, keep an open mind, and consider anything and everything.

Convergent Thinking

Think narrowly, bring back focus, and identify one or two key problems and solutions

Minimalism

This style strips designs down to their essentials. There are two types: flat and material

Iteration

To use learning from a product to continue to change and improve it

Product Designer

a career relating to the design and creation of models for commercial products; UX Designer

Persona

a fictional profile used to communicate and summarize user research from a large group of users

Empathy Map

a graphical tool used to help you imagine things from a user's perspective; insight into the mindset of the user by collectivizing opinions

Multidisciplinary Team

a group of professionals from different disciplines who function as a team but perform their roles independent of one another

Flat Design

a minimalist design style that removes all stylistic textures that imitate the real world.

Content Strategy

a plan that outlines the development and management of content needed for a project; when and how content will be created.

Visual Design

a practice that focuses on the aesthetics of a design by strategically implementing images, colors, fonts, and other elements

Unity

a sense of harmony between all elements in a design.

Target Market

a set of people who have common purchasing preferences

Scenario

a situation with at least one person and a series of events

Quantitative Survey

a survey in which objective questions are used to gain detailed insights from respondents; findings are presented in numerical form, such as percentages and frequencies

Skeuomorphism

a type of visual design that mimics elements of real-life products or features. e.g. wood, stone and shadows around a click icon.

Journey Map/ Storyboard

a visualization of how a user interacts with a product

Human/User-Centered Design

an approach that puts human needs, capabilities, and behavior first; uses the human perspective in all steps of the problem-solving process

Texture

an implied texture in the form of patterns created by lines, shapes, colors, values, shadows, or highlights.

Proto-Persona

an informal persona based on how you think the users' might use the product

Touchpoints

anytime a user comes into contact with the product or a representation on the product

Summative Research

assess the current state of a product

Formative Research

assess the performance of a product throughout its lifestyle

Alignment

creates visual balance between elements and can help readers' eyes follow content in order.

Contrast

elements appear opposite or different.

Shapes

enclosed elements with two dimensions; length and width

Evaluative Research

evaluate performance once a product is ready to test or has been released

Dominance

focus to a single element above others.

Generative Research

generate ideas at the start of a project or improvement

Qualitative Research

informal research methods, including observation, following social media sites, in-depth interviews, focus groups, and projective techniques

Material Design

it uses minimalistic shapes and colors, but it also suggests "material" or physical layers. It uses shadows and highlights to create depth in visual designs

Competitive Analysis Report

outlines the strengths and weaknesses of a competitors compared to those of a client's business to know what your competitors are offering, what needs you can fill, and what problems you can find solutions for.

Quantitative Research

research that collects and reports data primarily in numerical form

Attitudinal Research

shows how people feel during their experience with a product

Behavioral Research

shows what people actually do when they use a product

Artifacts

the concrete items produced by the designer; a "single source of truth", guides and specifications for implementation and reference

Lines

the connection of two or more points in a plane or flat surface

Universal Design

the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design

Heirarchy

the difference in importance of the elements.

Balance

the distribution of elements in a design.

Space

the empty area around an element; negative space or white space

Prototyping

the process of building a model that demonstrates the features of a proposed product, service, or system

Scale

the relative sizes of the elements in a design.

Information Architecture

the set of ideas about how all information in a given context should be organized and displayed; blueprint maker

Typography

the technique of designing and arranging type with the goal of legibility, intrigue, and appeal.

Principles of VD

unity/balance/hierarchy/dominance/scale/variety/contrast/proximity

UX/UI

user experience and user interface

Variety

varying elements in designs to avoid monotony.

Insight

what the results actually mean

Proximity

when elements are close together. When elements are they appear to share a common meaning or purpose.