You might be wondering if I have the necessary credentials to write about design, simplicity, and usability. This is a reasonable question to ask someone whose words you will read and ponder. I regret to say that the answer is no. I have no design course credit hours, no thesis papers, and no extraordinary claims on my resume.
Think of me as ordinary. I have a limb on a family tree, a position on an org chart, and an address in a community. I have a credit score, a phone number, and a dozen or so usernames. I’m a consumer, a customer, and a client. I’m a user of things large and small, old and new, cheap and expensive, physical and digital. I follow instructions, obey laws, and fulfill expectations. I marvel at the complex, but find delight in the simple.
Think of me as typical. It is the typical user experience that I want to discuss. What makes something usable? What motivates us and what frustrates us? What do we wish to avoid and what tickels our fancy? How does the pursuit of simplicity and design provide usability? What can we learn from the experts, and what can we learn from our own experiences? Be it an online task, an everyday item, or a process, I want to write about it.
Think of me as a user with an opinion. Join me each week as I discuss the topics of design, usability, and simplicity. Don’t read me because I’m an expert. Read me because I’m not.