The Design of Everyday Things: Revised and Expanded Edition

I don't have a TV, only a few monitors (it's very liberating, actually). So instead I'll talk about my microwave. Yes, unironically! :D It has two dials. OMG how do I survive with only two dials? How do I program it? Well, the answer is, unsurprisingly, that I don't program it. Instead I crank it to watever wattage I need (usually the top one), and the time I think it'll take until the food I becomes hot. Aaaand that's it. No programming. No fiddling or mindlessly pushing buttons in the hopes of finding the right one. Only two dials. One for wattage (power output), and the other for time. I think it's really great. There's even some indicators on the Watt-dial for thawing and stuff like that, but I seldom need it, so I usually just keep it rested on 800W. It's the required wattage for most TV dinners anyway. And hot pockets. Don't forget hot pockets guys. How would I survive without...... If you didn't get it, this is actually a post about UIs, and how much I love the book The Design of Everyday Things by Donald Norman.[1]

[1]: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expand...

UX is a huge field with a lot of entry points so it’s difficult so suggest a single resource to start with.

However I’d suggest that coming from an engineering background, you might find joy in learning about user testing first as that’s usually a big eye-opener that helps you understand why the field of UX design is important.

A classic book to start with is “Don’t Make Me Think” by Steve Krug[0], which covers usability testing and even how to conduct a session yourself.

Then there’s “The Design of Everyday Things” by Don Norman[1], whom many consider the ‘father’ of the modern field of UX. That one can be a bit dense though.

If you want to think like a designer, then learning about Design Thinking[2] is a good place to start.

Hope that helps!

[0] https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Make-Think-Revisited-Usability/d...

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expand...

[2] https://www.ideou.com/pages/design-thinking

The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman

https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expand...

Related reading list:

https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expand...

https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Make-Think-Revisited-Usability/d...

This seems to be blurring a use of "design". Not all design is chrome on top of things. Some literally leads to better use. Some design is required for safe use.

I think it is oversold, but the book "Design of Everyday Things"[1] goes over this for many common items. There is a long section on doors with many interesting points to consider.

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expand...

If you like that article, you might also like Donald Normans The Design of Everyday Things, https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expand.... It has a lot more examples for these kind of bad designs, and it also explains why these designs are bad and what makes a good design. I can't recommend it enough, everyone that ever might design a product or a GUI should have read it.

It's not specific to software, but I feel like anyone working with UX should read this first: https://toptalkedbooks.com/amzn/0465050654

My day job is WebGL + UI; for UI I'd recommend:

• Design of Everyday Things
• Tog

Also take a look at what industrial design courses are available.

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