{"id":11698,"date":"2017-08-22T15:41:55","date_gmt":"2017-08-22T14:41:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/marvel7077.wpengine.com\/?p=11698"},"modified":"2017-10-04T10:33:04","modified_gmt":"2017-10-04T09:33:04","slug":"ultimate-guide-mobile-developers-want-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marvelapp.com\/blog\/ultimate-guide-mobile-developers-want-design\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ultimate Guide for Mobile Developers Who Want To\u00a0Design"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As a startup founder, one of the most common questions I\u2019m asked is:<\/p>\n

\"How can you do both design and development, as well as business tasks?\"<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m an iOS & macOS developer first, having been coding since I was 13 years old. However, currently, I\u2019m doing all the design tasks for my startup \u200a\u2014 \u200aFlawless App<\/a>. It\u2019s a tool for iOS developers to compare original designs with the real app in Xcode\u2019s iOS simulator. So I do UX research, website mockups, onboarding screens, ads, emails, presentations and many other design-related things. ????<\/p>\n

A long time ago, we did have two brilliant designers working with us but unfortunately, it didn\u2019t work out for many reasons. Therefore, I decided to learn the basics of UX design back then. I didn\u2019t expect to become a UX and UI magician or usability research expert overnight. Rather I wanted to develop the essential skill-set for creating designs fast and efficiently enough to make users happy.<\/p>\n

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\"So, can developers learn UX and UI design?\"<\/p><\/span><\/blockquote>\n

Well yes, we can learn anything we want. To help you get started, I will share some resources that helped me at the beginning of my journey: books, case studies and tutorials.<\/p>\n

Get the taste of design\u00a0thinking<\/h2>\n

Everything in the World around us is designed by somebody. You sit on a chair, that somebody designed. You work on the laptop, where every corner has a reason to be that specific shape. You read Medium, which has a UI that was crafted by a team of designers. Every element of the real or virtual world was designed to make you carry out a specific action.<\/p>\n

My dive into design started with the following classical articles and books. They will teach you to focus on design as a method of solving problems:<\/p>\n

???? Dieter Rams: 10 principles for good design<\/strong><\/p>\n

Good design | About Vits\u0153 | Vits\u0153<\/span>Dieter Rams's ten principles for good design (sometimes referred to as the 'Ten commandments').<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/section>\n

I wasn\u2019t even born when Dieter Rams, German iconic industrial designer, wrote this. It\u2019s a manifesto of design mission for any product or service.<\/p>\n

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Read every line carefully. Does your design meets those principles? Dieter Rams is 85 now and he is the man, who designed Braun coffeemaker, shaver, stereo, calculator, speakers, alarm clock, Oral-B toothbrush and many more.<\/p>\n

Design should not dominate things, should not dominate people. It should help people. That\u2019s its role. \u2013 Dieter Rams<\/span><\/p>\n

???? \u201cThe Design of Everyday Things\u201d by Don Norman<\/strong><\/p>\n

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It\u2019s so popular, that you can even find developer resources such as Swift talk about clean code<\/a> and API design articles<\/a> based on ideas from this book!<\/p>\n

The book covers design methodologies, basic psychological concepts and usability. Norman deals mostly with the design of physical objects. He explores what makes the use of buildings, appliances, and technology easy or complicated. Norman shows the basic patterns, which are very well applied to the virtual touch screen of today\u2019s UIs.<\/p>\n

Originally the book was published in 1988. If you decide to read the first edition, you\u2019ll find a lot of ancient tech stuff there (I loved it!). Back then, Norman predicted the success of iPads, tablet devices, and smartphones. You can also find updated versions, as Norman constantly adds to it. Alternatively, check out this brief Udacity course<\/a>, \"Intro to the Design of Everyday Things with Norman\"<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible. \u2013 Donald A. Norman, The Design of Everyday Things<\/span><\/p>\n

???? \u201c100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People\u201d by Susan Weinschenk<\/strong><\/p>\n

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This is a light overview read of neuroscience and behavioural psychology from a designer\u2019s perspective. The book is divided into short chapters about how people see, read, remember, think, feel and form mental models. I found many new insights there! It\u2019s relatively fresh (2011), well-written and contains practical advice on using these 100 principles in your designs. However, reserve the time for research after reading the book.<\/p>\n

???? Last but not least is \u201cDon\u2019t Make Me Think\u201d by Steve Krug<\/strong><\/p>\n

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It is an easy read with a focus on a common sense approach to web usability. Some of the stuff may be obvious or also found published around different UX blogs (the book was republished & updated in 2013). But if you are a total newbie, you will enjoy it. You can read it in over a weekend or two, as Krug\u2019s writing style is really enjoyable!<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t make me think. Make things obvious and self-evident, or at least self-explanatory. People scan; they don\u2019t read. People choose the first reasonable option. People muddle through things rather than figure them out \u2013 Steve Krug\u2019s Laws of Usability<\/span>
\nDo you wish to learn more on how to hack a user\u2019s brain with product design? Then I strongly recommend you read these articles too:<\/p>\n