Designing Simplicity

User Experience May 10, 2009

Designers are not artists. Design is a form of art, but it is about problem solving and is constrained by a number of facets. Artists engage in the manipulation of a particular medium to produce an aesthetic, personal response - a situation in which there are few constraints. As such, art is valued for its originality and ability to express an idea. Design, on the other hand, must be relevant to a particular user or task and solve a specific problem. Were it an aesthetic response, it might only work for some people. Design is intended for mass production and widespread distribution, concerned with finding the best way to communicate some information to everyone and resolve any confusion along the way. Design is never evaluated in formal terms, but rather, how effective it is at solving the problem at hand.

To do this, design decisions must be logical and practical. Modern design, especially, is based on the rational belief that all design decisions should be justified on objective grounds. By being able to reason choices almost mathematically, design can be timeless - a quality apparent in many old designs such as church architecture and Roman lettering. It is this timeless quality that proves a design has solved a problem.

The key to a timeless design is simplicity, which Da Vinci said was the "ultimate sophistication." It can always be found in nature, from the laws of physics to the crystal formations in caves and even the human anatomy. Logarithmic spirals can be produced mathematically, yet they are the basis for countless well-known forms that exist in the real world. But although a particular design may appear simple and elegant, the path to creating it is most likely not.

To design for simplicity, there are a few components to be aware of:

1. Approachability
Simple is approachable. If there are fewer buttons and there is less clutter, there is less of an endeavor to take on in approaching an interface. In the overall user experience, there is less effort needed from the user to categorize, identify and define what something is.

2. Recognizability
Something which is recognizable is more approachable. An interface which uses familiar and consistent elements leads to quicker recognition of what it is and how to use it. Recognition is the most powerful form of memory recall, so it's no wonder that familiarity is a strong basis for good design.

3. Learnability
The combination of approachability and recognizability, learnability describes how immediate a product is to use. If a user knows what something is and is not afraid to engage with it, the user gains a faster understanding and the product makes a greater impact. Spending time to learn something new hurts the user experience.

4. Usability
After the user has already engaged with the product, the amount of time with which to accomplish tasks should be small. If there are less controls and a more simple interface, the procedures are more memorable.

Design must meet expectations and, when it fails to do so, the problems can be attributed to errors in one or more of these categories.

The real trick to design is focus. It's all too easy to tack on unnecessary components and often it's here where design can go down the wrong path. Right at the start of the process, it's imperative to reduce the design to its essence, it's core emotional value. A good design is simple, bold, direct. Its purpose is clear and it focuses the user's attention on the significant components while removing the ones that are not.

That's where the term "elegant design" originates. The word "elegant" really means "to choose out" or "select carefully" and is based off the same Latin roots as "elect" and "select." Being simple requires immense discipline because design is really about taking away until you can't anymore.

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