Fundamentals of good web design (Book Review Series)

(The following is a series of reviews on web 2.0, web design, and social media books.  It will be a 9 part series.  Each review is structured to provide a brief summary of  the books along with some application to current course assignments for a Web 2.0 Production course taught by Dr. Sorin Matei, Purdue University.)

Introduction to Review Series

Have you ever wondered how to make a good website?  In today’s world of self-expression and individuality, a new blog or personal site is introduced every minute.  Some of these sites are appealing at first glance, while others leave you dazed and confused.  Several books have been written that examine the design of a site, the user interface, the navigation ability, etc.  Four such books have been highly regarded in the web design industry.  This series will attempt to point out some of the main points covered with respect to interactive web design, web 2.0, and social media.  This series is by no means all-inclusive. Its purpose is to serve as a brief summary of the some of the concepts discussed in the books.  Each review concludes with commentary on how the principle deuces in the book apply to Web 2.0 and developing your own personal web site.  Although these books are used with respect to design in general, in this series all references will be made in terms of web design.

Series 1: About Face 3 – The Essentials of Interactive Design

Design principles are guidelines for design of useful and desirable products, systems, and services, as well as guideline for the successful and ethical practice of design. (Cooper, Reimann, & Cronin, 2007)

Summary
About Face is presented in three parts, each giving special attention to the main three concepts of design: (1) designing for a goal, (2) designing for behavior and from, and (3) designing for interaction.  Each part provides a type of design theory surrounding the overarching topic of the section.  The authors use explicit detail taking the reader through the fundamentals and examples that aid in the understanding of these concepts.  In Part I, the importance of staring design with a goal, an intention, and clear model for a design project is emphasized.  A set of goals for a design project is not typically universal.  There are goals for the designer, the end-user, and the project leader (this could be the funder, manager, etc.).  An effective designer has to keep all three of these sets of goals in mind when developing a website.  Understanding the outcomes and support of each goal leads to plays a major part in delivering the web site.

In Part II of their book, the authors dedicate the pages to discussing behavior and form and how it plays a major role in getting the right design to the user.  With the introduction of web 2.0 technologies, the face of the Internet is constantly pushing the envelope with design and interaction.  The About Face book encourages embracing new technology and putting it into interactive design when necessary.  The authors do an excellent job of communicating design principles as more than just having functional aspects.  They combine the fundamentals of design with the basic cognitive characteristics of personality and behavior.  Design should be intentional, not by accident.   As humans, we behave in certain ways when it comes to seeing, processing, and comprehending information in text or graphical form.  I think that Copper et al. do an excellent job of relating these behavioral theories and characteristics to those of design.  They provide principles that address issues of behavior, form, and content and how to successfully use these in web design.  They believe that technology should serve human intelligence and imagination, not hinder it.  This is a similar idea to the main point of another book that will be discussed further later.   Bottom line, according to Cooper et al, interactive design should be easy to follow, stress free.  It should always encourage the behavior of the user, and foster interaction.

I really enjoyed the format of About Face since all the theory talk it appealed to my background in consumer behavior.  The principles from the book tied together behavioral and interface principles.  The principles discussed were: (1) text comprehension (cognitive), (2) recall of product behaviors, passwords, data objects, relationships between objects (memory), (3) where to start on a screen, figuring layouts (visual), and (4) clicking, dragging, and basic navigation (physical).  Grasping these concepts helps to minimize the busy and redo work of design.  For example, a successful personal site takes into consideration the visual communication received by the visitor to the site and tries to match this with the next behavioral intention.  The authors go on to instruct the reader on how to design pages that are naturally readable by users.  How to guide the users where to start on the screen and how to visually move them throughout the site are two ways to keep a users coming back.  The difference in colors and layouts plays a major role in this.

The book also outlined some main design principles to use as a checklist for making sites engaging: (1) define the value of the design for all parties involved, (2) define what the product  (ie. Web site) is and how it fits with concepts of the owner/client, (3) define how a product should behave in all situations, and (4) define the strategies for the visual communication of the information.  There were also chapters dedicated to linking the cognitive and physical aspects of design directly to the functionality of a web site.

Web 2.0 Relevance
About Face is like a reference book.  The principles discussed can be related to web 2.0, however at first glance not as seamlessly as some of the other books to be discussed.  This is more due to the theoretical format of the content.  Cooper et al discusses design as a goal-directed process that can help with developing web 2.0 applications like widgets, AJAX and API applications, that are popping up everywhere with Adobe Air, and mobile phone applications like those for the iPhone and Blackberry.   User-generated content is becoming more and more popular.  Following the guidelines from About Face can help designers develop sites that encourage users to have a voice about community interfaces and play n active role in populating content.

Reference
Cooper, A., Reimann, R., &, Cronin, D. (2007). About face 3: The essentials of interaction design. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing.