What Does it Mean to Design?
Design is an art and science that have many applications in many fields. A design is a blueprint or a plan for the execution of some activity or procedure or the product of that plan or specifications in the shape of a prototype, machine or implement, or the resultant product. The word ‘design’ can also mean to manipulate or mold. The French noun ‘design’ can also mean a work made by art or human skill. The word ‘design’ has other meanings, but in this article we are discussing only the technical meaning of design.
A good design can be described as an exact replica of the end product. This is what would happen if the designer understood all the steps of making things as they should be rather than just looking at pictures. A good designer should be able to envision the end result and should be capable of describing all the aspects of that vision. A badly designed product or even an idea will not meet its purpose and the intended users will not be satisfied with it.
How to describe a good design? A good user interface designer should describe his product in terms the user can understand and use easily. In other words, a user interface designer should be able to convey his thoughts clearly through his application. He must take into account all the functions that any good application must have and not just the visual beauty or appearance. Designers who have a general understanding of how users interact with their computer systems and their visual systems will be better equipped to start designing.
Designers are also needed for product management and product development. In product management, the overall process of development and manufacture of a product is supervised by a series of specialists: the product manager, the IT manager, the business analyst, and the manufacturing manager. Each of these specialist has a specific responsibility, and all of them are involved in giving shape to a complete procedure. Good designers will contribute their expertise to the production process.
Now, let’s go back to user interface design. If a designer does not know how to describe his work in such a way that the user will find it easy to understand, he will not be able to contribute to the successful development of any application. People think that a good designer is the one who knows how to make things look nice and pretty, but this is not necessarily true. Good designers are the ones who can give people ideas that are new and fresh, so they can be used and enjoyed by a lot of people.
The importance of user-centric design cannot be understated. People have become accustomed to touch screens on electronic devices and they expect them to behave as though they are part of the machine. They do not like software that makes them feel like they are sitting on an alien machine. The usability of an application is very important for product development. Designers must therefore focus on ensuring that a certain application behaves as desired in a manner that users will never experience any discomfort or difficulty.