Design

The design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities.

The phenomenon where users are more tolerant of minor usability issues when they find an interface visually appealing.

Phenomenon observed in user experience design and human-computer interaction that refers to the tendency of users to perceive aesthetically pleasing designs as more usable than less attractive ones, even if the actual usability is the same. This effect suggests that visual appeal can influence users' perceptions and interactions, leading them to overlook minor usability issues in favor of a more visually pleasing experience. Consequently, a well-designed aesthetic can enhance user satisfaction, increase trust, and improve overall user experience, making it an important consideration in the design of products and interfaces.

A common response to a recurring problem that is usually ineffective and risks being highly counterproductive.

The laboratory-measured positive effect on creativity that high ceilings exhibit.

A Gestalt principle that stimulus elements are likely to be perceived as a unit if they move together.

In design and psychology, the tendency to prefer contoured or rounded objects, where sharp angles and pointed features evoke a threat response.

The reusable form of a solution to a design problem.

A series of components that can be reused in different combinations — allowing for consistency, scaling, and efficiency.

An umbrella term for the cognitive, strategic and practical processes by which design concepts (proposals for new products, buildings, machines, etc.) are developed around cooperative efforts in general, and likely a human-centered design process more specifically.

Conceived by Walter Doherty and Ahrvind Thadani, the Doherty threshold is an objective for keeping the user thoroughly engaged when interacting with a computer. If a response appears after the 400 ms threshold, users eventually become disinterested according to a study done in the late 1970s.

In architecture, 'ducks' are buildings that explicitly represent their function through their shape and construction. "Decorated sheds", on the other hand, are generic structures that use signs and imagery to convey their purpose.

Egg-laying wool milk sow.

In Zen, a circle that is hand-drawn in one or two uninhibited brushstrokes to express a moment when the mind is free to let the body create.

A type of perceptual grouping of identifying a figure from the background.

A predictive model of human movement primarily used in human–computer interaction and ergonomics (such as moving a mouse cursor on a screen). This scientific law predicts that the time required to rapidly move to a target area is a function of the ratio between the distance to the target and the width of the target.

The design principle that as the flexibility of a system increases, its usability decreases. The tradeoff exists because accommodating flexibility requires satisfying a larger set of requirements, which results in complexity and usability compromises.

A principle which says that the shape of a building or object should primarily relate to its intended function or purpose.

The observation that humans naturally perceive objects as organized patterns and objects. These principles are generally organized into the five categories of Proximity, Similarity, Continuity, Closure, and Connectedness.

The ability of a system, machine, or product to maintain a limited functionality even when a large portion of it no longer works or has broken down.

In shopping mall design, the moment when consumers enter a shopping mall or store and, surrounded by an intentionally confusing layout, lose track of their original intentions, making consumers more susceptible to make impulse buys.

A user behavior known as reading gravity, i.e. the western habit of reading left-to-right, top-to-bottom.

An arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) in which the items are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another.

In visual art, the filling of the entire surface of a space or an artwork with detail.

A point on a curve at which the curve changes from being concave to convex, or vice versa.

Making an interface so wieldy that it is extremely difficult to implement.

User experience design principle that states that users expect websites or applications to follow the design patterns and conventions that they are already familiar with, to reduce cognitive load and increase usability.

A non-conventional solution or hack to a problem — often both frugal in nature and demonstrating a degree of creativity.

Describing makeshift repairs made with only the tools and materials at hand.

Japanese term that refers to the practice of continuous improvement and incremental change, emphasizing the importance of small and frequent adjustments to increase efficiency, productivity, and quality.

The phenomenon whereby the three-dimensional structural form of an object can be perceived when the object is moving, such as a rotating wire shape cast onto a screen.

A workaround or quick-and-dirty solution that is clumsy, inelegant, inefficient, difficult to extend and hard to maintain, yet nonetheless is operational.

The process of arranging different objects so that they are at 90-degree angles from each other, and then often photographing them from above, but could also be used as a method for organizing, packing, and arranging more broadly.

The design aesthetic phenomenon where figures with edges that are smooth are more likely seen as continuous than edges that have abrupt or sharp angles.

A fundamental principle of gestalt which says that people will perceive and interpret ambiguous or complex images as the simplest form(s) possible.

A surface with only one side and only one boundary (as a ring of paper that has been cut, one part turned 180 degrees, and reassembled), making it unorientable.

An industrial design principle which seeks to give users the most advanced design, but not more advanced than what they were able to accept and embrace.

Japanese concept of hospitality that brings ones whole self to the satisfaction of the guests.

Japanese term used to describe a style of hospitality that emphasizes anticipating and fulfilling the needs of guests with a warm and attentive attitude.

A phenomenon of visual processing in which certain line orientations are more quickly and easily processed and discriminated than other line orientations.

Often in architecture, the basic form, diagram, or statement of a design decision.

The phenomenon where preferences are not always aligned by more efficient performance, i.e. designs that help people perform optimally are often not the same as the designs that people find most desirable. For example, the Dvorak keyboard allows for 30% improved typing efficiency, yet people continue to prefer the QWERTY keyboard layout.

The notion that a component of a system should behave in a way that most users will expect it to behave; the behavior should not astonish or surprise users.

An interaction design technique often used in human computer interaction and journalism to help maintain the focus of a user's attention by reducing clutter, confusion, and cognitive workload.

The usability observation that people determine a site's credibility by judging prominent attributes of the site that grab their attention.

A rule of thumb which applies to the process of composing well-design visual images such as designs, films, paintings, and photographs.

Typically applied in digital graphic design, snap-to-grid is a function used to guide design work, nudging and constraining inputs to a fixed grid.

Japanese term that refers to a clever or unconventional solution or hack that solves a problem in a simple and efficient way, often using everyday items or resources.

The Japanese concept of a worldview centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection.

The design term describing how one orients themselves and navigates within a space, which could refer to compasses and maps as well as graphic design, tactile elements, and architecture.