101 UX PRINCIPLES - actionable solutions for product design success.

Cover
Copyright
Contributors
Table of Contents
Preface
Section 1: UX Field
Principle 1: Everyone Can Be Great at UX
Principle 2: Be Strategic About Using These Principles
Principle 3: Don’t Be Afraid to Ship Something Simple…
Principle 4: …But Complexity Can Be Good for Some Users
Principle 5: Use A/B Testing to Test Your Ideas
Principle 6: Test with Real Users
Principle 7: Nobody Cares About Your Brand
Section 2: Typography
Principle 8: Don’t Use More than Two Typefaces
Principle 9: Users Already Have Fonts on Their Computers, So Use Them
Principle 10: Use Type Size and Weight to Depict an Information Hierarchy
Principle 11: Use a Sensible Default Size for Body Copy
Section 3: Controls
Principle 12: Use an Ellipsis to Indicate That There’s a Further Step
Principle 13: Make Interactive Elements Obvious and Discoverable
Principle 14: Make Buttons a Sensible Size And Group Them Together by Function
Principle 15: Make the Whole Button Clickable, Not Just the Text
Principle 16: Don’t Invent New, Arbitrary Controls
Principle 17: Search Should Be a Text Field with a Button Labeled “Search”
Principle 18: Sliders Should Be Used for Non-Quantifiable Values Only
Principle 19: Use Numeric Entry Fields for Precise Integers
Principle 20: Don’t Use a Drop-Down Menu If You Only Have a Few Options
Principle 21: Allow Users to Undo Destructive Actions
Principle 22: Optimize Your Interface for Mobile
Section 4: Content
Principle 23: Use “Infinite Scroll” For Feed-Style Content Only
Principle 24: If Your Content Has a Beginning, Middle, and End, Use Pagination
Principle 25: Allow Users to Accept or Reject Cookies with One Click
Principle 26: Help Users Understand Their Next Steps from “Empty States”
Principle 27: Make “Getting Started” Tips Easily Dismissable
Principle 28: When a User Refreshes a Feed, Move Them to the Last Unread Item
Section 5: Navigation
Principle 29: Don’t Hide Items Away in a “Hamburger” Menu
Principle 30: Make Your Links Look like Links
Principle 31: Split Menu Items Down Into Subsections, so Users Don’t Have to Remember Large Lists
Principle 32: Categorize Settings in an Accessible Way
Principle 33: Repeat Menu Items in the Footer or Lower Down in the View
Section 6: Iconography
Principle 34: Use Consistent Icons Across the Product
Principle 35: Don’t Use Obsolete Icons
Principle 36: Don’t Try to Depict a New Idea with an Existing Icon
Principle 37: Never Use Text on Icons
Principle 38: Always Give Icons a Text Label
Section 7: Input
Principle 39: Use Device-Native Input Features Where Possible
Principle 40: Streamline Creating and Entering Passwords
Principle 41: Always Allow the User to Paste into Password Fields
Principle 42: Don’t Attempt to Validate Email Addresses
Principle 43: Respect Users’ Time and Effort in Your Forms
Principle 44: Pick a Sensible Size for Multiline Input Fields
Principle 45: Use Animation with Care in User Interfaces
Principle 46: Use the Same Date Picker Controls Consistently
Principle 47: Pre-Fill the Username in “Forgot Password” Fields
Principle 48: Make Your Input Systems Case-Insensitive
Principle 49: Chatbots Are Usually a Bad Idea
Section 8: Forms
Principle 50: If Your Forms Are Good, Your Product Is Good
Principle 51: Validate Data Entry as Soon as Possible
Principle 52: If the Form Fails Validation, Show the User Which Field Needs Their Attention
Principle 53: Users Don’t Know (and Don’t Care) About Your Data Formats
Principle 54: Pick the Right Control for the Job
Section 9: User Data
Principle 55: Allow Users to Enter Phone Numbers However They Wish
Principle 56: Use Dropdowns Sensibly for Date Entry
Principle 57: Capture the Bare Minimum When Requesting Payment Card Details
Principle 58: Make It Easy for Users to Enter Postal or ZIP Codes
Principle 59: Don’t Add Decimal Places to Currency Input
Principle 60: Make It Painless for the User to Add Images
Section 10: Progress
Principle 61: Use a “Linear” Progress Bar If a Task Will Take a Determinate Amount of Time
Principle 62: Show a Numeric Progress Indicator on the Progress Bar
Principle 63: Show a “Spinner” If the Task Will Take an Indeterminate Amount of Time
Section 11: Accessible Design
Principle 64: Contrast Ratios Are Your Friends
Principle 65: If You Must Use “Flat Design” Then Add Some Visual Affordances to Controls
Principle 66: Avoid Ambiguous Symbols
Principle 67: Make Links Make Sense Out of Context
Principle 68: Add “Skip to Content” Links Above the Header and Navigation
Principle 69: Never Use Color Alone to Convey Information
Principle 70: If You Turn off Device Zoom with a Meta Tag, You’re Evil
Principle 71: Give Navigation Elements a Logical Tab Order
Principle 72: Write Clear Labels for Controls
Principle 73: Make Tappable Areas Finger-Sized
Section 12: Journeys and State
Principle 74: Let Users Turn off Specific Notifications
Principle 75: Each Aspect of a User’s Journey Should Have a Beginning and End
Principle 76: The User Should Always Know What Stage They Are at in Any Given Journey
Principle 77: Use Breadcrumb Navigation
Principle 78: Users Rarely Care About Your Company
Principle 79: Follow the Standard E-Commerce Pattern
Principle 80: Show an Indicator If the User’s Work Is Unsaved
Principle 81: Let Users Give Feedback, but Don’t Hassle Them
Principle 82: Don’t Use a Vanity Splash Screen
Principle 83: Make Your Favicon Distinctive
Principle 84: Add a “Create From Existing” Flow
Principle 85: Make It Easy for Users to Pay You
Principle 86: Give Users the Ability to Filter Search Results
Principle 87: Your Users Probably Don’t Understand the Filesystem
Principle 88: Show, Don’t Tell
Section 13: Terminology
Principle 89: Be Consistent with Terminology
Principle 90: Use “Sign In” and “Sign Out”, Not “Log In” and “Log Out”
Principle 91: Make It Clear to Users If They’re Joining or Signing In
Principle 92: Standardize the Password Reset Experience
Principle 93: Write Like a Human Being
Principle 94: Choose Active Verbs over Passive
Section 14: Expectations
Principle 95: Search Results Pages Should Show the Most Relevant Result at the Top of the Page
Principle 96: Pick Good Defaults
Principle 97: Only Use Modal  Views for Blocking Actions
Principle 98: Give Users the Experience They Expect
Principle 99: Decide Whether an Interaction Should Be Obvious, Easy, or Possible
Principle 100: “Does It Work on Mobile?” Is Obsolete
Section 15: UX Philosophy
Principle 101: Don’t Join the Dark Side
Bonus: Strive for Simplicity
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Index