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Subject:
From:
Hagan Rivers <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Hagan Rivers <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 24 Aug 2006 13:35:23 -0400
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> I was wondering if someone can throw some light on how does the  
> technology
> affect the ui design?? i mean if the technology is Java,struts,  
> webshpere
> etc... how does it affect a user experience designer's or ui  
> designer's
> design??and what technological knowledge a user experience designer  
> or ui
> designer needs to have???

I'll take a stab at this...

This is where I find the analogy between UI designer and architect  
comes in handy.

Architects design buildings. An architect can certainly design a  
building and ignore how the building is actually made. He can forget  
about the strength of steel, or the changes that wood will experience  
with temperature fluctuations, he can forget about load bearing  
walls... he can design anything he wants to. And doing this kind of  
design work is useful for architects. It allows them to free  
themselves from constraints and explore new ideas, even if some of  
these ideas are so fantastic that they cannot realistically be built.  
It can also be useful for builders - sometimes when a builder sees  
something completely new he might say "it can't be done"... but some  
builders may embrace these new ideas and say "let's make this work".

Ultimately, however, if an architect wants his building made he must  
work with the builder and the client. He must be ready to address  
important questions through his design work: How much will the  
building cost? How long will it take to build? Is there a more  
efficient (cheaper, faster) way to accomplish the same thing? How  
important is this (very expensive) element in the building? The  
architect must decide where he is ready to compromise and what  
elements are unique and special about the building that he has  
created. If the architect is not ready to compromise, the builder and  
the client will move on and find someone who can build them something  
they can afford.

You probably see where I'm going with this... A UI designer can  
certainly design products and know nothing about how they are made.  
He can ignore all the implementation details: Java? Who cares.  
Struts? Whatever. Ajax? Yes, sure. The designer can cut loose and  
just design what he thinks should be built. And doing so is useful  
for the designer. It can also be useful for "visionary" work for the  
product - where might we be in 10 years? And it can be used to push  
engineering to explore new implementation ideas. Such design work can  
be incredibly valuable.

But ultimately, most designs will be implemented. Reality sets in.  
How long will it take to build? Do we have to make a whole new clever  
menu system just for this product when we already have one in Java  
that seems to work pretty well? What's more important to you: making  
your search results the way you designed them, or getting those fancy  
curved corners on all your boxes? As you are creating your design you  
need to be able to anticipate these questions: what will be hard to  
build? What will be easy? You need to have some understanding of how  
your design will be realized. You don't need an engineering  
background, but you do need to work with the implementation team and  
discuss your ideas and let them guide you ("Well, it would be hard to  
do it this way, but if we just changed it a little bit we could do  
this...").

Turning a design into a piece of software is about the art of  
compromise. It's about keeping the essential elements of your design,  
keeping the focus on usability, and handing something to your  
implementation team that they can build.

Hope that helps!

--
   Hagan Rivers
   Two Rivers Consulting Corporation
   [log in to unmask]
   www.tworivers.com

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