Source: http://www.designbyfront.com/demo/goldilocks-approach/

Analysis:

The article starts off by describing the world of mobile technology and the challenges to design (countless phone manufacturers with various screen sizes, screen resolution, pixel interpretation, etc…).  I mean, all of us have been on a mobile device where we come across a website that takes forever to load or contains display issues hurt the functionality of the site haven’t we? The question is raised – “What if we could create a truly universal design that was device independent – one that, no matter what device you viewed it on, looked like it was designed just for that device?” To many, this seems wonderful while others may question if the full features of the device are being used to their full ability. The item I found most intriguing was the idea of pixel interpretation. “Pixels sizes aren’t constant – or at least the display of them isn’t” the article reads. It seems that even iPhones and MacBooks will interpret and display font sizes that use pixels differently even though the devices come from the same manufacturer.

How can we, as designers, overcome the countless possibilities of resolution and pixel interpretation? Also, how can we ‘future proof’ our designs (make them less vulnerable to the ever changing world of mobile)? The article proposes that ‘the goldilocks approach’ or ‘gold standard’ if you will, would be to use em for measurements. Designers know that em is fully acceptable for web design so I’m curious why more are not adopting this when designing their sites… Designing within columns using em sounds like a solid practice to me. This article covers the best practices to avoid display issues with varying font sizes (whether defined by the device, the browser, or the user via zoom) but it does not go into depth about other mobile challenges.

To cover the other challenges to mobile I went over to http://www.webpagefx.com/design-build-mobile-web-site.html. I found this site to be the most concise and upfront about mobile challenges and best practices.  Use of CSS is crucial, understand that page load times and data usage are very important to the end-user, websites these days are meant to be interactive (there are many touch screen phones these days, consider designs for finger clicks), and browsers don’t support plugins or extensions.

Mashable also had a good article http://mashable.com/2010/07/07/designing-mobile-apps/. This site covers other items to consider. Should you build a mobile site or mobile app? How will the site/app be used? Will geo location be needed? Will the user have access to wifi? There are changing screen sizes to consider. If you’re designing for a specific device, take advantage of UI features.

Overall, the world of mobile seems ever changing and ever promising.  While there is much to consider when approaching a mobile design, it now makes more sense of why some design companies have decided to specialize with mobile design. The market craves attractive and functional design. If the site does not work, how will commerce continue or how will the information offered be consumed? It’s all about meeting the challenges head-on and thinking about the longevity of an ever changing landscape.

Source: http://www.cxpartners.co.uk/cxblog/the_myth_of_the_page_fold_evidence_from_user_testing/

Analysis:

This article starts off with an overview of the “above the fold” design concept. The idea is that a designer should place the most important information in clear view of the reader. For newspapers that means content on the cover page above the fold and for web design that means the area of the webpage that can be viewed without scrolling.

It’s then shown that there are very successful companies out on the web today that break the “above the fold” concept. The question is raised about the importance of placing content above the fold and how a successful website is possible while bypassing what was once considered a fundamental rule.

While reading the article and reviewing the examples I began to think of how I’ve used the above the fold concept. Any website that I’ve designed up until this point has more or less followed this rule but I now believe that it’s possible to have a successful website that does not follow this rule.

Thinking more broadly I believe the idea that the most important content must be above the fold should be replaced with the idea that the most important audience draw should be above the fold. Now by this I mean brand, visual, audio, etc… Returning visitors/customers may already be familiar with the website’s content/service/brand and would likely have a favorable impression. These individuals will be likely to explore beyond the immediate visual space. New visitors/customers may need to be enticed to explore a new sight. Having a large and attractive visual that takes up most if not all of the above the fold space pushes these visitors to explore.

I found this article quite interesting and beneficial for me to consider when dealing with new projects. Since I do not have the time or the money to really dig into much user testing at this point in my career (especially user eye tracking) it’s always beneficial to review credible sources for the take-aways they get from their tests. Why re-invent the wheel when it’s not necessary? Being a visual learner, heat-maps are the perfect eye-candy to communicate what the users might find interesting (as well as distracting should the creator want viewer focus to be elsewhere).

This is a related article that offered the perspective that different sites have different user preferences when it comes to scrolling. See: http://webusability-blog.com/page-fold-myth-or-reality/

Another webmonkey.com has an article that states “Good use of whitespace and imagery encourages exploration” and I could not agree more. I love simple and uncluttered space (whether in personal organization or websites I frequent). Clear and clean communication and emphasis is key.  Here’s the article: http://www.webmonkey.com/2009/10/debunking_the_myth_of_the_page_fold_in_web_design/

It’s hard to believe that anyone is born an expert in any one area. When taking the time to review the life of a prodigy it is clear to see that the arguments held within this article to be well thought and plausible. Prodigies spend years of meaningful study that consistently challenges them to become better. Mini accomplishments turn into big accomplishments and along the way motivation is built and further strengthened along the way. Since reading this article I strongly agree that experts are built not born.

Web design is an area of study and real world presence that is ever evolving. How would one become an expert unless they are challenged and grow with the industry? It’s not really possible unless there are mass amounts of meaningful study.

I also found interesting the idea of “chunking theory” in how it explains memory function and recall abilities of the entire spectrum of experts (from novice to expert). I find that I will be researching this more on my personal time to better understand the efficient and effective manners of how to build and retain knowledge.

One article I look forward to reading as a result of reading “The Expert Mind” is an article found here: http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Miller/

The Expert Mind by Philip E. Ross: http://desource.uvu.edu/dgm/2740/IN/steinja/docs/sci_am-expert_mind.pdf