Learning from "bad" UI (37signals on TripLog)
When Gruber first linked the TripLog/1040 UI by Stevens Creek, I wasn’t kind either. Bright colors, controls seemingly placed at random. It was the opposite of what designers strive for in our circles. A mess. Soon the Flickr page was a schoolyard of insults. And then something interesting ha…
Why the Drudge Report is one of the best designed sites on the web
A couple weeks ago on Twitter I said: “I still maintain the Drudge Report is one of the best designed sites on the web. Has been for years.” A few people agreed, but most didn’t. Some thought it was a joke. I wasn’t kidding. To clarify, my definition of design goes beyond…
There's no shame in looking good
Aesthetics have a bad rap in geek circles. CmdrTaco infamously slammed the original iPod with “No wireless. Less space than a nomad. Lame”. In other words, it’s all about the features and the functionality. If you don’t do more than the other guy, you’re useless. I don…
Why we disagree with Don Norman
Don Norman, an author, professor, and partner at the Nielsen Norman Group, read the Wired article about us and wrote a piece asking, “Why is 37signals so arrogant?” Hansson said: “I’m not designing… for other people.” I think that simple phrase speaks volumes.…
The Perfect 3 Column Liquid Layout
3 column website layouts in Flexbox, CSS Grid, and Responsive Columns, along with live demos, the HTML, and CSS to make them work.
Why we skip Photoshop
When designing a UI we usually go right from a quick paper sketch to HTML/CSS. We skip the static Photoshop mockup. Here are a few reasons why we skip photoshop: You can’t click a Photoshop mockup. This is probably the number one reason we skip static mockups. They aren’t real. Pap…
ILoveSketch: As-natural-as-possible sketching system for creating 3D curve models (+amazing vid)
NEWS 100 concept models created by sketching with ILoveSketch for 4.5 days at Emerging Technology, SIGGRAPH 2009 (New Orleans, LA, USA, August 3-7) Paper and demo presentation of EverybodyLovesSketch at UIST 2009 (Victoria, BC, Canada, October 4-7)
SvN: Design Decisions: The new Highrise signup chart
A couple weeks ago we launched the new Highrise marketing site. We’re still iterating that design post-launch, and we have a big post brewing about that design process, but today I wanted to share some of the iterations we explored for the new signup chart. The start Here’s where we…
Mistakes in Web Design
The 10 most egregious UX offenses against users. Web design disasters and HTML horrors are legion, though many usability atrocities are less common than they used to be.