User-Centered Design

Preface

Is This Book Right for Me?

I sure hope so. Let’s see if I can help set expectations.

In the many years I’ve been building applications, I’ve spent a great deal of time trying to understand users. I’m obsessed with figuring out how they tick: What motivates them? What frustrates them? What makes them choose one application over another? What can I do to get them to choose my applications?

Based on the many discussions I’ve had with developers from all over the world, it’s safe to assume that I’m not alone. So, I’ve decided to write this book to help developers better understand their users. This book is not meant for the user experience (UX) professional or professional designer. Instead, my goal is to help uninitiated developers understand the fundamental practices of user-centered design, usability, and user experience.

This discussion should be your launch pad into the world of usability experts. You’ll learn about their motivations, terminology, and strategies for judging the success (or failure) of an application. My hope is, with this knowledge, you’ll have a greater confidence to begin studying users in a more meaningful way.

The industry of human−computer interaction is vast, with decades of scientific research. We couldn’t possibly cover every aspect of what is known about usability today. However, this book is full of great (and practical) examples to help you get started.

With this book you’ll learn:

• How to implement user-centered design and usability practices

• How to ...