Why it matters: Loved how this book described the general design process at Apple. Leave people responsible for their own projects. Heuristics are more important than algorithms. Better to develop a refined taste than let data decide everything.
#Things to consider
- Demos were fundamental at Apple. They were used to explore concepts, show the progress, prompt the discussion, and drive the decisions for making products.
- Every major feature on the iPhone started as a demo, and for a demo to be useful to us, it had to be concrete and specific.
- There was never any finger-pointing; however, there was an expectation that new demos would include a response to the feedback from previous demos. This was the one essential demo expectation: progress.
- Steve rehearsed in a way that was new to me, and once I saw his technique, it seemed so right to me that I’ve used it myself for my own presentation rehearsals ever since. When Steve spoke to a slide, he went fully into his keynote persona. His tone of voice, his stance, his gestures, everything was exactly as if he were presenting to a packed house.
- Over time, I came to the conclusion that designing an excellent user experience was as much about preventing negative experiences as facilitating positive ones. Great products make people happy almost all the time and do the opposite rarely, if at all.
- A/B tests might be useful in finding a color that will get people to click a link more often, but it can’t produce a product that feels like a pleasing and integrated whole.