Visual Interface Design

Spring 2004  |  MM 227  |  TTh 6:30-8:30

Dan Saffer  |  MM 215 |  MW 4:30-5:30 and by appointment

 

 

 

Official Course Description
Intended for HCI double majors, this is the spring offering of 51-421 Introduction to Visual Interface Design. This course highlights the role that visual interface designers play in the multi-disciplinary attempt to bridge the gap between functionality and usability and to introduce students to some of the unique challenges of designing within the realm of a digital, interactive medium.

syllabus

project one

project two

project three
personae/scenarios/task analysis
task flows/site map
wireframes
look and feel

project four
Unofficial Course Description
The course title is a misnomer. This class isn’t only about visual interface; in fact, it’s not even primarily about visual interface. It’s about interface and interaction design: how the features and functions of a product get translated into something humans find usable, useful, and desirable.
   
Textbook
Information Architecture: Blueprints for the Web  by Christina Wodtke		  

Other Readings
"Good Design in the Digital Age"  by Dick Buchanan

"Meet the Elements"  by Jesse James Garrett

"Knowing What To Do," by Don Norman from  The Design of Everyday Things

"But How, Donald, Tell Us How?: On the creation of meaning in interaction design through feedforward and inherent feedback,"  by Stephan Wensveen, Kees Overbeeke, and Tom Djajadiningrat

"Designing Look and Feel" by Alan Cooper from About Face 2.0