Respecting User Input: A Forgotten Principle of UX/UI Design

Navigating today's digital landscape often feels like a complex puzzle with unforeseen obstacles. Whether it's on a social networking site, an e-commerce platform, or a job portal, users are frequently met with bewildering and frustrating design flaws. These range from systems failing to retrieve data from previous profiles to completely disregarding user inputs, leading to a need for repetition.

Drawing on personal experiences, it is not uncommon to find users going through hoops to complete an entire profile, only to be prompted to re-enter all the information manually. This is akin to digital purgatory, where a previously registered user is asked to repeat every input after attempting to submit data. Such experiences reflect a design paradigm that seems to have forgotten the golden rule, as posited by Jef Raskin in his book, "The Humane Interface: New Directions for Designing Interactive Systems": Never, under any circumstances, lose the user's input.

Raskin stressed that software design should respect the user's effort and never unintentionally discard or ignore their input. Disregarding user input is exasperating and erodes trust in the system, deterring users from revisiting the platform.

Save Thought-fuel

One of Raskin's timeless principles is minimizing 'cognitive burden'. Each additional information a user must remember to use a system increases its complexity and reduces its usability. This principle is universally applicable, transcending the boundaries of software interfaces to broader contexts such as banking products and services.

Modern interface designers prioritize saving users' time, a critical resource. However, the user's cognitive effort is an equally, if not more, essential element to conserve. This notion aligns with the concept of 'thought-fuel' by the renowned 'procrastinologist' Maxim Dorofeev . By easing the cognitive load, businesses can carve out a competitive edge.

A Quantitative Approach: Measuring User Effort

Advocating for a more scientific approach to interface design, Raskin proposed measuring user effort in a quantifiable manner. This can help in the precise optimization of user interfaces. An intriguing observation from a personal experience was when a salesperson was remembered for being pushy about buying a user effort estimation system for a bank. Still, ironically, the system's name and company need to be remembered.

Banks and other institutions have adopted such systems to measure user effort, ensuring their products and services are as user-friendly as possible. For instance, we implemented the 'Maria Approves' system, inspired by Tinkoff Bank. According to the lore, Maria, responsible for UX, had to approve every design or release. The primary approval criterion was the user effort in performing operations, quantified before launching the product or service.

The Call to Action

As we navigate the 21st century, it is high time that UI/UX designers and software developers heed the call to revisit the classics before diving into coding. They should reacquaint themselves with the principles laid down by Raskin and others, reminding themselves of the importance of user input and the need to minimize cognitive load. Platforms should strive to offer functional and humane interfaces as they continue to evolve.

Designing a system that respects user effort, preserves their input, and minimizes cognitive load will create an experience that users will appreciate, trust, and return to. Therefore, the adage of putting users first in design is more relevant now than ever. So, let's dust off those copies of "The Humane Interface" and return to designing truly user-centric interfaces.

Companies can build intricate systems and processes internally, yet understanding fundamental principles eliminates the need for cumbersome control mechanisms that often hinder system development. So, above all, make sure user input is recovered under any circumstances! Encourage your UX designers, developers, testers, analysts, and product owners to read Jef Raskin's book! By revisiting these timeless principles, we can build systems that are not just technologically advanced but also genuinely user-centric. In a digital world cluttered with complexity, let us strive to create interfaces that embody simplicity, respect the user's effort, and above all, preserve their valuable input. After all, the heart of any successful product is its user. And what better way to honour them than by ensuring that their voice - their input?

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