Category — user interface software

It has been reported that doctors and nurses have been using ipads in their daily profession, but according to medcitynews.com, which I found through PC Magazine, a growing number of these doctors and nurses are giving up their tablets. The question is why?

Situation

The article indicated that the iPad rated highly with “therapists, dietitians, [and] case managers” and this was mainly attributed to the fact that the ipad was used with these professionals mainly as a means of patient education. For those that have more typing activities, a desktop or laptop may prove to be more suitable. According to the article, some of the medical professionals had data entry difficulties with the iPad.

The iPad brings up a keyboard on the screen so the user can type information, and one disadvantage posed by the article was that half of the information is then covered up and it posits that this aspect of the UI design could have been one reason for the returns.

UI design is not just about looks

UI design concerns itself with how the user interface looks and how it also “feels”. It could have been that for some users the “feel” of the UI design was too “compact” so that they could not see the information they needed. An important aspect of a UI design is usability. Usability refers to the degree in which a user is able to effectively interact with the UI design.

The article mentioned that the newest iPad was going to have a UI design that addressed the size of the keyboard on the screen so this may influence the number of medical professionals returning the tablets.

Rumors about the UI design of Samsung Galaxy S3 started right after the release of the previous generation. There is nothing surprising about the fact. Samsung is known for fast development and innovation cycles so everyone is impatient to see what else the company will impress the public with. The interesting rumor about the new Samsung model is that its UI design will be completely buttonless.

Completely buttonless UI design, you may think? The only button that Samsung Galaxy S2 has is the home button at the bottom of the screen, which helps the user to return to home screen from any menu or window. Even though it is hard to imagine a phone’s UI design without a single button, Samsung Galaxy S2 is nearly there. What benefits would the removal of the home button have for the Galaxy’s UI design?

Firstly, absolutely no buttons adds to the “coolness” factor. The phone would look very smooth and uncluttered. The absence of buttons is also said to provide a comfortable experience when the phone is pressed against one’s face when calling. Another change to the UI design that is being discussed is the new user interface with five columns instead of four. If that change is implemented then Galaxy S3’ UI design would become more similar to Galaxy Note’s UI design, which already has five columns.

The latest rumor has it that the home button is likely to stay, after all. However, Samsung is currently working on the next generation and the new phone with the updated UI design may come out as soon as the beginning of summer. If this rumor is true, testers are likely to leak photos of the new UI design soon enough for us to stop wondering.

I have previously written blog posts on wireframing tools and listed the features of these tools that are particularly important to me. One of the features, which I never mentioned but which is actually very useful if not vital for successful collaboration, is the possibility of creating visible and helpful annotations.

As long as a person is not working solo on a project, there is always a need to exchange thoughts with other people and get ideas across in team projects. This is why some wireframing tools offer developers and designers the opportunity to put annotations and comments on their wireframes.  Annotations can be used to explain things to others, which are not necessarily visible on the wireframes. Wireframes are usually put together quickly and display only the essential elements and functionality of an application design. At times it is not even possible to create some of the more complex UI design elements without resorting to code.

All the stakeholders involved in the creation of a user interface have individual needs and concerns and I find it important to address them all. Depending on the volume of the comments that I have, I create a few copies of the wireframe with my wireframing tool and insert a few different sets of annotations: one set for the client, one for the developer, etc. Some wireframing tools allow color-coding of annotations used for different purposes. Does your wireframing tool have the annotations function? If so, be sure to give it a try. Once you have worked with annotations you cannot really go back to the wireframing tool without them.

Google has a lot of neat products but I particularly like the UI design of its search because it is user-friendly and helpful in many ways.  We are so used to using Google search in everyday life that we take its UI design for granted. In fact, it is hard for me to imagine that the search’s UI design could be any different. But every once in a while the scale of Google search astounds me.

Here is one example. I was typing up “where to stay in Dresden” in the search box, and before I completed the text the autocomplete suggested “where to download free music” and “where to buy amazon gift cards”. This is the feature of the Google search UI design that makes me smile because the suggestions are often funny and rarely relevant to what I am actually looking for.

Despite appearing silly, the autocomplete feature of the Google search UI design is not silly at all. It takes into consideration global searches performed by millions of people around the world. Whenever we have a question or a doubt we turn to the almighty Google for help. There is nothing that we are afraid to ask because the search UI design is completely anonymous. The autocomplete feature summarizes all of the wishes and problems around the word by suggesting search terms.

The Google search UI design filters the results by our area. I can assume from the suggestions above that the majority of people in my area are looking for places to download free music and buy amazon gift cards. What will Google search’s UI design suggest if I type in “how to”, “it is wrong to” or “is it difficult to”? We can actually learn about the thoughts and problems of people in our area by being curious and asking such questions, and this is only one example of the Google search UI design’s capabilities…

Many Samsung fans were waiting impatiently for the release of the Samsung Galaxy S2, expecting the new user interface design to awe them with some great features. I am not one of those people; I never owned older Samsung smartphones. Nevertheless, I think that the user interface design of the Samsung Galaxy S2 is quite impressive.

Samsung Galaxy’s user interface design is based on Android, which can be an advantage in itself for Android lovers like me. To be more precise, this smartphone is equipped with Android 2.3.3 with Samsung’s own addition to the user interface design called Touch Wiz.

As simple as it sounds, the thing I like most about this device is its display. Galaxy S2’s display is significantly bigger than that of most other smartphones, and it has outstanding (nearly eye-killing) brightness and contrast. The touchscreen is sensitive and supports motion gestures. In this its user interface design is similar to that of the iPhone but it also has some nice surprises. For example, you can mute the phone by flipping.

Another feature of the user interface design that I particularly enjoy is a multitude of virtual keyboards and languages. I sometimes write in Russian, and since Russian contains more letters than English using a virtual keyboard for Russian has always been an issue for me. Galaxy S2 pleasantly surprised me. Entering text in Russian couldn’t be easier. The user interface design is equipped with different options for entering text, like Swype, Android or Samsung. You can switch languages by swiping across the space bar.

All in all, the Samsung Galaxy S2 is said to be one of the best smartphones that came out in 2011. It is incredibly slim, has a neat user interface design and a very powerful processor. Whether or not it is the best I can’t say, but it is certainly a great toy to have!

Social networking websites are dominating the internet. As domains such as Stumbleupon, Twitter and Facebook are becoming portals through which we explore other websites, it’s hard to ignore their business potential. Whether you want to set up your own social network, are interested in advertising through these sites, or are impressed by the layouts of these pages, it’s a good idea to take inspiration from these user interfaces. One way you can explore what elements you should take from social networks is through user interface design tools. With user interface design tools, you can prototype your website design before you invest time in programming. The prototypes you make with user interface design tools can then be shown to end users so they can give you feedback on what works for them.

How to get the most out of your user interface design tool
When you are creating prototypes with your user interface design tools, bear in mind that social networking sites revolve around the user.  This is reflected in the user interfaces of these sites, where users are invited to customize their profiles. When you are working with user interface design tools, you should remember that users can become overwhelmed by the information they have access to. What’s important is that the information is simplified and easy to find. The best websites therefore offer easy-to-use search functions and navigation tool bars. Another element that’s particularly successful in social networking sites is call to action buttons. Remember that sites such as Twitter and Facebook want to encourage their users to participate and provide content for the website. With user interface design tools you can emulate these elements of social networking sites. User interface design tools give you the potential to test out call for action buttons and see where on the screen they have the most impact and what size they should be or what the wording of the calls to action should be.

User interface design tools are all about usability
There are a great many features that you can take as inspiration from social networking sites and create with user interface design tools. The most important aspect is usability. Remember that these sites are focused around the users and therefore simplicity is key. User interface design tools let you focus on the users of your website and can be a great help if you want to see how your users will react to your new site design. User interface design tools can be used to experiment with your ideas and create the most user-friendly experience for your audience.

There are many different categories of user interface design tools. Just as there are many different types of user interface design, so too are there many different user interface design tools. While there are tools for designing many types of interfaces, I want to focus on tools for designing graphical user interfaces for software applications like websites, mobile apps or enterprise tools, in short: GUI design tools. In general, a GUI design tool uses software visualization methods to draft the visual design and/or interactive functionality of an application. These tools can be high-fidelity or low-fidelity user interface design tools, desktop or web-based user interface design tools, and can be stand-alone or integrated with other applications. Some types of user interface design tools are able to prototype the interactive functions of software concepts.

High-fidelity user interface design tools are often used to produce prototypes that are very detailed and close to the look and feel of the final product. In contrast, low-fidelity user interface design tools offer a quick way to visualize software in basic images, usually without much visual design, in some cases allowing the user to ad interactivity to the low-fidelity UI prototypes to use them in usability testing.

Desktop-based user interface design tools are applications that can only be run once software has been installed on a computer. They are platform-dependent, and some can only be used on a limited range of operating systems. They are useful if you wish to work offline and on your own. Web-based user interface design tools allow users to work online, usually without installing any software. This often makes teamwork much easier if the user interface design tool includes collaboration functions, for example allowing multiple users to edit and/or comment on interface design prototypes.

Stand alone user interface design tools are often simpler to use and get started with than integrated user interface design tools. Stand alone tools can also be a more cost-efficient option since integrated tools are usually more expensive and often come with components or functions that may not be needed, especially if you wish to focus on one element of the development process. Integrated user interface design tools usually combine features from different stages of the development process, which may include a requirements elicitation, testing and quality-analysis phase or project management functions.

There are a number of user interface design tools on the market that may be an appropriate option, depending on what elements you wish to focus on and what stage you are at in the prototyping process. The most important thing to remember is that these user interface designs should match your respective requirements and the purpose of your prototyping or design efforts.

One of the anticipated directions  with regard to the major operating systems is the unification  between desktop OSes and their mobile counterparts.  One does not need to be a soothsayer or have a crystal ball to make such a statement as there are already clear indications that this is currently underway. The developer previews of the upcoming Windows 8 borrows the ‘Metro’ user interface design introduced in Windows Phone 7 for a dual mode OS that is optimized for both desktops and tablets. As for the Macintosh platform the latest iteration ‘Lion’ has ported a number of ideas taken from iOS over to the desktop. The result of this is that some Mac apps that are optimized for Lion end up with a user interface design that is also tablet friendly. Arguably the best example of this is iPhoto ‘11, which when viewed in Lion’s full-screen mode features a user interface design that could be mistaken for an iPad app.

How can one put the Mac OS X user interface design on an iOS device?

The trend seems to mostly be one of desktops taking user interface design lessons from their mobile counterparts. However there appears to be some user interface design elements from the desktop that at least some users want on their mobile devices. Users of jailbroken iOS devices, for example, can now tweak their device to clone the user interface design of Mac OS X by way of a mod called Ultimatum. This goes beyond just the look of the user interface design as Ultimatum is more than just a theme. In terms of functionality Ultimatum gives users a fully usable Mac OS X menu bar, dock (scrollable in this case), Finder windows, widgets, login lockscreen and more. So far Ultimatum has only been shown running on an iPhone though the app might be more useful running on the larger screen of the  iPad.

Linux is usually the first thought that comes to mind when one thinks of a free and legal operating system. For a lot of consumers one might even be able to switch the word Linux with Ubuntu, the popular Linux distribution. Despite the strengths of Unix-based OS and modern user interface design one of the major drawbacks of Linux has been the dearth of software options, at least relative to Windows and Mac OS. However both of these options cost, if one intends on procuring them legally!

The ReactOS, one could say, is effectively the lovechild of Linux and Windows. It is open source, like Linux, but is a re-write of the Windows kernel. The project effectively began in 1996 at a time when Linux didn’t have user-friendly distributions like Ubuntu (and, it must be noted, a much less complex iteration of Windows). The project, lacking a Mark Shuttleworth type benefactor like Ubuntu, is still only an alpha release though plans are underfoot for a beta release within a couple more iterative design cycles.

In terms of user interface design the ReactOS looks like Windows 2000 with a sprinkling of UI design elements ported over from Linux (such as icons). This makes it immediately accessible to most users who are already familiar with the functionality and user interface design of the Windows operating system. I’d even venture to say that to many a user the UI design would be indistinguishable from an earlier version of Windows, particularly now that Windows XP, Vista and 7 are out there.

As a Mac user I will be following up on ReactOS if only to activate the dual-boot functionality of Mac OS X without having to fork over a wad of cash for a Windows license proper.

To date, the iPad has had no trouble pounding its tablet competitors into submission, sometimes  even extinction.  The most recent evidence of this phenomenon is the demise of Hewlett Packard’s webOS Touchpad, a mere seven weeks after its release. The webOS flop, despite critical acclaim for its user interface design and functionality, was an embarrassment to Hewlett-Packard, and it has left many wondering if there will ever be a viable tablet that can take on the iPad.

Speculations as to why the iPad reigns supreme over the tablet kingdom vary, but many suspect that the iPad’s success has more to do with Apple’s loyal fan base than with the superiority of its functionality or user interface design.  Apple has the uncanny ability to capitalize on its rabid base of users’ undying willingness to eat up any dish the company serves, tablets included. On the other end of the spectrum, many believe that PC users still fail to see the point of a tablet when they already have a laptop and a Smartphone. This failure of the user to identify the tablet’s importance creates a kind of tablet gap, a dark void in which companies try to solve the PC user’s tablet-related existential crisis with various tablets to no avail. Designers stuck in the tablet gap seem more adept at churning out products that PC users just don’t want to buy.

The void created by the tablet gap has become a thorn in the side of Apple’s competitors, but Google may have found a legitimate solution to the problem. In tandem with its moves to buy Motorola Mobility, a hardware manufacturer, it is rumored that Google will also be releasing its Ice Cream Sandwich iteration of Android as early as this fall. If the rumors prove to be true, the one two punch of new software plus hardware manufacturing capabilities just might be the missing link between the Smartphone and the laptop that Apple competitors (and PC users alike) have been looking for.

The Ice Cream Sandwich platform is a follow-up to the Android platform and will allegedly unify the Android Gingerbread user interface design (available on Smartphones) and the Android Honeycomb user interface design (available for tablets) in order to make the features of all platforms available on all devices, a multitasking, multi-interfacing interface. Consequently, PC users may be able to see the benefit of a tablet that runs the Ice Cream Sandwich update, opening themselves up to the idea that tablets can be useful and functional, not just frivolous. If Google can create the right tablet hardware to case this software ice cream dream, they may be able to take a big chomp out of Apple. The tablet world could get a whole lot more interesting in the coming months.