Web Design is Product Design

Re:Web Design is Product Design by tedkimble on Wednesday August 31, 2011 @11:56AM (#2946101)

But why must designers be able to code markup and css; surely a PSD mockup will suffice, correct?

It's because to design for any medium you must understand its capabilities and its tendencies. Those too exist on the web, even if they are easily forgotten -- the web pages's tendency to scroll; its capability to be resized; its capabilities of being receiving new content and return visitors.

There is so much untapped potential lying dorment in the web medium, passing by all of those who resist to use HTML, CSS, and a browser during experimentation. It's depressing.

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Re:Web Design is Product Design by wdewind on Wednesday August 31, 2011 @12:23PM (#2946243)

There is essentially no other medium for which this demand is made. Appliance design, car design etc. etc. almost no other product oriented design field requires the designer to fully understand the medium. Obviously it is helpful, but case in point, the iPhone was designed by people who did not code.

As for the untapped potential in the web medium: it's a bit naive to think that understanding CSS transforms will truly, fundamentally, change a way the designer decides to present a piece of information.

Where would you draw the line? Why shouldn't designers know Unix and TCP/IP programming as well, since those are both part of the medium they design for.

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Re:Web Design is Product Design by tedkimble on Wednesday August 31, 2011 @12:32PM (#2946283)

>> There is essentially no other medium for which this demand is made.

I beg to differ. Clothing designers know their fabrics. Blacksmiths know their metals. Leather makers know their leathers. Architects know their building materials. And yes, car designers and iPhone designers know their mediums too. I could go on.

I guarantee Jony Ive can tell you all about the capabilities, tendencies, and limitations of the glass, plastic, steel that comprise the iPhone. You think car designers don't know precisely how steel can be formed and about the processes that form it?

But yet web designers don't need to know HTML and CSS. It's by far the easiest medium to know of all those I mentioned. I agree with another poster: It's lazy.

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Re:Web Design is Product Design by wdewind on Wednesday August 31, 2011 @03:38PM (#2947189)

The contention is in the definition of the word "know." Jony Ive knows glass in the sense of the way a particular type of glass reflects sunlight, or feels (ie: to the extent that it solves a particular problem for him), but he absolutely does not know or care how that piece of glass is manufactured. The difference for a designer between knowing when to use a button and when to use a link does not depend on them knowing <a href=""> vs. <input type="button />.

It goes without saying that designers should know how people will interact with their products, but knowing how to code is just one way to do that, and it is not the only one.

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Re:Web Design is Product Design by studiofellow on Wednesday August 31, 2011 @12:38PM (#2946312)

You're right—there is a certain line where in-depth technical knowledge becomes less useful for a designer. However learning the basics is immensely helpful. What is the difference in code between a link and a button? How do you style them? How are elements positioned? How do constraints differ between a liquid and fixed layout? This knowledge has a massive impact on a design. Plus, it is so so easy to learn. No excuse.

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