Designing Rules: The Engine of User Experience
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In designing transactional and content-rich web sites, rules provide an underlying structure that governs the experience: what is displayed, when it’s displayed, and how it responds to user actions. Web design today is at an important crossroads: more complex technologies offer a greater range of features and functions, which permit more elaborate experiences. The depth of these systems means that information architects no longer design structures with specific pieces of content in mind, but instead have to design structures around classifications, categories, and abstractions. In conjunction with these so-called “objects,” information architects must consider the rules that govern their appearance, display, and response to users. This session introduces a framework for thinking about rules, providing a vocabulary and taxonomy of rules where none has previously existed.
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Designing Rules: The Engine of User Experience
- 1. Designing Rules The Engine of User Experience by Dan Brown, EightShapes IA Summit 2009, Memphis, TN, USA 1 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 2. 1 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 3. Please tag with: #rules #ias09 2 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 4. 2 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 5. 3 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 6. Not these kinds of rules 3 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 7. 4 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 8. These kinds of rules 4 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 9. These kinds of rules 4 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 10. These kinds of rules 4 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 11. These kinds of rules 4 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 12. 5 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 13. What is a rule? 5 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 14. 6 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 15. An engine? 6 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 16. 7 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 17. A recipe? 7 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 18. 8 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 19. An editor? 8 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 20. 9 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 21. Defining the Damn Thing 9 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 22. Defining the Damn Thing 9 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 23. 10 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 24. What We Do 10 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 25. What We Do 10 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 26. 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 27. What I Do 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 28. What I Do 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 29. What I Do 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 30. What I Do 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 31. What I Do 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 32. What I Do more abstract 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 33. What I Do more abstract 11 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 34. 12 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 35. Content Rules 12 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 36. 13 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 37. cooksillustrated.com 13 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 38. cooksillustrated.com 13 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 39. 14 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 40. Navigation Rules 14 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 41. 15 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 42. cnet.com » mp3 players 15 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 43. cnet.com » mp3 players 15 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 44. 16 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 45. cnet.com » digital cameras 16 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 46. cnet.com » digital cameras 16 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 47. 17 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 48. “Business Rules” 17 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 49. 18 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 50. Ecommerce Product Page 18 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 51. Ecommerce Product Page 18 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 52. 19 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 53. Taxonomy Insuficient 19 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 54. Taxonomy Insuficient Criteria for selecting behaviors or responses within the context of a presentation 19 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 55. 20 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 56. Rules are not... 20 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 57. 21 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 58. Patterns 21 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 59. 22 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 60. Carousel Pattern Yahoo Pattern Library 22 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 61. 23 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 62. Components 23 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 63. 24 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 64. Accordion Component Sun WebDesign 24 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 65. 25 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 66. IA is a web site’s “language” 25 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 67. 26 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 68. Content Rules 26 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 69. 27 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 70. Content Rules » Action 27 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 71. 28 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 72. Content Rules » Scope 28 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 73. 29 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 74. Content Rules » Filter 29 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 75. 30 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 76. Content Rules » Quantity 30 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 77. 31 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 78. Content Rules » Format 31 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 79. 32 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 80. Content Rules » Default 32 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 81. 33 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 82. Navigation Rules 33 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 83. 34 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 84. Navigation Rules » Facets 34 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 85. 35 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 86. Navigation Rules » Options 35 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 87. 36 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 88. Navigation Rules » Range 36 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 89. 37 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 90. Navigation Rules » Eect 37 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 91. 38 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 92. Navigation Rules » See All 38 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 93. 39 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 94. Documenting Rules 39 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 95. 40 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 96. Wireframe Annotations 40 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 97. 41 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 98. Wireframe Annotations » Prose 41 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 99. Wireframe Annotations » Prose 41 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 100. Wireframe Annotations » Prose If the customerʼs state is nexus, show sales tax. 41 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 101. 42 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 102. Wireframe Annotations » Pseudo-code 42 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 103. Wireframe Annotations » Pseudo-code 42 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 104. Wireframe Annotations » Pseudo-code Display Conditions • IF state=nexus • THEN display tax 42 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 105. 43 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 106. Wireframe Annotations » Table 43 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 107. Wireframe Annotations » Table 43 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 108. Wireframe Annotations » Table Area Content Type Quantity Criteria 1 Article 3-5 Latest 2 Comments 3 Most Useful 43 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 109. 44 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 110. Wireframe Content 44 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 111. Wireframe Content 44 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 112. Wireframe Content Latest Articles • [Article Headline] • [Pub Date] [Summary (160 chars)] more... • [Article Headline] • [Pub Date] [Summary (160 chars)] more... • [Article Headline] • [Pub Date] [Summary (160 chars)] more... 44 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 113. M996S!quot;###* M996S!quot;###+ M996S!quot;###, Z3*!quot;#$%BEDE..GD=(0**5EG Z3*!quot;#$%BEDE..GD=((3* Z3*!quot;#$%BEDE..GD=((3*(5 E))5*00*0Q1=?13E3*12?F(5?(()7 F-1G)132E3)EGG=?*-31=0Q1=?137 B(5*-31=0Q1=?13EF-1G)1327 P?*F-1G)132Q(-G)?E*1=0(Q3 !quot;#$%E0Q*GG7 `OGE2=?5(Q3Q?*3 A(B.E3D3EB*?E0F**3 ! B(*)=(E))5*00G13*E3) -./0123435quot;6578quot;97:quot;;=quot;7?@AB=Cquot;D3A:E03F -0*)=(BE,*BE=A?7 _IEA= quot;O=?*E))5*00 .5(1)*)BE=A?*0 E=A? *IEA=GD8=?*0D0=*B Q1GG5*=-535*0-G= ]X6^ A()*X67 YD '(B.E3D '(B.E3DKEB* E..G1*)E0O1G=*5=( B-G=1.G*BE=A?G10=7 -G=1.G* quot;O=?*E))5*00AE3 (3GD.E5=1EGGDBE=A?8 E=A? =?*0D0=*BQ1GGO1G=*5 5*0-G=0FE0*)(3 ]MML%^ A(B.E3D3EB*7 45 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 114. M996S!quot;###* M996S!quot;###+ Flows M996S!quot;###, Z3*!quot;#$%BEDE..GD=(0**5EG Z3*!quot;#$%BEDE..GD=((3* Z3*!quot;#$%BEDE..GD=((3*(5 E))5*00*0Q1=?13E3*12?F(5?(()7 F-1G)132E3)EGG=?*-31=0Q1=?137 B(5*-31=0Q1=?13EF-1G)1327 P?*F-1G)132Q(-G)?E*1=0(Q3 !quot;#$%E0Q*GG7 `OGE2=?5(Q3Q?*3 A(B.E3D3EB*?E0F**3 ! B(*)=(E))5*00G13*E3) -./0123435quot;6578quot;97:quot;;=quot;7?@AB=Cquot;D3A:E03F -0*)=(BE,*BE=A?7 _IEA= quot;O=?*E))5*00 .5(1)*)BE=A?*0 E=A? *IEA=GD8=?*0D0=*B Q1GG5*=-535*0-G= ]X6^ A()*X67 YD '(B.E3D '(B.E3DKEB* E..G1*)E0O1G=*5=( B-G=1.G*BE=A?G10=7 -G=1.G* quot;O=?*E))5*00AE3 (3GD.E5=1EGGDBE=A?8 E=A? =?*0D0=*BQ1GGO1G=*5 5*0-G=0FE0*)(3 ]MML%^ A(B.E3D3EB*7 45 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 115. 46 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 116. What makes a good rule? 46 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 117. 47 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 118. Good Rules » User-Centered 47 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 119. 48 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 120. Good Rules » Unambiguous 48 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 121. 49 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 122. Good Rules » Feasible 49 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 123. 50 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 124. Good Rules » Specified Responsibility 50 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 125. 51 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 126. Good Rules » Comprehensive 51 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 127. 52 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 128. Good Rules » Gracefully Degradeable 52 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 129. 53 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 130. Do the right thing 53 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 131. Thanks! dan@eightshapes.com social networks: 54 Monday, March 23, 2009
- 132. Photo Credits 3 http://plainview.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/moses1.jpg 6 http://www.drivingenthusiast.net/SD-mazda/products/mazdaspeed3/engine/MAZDA3_engine_HR.jpg 7 http://lh4.ggpht.com/_o456qV7CNhQ/RhyHtSLCToI/AAAAAAAAAWw/__S_7cHPCmk/p0002180.jpg 8 http://www.hadesign.net/images/WTVI/WTVI%20QC%20room.jpg 19 http://www.checkout.org.cn/news/mmg/media/images/platypus3_h.jpg 21 http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3401/3267227227_660b6ab4f4_b.jpg 23 http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2210/2314610838_beecd46647_o.jpg 25 http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16352/16352-h/images/p1.jpg 28 http://www.flickr.com/photos/lencioni/2223801603/sizes/l/ 30 http://www.creativecookware.com/images/measuring%20cups%20spoons.JPG 32 http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesjordan/2226419650/sizes/o/ 34 http://www.uncg.edu/rom/courses/dafein/civ/nude_no2.jpg 37 http://www.flickr.com/photos/mhartford/69673975/sizes/o/ 49 http://www.meridian.net.au/Art/Artists/MCEscher/Gallery/Images/escher-relativity-woodcut-medium.jpg 50 http://www.flickr.com/photos/dystopos/17007801/sizes/o/ 52 Canʼt find source. If this is your photo, please email me! 55 Monday, March 23, 2009
Editor's Notes
- Documentation survey
- What you should and should not do. What kind of person you should be Means for living with other humans.
- Authors like: Doctorow Gaiman Subjects like: Human behavior, Small business Toys like: Thomas trains Not that it picked things I’m interested in, but of all the things I’m interested in, it picked these.
- Authors like: Doctorow Gaiman Subjects like: Human behavior, Small business Toys like: Thomas trains Not that it picked things I’m interested in, but of all the things I’m interested in, it picked these.
- Authors like: Doctorow Gaiman Subjects like: Human behavior, Small business Toys like: Thomas trains Not that it picked things I’m interested in, but of all the things I’m interested in, it picked these.
- Authors like: Doctorow Gaiman Subjects like: Human behavior, Small business Toys like: Thomas trains Not that it picked things I’m interested in, but of all the things I’m interested in, it picked these.
- ▼ What is a rule? plainview.files.wordpress.com—moses1.jpg •Wireframe: what goes on the screen •Rule: how the screen changes in different circumstances •CORE IDEA:
- ▼Enginewww.drivingenthusiast.net—MAZDA3_engine_HR.jpg •Not quite: while rules are crucial for \"driving\" the user experience, they aren't the heartbeat or the central nervous system. Rules also are not a single cohesive system with lots of moving parts. Rules are applied here and there as necessary. Rules make use of the language of a web site without defining it.
- ▼Recipeslh4.ggpht.com—p0002180.jpg •Not quite: while rules provide direction, rules aren't linear instructions -- they feel more like mechanisms for selecting ingredients Rules must apply in specific situations with clear criteria regarding presentation. The metaphor breaks down quickly. I can use the same recipe when I want to make a dish. Different circumstances call for different rules. Doesn’t help us understand rules.
- ▼Editorwww.hadesign.net—WTVI QC room.jpg •Help us make choices about what's seen and how we see it •Director: overall experience •Actor: content itself Editor crafts one aspect of the experience: within the format of the medium and the parameters of the director’s vision, we get the editor Editor: starts with piles of footage, pulls out the stuff that works best We’ll consider some other metaphors later For now, let’s see how rules fit into IA
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼A new-ish definition (more like a description) of IA, in decreasing tangibility: •Templates: How content is arranged on the screen •Navigation and classification: How people find content •Content Types: set of content structures that give us a meaningful language for talking about the range of information on the site (functional content types vs. format content types) •Rules: they're what stitch the experience together, like an editor ▼Why IAs should care about rules •Rules are germane to the user experience •IA work gets more abstract: talking about contnet in terms of it’s type •IA needs a way to integrate real-world \"instances\" into abstract structures •Rules are, in a sense, a structure that governs the implementation of content, that bridge the gap between the abstract structures we create to form context (Hinton) and the way those structures are populated •They describe how everything fits together Small amount of literature on this stuff: I struggled to find any thinking on the mechanisms behind the display, as related to user experience. Rules govern different aspects of the user experience: Content.
- ▼Govern the display of content: Content Rules •Conditional Display Rules -- Whether to show the box •Filtering Rules -- What content to show in the box ▼Responsibility -- who controls the content •Editorial Guidelines vs. Application Logic: rules followed by humans vs. rules implemented by a system ▼Examples • cooksillustrated.com Strong editorial influence here. Decisions that in other media might be left up to humans, we leave up to the machine, But we provide a set of guidelines to make sure it chooses wisely. For cooks, you can imagine the range of considerations: latest, magazine, theme, categories (Aside: tools for helping content editors do their jobs better)
- ▼Govern the display of content: Content Rules •Conditional Display Rules -- Whether to show the box •Filtering Rules -- What content to show in the box ▼Responsibility -- who controls the content •Editorial Guidelines vs. Application Logic: rules followed by humans vs. rules implemented by a system ▼Examples • cooksillustrated.com Strong editorial influence here. Decisions that in other media might be left up to humans, we leave up to the machine, But we provide a set of guidelines to make sure it chooses wisely. For cooks, you can imagine the range of considerations: latest, magazine, theme, categories (Aside: tools for helping content editors do their jobs better)
- Perhaps a little more obscure, a little more meta Rules that govern how people experience the information Imagine you could say, in rooms of this type, always show 3 exits
- ▼Govern the range of experience: Navigation Rules •What menu options to display/facets ▼Examples • reviews.cnet.com—mp3-players • reviews.cnet.com—digital-cameras
- ▼Govern the range of experience: Navigation Rules •What menu options to display/facets ▼Examples • reviews.cnet.com—mp3-players • reviews.cnet.com—digital-cameras
- ▼Govern the range of experience: Navigation Rules •What menu options to display/facets ▼Examples • reviews.cnet.com—mp3-players • reviews.cnet.com—digital-cameras
- Facets are the same, but the values vary Clicking one yields the same result Rules help select appropriate values Highly mathematical/algorithmic
- Facets are the same, but the values vary Clicking one yields the same result Rules help select appropriate values Highly mathematical/algorithmic
- Not really editorial, not really about navigation
- Kind of rudimentary example, but illustrates exactly what I’m talking about. This is a foaming attachment for my Krups I bought recently. Crucial information that might vary in different circumstances. ▼Govern the rendering of information •Business rules around calculating price/shipping •Business rules about options available to users •Business rules about login/account information display ▼Filtering infinite information space •Search results •Flight searches ▼Example •Offering different shipping options depending on destination •Calculating shipping charge based on supplied ZIP code ALSO: Decision Points
- Kind of rudimentary example, but illustrates exactly what I’m talking about. This is a foaming attachment for my Krups I bought recently. Crucial information that might vary in different circumstances. ▼Govern the rendering of information •Business rules around calculating price/shipping •Business rules about options available to users •Business rules about login/account information display ▼Filtering infinite information space •Search results •Flight searches ▼Example •Offering different shipping options depending on destination •Calculating shipping charge based on supplied ZIP code ALSO: Decision Points
- ▼BUT: things are getting ambiguouswww.checkout.org.cn—platypus3_h.jpg •The taxonomy here can not address every situation •Products are becoming more complex Some things in common: Criteria for selecting behaviors or responses within the context of a presentation
- ▼BUT: things are getting ambiguouswww.checkout.org.cn—platypus3_h.jpg •The taxonomy here can not address every situation •Products are becoming more complex Some things in common: Criteria for selecting behaviors or responses within the context of a presentation
- ▼Patternsfarm4.static.flickr.com—3267227227_660b6ab4f4_b.jpg •Generalized approaches to common problems •BUT: rules expressed as generalizations (choose latest content) without specific applications •AND: a pattern can describe the kinds of rules needed •Example: developer.yahoo.com—pattern.php
- ▼Componentsfarm3.static.flickr.com—2314610838_beecd46647_o.jpg •Layout of content specific to a design system •BUT: one component can support multiple rules •AND: a component can specify the kinds of rules needed •Examples: www.sun.com—g39.html
- ▼Ruleswww.gutenberg.org—p1.jpg •For a specific area of a specific interface, rules describe what content is to appear •Rules use the language established for a specific web site: content types, metadata, components How do we structure rules? What do we need to think about for each rule?
- For any given rule, there are five things you need to think about.
- Show/Display
- Which content type
- How select content from content type? Separate from content type because dependency between filter and content type
- How many items are you going to show?
- What fields of the content will you show?
- What’s the default? http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesjordan/2226419650/sizes/o/
- Which category will serve as the navigation mechanism?
- How will users select value? (menu, slider)
- What are the upper and lower limits?
- How does changing the value affect the display?
- Can users see all content within the category?
- Chooses content meaningful to the user
- Leads to specific choices
- Leverages existing IA parameters
- Clear on how rule is enforced
- Addresses all possible scenarios
- Has a good default
- Rules may not govern how we interact with people, but they do govern how our products behave relative to users Another possibel metaphor: if not the soul of the product, then certainly its frontal lobe