Let’s create your unique story together?
In the 1960s, computer technology began outpacing the speed of software programming. Computers became faster and cheaper, but software development remained slow, difficult to maintain, and prone to errors. This gap, and the dilemma of what to do about it, became known as the “software crisis.”
In 1968, at the NATO conference on software engineering, Douglas McIlroy presented component-based development as a possible solution to the dilemma. Component-based development provided
a way to speed up programming’s potential by making code reusable, thus making it more efficient and easier to scale. This lowered the effort and increased the speed of software development, allowing software to better utilize the power of modern computers…
Now, 50 years later, we’re experiencing a similar challenge, but this time in design.
In the 1960s, computer technology began outpacing the speed of software programming. Computers became faster and cheaper, but software development remained slow, difficult to maintain, and prone to errors. This gap, and the dilemma of what to do about it, became known as the “software crisis.”
In 1968, at the NATO conference on software engineering, Douglas McIlroy presented component-based development as a possible solution to the dilemma. Component-based development provided
a way to speed up programming’s potential by making code reusable, thus making it more efficient and easier to scale. This lowered the effort and increased the speed of software development, allowing software to better utilize the power of modern computers…
Now, 50 years later, we’re experiencing a similar challenge, but this time in design.
Relying on systems fonts greatly improves page performance and can also help your web application/site blend in with the user’s operating system.
Readability is strongly linked to familiarity, so this helps create a more fluid reading experience, allowing your users to focus on your content. Varying the font-weight of different pieces of text can help create contrast between pieces of information.
It can help call attention to a piece of content, or help to make a smaller font-size a bit more readable. In Elements of Typographic Style, Robert Bringhurst suggests we keep two things in mind when playing with font-weight. Use bold weights sparingly. Font-weight should decrease as font-size increases.
Spacing comes in two flavors. Depending on borders and background colors, the difference between padding and margin can be invisible to the naked eye of the user. But to a developer, they serve different roles. Most codebases lack a ratio based scale and instead are littered with values that are just magic numbers. This is bad.
Good design is based on math. Certain patterns and ratios are so prevelant in nature and music that they can’t be denied as elegant design solutions. Even in the 18th century, pages in books were designed with ratios. In the 21st century, we have gotten away from this on the web, often using magic numbers to match a ‘spec’ that has been produced in a graphics program such as photoshop, illustrator, or sketch. While these programs are useful for sketching ideas, they aren’t 100% accurate in their reflection of how the web works across device sizes or how things get drawn to the screen.
To create and design an easily readable interface, you don’t need more than 40 font-sizes. A simple ratio-based scale with 8 options should suffice. Using the class extension namespaces you can set the font-size for any particular breakpoint that you desire.
Don’t spend time constantly overriding font-sizes in your css. If you don’t like a default font-size for an element, use the utilities to quickly make the text larger or smaller until it looks just right.
Everything should be 100% responsive. Your website should work regardless of a user’s device or screensize. No matter the lighting, or the device, font-sizes should be large enough and contrast should be high enough for your users to easily read your content.
For many, the idea of living at a slower pace has been merely a dream; a vision deemed unattainable for various reasons. The reality is not only that life tends to speed by, taunting us with shouts of ‘faster’ and ‘bigger’, but it has been ingrained in our society that if you are not swamped, overwhelmed and overburdened then you are likely not doing enough. If you’re not doing enough, then it stands to reason that you are failing. And so, the idea of living slowly and simply becomes a well-intentioned plan for ‘someday’, but not for today.
For many, the idea of living at a slower pace has been merely a dream; a vision deemed unattainable for various reasons. The reality is not only that life tends to speed by, taunting us with shouts of ‘faster’ and ‘bigger’, but it has been ingrained in our society that if you are not swamped, overwhelmed and overburdened then you are likely not doing enough.
For many, the idea of living at a slower pace has been merely a dream; a vision deemed unattainable for various reasons. The reality is not only that life tends to speed by, taunting us with shouts of ‘faster’ and ‘bigger’, but it has been ingrained in our society that if you are not swamped, overwhelmed and overburdened then you are likely not doing enough.
If you’re not doing enough, then it stands to reason that you are failing. And so, the idea of living slowly and simply becomes a well-intentioned plan for ‘someday’, but not for today.