November 10, 2002
A Booklist
In the book, I name several other books I think are worth reading to get a deeper appreciation of the craft. I've listed them, plus a few new ones I think are particularly terrific.
Must Haves
Information Architecture for the World Wide Web
Louis Rosenfeld and Peter Morville (O'Reilly, 1998)
Lou Rosenfeld and Peter Morville wrote about information architecture first and better than anyone. The second edition is twice as thick and twice as chock full of design advice goodness. If you are ready to roll up your sleeves and really attack taxonomies, or if you need to know more about making your labels work, get this book.
Information Architects
Richard Saul Wurman (Watson-Guptill Publishing, 1997)
Pretty much before there was a web, before usability was going to war with design, before all that hoo-haw...
There was Richard Saul Wurman saying that someone should design information in a way people could use it, and he called this person an Information Architect. This book shows the wide world of information and explains how architecture can make it sane.
Envisioning Information
Edward R. Tufte (Graphics Press, 1990)
If you want to understand the importance of Information Design and how to do it right, go to Tufte. I also recommend two more of his books: Visual Explanations: Images and Quantities, Evidence and Narrative (Graphics Press, 1997) and The Visual Display of Quantitative Information (Graphics Press, 2001). His books are beautifully crafted to make you smarter while delighting the eye. And if you get the chance to see him speak, better yet. He's an entertaining and enlightening presenter and you get all three of his books on information design when you attend his seminar. Find out more on www.edwardtufte.com. (While you are there, check out the "Ask ET" question and answer section.)
The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High-Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity
Alan Cooper (Sams, 1999)
An introduction to why software makes us batty and the fine technique of personas. The first half is a fierce and entertaining rant against current design; the second half presents an effective solution to the problem of designing technology for humans. I also recommend his other best seller, About Face: The Essentials of User Interface Design (John Wiley and Sons, 1995). It's also about software, but it's chock full of principles that apply just as well to the web.
The Slim Book Collection
The Elements of Style
William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White (Allyn and Bacon, 2000)
”Write with nouns and verbs, not with adjectives and averbs. The adjective hasn’t been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place”
“Avoid the use of qualifiers. Rather, very, little, pretty—these are the leeches that infect the pond of prose, sucking the blood of words”
--The Elements of Style, Third Edition. (Allyn & Bacon, 1979) page 71, page 73
This book will help you navigate across the chasm of grammar and take you all the way home to the land of excellent writing. And for a book that tells you how to properly use a comma, it’s a remarkably pleasurable read.
The Non-Designer's Design Book
Robin Williams (Peachpit Press, 1994)
If you have no design skills, or only rudimentary skills, this book can help you from making design faux pas, in the way the Elements of Style can improve your writing. It is short, concise, and articulate. It explains why some designs work and why other things don't.
If you wonder why you need to bother learning design, check out Leaving the Autoroute
The Art and Science of Web Design
Jeffrey Veen (New Riders Publishing, 2000)
A bit thicker than the first two, The Art and Science of Web Design is a great primer on the web: it's perfect for anyone new to the medium. Jeffrey Veen covers aspects of web design from tech requirements through architecture to advertising online. This should be the textbook for any introductory class on web design, and it provides the generalist knowledge needed for good web architecture.
Don't Make Me Think
Steve Krug (New Riders Publishing, 2000)
Funny and insightful, Steve Krug takes you through basic principles for designing usable sites and running your own usability testing.
Better buy two; you'll want one to lend out.
How to Lie With Statistics
Darrell Huff (W. W. Norton and Company, 1993)
In a world where your boss is always clamoring for hard facts, and your enemies seem to have endless studies in their favor, it's time to not only trot down to the local library but also to learn how to present the statistics in a way that makes your point. This book is a survival tool.
new additions
My latestest entry in the favorite slim book category is Rapid Problem Solving With Post-It Notes. While it is aimed at business types solving business problems, its application to designing content architecture is readily apparent. It's very simple, can be read in about an hour, and is a wonderful way to expand your diagramic vocabulary.
One of the books I used to dream of writing was "a pattern language for the web." Well, now I don't have to: The Design of Sites: Patterns, Principles, and Processes for Crafting a Customer-Centered Web Experience is that book.
As I first sat down to read it, I didn't care for it. But sitting down and reading it not the right use for it-- instead leave it on your desk and as you approach any standard web element, from log-in box to global navigation bar, crack it open. The authors have done a masterful job of listing the key problems each element addresses, and shows examples from several "best practices" websites. It's like having a competive analysis on your desk for almost everything. Esoteric issues, like my current (entire-web search) are not addressed, but pretty much all the common ones are, and insightfully. An excellent tool for any IA, Interface or Interaction Designer.
for more books, check out my extensive reading list at eleganthack.com/reading.
Posted by christina at 11:33 AM