Ivan Neto's shared items

After a long hiatus (inexcusably skipping 2009 and ’10) we’re back with our annual review of the year in type.

The idea is simple: I invite a group of writers, educators, type makers and type users to look back at 2011 and pick the release that excited them most. The reviews range from the academic (like Paul van der Laan on Zizou or Jens Kutilek on FB Alix) to the theoretical (such as Jan Middendorp on Agile) to the personal (like Carolina de Bartolo who reviewed Calibre and Periódico after firsthand experience with a redesign of WIRED magazine) to the playfully unexpected (Microsoft’s Si Daniels praises Apple Color Emoji) to the exclamatory (Matthew Butterick on Neue Haas Grotesk).

This is not a juried contest. The result isn’t necessarily the “best fonts of the year”, or even those most used or ballyhooed. But these 50 selections do capture a pretty accurate snapshot of where type design is now, and where it’s headed.

If 50 seems like a lot, consider the thousands of new releases that didn’t make the list. The general public’s interest in typography continues to grow, and with that comes hundreds of new designers who are dabbling in or starting new careers in type making. Our list of honorable mentions represents only a small slice of the new fonts published in 2011.

As always, the other clear trend is new technology. By the end of 2008, we could finally declare OpenType the default font format. Three years later, in the wake of the @font-face declaration, there are new formats and new substrates as destinations for type design. Yet, in contrast to OpenType’s glacial adoption rate, webfonts are poised to take hold quickly, sparked by intelligent delivery platforms (pioneered by Typekit in 2009), early adoption by major foundries (led by FontFont), and screen-specific font design (like Font Bureau’s RE series).

The unexpected benefit of the new webfont era for an effort like this one on Typographica – it becomes easier to judge a typeface more fairly. Despite type’s long history in print, a font made today will likely be seen on screen far more often than on paper. I’ve always lamented that critics and users usually judge typefaces only on screen, not in their “proper” medium. But in an age in which we read more on screen than in print, maybe this isn’t a universal problem anymore. Of course, now font makers need to rethink the way type is made and rendered, but we’re already seeing progress there.

This year’s list wouldn’t be possible without Chris Hamamoto’s enduring design, Billy Whited’s proficient coding, Laura Serra’s image wrangling, able proofing by Matthew Coles, and, of course, all the contributors. We’re also grateful to FontFont for the newly updated FF Quadraat and Process for Anchor, typefaces that make writing and reading on the web a pleasure. Thank you!

The “Typefaces of 2011” image uses Salvo and Acta.

Since Lion launched we’ve covered a few hacks that describe how you can change Mission Control’s and Dashboard’s background, as well as how to change the background of folders in Launchpad – but most of them have required some level of manual file editing and replacement. Fortunately, developer Moritz Wette has made it a whole lot simpler to customize the look of Lion with his app, Lion Designer.

Lion Designer lets you customize the Mission Control, Dashboard, Launchpad folder and the login screen background as well as the Launchpad folder icon. The developer suggests using PNG images that are at the resolution of your screen or are images that can tile – otherwise you’ll end up with something that looks messy. Though if you don’t like how something looks after you’ve changed it, or something has gone wrong, you can easily click the reset button and Lion Designer will return it to the stock look. I gave the app a quick spin and found it worked fine, with my Dashboard now displaying the familiar and soothing linen pattern. Lion Designer is available for free, but be sure to send over a small donation to Wette if you find the app useful to you.

If you’re looking for some other apps to tweak and customise OS X Lion, have a look at these apps that we have covered in the past:

• Lion Tweaks – Lets you turn various features in Lion on or off, examples include removing the system Window animation, disable spelling correction, enable permanent scrollbars and many more.
• Launchpad-Control – Hide any app you want from being displayed in Launchpad
• LaunchpadCleaner 2 – Also allows you to hide apps from Launchpad as well as some more in-depth features.

[Via TUAW]

Big news, our favorite launcher is finally about to hit version one! It’s hard to believe that the app has received so much attention and good press while in a fairly experimental state but the simple truth is that Mac users simply can’t get enough of Alfred’s perfect combination of depth and simplicity.

Read on as we take a renewed look at what Alfred can do along with some awesome new features you can look forward to in the 1.0 release!

This is an advance look at some of the awesome new features soon to be in Alfred 1.0 – it should be going to general release around the end of November!

The Alfred Core

Alfred has come an incredibly long way since its humble beginnings as a somewhat simple launcher. The amazing thing is, despite its amazingly deep current feature set, that simplicity is still at the forefront of the Alfred experience, ensuring that absolutely anyone can use the app with ease.

Let’s take a brief look at some of the amazing things you do with Alfred and a few quick keystrokes.

Launching

As I just mentioned, it all starts with app launching. This is Alfred’s core feature and it does it with ease. Just hit your designated shortcut, begin typing the name of the app you want and Alfred will instantly pop up results that refine as you type. Hit enter or choose from the list to launch the app. Alfred even learns which results you choose most often and modifies its behavior accordingly.

It doesn’t stop here though, Alfred can launch a lot more than apps. Try typing in “find” and then a filename and Alfred will search your hard drive for the file you’re after. You can also hit the spacebar right after launching to search for and open files.

Reference Actions

Alfred isn’t content with merely opening things, it also finds information for you. Want a quick definition? Just type “define” and the word you want.

Similarly, Alfred can help you with your homework. It responds much better than Spotlight to complex math problems.

The Web

Alfred plays well with the web too! If you want to open a specific web page, just type it into Alfred exactly like you would in Safari or any other browser. This will launch the site in your default browser.

If you need to search for something, there’s built in functionality for searching Google, Wikipedia, IMDB, and a bunch of other popular sites (Powerpack users can edit the default offerings).

If Alfred doesn’t search a site that you want it to, you can easily set up custom searches for almost any search function on any site! Be sure to check out our full tutorial on this very topic.

The Alfred Powerpack

The free version of Alfred is something that no Mac user should be without. The Powerpack takes Alfred to new heights by adding deep integration with your system. There are a ton of amazing features that come with the Powerpack, some of which are brand new to version 1.0. Let’s take a look.

Control iTunes

One of the Powerpack features you’ll absolutely love right off the bat is the iTunes Mini Player. Alfred gives you an impressive scope of control for iTunes including basic track commands, searching, album art previews and more.

File Commands

Terminal fans will enjoy Alfred’s ability to quickly perform a number of file actions. Just hit “~” to launch the file navigation window. From here you can navigate your hard drive freely and even perform actions of files such as move, copy and email.

Extensions

Extensions have changed the game for Alfred and opened up an endless world of possibilities. Create your own or browse the extension gallery for some awesome goodies. I recently installed an extension to quickly shorten links with Google and another that turns Alfred into a todo list!

Email and Address Book

The Powerpack links Alfred closely to your Address book. You can search for a contact and even launch an email to the person of your choice.

Make It Your Own

Alfred’s default color scheme is super friendly and easy on the eyes but if you dig customization then you can tweak or completely overhaul the colors in an easy to use theme editor.

New and Improved

The newest version of the Alfred Powerpack has some awesome improvements and new features that make it more powerful than ever.

Clipboard History and Snippets (Improved)

If you’re on the lookout for a solid clipboard manager, look no further. Hitting Command-Option-C in Alfred will launch an improved clipboard manager that gives you access of recent clips. You can also save frequently used snippets for quick insertion. Just type “snip” and the name of your desired snippet to insert it. The snippets editor now allows for searching and sorting.

Alfred Never Forgets (New!)

You might or might not know about Alfred’s ability to recall recently opened items, well 1.0 adds to Alfred’s superhuman memory by adding a feature to remember recently visited URLS for quicker searching.

Global Hotkeys (New!)

This is my favorite new feature, Alfred now allows you to set up global shortcuts to launch an app, script, extension or anything that you want. Simply navigate to the new “Hotkeys” tab inside of Alfred and set up shortcuts for all your favorite actions.

Lots More!

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Alfred 1.0 ships with a whole mess of improvements. To name a few, hitting Command-C now copies the result’s path or URL, clipboard and snippets are now independent, generic icons have been added for many filetypes, iTunes search has been improved, extension parameters are much more flexible; the list goes on and on.

You’ll also be happy to know that the Alfred team now accepts direct Credit Card and Paypal payments.

Absolutely Essential to the Mac Experience

This update is so positive that it’s probably starting to sound like a sponsored post, it’s not. We AppStormers are simply so fond of Alfred that we think every Mac user should give it a shot. We’ve followed the development closely since day one and are super excited to finally see the Alfred team hit 1.0.

If you don’t see yourself using all of the fancier features, download the free version and discover the wonder of launching apps instantly without the hassle of the Applications folder or Launchpad. If you’re the kind of user who likes control, the Powerpack turns Alfred into an unbelievably convenient and useful assistant that covers almost every aspect of OS X. Give it a week or two and you’ll likely be unable to use a Mac without Alfred going forward.

These Post-It Note Watches made me smile.

(via TheFancy)

The Week in Type

The type-obsessive, thoroughly inspiring Andrew Byrom in this TEDxUCLA talk, If h is a chair:

If you haven’t already downloaded it, then get on over to the iTunes store. The iconic FontBook, that yellow, heavy-weight, doorstop, monster of a typeface reference is now available for the iPad. Refereence books are especially suited to digital and the FontBook is no exception.

FontBook on iPad from FontShop on Vimeo.

There’s also a good article over at the FontFeed about the team behind the iPad app. I like Mai-Linh Truong’s closing comment,

The last FontBook was big enough to crack open your skull, but the new FontBook app will totally blow your mind.

I began writing a review, but there really is no need for one. The FontBook has always been a great reference book. It’s now available in an easy-to-search, easy-to-digest format — and it costs little more than a cup of coffee. Need I say more. What would be great is the ability to print samples from within the app. Not sure if that’s even possible?

Some very fat, very orange, vacuum-packed type from Spain-based Txaber:

From vacuumed-packed to exploding type:

Type Fluid Experiment “Z” from Skyrill.com on Vimeo.

See more about the project over at skyrill.com.

Kyle Durrie’s Moveable Type Project. What a wonderful idea:

Arabic type + product design = Kashida:

New from scriptmeister Ale Paul, Poem Script:

Poem Script from Sudtipos Foundry on Vimeo.

Some beautiful specimens of Jean François Porchez’s AW Conqueror on The Case & Point:

How do you create a typeface with a bicycle? Here’s how:

Urbanized Typeface : Shibuya08-09 [PV:EN] from yang02 on Vimeo.

Similarly Joseph Tame does the new Google+ logo on foot (running!) in Tokyo. Twenty-one km! I don’t think there’s much chance of me replicating this feat:

Lots of inspiration to be found on Posters in Amsterdam:

I think I want this bookcase:

Love this iPad Letters Flickr set from Stephen Coles:

Something to try at your next party!

Some more Anamorphic Typography‬‏. Must try this some day:

If you’re wondering how it’s done: just use a projector!

Similar to WLT is typeverything.com. Definitely one to add to your bookmarks:

Not new, but just in case you missed it: Bacon Ipsum.

Marc Bottler’s lettering illusions:

Ralf Herrmann has uploaded a high-res (600 dpi) Walbaum Type Specimen. Lovely:

New fonts

Crescendo by Nancy Harris Roemy and Patrick Griffin for Canada Type:

Weingut a frilly decorative display type by Georg Herold-Wildfeliner for Facetype. A set of four fonts:

Rhythm by Neil Summerour:

Satura by Peter Bruhn and Göran Söderström for Fountain Type. Fourteen fonts in all:

Wallflowers by Laura Worthington. William Morris meets 60s psychedelia. Get your pattern on!

New from Rosetta Type is Nassim. Available in Latin and Arabic. Impressive:

New from Photo-Lettering is a pull-no-punches slab serif. Meet Goliath:

New from HVD fonts is Pluto. Sixteen fonts in all:

FF Sero by Jörg Hemker:

FF Sero Medium is free to download and try.

Looking for a letterpress shop in Oakland? look no further than Rebecca Peters.

Mota Italic Gallery in Berlin is holding an exhibition of the work of the 2011 graduating master classes at the University of Reading (UK) and the Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten (NL). Runs through August 27. Twenty-four typefaces in all. Congratulations to all the students who have produced some really exceptional work. One of my many favorites is the five-layer Quintet from Kunihiko Okano (@Shotype_EN)

Love Mark Adison Smith’s blog, You Look Like the Right Type. Overheard dialogue rendered in numerous wonderful styles of lettering:

Books

Louise Fili & Steven Heller trace the history of typographic scripts in Scripts: Elegant Lettering From Design’s Golden Age:

Ben Archer reviews the long-awaited English edition of Joep Pohlen’s Letter Fountain:

Add it to your wishlist. Published by Taschen.

Reading list

• Typekit: Improved font rendering on Windows
• To hell with low-contrast fonts!
• July Linotype newsletter, including the release of Neue Haas Grotesk and Sinova.
• Quatro Typeface — the Kickstarter project.
• The humility of details — Shelley Gruendler
• BBC World Service: user experience and typography
• Font-weight in the age of web fonts
• Aquafadas launches iPad mag & book design tools for InDesign
• Paul Shaw interviews Akira Kobayashi
• An interview with Gerard Unger
• The future of type design
• Ampersand Conference 2011 reviewed
• Improved Language Support on Fontdeck
• Typedia’s Type News celebrates its first birthday
• The new Typecast app
• Putting a face to the typeface
• FontShop introduces comp fonts
• The origins of the @ symbol

And finally…

There are a limited number of Codex magazine remaining, so if you don’t yet have a copy, grab yours now. More on the second issue of Codex coming soon.

Next month will mark ILT’s fifth birthday! Lots in store for this site. I aim to devote more time to it. I even have a complete redesign planned.

Have a great weekend!

Sponsored by H&FJ.

All sorts of type

If you asked me an hour ago what Toxic Blob’s Sin Or Win was, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. What I would have done instead was stutter and re-direct to the topic of fantastic art direction and production, which is something that the ambitious iPad title has. Its look sort of reminds me (roughly) of Grim Fandango, but with a few extra indescribable layers cuteness throw into the mix.

Sound outsourcing aside, Sin or Win is the product of a one-man studio, Jamie McCarter. During the week he’s a VFX artist on films, but he moonlights as an iOS developer. He’s shown Sin or Win in person at least once since exiting the alpha phase, but he’s also reaching out on our message board to connect with the real App Store enthusiasts out there.

I’ve been in touch with Jamie since catching a glimpse of the game on our board. We’ve all had a few problems parsing the mechanics and goals of the game from the teaser footage, so I had him explain the gist of the game to me via e-mail.

“In the game, the cavemen come from either side, and following the Grim Reapers' command, leap into the abyss,” he told me. From here, you'll get the choice to either save cavemen (winning) by flicking them into clouds or kill them by letting them dive into the pit and burn to death (sinning).

Sin or Win will offer to different scoring charts based on your choice of play, but the core goal will always be to play as long as possible in a single match regardless of moral choices.

"It is, in a sense, similar to the card game Hearts. One can take the Queen of Spades and attempt to Shoot for the Moon, but it's a difficult path and if one isn't careful / skilful enough one might just end up with a lousy score," Jaime explained to me.

Saving cavemen is a great way to bolster your score, but  it isn't without its dangers. Flick without regard, and you might knock other cavemen you’ve saved from the safety of the clouds and into the pit. You’ve also have to avoid UFO, storm cloud, and monster attacks, which as you'll see in the trailer, won't be pleasant.

Sinning is the most appealing route to me on paper. Any time you let a caveman fall into the pit, points are subtracted from your score and the pit gradually fills. Jamie told me that to in order to “sin” well, you'll have to master juggling the cavemen for as long as possible before dropping them into the pit, as the pit will slowly re-level for maximum murder potential.

There’s more to all of this in the realm of score modifiers and combinations, but I’ll leave that kind of specific detail to future coverage. The game is currently in beta and will remain in a refinement phase for a bit, as Sin or Win isn’t schedule for release until this September. Get this in my hands already!

# O proprietário hardcore de cães – É um sábado de manhã e você está correndo pela praia. A noite de sexta foi complicada, seu corpo dói, sua cabeça gira, seu estômago está em frangalhos e Machado de Assis só escreveu que aquilo que Capitu tinha eram “olhos de ressaca” porque nunca viu a cara que você está fazendo. Ao longe você observa duas silhuetas estranhas, que lembram um homem caminhando ao lado de um animal. A primeira vista parece um cavalo, mas conforme os dois se aproximam e você começa a ver mais claramente, sua única conclusão é de que aquele cara só pode ser o He-Man, porque o animal é do tamanho do Gato Guerreiro, o que transformaria a orla de Botafogo na versão live-action de Etérnia, com conseqüências perturbadoras, principalmente em relação ao valor do seu aluguel.

Mas antes que você possa perguntar sobre o Aríete ou puxar uma animada discussão sobre as similaridades da tensão sexual entre ele e She-Ra e o tomo final de “Os Maias”, você nota que não, não apenas não era o Gato Guerreiro como o cara não era o He-Man. Quer dizer, na verdade não apenas era um cara normal – na verdade até bem pequeno – como aquilo ao lado dele era um cachorro, ainda que possivelmente o maior que você já viu na vida, do tipo que poderia facilmente se disfarçar de pônei, se…bem…se existisse alguma possível ocasião em que um cão fosse ganhar algo fingindo ser um pônei. Como eu disse, sua cabeça não está muito boa.

Rapidamente você nota que existem outros problemas com seu colega de caminhada além do fato de que ele não sabe aproveitar todo o potencial do animal que tem – se você tivesse um cachorro do tamanho de um pônei iria claramente fazer coisas legais como ir para o trabalho montado nele ou mudar seu nome pra Sir Galahad. E isso inclui claramente não parecer apto a segurar o próprio cachorro, que não apenas poderia facilmente arrastá-lo como também de subjugá-lo, vender pra ele um carro usado, convencer-lo a assinar uma procuração com plenos poderes e escolher primeiro o time no Fifa 11.

Além disso ele parece defender algumas crenças um tanto quanto irreais, como a de que cães são capazes de falar entre si, o que o leva a deixar seu cão ao lado outros cães para que eles latam insanamente , só parando quando fica óbvio que eles querem se matar e não trocar amabilidades e discutir se frolic é mais gostoso do que pedigree ou que falta a extinta TV Colosso faz na vida deles em termos de ações sociais afirmativas; isso além de continuar declarando continuamente que seu cão é “mansinho” mesmo após o animal já ter tentado morder duas pessoas e comer três outros cachorros, tudo isso num espaço de400 metros, sem nem levar em conta o ataque do animal a um carro estacionado, que ele quase conseguiu arrombar. O que ainda que um cachorro arrombando portas seja sensacional, soa meio perigoso.

Mas o que te faz realmente mudar o sentido da corrida e, mesmo quase desidratado, aceitar correr mais1 km apenas pra sair de perto do cara nem é o momento em que ele para ao lado do cachorro, segura a cabeça dele entre os braços e começa a dizer “ah, meu bebê, bonitinho, coisa fofa, bolinha, filhinho lindo do papai, guuuu, guuuu”. Não, nada disso. Você não tem problemas quanto a uma pessoa sentir ímpetos paternais por um animal que poderia destrinchá-la como a uma codorna. O que complica mesmo é quando você descobre que o nome do cachorro é Beyoncé.

Teria sido melhor encontrar o Esqueleto.

Aviso: esse texto pode conter spoilers. Ou não. É um spoiler se eu avisar sobre os spoilers? Vamos refletir sobre isso.

Como vários de vocês devem ter ficado sabendo, seja pela mídia especializada, seja pelo twitter, seja por alguma matéria da Fox News dizendo que a Marvel é composta por um monte de judeus socialistas que querem destruir o ideal de vida americano, existe um novo Homem-Aranha nos quadrinhos e ele é negro. Na verdade latino afro-americano, se você quiser ser mais exato, e o nome dele é Miles Morales, um personagem ainda desconhecido e sobre o qual só vamos descobrir mais após o relançamento da revista do Homem-Aranha ultimate, o que deve acontecer nos próximos meses lá nos EUA.

Mas mesmo sendo o Homem-Aranha meu personagem preferido nos quadrinhos, o tema da representação racial nas HQs da Marvel e da DC um dos meus assuntos favoritos desde os tempos de faculdade e sendo eu um cara que segundo o censo faz parte de uma etnia minoritária (ainda que esquisitamente a moça do questionário parecesse mais interessada em levantar insinuações um tanto quanto levianas quanto ao fato de que eu divido apartamento com um outro homem que não tem laços de parentesco comigo) eu acabei, após uma profunda reflexão, decidindo que não, não vou tratar desse tema aqui no blog. Não porque eu não ache a discussão válida, não porque eu não tenha uma opinião intrincada, complexa, embasada e já devidamente formada sobre o tema, não porque eu não teria coragem de falar durante horas sobre coisas assim. Não, nada disso.

Eu não vou tocar nesse assunto porque, pra começar, eu teria que explicar que isso aconteceu com o Homem-Aranha ultimate, não com o Homem-Aranha normal. E aí eu teria que mencionar que existe mais de um universo e que em um deles, o universo Marvel normal (ou 616) o Homem-Aranha ainda é o Peter Parker, o mesmo fotógrafo e namorado da Mary Jane/ sobrinho da Tia May que todos nós conhecemos (com a diferença de que, bem, ele não é mais fotógrafo. e agora namora com uma policial chamada Carlie. e a tia May agora mora em Boston. e se casou com o pai do J.Jonah  Jameson). Isso sem contar que também existe o universo 2099 (no qual o Homem-Aranha é um hispânico chamado Miguel O’Hara) entre outros e que não, os filmes e os desenhos não estão necessariamente alinhados com cronologia do personagem, seja no universo que for, e o Homem-Areia não matou o Tio Ben.

Só aí então eu poderia entrar no Universo Marvel Ultimate, que nasceu no ano 2000 como forma de atrair novos leitores que se sentiam intimidados com a longa continuidade dos personagens da editora (o próprio Homem-Aranha foi criado em 1962 e quase todas as histórias publicadas desde então são canônicas) oferecendo uma espécie de reboot na qual os personagens eram colocados num contexto mais atual e despidos de décadas de sua história e cronologia. Com isso o Homem-Aranha desse universo ainda era um adolescente aprendendo a lidar com seus poderes (e não um professor de ensino médio já casado, status do Homem-Aranha do universo Marvel normal durante grande parte da década passada). E foi exatamente esse Homem-Aranha, a versão mais jovem e de um universo paralelo, que morreu num confronto com o Sexteto Sinistro Ultimate, salvando sua tia May, e que vai ser substituído pelo jovem Miles Morales.

E bem, amigos, é exatamente por isso que eu não irei, de forma alguma, abordar esse tema do Homem-Aranha negro aqui no blog: porque quando eu falo de coisas assim eu me empolgo tanto explicando o background da história que não sobra espaço para realmente escrever qualquer opinião sobre o tema. Lastimável, é tudo que eu digo.

In this article, Allison talks about breaking the creative boundaries in user interface design. Testing the limitations of design is what creates new design patterns, but not without respecting their purpose first.

As a user interface designer, the most important thing to remember is that it isn’t just you and a blank canvas. There’s a very important third party – the user. Unlike traditional art, they’re not an observer, but a key participant in the final product.

Learn when and where to be break creative boundaries, and when it’s more appropriate to be consistent with what’s proven to work. Design around your constraints; don’t reinvent them for the sole purpose of being “creative.” There’s a reason why certain design patterns are used over and over again — because they’re familiar, recognizable, and they work!

Respect the Boundaries Before You Break Them

We’ve heard of heat mapping, been told to respect “the fold” and referenced things like the “F Pattern” to base our interfaces on. This stems from the newspaper industry, where the most important story would appear in the upper half of the front page of the newspaper and from western culture, where we read from left to right and top to bottom. (Check out Above the Fold by Brian Miller for more information on this topic!) These principles from traditional design standards have created a structure of suggested guidelines for us to follow as interface designers.

While it’s imperative to keep these boundaries in mind when designing, don’t use it as an excuse to limit your creativity. Use them as structure, but don’t be afraid to tastefully “break the rules” and design around your constraints. Step out of your comfort zone — that’s how new design patterns are created!

Establish Hierarchy and Encourage Exploration

The second a user lands on your website or opens your application, they should quickly understand it’s purpose, how it benefits them and what actions they can take. Help them answer these questions by establishing visual hierarchy and arranging the layout purposefully to encourage exploration.

Use size, position, color, whitespace and typographic treatment to draw the eye immediately to a fixed point or anchor with a digestible amount of content that then naturally leads our eye through the rest of the page.

According to Avinash Kaushik of Google, the average bounce rate is between 40-60%, stressing the importance of first impressions. “Everybody has ADD, if you don’t have want they want they leave instantly. You can’t win them all.”

Guide Your Users; Don’t Herd Them

Once a solid visual hierarchy has been established, guide them. Primary call-to-actions should have more visual weight (ex: brighter and larger) than less optimal, but necessary call-to-actions (ex: smaller and muted).

Don’t make assumptions and herd the user or force them to go somewhere they might not be ready to go yet. Give them the opportunity to explore and use your interface as they see fit. Bottom line is that not everyone wants to or will use your website the same way.

Help maintain the user’s focus by reducing clutter and showing only the most applicable and important information necessary for the interaction taking place at that time. This is referred to as “progressive disclosure” and can be achieved through simple solutions like dropdowns and accordions or more advanced technologies like AJAX.

Prepare the User for What’s Next and Constantly and Consistently Provide Feedback

Now that the user knows who you are and where to go first, they should be aware with what effect their actions will have on their experience. You never want to leave them wondering, “If I click here, what will happen?” No one wants to be caught of guard, especially in a new and unfamiliar environment. Because as soon as the user feels out of control, they’ll escape the first chance they get.

Warn them when something’s about to happen and reassure them once it has. It can be details as simple as in-field labels, auto-focus, hover states and thoughtfully written call-to-actions that make the biggest difference in user experience.

Similar actionable elements throughout your website or application should have consistent results. For example, a rule of thumb I like to stick to is dedicating specific colors for buttons and links. I avoid using the same color for headlines, subheads or any other text. It’s a great way to distinguish call-to-actions or hyperlinked text from non-clickable elements. While there’s always extenuating circumstances, it never hurts to be consistent.

All in all, the user will feel more comfortable exploring deeper and interacting more often with your website or application, if they can rely on constant and consistent feedback.

Try, Test, Fix and Repeat

What’s great about interactive media is that nothing is permanent. We can instantly begin improving the experience of our website or application based on feedback we’ve gathered from tools like Google Analytics, methods like A/B testing, or direct input from the users themselves. Our user interface should always be changing.

As designers, it’s our challenge is to balance what’s been proven to work, the business needs of our clients and breaking the creative boundaries of user experience. Testing the limitations of design is what creates new design patterns, but not without respecting them first.