Nick Babich

Web

One-page vs. Multi-page website: Which one to choose?

“Should I go for a one-pager or multi-page website?” is a popular question among web designers. One-pager is a very common type of website that suits the needs of many website owners. But to make informed decisions, it’s essential to understand the difference between one-pager and multi-pager. Each type

Mental Models in Product Design

When people start using your product, they have certain expectations for how the product should function, for example, where specific controls are located in an interface or what steps they should take to accomplish their goal. These expectations are known as a mental model. In this article, we will discuss

5-Second Test in Product Design

5-second test is a simple exercise that can help to gauge users’ first impressions of your design. This article is a quick guide on how to use this type of testing. How to conduct 5-second testing In a five-second test, test participants are shown an image of a web page

Prototyping: Guide For Designers

Paper, digital and native prototypes We design products through a series of trials and errors. But where the errors happen is very important. An error that occurs after you release a product on the market can negatively impact your business. Luckily it’s possible to avoid that using a tool

Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) in product design

What is JTBD, how to use it in product design, JTBD vs User Persona Product design success depends on how well the product satisfies the customers’ needs. The better the product satisfies the needs, the more likely it will perform well on the market. Jobs To Be Done is a

UX

Wireframing: 8 Pro Tips for Designers

Wireframes are low-fidelity visualizations of a future interface created on a piece of paper or in a digital tool. The purpose of a wireframe is to help designers to understand how content and functional elements should be laid on the screen. In this article, I want to share 8 tips

Mobile Design in 2022-2023

What does good mobile design mean today? The mobile design evolved rapidly over the last two decades, and user expectations changed a lot. In this article, I want to discuss 8 things users expect about mobile apps in 2022. 1. Good usability is an essential requirement Just a few years

UX

The 5 Whys: How to make the most of this method

Sometimes things go wrong, and your product is not performing as expected. 5 Whys is an easy-to-use technique that will help you find the root cause of the problem. You ask, “Why?” Question 5 times to understand the true nature of the problem. In this article, I want to discuss

Heuristic Evaluation: 9 Things To Remember When Doing the Evaluation

Heuristic evaluation is a method for finding usability flaws in user interface design. When we use heuristic evaluation, we evaluate the user interface according to the known usability principles. This article will discuss how to make the most of this method. 1. Conduct heuristic evaluation early on in the design

UX

User journey map: 6 things to remember when creating a journey map

A user journey map is a visual interpretation of an individual’s relationship with a product or organization over time and across different channels. A user journey map tells a story of the person trying to accomplish a specific task or goal using your product. Here are six things that

Website hero section: 6 design best practices

The first impression is crucial. It can make or break an opportunity to engage visitors. When it comes to web design, the hero section has a tremendous impact on user experience. A good hero section design can maximize the chances that the users will scroll for more information. Today I

UX

Radio buttons, checkboxes, toggle switches, and dropdown lists: design tips for using selection controls

Plus 7 common scenarios for using controls Radio buttons, checkboxes, toggles, and dropdowns are UI controls that allow users to make a selection. Although they have been in user interfaces for a long time, product designers still have a lot of trouble choosing the proper control for their tasks. This

UX

Bottom Tab Bar Design Best Practices

The bottom tab bar (also known as the navbar) is one of the most popular types of navigation in mobile design. Its located in the easy-to-reach zone, making it easily accessible by the user’s thumb. Despite its relative simplicity, it can be tricky to design right. In this article,

UX

Progress Indicators: 4 Common Styles

‘Don’t make users wait’ is one of the essential rules in interaction design. Yet, despite all our efforts, sometimes it’s impossible to provide an instant response to the user’s request. But it’s vital to keep users informed about what’s happening, and progress indicators can help

UI

The problem of clock font size in Apple iOS 16

Why sometimes small details matter a lot With all the UI changes that Apple introduced in iOS 16, including the Dynamic Island [https://babich.biz/apple-dynamic-island/] that got a lot of media attention, one subtle change hugely impacted almost everyone. Apple increased the font size of the clock display on

UX

Apple Dynamic Island: What's Good and Bad About It

The design of the iPhone 14 Pro is hardly possible to call revolutionary. It’s an excellent example of gradual design evolution and perfecting individual design decisions. However, one design decision of the iPhone 14 Pro got much media attention. This feature is called Dynamic Island. In this article, I

UI

Text fields in UI Design: 7 Common Styles

Text field is one of the most popular UI elements. Despite its a relatively simple object, it can have different styles. The style of the text field can vary depending on the data it collects and the context in which it is used. In this article, I will review seven

5 Types of UI Notifications

Notification is an integral part of many products. Almost all products we design today require some system for sharing updates with our users. This article will discuss five types of UI notifications, with essential rules on when and how to use them. What is a notification? Notification is any system

Apple Aqua: Exploring the Legacy Of MacOS X User Interface

Apple unveiled Aqua, its next-generation user interface for MacOS X, at the Macworld Expo San Francisco in 2000. Apple described Aqua as the future of Macintosh, and it was one of the most fundamental design upgrades that Apple ever created. MacOS X 10.0 Cheetah with Apple Aqua. Image by

UI

Contrasting design vs. neutral design: when to use each

Design is a language that we use to communicate with our audience. Understanding why products are designed in a certain way is essential to becoming a successful designer. When we understand why certain decisions are being made in the first place, we can apply the same method of thinking when

What does form follows function really mean?

Louis Sullivan, an American architect of the 19th century, coined the famous phrase "form follows function." This statement is so common among product designers today that we typically take it for granted. But this quote can help us become better at design. Here are two critical things we should remember

UX

Why ordinary design (almost) always wins

When we think about ordinary design, the first words that come to mind are "simple" and "boring." And while the simple design might be good property, boring is not something we as product designers usually aim to create. Does it mean that ordinary design will negatively impact product success? No.

YouTube Removed Dislike Count

On Nov 10, 2021, YouTube stated [https://blog.youtube/news-and-events/update-to-youtube/] that it will remove the dislike count on the platform till the end of this year. This decision aims to improve user experience and make YouTube a better place for content creators and viewers. Contextual actions at YouTube, 2021In

AI

A comprehensive guide on how to craft good AI design

With the release of Apple iOS 15 and the upcoming Google Pixel 6 device with Google’s Tensor chip, we will soon see a tight competition between two giants in the field of artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence is the next big thing because > The more an interface leverages human conversation,

UX

Disabled Buttons in User Interface

When we design web forms, we always try to minimize the chance of users making mistakes. With that intention, we try to prevent users from taking actions that can cause errors. And disabling the submit button is one solution that, from the first glance, seems reasonable. In this article, I