In this blog, we want to talk about UI design or User Interface design. Tell you what it means, The difference between UX and UI, what the UI designers do, tools, and the compromise designers should do with the performance of the interface they are working in.
What is UI Design?
A user interface (UI) is the point of interaction between humans and computers. User interface design is the process of designing how these interfaces look and behave.
Designers aim to create interfaces that users find easy to use and pleasurable. UI design refers to graphical user interfaces and other forms.
Anything you interact with as a user is part of the user interface. For example, screens, sounds, overall style, and responsiveness are all elements of UI.
What is the difference between UX and UI?
The concepts of UI and UX are often confused. The term UX (user experience) is a broader term that includes UI.
When we refer to UX, we are talking about the experience we want the user to have when interacting with mobile applications, web pages, or even video games.
UX design represents what we call the “user science,” that is, everything related to:
The strategy
The knowledge of the user’s needs
The constitution of prototypes, scenarios, etc.
Colman Walsh, CEO of the UX Design Institute, exemplifies the work of the UX designer as the architect and the UI designer as the interior designer.
Both the UX designer and the architect will be in charge of asking and answering questions such as: what are we building, what are we building it for, and who are we building it for?
UX designers give structure to the project and think about how users will move within a given interface.
UX design aims to create products and experiences that are easy, efficient, enjoyable, and rewarding for the end user.
When we refer to UI designer, we are talking about the person who puts the style: the colors, the buttons, the alignments, and the spacing to the interface.
In general, the UI Designer prints the brand’s personality on the interface.
What does the UI Designer do?
The UI Designer is in charge of making the interfaces, that is, the visible part of applications, web pages, and video games, among others.
He gives life, color, lights, and shadows to the interfaces, representing the brand’s personality.
From a technical perspective, UI includes:
Layout
Branding
Visual Design
Color
Content
Action buttons
Typography
Wireframes
Tools for UI Design
Tools
It is essential to have the right tools and technology to support your UI design efforts. Two of the best UI design tools in 2022 are Figma and Adobe XD.
FIGMA:
Figma is an awesome tool for interface designers. It helps you create beautiful interfaces. You can design your icons, create layouts, add animations, and test out designs before publishing them. One thing We really like about Figma is that it allows you to drag and drop images directly into your document. If you’re working with a team, Figma also gives you the ability to collaborate efficiently. You can share documents with others and comment on changes made by others.
Here you can check a blog about: How to Use Figma with 10 easy steps?
ADOBE XD:
Adobe XD is a vector-based UI and UX design tool, and it can be used to design anything from smartwatch apps to fully-fledged websites.
What is Adobe XD Used For?
What’s important to remember is that Adobe XD addresses the two main problems Photoshop and other graphics applications couldn’t:
1. Interaction design isn’t static. A designer cannot communicate a fluid and dynamic design using pixels alone.
2. A modern design process involves more than a polished finished article. Wireframing, iteration, and behavior are all part of collaborative decision-making with UI and UX design.
Adobe XD is ideal for vector-based UI design, wireframing, interactive design, prototyping, and high-fidelity web/app design, for solo designers or whole teams.
In September of this year (2022), Dylan Field, the co-founder, and CEO of Figma announced that Adobe would acquire his company.
In his announcement, he also stated that he would remain the CEO of Figma, that there would be no price increase, and that the company’s philosophy would remain the same.
Soon, we will see if this merger benefits or hurts the thousands of designers around the world who use Figma.
Compromise Between Design and Performance
This point is critical; UI designers, in addition to making a beautiful, usable, and clear interface, have the responsibility to make design choices that align with the performance expected by the team.
To explain better, imagine the user experience on a website that takes a long time to load because the UI designer chose to put a very heavy animation on the Home page.
In this case, it would not be a pleasant experience for the user. It could be a lost customer or a lost sale. In addition, the SEO of the page would be significantly affected since google penalizes long loading times.
In these cases, UI designers must work closely with UX designers to evaluate, depending on the project, if design or performance should be more important.
Conclusion
UI designers are in charge of giving life, color, and personality to the different interfaces. They use tools such as Adobe XD and Figma.
In addition, UI designers are responsible for making designs aligned with the expected application performance.
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