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Patrick Thornton

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This travel mug has several physical affordances on it.
By Patrick Thornton February 10, 2019February 10, 2019 Design Foundations

What is an affordance?

If you want to be a good designer (or to understand good design) you need to understand what affordances are and when they are being used properly.

By Patrick Thornton February 6, 2019February 11, 2019 Guides

How to determine if something is well designed: The Design Critique Rubric

How do you determine if a feature or product is well designed? You don’t just guess. It’s not a question of personal opinion. Use this rubric to know.

By Patrick Thornton February 6, 2019February 7, 2019 Guides

Guidelines for thoughtful product design

You can use the below guidelines to check if your product is ready to ship (or if your prototype is being thoughtful enough), and you can use it as a core way to critique other products.

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By Patrick Thornton February 23, 2019February 24, 2019 Analysis

Samsung Galaxy Fold is the Homer Simpson Car

Good product design is not about letting your users design your products for you — it’s about solving users problems and making their lives better. So what problem does the Galaxy Fold solve and how does it make people’s lives better?

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Patrick Thornton

Building a better designed world

Copyright 2019 Patrick Thornton.