Power of beauty, alarm clock UX, design system framework

Weekly curated resources for designers — thinkers and makers.

“Beauty triggers curiosity differently. It draws us in the content not with a promise of knowledge but with a promise of visual satisfaction. We feel touched by the work before getting to the knowledge. Beauty makes it easier for us to look deeper, to wander around the content, to gather knowledge while already being satisfied.”

The power of beauty in communicating complex ideas →
By Louis Charron

Editor picks

• Why alarm clock design speaks about humanity →
  A ringing odyssey.
  By Chiara Santella
• Too much work, too little time →
  Coping mechanisms to deal with work overload.
  By Tess Gadd
• Creativity and why we should sleep on it →
  How to harness dream creativity to solve problems.
  By Kate Dowler
• UX people are basically 3-legged cats →
  The bathroom rug depression.
  By Rita Kind-Envy
• Transforming UX with GenAI →
  From linear journeys to tailored terrain.
  By Marc C. Seefelder

The UX Collective is an independent design publication that elevates unheard design voices and helps designers think more critically about their work.

The hydrant directory →

Make me think

• The linear method: opinionated software →
  “Opinionated software is software that’s purpose-built for specific use cases. Unlike a general purpose tool to be adopted across many disciplines or workflows, it guides you toward a default process. We design it so that there’s one really good way of doing things.”
• Is Canva getting good? →
  “With the acquisition of Affinity, Canva has made a statement: We’re serious, you better watch out. For those of us who use Figma or Creative Cloud on a daily basis, this will be interesting.”
• The collapse of design critique →
  “You can’t be a hater if you’re not a lover, too. A lover who loves everything is insincere. A hater, on the other hand, is merely someone who is picky about what they love. Hating isn’t an action; it’s a state of mind.”

Little gems this week

The designer engagement report →
By Matej Latin

Beautiful, boring, and without soul →
By Steyn Viljoen

Are white road markings a design mistake? →
By Rita Kind-Envy

Tools and resources

• The role of UX Research in the product lifecycle →
  Why do we skip the research phase at all?
  By Elenee Ch
• The power of Motion Guidelines in digital products →
  The why, what, and how.
  By Alejandra Hernández
• How to classify your design system →
  A framework to determine the effective strategy.
  By Henrik Ståhl

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