The Design of Everyday Things: Revised and Expanded Edition

Don Norman

Nov 2018 · Hachette Audio · Narrated by Neil Hellegers

About this audiobook

Design doesn't have to complicated, which is why this guide to human-centered design shows that usability is just as important as aesthetics.
Even the smartest among us can feel inept as we fail to figure out which light switch or oven burner to turn on, or whether to push, pull, or slide a door.
The fault, argues this ingenious -- even liberating -- book, lies not in ourselves, but in product design that ignores the needs of users and the principles of cognitive psychology. The problems range from ambiguous and hidden controls to arbitrary relationships between controls and functions, coupled with a lack of feedback or other assistance and unreasonable demands on memorization.
The Design of Everyday Things shows that good, usable design is possible. The rules are simple: make things visible, exploit natural relationships that couple function and control, and make intelligent use of constraints. The goal: guide the user effortlessly to the right action on the right control at the right time.

The Design of Everyday Things is a powerful primer on how -- and why -- some products satisfy customers while others only frustrate them.

Ratings and reviews

THE AUDIO IS REALLY HOT. Considering this is a book on good design, I'm really surprised they blew out the audio level on this one. As a video person this is an extremely amateur mistake that I stopped making after my first class in video and audio recording. I feel as if I have been ripped off.

AAA BOSS NETWORK

Wow🔊

About the author

Don Norman is a co-founder of the Nielsen Norman Group, and holds graduate degrees in both engineering and psychology. His many books include Emotional Design, The Design of Future Things, and Living with Complexity. He lives in Silicon Valley, California.