Once you catch the user experience bug, the world changes. Doors open the wrong way, websites don't work, and companies don't seem to care. And while anyone can learn the UX remedies usability testing, personas, prototyping and so on unless your organization 'gets it', putting them into practice is trickier. Undercover User Experience is a pragmatic guide from the front lines, giving frank advice on making UX work in real companies with real problems. Readers will learn how to fit research, ideation, prototyping and testing into their daily workflow, and how to design good user experiences under the all-too-common constraints of time, budget and culture.
Undercover User Experience Design (Voices That Matter)
and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more
| |||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £3.91
Trade in Undercover User Experience Design (Voices That Matter) for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £3.91, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Learn more
|
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
Review
A wonderful, practical, yet subversive book. Cennydd and James teach you the subtle act of fighting for-and then designing for-users in a hostile world. --Joshua Porter, author of Designing for the Social Web
Cennydd and James's clever and crafty book will teach you how to make your own rules, play well with others, and create a culture of UX from the ground up. --Whitney Hess, user experience design consultant
Making design matter in your organization is not about titles and talk. It's about what you get done every day. Undercover User Experience Design will show you the way. --Luke Wroblewski, author of Web Form Design and Site-seeing
At Clearleft we pride ourselves on delivering exceptional design even with tight deadlines and budgets. This indispensable guide to guerrilla UX explains how we do it.
--Andy Budd, co-founder and managing director of Clearleft
Cennydd and James's clever and crafty book will teach you how to make your own rules, play well with others, and create a culture of UX from the ground up. --Whitney Hess, user experience design consultant
Making design matter in your organization is not about titles and talk. It's about what you get done every day. Undercover User Experience Design will show you the way. --Luke Wroblewski, author of Web Form Design and Site-seeing
At Clearleft we pride ourselves on delivering exceptional design even with tight deadlines and budgets. This indispensable guide to guerrilla UX explains how we do it.
--Andy Budd, co-founder and managing director of Clearleft
From the Back Cover
Once you catch the user experience bug, the world changes. Doors open the wrong way, websites don't work, and companies don't seem to care. And while anyone can learn the UX remedies: usability testing, personas, prototyping and so on unless your organization 'gets it', putting them into practice is tricky. Undercover User Experience is a pragmatic guide from the front lines, giving frank advice on making UX work in real companies with real problems. Readers will learn how to fit research, ideation, prototyping and testing into their daily workflow, and how to design good user experiences under the all-too-common constraints of time, budget and culture.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was initially a little sceptical about how much I'd get out of this book because I'm a front end developer in a small design agency where everyone understands the value of good UX.
However, James and Cennydd also cater for people who don't consider it a significant part of what they do. At the end of the day, UX is relevant to everyone, including developers like me who will write microcopy or make design decisions if visuals haven't been provided.
The chapter on generating ideas has been useful for communicating concepts in meetings with clients, as has the section on deliverables including wireframes, sitemaps and prototypes.
My favourite bit was a section on the "Validation Stack" which explains how to defend decisions using user evidence, then user research, and as a last resort design theory. "If your recommendation isn't supported by user evidence, research, or theoretical principles, throw it away. You've lost this one."
There are often times when I have to justify my decisions to clients, and I now run through the validation stack in my head whenever I have to do this.
The writing style is approachable and friendly, and it's also the perfect size and weight to read on a tedious commute.
However, James and Cennydd also cater for people who don't consider it a significant part of what they do. At the end of the day, UX is relevant to everyone, including developers like me who will write microcopy or make design decisions if visuals haven't been provided.
The chapter on generating ideas has been useful for communicating concepts in meetings with clients, as has the section on deliverables including wireframes, sitemaps and prototypes.
My favourite bit was a section on the "Validation Stack" which explains how to defend decisions using user evidence, then user research, and as a last resort design theory. "If your recommendation isn't supported by user evidence, research, or theoretical principles, throw it away. You've lost this one."
There are often times when I have to justify my decisions to clients, and I now run through the validation stack in my head whenever I have to do this.
The writing style is approachable and friendly, and it's also the perfect size and weight to read on a tedious commute.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The field of UXD is still relatively new and there are some good books that look at certain aspects of the discipline. However, most books that cover the whole process generally have an academic focus. So this publication is very welcome as it provides an accessible, up-to-date and succinct overview of UXD techniques and principles from a professional perspective.
The book's title suggests a particular application and this provides a narrative structure which encouraged me to read it from beginning to end. However, the useful and insightful information it contains is likely to be applicable to most situations. I have already found myself reaching for it as a reference and it will be a useful addition to any UX designer's library.
It pairs nicely with the excellent A Project Guide to UX Design: For User Experience Designers in the Field or in the Making (Voices That Matter) by Russ Unger and Carolyn Chandler and together both books should be required reading for any UX design course. Although it's not just for entry-level UXers, even well-seasoned practitioners will find valuable ideas and suggestions and would be well advised to check it out to keep abreast of current best practice.
The book's title suggests a particular application and this provides a narrative structure which encouraged me to read it from beginning to end. However, the useful and insightful information it contains is likely to be applicable to most situations. I have already found myself reaching for it as a reference and it will be a useful addition to any UX designer's library.
It pairs nicely with the excellent A Project Guide to UX Design: For User Experience Designers in the Field or in the Making (Voices That Matter) by Russ Unger and Carolyn Chandler and together both books should be required reading for any UX design course. Although it's not just for entry-level UXers, even well-seasoned practitioners will find valuable ideas and suggestions and would be well advised to check it out to keep abreast of current best practice.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
At last: an accessible, easy to digest UX design book, which addresses the realities that practitioners may face day in, day out.
There are some excellent ideas to use to get buy-in from others. By highlighting a "smorgasbord" of techniques, a plan can be created which will fit the inevitable time and budgetary constraints. It proves that an effective UX design process doesn't have to be lengthy nor expensive.
The great thing about this publication is that the authors clearly and succinctly explain when to use these techniques, how to get the most out of them, and how they'll move the project along. In particular, some of the design exercises will work wonders in demonstrating the value of collaboration to a project team.
There may be a lack of depth, but this allows this book to be consumed in a few hours. There are plenty of other sources available, which can provide more detail if the reader requires it. My advice is to just give the ideas a try; I think I'll learn more from trying to practically apply them!
PS: I will remove Post-It notes in the correct way from now on.
There are some excellent ideas to use to get buy-in from others. By highlighting a "smorgasbord" of techniques, a plan can be created which will fit the inevitable time and budgetary constraints. It proves that an effective UX design process doesn't have to be lengthy nor expensive.
The great thing about this publication is that the authors clearly and succinctly explain when to use these techniques, how to get the most out of them, and how they'll move the project along. In particular, some of the design exercises will work wonders in demonstrating the value of collaboration to a project team.
There may be a lack of depth, but this allows this book to be consumed in a few hours. There are plenty of other sources available, which can provide more detail if the reader requires it. My advice is to just give the ideas a try; I think I'll learn more from trying to practically apply them!
PS: I will remove Post-It notes in the correct way from now on.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 9 reviews
4.6 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
ok
making people write long reviews on ggod they receive is in my opinion expecting a lot. surely just a simple word comment is enough??
Published 3 months ago by Ms. Julie A. Renyard
5.0 out of 5 stars
No-nonsense, practical UX goodness
Undercover UX Design has fundamentally changed the way I design websites; after reading I'm sure it will have the same effect on you. Read more
Published 23 months ago by M. Heys
5.0 out of 5 stars
Practical and applicable
I can fully recommend this book for the UX interested people out there. I am a designer myself and starts in a new job soon where UX definately will play a role. Read more
Published on 20 Mar 2011 by Kristian Stefan Kjærgaard
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent introduction to the field for aspiring UX designers
This book provides a great starting point for would-be UX designers.
I recommend it to my students as a great overview of the area. Read more
I recommend it to my students as a great overview of the area. Read more
Published on 7 Nov 2010 by Des Traynor
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great introduction to user experience design
I wish I'd had this book 13 years ago when I was a technical writer in a software company moving into what I later found out was called information architecture and which we would... Read more
Published on 17 Oct 2010 by Drys
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
