User experience review of Google UX Design Certificate Course_ Chapter 2
This is the second chapter of my User Experience Review of Google UX Design Certificate Course and it is TL;DR (Too long, didn’t read).
So here is the takeaways (what you can learn from what I have learned) of Course 1 Week 2:
Think like a UX designer: firstly complaining/venting as a user then solving it as the designer yourself.
Best UX’s trend is accessibility for everyone, think big then focus on small.
Think is the DESIGN THINKING.
Note: be a curious and diligent student, do read all the extra resources Google listed, it will help you build more profound and practical understandings of what is good UX design even what is good design.
Course1 Week 2 (22/5/2022)
The venting
Anyone interested in UX design may already know that it’s user-centered design, but Who is the user? I thought the week 2 ‘get to know your user’ lectures would introduce how to define the potential user group for a specific product or create a specific product for a target user group, that’s why UX designers fuss about user surveys, right? No, I was wrong on that prediction. Interestingly, Google wants all the users first.
Assistive Technology, the users new to the technology, the Next Billion Users, there are many new terms I haven’t read from old library books or FaceBook UX/UI groups, where most people are concerned about how to break into the industry with daily posts titled ‘how is my portfolio?’
Imaging, GOOGLE, the gigantic mortal engines booming towards the misty horizon. Trailing behind it, many aspiring wildings like me scavenge or even pay for the pieces of GUXDCC(Google UX Design Course Certificate) on its path, while dreaming one day we can be part of that grandeur.
Back to reality, Assistive Technology (AT) not just benefits the user group with physical impairments ,but also attracts more users because of convenience. Recently I found this text-to-voice button on Medium, so this app is allowed to stay even though I only have limited access to the articles. Usually, this kind of app will be deleted immediately.
I am totally up for inclusive design with AT, however one trend of best user design practices is so dazzling that I have to press the first dislike button in the course.
The context starts from Google’s ambition: Next Billion User, which sounds like a universal design mode. However, even themselves admit that the universal design is nearly impossible to achieve in the real world, since strictly speaking there is no hat that fits all the heads. Then comes the inclusive design which is great, now another rising tide is called equity-focused design.
Still remember what is usable and useful in Chapter 1? This time, three terms: Equity, Equality, Equitable.
The Google terminology jumped out to torture me again. To make it worse, there is a quiz which I suspect is flawed. Another unhappy feedback was sent.
In the lecture, the concepts of Equity and Equality are clearly explained and differentiated. However, if I dare to suggest, why not use easier terms like ‘fairness-focused design’ to increase the contrast between them, just like inclusive design uses high contrast colors for low vision users, why can’t we do the same in the terminology of UX writing for the ESL or users who has literacy or memory problems?
My venting has not ended there yet. Here comes another culture shock: in one video, the instructor gave an example of a gender neutral restroom with an illustration of an open plan restroom for both male and female. In terms of architectural design, it’s quite novel and controversial, even I won’t feel comfortable enough to use such a restroom, not to mention those next billion users in more conservative regions.
You may think that this gender neutral restroom illustration example is trivial and totally irrelevant regarding UX design. Let’s put it into one UX design scenario: swap this novel restroom design for a new feature in the product we want to add in. How will this new feature affect our users? Some may be pleased with this equity-focused design, and some may get upset then dislike the product because of the insensitivity to their cultural background. How to solve this problem? Simply, replace it with a neutral and appropriate substitute, or not add it yet.
So my primitive opinion is: all hands for inclusive design; equity-focused design, wait and see how it works on individual cases.
My favorite part: Design thinking
Google’s UX design framework has five easily-remembered steps. However, its reading script didn’t explain in depth WHY we should switch to Design thinking, which is not just thinking like a designer following certain steps. Digging through the resource links provided, I found gold mines: YouTube videos from NNG (Nielson Norman Group), agile vs waterfall methodology, wicked problem and how to tackle wicked problem, Tim Brown’s Design Thinking (same name but his participation models are more inspiring).These are the Why. And why we need to know the Why, because the knowledge should be remembered, understood and used (talk about how to use it later).
The last part of week 2 is UX design platforms, not Figma vs XD, but the website, app and other devices which the users interact with. Nothing outstanding here. Done week 2 in two days, then started to write the reviews on Medium, plus a rebranding project (spoil alert), dead tired.
If you have more time and energy, three things I would recommend besides learning the course content and resources:
1. Keep a study journal to record key info and most importantly your own thoughts, or even a blog like mine :) The course content is quite short for every week if you just skim through. But don’t rush, take time to digest and use the knowledge you just learned when it’s still hot and vivid.
2. How to use the knowledge? Immerse yourself with good and bad UX design and hunt their flairs and flaws using your newly learned UX knowledge tools. Train your eyes and brain to think like a UX designer and a good one.
3. Exploring the UX world on different platforms. One issue with GUXDCC is that it’s a lonely journey since there is zero interaction with instructors, not much with peers on the discussion forum. Luckily there are many FB groups where you can safely observe other UX designers and learn from their experience, even take part in discussion, volunteering projects, etc.
My lonely journey of GUXDCC in the wild UX world continues, please wave to me when you see me :)
PS: I just joined a small UX tribe to solve a donation problem for a cat rescue organization. The design progress will be covered in the next chapter of GUXDCC_C1W3 (course1 week3). Please you are interested in my journey please follow and leave your feedback in respond chat box at the bottom.
Next chapter is available.
