Evolution in Tech — And Why it Will Have Little Effect on Design
The world of technology - as we all know - is an ever evolving world in which nothing ever stays the same, yet also in a strange way, never changes. What do I mean? I’ll answer that soon. But first let me explain what got me started thinking about this.
I’m a designer, based heavily in UI/UX. I try (and have to) keep up on what current trends are and how to use them to make things that fit with the times. I recently read an article that claimed to present some upcoming UI trends for 2020. It was a good article with some nice tips, which you can read here. There were a couple “trends” they brought up, however, that were based on the idea that 5G would change how we design. These included getting rid of loading screens and icons, as well as creating more complicated motion effects due to increased data speeed.
It was an interesting read, and not technically incorrect. Yes, 5G’s speed increase will change things, but it won’t change the nature of design. And here we come back to my original question; What do I mean when I say technology constantly evolves without ever really changing?
Think about it this way: An automaker wants to make a faster car. They don’t just throw in a bigger engine and call it good. No, they have to then go update other technologies in the car in order for the car to handle itself at that higher speed. Suspension changes, frame changes, tires, aerodynamics, it all has to be updated. Yet, driving doesn’t change. The car still turns, it goes fast, etc.
Technology works similarly. Every element of technology drives the growth of the other elements. Why is there a need for more speed? Because software engineers want to cram more power into their applications and websites. More demand means there’s a need for increased supply.
Now, on to the idea that 5G’s speeds could end the need for things like loading screens and icons. One thing we need to keep in mind is that websites and web apps are not entirely limited by internet and data speeds. They are also very dependent on hardware limitations. Both the client and the server have their own sets of processors and RAM, as well as storage that have to sort through all the information and present it to the user. Because of this, load times on web apps and sites are often dependent on the hardware of the server, and not the speed of the internet available to the user. This means that, while 5G’s speed increase may help, it will not rid us of the need for things like loading screens and icons.
Obviously, hardware is improving as well. But remember, advances in technology are driven by advancements in other areas. The only reason that improvements are made in any area is because there is demand somewhere else. This is the heart of the issue. We have what I call a “stagnant evolution” because, while things do change and improve, some things never change, and all because everything is dependent on so many factors.
Design changes too, but in reality it is very rarely affected by the speed of the hardware it is running on. Graphically, things have changed a great deal. A PC from the Windows 2000 era would not be able to run the modern Windows 10 OS due to processing limitation. However, Windows 2000 had load times. So does Windows 10. Why? Because one thing that does not really change in technology, is the gap between the speed of technology, and the demand placed upon it.
