What does an interaction designer do?

In recent years, the word interactive design has been raised very frequently. However, with a lot of UI design, you rarely see a real interaction designer. So what exactly is the real interaction design? How do you become a real interaction designer? Today, let's talk about interactive design around these two issues.

　What is interactive design

In the interactive design process, the designer will introduce the logical operation and thoughtful action into the interface, creating a fascinating Web page and UI. Successful interaction designers are good at using technology and good interaction rules to create an ideal user experience.

The interactive design of web pages and apps in the last 10 years has been a lot of talk, but the broader sense of interaction design is less mentioned. When discussing interactive design, the most cited is actually the series of articles written by Bob Baxley in 2002, a series of 12 articles detailing the design of web interaction.

This series, "Introduction to interactive design," divides the interactive design into 5 major sections, which continue to date:

• Human-machine communication: the transmission and translation of information between equipment and users.

• Operation and Feedback: how everything happens and unfolds when the interaction occurs.

• Status: The presence of different States ensures that the user understands what is happening and why the application enters this state.

• Workflows: Let users know who can do what, and what will happen next.

• Failure: Failure is bound to occur, must be considered within the scope.

In addition, there are other issues that need to be kept in mind during the interactive design process. Usability.gov This site summarizes the basic 6 categories totaling 14 different issues that can help you build the whole interaction system in the design process.

• How do users interact with the interface with a mouse, finger, and stylus?

• What kind of interactive instructions (operations) will the user emit to the interface?

• What prompts will the interface use to inform the user of its usefulness?

• How will you, as an interactive designer, understand what will happen to the user before it is manipulated?

• What restrictions would you provide to prevent errors?

• Does the error message tell the user how to solve the problem?

• What feedback does a user get when an operation occurs?

• How long is the response time between user actions and interface feedback?

• Are the dimensions of the interface elements related to the interactive approach?

• Are the edges and corners consciously and strategically positioned to interact with the elements?

• Do you follow the design criteria?

• Is the information (reasonably) divided into several different entries?

• Is the user terminal as simple as possible?

• Do you use a familiar format (user)?

　The role of Interaction designers

If you find that you often think about the above questions, or are often asked these questions, that means you are working as an interactive designer.

An interactive designer is a position across the design, development, creative, and marketing teams that you help to build design strategies, establish key interactions between products, create conceptual test prototypes, maintain technical updates, and ensure that products follow trends.

Sounds like an interactive designer. This position is a vague position with too many concepts. Simply put, interactive designers are the ones who make sure that digital products are easy for users to play around with.

And the career direction of the interaction designer is changeable. Some formal design colleges and training institutions teach interactive design, but more interactive design knowledge comes from project practice. But interactive designers have a common denominator: they have a great curiosity about the laws of things, do not fear problems, are good at visual expression, good at the visual elements and concepts in a new form of presentation.

　Concepts and principles of interactive design

So what is really driving the development of interactive design? What makes interaction design different from other designs? In fact, the boundaries are very vague. We often talk about interactive design because the interaction carries a lot of things that are easy to be concerned about. In fact, to achieve a good digital product, Web page or application, interactive design is only one aspect of achieving them.

The 2009 UX Booth published "Complete Beginner's Guide to Interaction" (a complete guide for novice interactive design) is still a good reference book. The tools and factors that really drive the development of interactive design concepts have not changed.

Let's look at some of the concepts of interactive design next.

• Goal-driven design: Why do your designs and interactions exist? They exist to make sure that your site or application is doing the right thing.

• Interface Magic: "The best interaction design does not exist, they do not load and respond to time-consuming, not to make users think, nor give users the reasons for entanglement and sadness." ”

• Ease of Use: "The interface allows the underlying system to be easily understood and favored by the user." ”

• Availability: "The best industrial design and interactive design can be justified, in the form of services to the function." ”

• Ease of learning: "Many elements that make up a practical interaction interface are quite similar." ...... In the face of similar problems, the best interaction designers do not repeat the design of the wheel, instead they follow some patterns to design. ”

Interactive design Case

When you finish the concept, look at the case.

Move Product by Barthelemy Chalvet (Agenceme)

Weather App by Sergey Valiukh

Fiche by Barthelemy Chalvet

Material Design Animation

Mobile Animations & Interactions

Team Messages by Losert

Float Label Form interaction by Matt D. Smith

IOS New gestures by Javi Perez

Qards Contact Form by Sergey Shmidt

Nike by OWI Sixseven

Android Wear by Ramotion

Apple Watch by Jakub Antalík

Interactive Design Resources

There are many excellent interactive design classes of resources, the following several sites are learning interactive design good place:

· Interaction Design Foundation

·“ Interaction Design:beyond human-computer Interaction "textbook

· Interaction Design Association

· Interaction Design Checklist for designers

Conclusion

For modern web sites, users are still looking forward to the interactive design. You can't avoid it. To attract more users, you need to create the necessary and enjoyable interactive design.

It's important that each team actually needs someone to create and manage the interaction design. Why not you?