Design Details

This week, we recall our most recent “wow” moments with the products in our lives. What are yours? In The Sidebar, we talk about different loading state strategies and their impact on the user experience.Golden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!Latest VIP Patrons:Max GeorgopoulosChristina JacobsMerrisa TangLiam SheppardMichael GoliverSam RyanThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we recall our most recent “wow” moments with the products in our lives. What are yours?Raffaele Vitale asks on Twitter: what was your last and truly memorable “wow" moment you had with a digital or physical product?Play uses a wild drawer system to let you actually design apps on your phone. It’s very smooth.Hands on with iOS Live Text.Unlock your phone with Apple Watch when wearing a mask.Tonal’s dynamic weight mode is very cool.NFTs are weird. If you’re interested, start with this post: How to set up a crypto wallet to buy NFTs by Pablo Stanley. OpenSea is where most NFTs are being sold.Cool Things:Brian shared replicate.ai/explore, a playground of machine learning programs that you can run in the browser. Check out toonify and age simulator.Marshall shared Survivor Season 41, but drop the 4. A whole new era!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about design mentorship: what does an effective mentor do, how to find a mentor, how to avoid giving bad career advice, and more. In The Sidebar, we talk about obsessing over the pixels, wasting time on unimportant details, and how to tell the difference between polish and procrastination.Golden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!Latest VIP Patrons:BilalAJ PatshkowskiBen CFirst Name, pause, Last NameSam HermesSid KshetrapalNachiket NanotyHoyinThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Follow Up:Manny asks on Twitter: Curious, how much time do you guys usually spend on side projects a day/week? Whenever I work on side projects, I always feel guilty of not spending time with my other half, friends and pets because we haven’t seen each other for a whole day usuallyProbably...10-20 hours per week, on a good week? Huge caveat: we don’t have kids.Siddharth agreed with Marshall about when to ship: sure you can ship fast and often (i try) and you’ll quickly learn what you didnt know w/ feedback 10/10. but there are some things that only click ✨ when you’re chasing that last 5%, someone else can’t do that click for youMain Topic:This week, we talk about design mentorship: what does an effective mentor do, how to find a mentor, how to avoid giving bad career advice, and more.Cool Things:Brian shared Amplosion and Achoo from Christian Selig (the creator of the Apollo Reddit app, which we love). These are using the new Safari extension APIs that are new in iOS 15! Amplosion automatically redirects away from AMP pages on Google, and Achoo lets you inspect the HTML of a page on your phone.Marshall shared 14 by Peter Clines, the next entry in Marshall’s Book Club. More recommendations from Peter Clines: The Fold and Paradox Bound.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about how we combat perfectionism in our side projects, the value of shipping, and why sharing a project too early can backfire. In the Sidebar, we recap Apple’s September event with our hot takes and spicy opinions.Golden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!Latest VIP Patrons:KyleSkyler SchainElena NewbroughDominique HornerColin ChapinKeiron BoswellEva RatcliffeMike WacloAleksey NikitinCliff WarrenEdward GyngellStevie RodgerSarah Catherine SmithThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we talk about how we combat perfectionism in our side projects, the value of shipping, and why sharing a project too early can backfire.Would love to know your thoughts on tackling progress over perfection especially in the product design world.I know Marshall doesn't want to publish anything which isn't perfect to his eyes but the issue is that I'm not as nearly as good as Marshall 😭, so it would be interesting to hear your thoughts on overcoming this.Whenever I work on my portfolio or a case study, I can't help but get stuck or held up on details to make it perfect. Although I try to focus on the progress and ignore the perfection part, the OCD makes me so frustrated to the point I eventually go back and fix those issues and end up delaying what I wanted to finish further.Cool Things:Brian shared Cometeer, the best dang coffee you’ll ever have. Click the link to save $25.Marshall shared Infinite by Jeremy Robinson, which has a new sequel out for any sci-fi fans among you!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we follow up on last week’s conversation about designing at agencies, hiring contractors, Yelp’s app icons, and Bock’s Constant. In the Sidebar, we talk about designing with your mind’s eye and how learning to brain-prototype will help fast-track your growth as a designer.Latest VIP Patrons:DarionXinran WangÓlafur Sverrir KjartanssonAdam CollierGenghis MendozaMojAndrei SlobtsovChase SimmonsJustin BaughnDerek ShirkMisael AbreuIf you’re in New York, come meet up at Makeshift.The Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we follow up on last week’s conversation about designing at agencies, hiring contractors, Yelp’s app icons, and Bock’s Constant.Brian Leach followed up and talked about how in-house designers might experience creative atrophy.Raffaele asked when a product company should hire an external agency.Genghis Mendoza sent over some advantages to working at an agency:Build your strategic business skill set, working with strategists, engagement managers and clients, you develop new views of what your designs do to impact the client's business.Build your soft skills (consultant muscle): being able to articulate your designs, learning to work with a variety of different stakeholders. broaden your audience, from c-level to non-product people.Exercise your design rigor, strengthen your process, or become nimble and adjust your process depending on the engagement.Improve research skills as you develop patterns to learn quickly and delve into new verticals, markets and problems.Facilitation skills improve: practice techniques and you build up your playbook of strategies, to diverge, bring people to consensus, and all the things you need to make clients a part of the design thinking process.Breadth of verticals, developing a wider lens to learn more patterns from different industries, learning new problems and solving for them.Since you are in a strategic mindset most of the time, you're always searching for possibilities, trends, and begin to develop a futurist mindset, as you are designing for the art of the possible. I think this is a skill set you can also learn in-house, but as a consultant the path is more attuned to lend to this behavior. Using the RPG metaphor, this is the specialization in the skills tree.Uhl Albert noticed that Yelp’s app icons on Android are better, dropping the Yelp label from the icon itself.Derek Shirk asked about “Bach’s contant” — easy typo to hear. We call it “Bock’s Constant” aka Marshall’s Law of UX: “People don’t fucking read.”See: Laws of UXCool Things:Brian shared Hearthstone Battlegrounds, a fun variant of Hearthstone’s card game mechanics that levels the playing field and has infinite variability. It’s really fun!Marshall shared The Fold by Peter Cline, a fun sci-fi read with a buck-wild ending.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we compare agency vs. in-house design work, dissect the tradeoffs, and share interview tips for anyone moving from an agency to a product company. In The Sidebar, we share our favorite Keynote tips and tricks and our top strategy for telling a more clear story in a deck.Sponsor:Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple — we use them and love them. Use the promo code DESIGNDETAILS21 to get 20% off your purchase of $50 or more.Latest VIP Patrons:RaiseaplantAndrew FrankOlowu AbayomiDavid EastPaige MariucciAlfredo ContrerasAndrewMiguel SalvadorGolden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!The Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we compare agency vs. in-house design work, dissect the tradeoffs, and share interview tips for anyone moving from an agency to a product company.Brian Leach asks on Twitter: have you dudes done an episode on in-house design vs agency work? Would love some perspective on different ways to think about that dilemmaCool Things:Brian shared Dave on FX/Hulu. Push through S2E3 if it’s not your thing, the rest of the season ends on a high note.Marshall shared Y the Last Man, upcoming on Hulu. Based on the trailer, the show looks true to the comics but we’ll have to see when it comes out!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about Twitter’s new follow buttons. Are they a mistake? Or a fix for something broken that we’d all become used to? Our opinions on buttons emerge! In The Sidebar, we talk about what to do with time off.Sponsor:Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple — we use them and love them. Use the promo code DESIGNDETAILS21 to get 20% off your purchase of $50 or more.Latest VIP Patrons:MacarenaEunice KimJeanIvy MukherjeeAkhil LochenJak StronstadJing JinAgnieszka KroczekNickyGolden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!The Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we talk about Twitter’s new follow buttons. Are they a mistake? Or a fix for something broken that we’d all become used to? Our opinions on buttons emerge!@rsms thinks the change is a mistake@dannpetty thinks the change is a fixCool Things:Brian shared The White Lotus, a social satire set over the course of a week-long vacation in Hawaii. The tension is real, and it’s good!Marshall shared 100 Foot Wave, a six-part miniseries on HBO about the decade-long odyssey of surfing pioneer Garrett McNamara who dreams of conquering a 100 foot wave.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about Yelp’s new logo and app icons, Apple’s new child safety initiatives, and the miniature masterpieces of the Olympic pictograms. In the Sidebar, we curate practical negotiation tips, strategies, and concepts to help you through a job change.Sponsor:Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple — we use them and love them. Use the promo code DESIGNDETAILS21 to get 20% off your purchase of $50 or more.Latest VIP Patrons:Madeline WZhu NanMartinTim BalzerVanessa LinLuis YujaMichael WallaceJackiel RothschildGolden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!The Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we talk about Yelp’s new logo and app icons, Apple’s new child safety initiatives, and the miniature masterpieces of the Olympic pictograms.An inside look at how we refreshed Yelp’s logo and app iconsApple’s New ‘Child Safety’ Initiatives, and the Slippery SlopeAlex Stamos on Apple privacyAn open letter against Apple’s privacy-invasive content scanning technologyOn Apple’s “Expanded Protections for Children” – a Personal StoryCalculating outer corner radius for concentric rounded cornersOlympic Pictograms: Miniature MasterpiecesCool Things:Brian shared The Suicide Squad, the new James Gunn remake of the 2016 flop. It was fun! If you’re into R-rated superhero movies, this will be right up your alley.Marshall shared Billie Eilish, Happier Than Ever (album link). Don’t stop reminding Marshall that he’s a Billie Eilish hipster!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about the new Pixel 6 announcement, how it stacks up against the competition, and what we’re most excited about. In The Sidebar, we share our design regrets: things we shipped that ended up being mistakes in hindsight.Sponsor:Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple – we use them and love them. Use the promo code DESIGNDETAILS21 to get 20% off your purchase of $50 or more.Latest VIP Patrons:Martin TotevLouihb (pronounced louieeee)Fabricio TeixeiraAlessio TeclemeThuyrannosaurusRob EdwardsLioYves JakobClaudioLuckyNiroshanPowers TehDamon AholaJing WangStephen ChenJoel LaughlinDul ZorigooGolden Ratio Supporters:Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of experience shipping products — learn more at designdetails.fm/plume. Oh, and they just raised a $270m series E, so now's the time!The Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we talk about the new Pixel 6 announcement, how it stacks up against the competition, and what we’re most excited about.The Pixel 6 and 6 Pro on The VergeMKBHD on the Pixel 6 Tensor ChipJakob’s LawAndroid 12 BetaCool Things:Brian shared Just JavaScript, a new course to help you build a strong foundation of JavaScript mental models.Marshall shared Brian David Gilbert, one of the best Youtube creators in the game. Some hits:MY WEIRD ICE CREAMS: a cooking videoPEPCORN: a cooking videoThe Perfect PokéRapPolygon Unraveled seriesthis video got me a jobit’s time to get good at dartsJust One Day - 2winz² (Official Video)that feeling when you bite into a pickle and it's a little squishier than you expectedhow to make jortsEarn $20K EVERY MONTH by being your own bossTeaching Jake about the Camcorder, Jan '97Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we dig into questions like: who should design a team’s visual style guide? And: who should break a tie in subjective aesthetic arguments? In The Sidebar, we share our tips and strategies for succeeding as a new designer in a large organization.Latest VIP Patrons:Max KaplunDaveMichael SchultzMJZach OuderkerkenChris DonerMichelle LuoAntonDemetruisNate UlrichCindy RhodesTobias NegeleTed ChangThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we talk about who actually leads UI design within an organization, teasing apart questions like: who should design a team’s visual style guide? Who should break a tie in subjective aesthetic arguments? And more!itaydre asks on GitHub: It's been challenging to develop a new design system without an existing visual style guide, so I'm trying to explore more about the work behind designing UI when you're not a sole designer.I've got a feeling that designing UI is quite hard to do collaboratively, as taste is very much subjective to each and every individual.What's your experience when it comes to developing a new style guide?Does a single designer lead the process (in terms of the visual direction)?Listen to our episode about visual design and craft with Justin Stahl.Cool Things:Brian shared Mare of Easttown and Ted Lasso Season 2, two good shows on the opposite end of the “this will make me feel a certain way” gradient.Marshall shared Crime Scene Kitchen, a cooking elimination show perfectly designed to scratch every itch in Marshall’s television brain.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about the new Microsoft emoji, a cool Android 12 feature, the joy of watching Apple iterate in public, and the new “King of Buttons” aka the Steam Deck. In The Sidebar, we talk about the challenge of having work that is NDA-locked, or never shipped at all.Latest VIP Patrons:AlexDylanRaphael LeeKarina KedoJustin StahlThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we talk about the new Microsoft emoji, a cool Android 12 feature, the joy of watching Apple iterate in public, and the new “King of Buttons” aka the Steam Deck.Windows redesigned their emoji and they’re gorgeous.Android 12 will have a great way to handle auto-rotation and now iOS feels broken by comparison.The new Safari is taking a few steps back on macOS. The changes have been controversial, and we’re happy to see some of these iterations happening in real time. Betas!The Steam Deck is here and holy buttons, Batman, that’s a lot of inputs!Cool Things:Brian shared the Hot Ones Season 15 sauces, perfect for you spice-heads that want to embark on the Hot Ones Challenge at home.Marshall shared Duolingo, a lovely and delight app that will help you learn a new language. Marshall is learning Japanese, and it’s sticking! Also: this is basically just a showcase of great game design.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk with Justin Stahl about visual design and craft, the impact of design systems and tools on the visual landscape, tactical tips for a stronger design interview, and much more. In The Sidebar, we ask Justin about the best advice he’s ever received, becoming a manager, and knowing when it’s time to switch teams.Latest VIP Patrons:Matt TurpinNushaine FerdinandPaul HernandezChandni LuhadiyaJustin WagonerAltayKiraAldrin FernandezAnna ZhandarovichPaweł LudwiczakNikkiAlex HarveyJacob JohnsonJoshua BeitlerKasperAndrew KamauThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Followup:Sam Bernhardt tweeted a more technical name for the confidence gradient concept from two weeks ago: confidence code switching.Cope Ahead SkillMain Topic:This week, we talk with Justin Stahl about visual design and craft, the impact of design systems and our tools on the visual landscape, tactical tips for a stronger design interview, and much more.Justin is currently a Director of Product Design at Cruise. Before this, he was a Chief of Staff at Facebook Reality Labs, the Head of Product Design for Portal, and spent years as a product designer working an a wide range of Facebook products.The tweet: It's been tough to recruit product designers with great visual design and an eye for detail. Did we atomic-design-system and product-manager-skills a generation out of having them?Justin’s website@justahlTypewar and The Font Game for iPhoneScenarios in which Tesla FSD Beta 9.0 will failNot Boring AppsThe Gap by Ira GlassJasper HauserThe Chef’s table episode Brian referencesJon LaxFacebook Reality LabsCool Things:Brian shared Tiger on HBO, a two-part documentary about the rise and fall of Tiger Woods. Even if you’re not super into sports, it’s worth a watch.Marshall shared The First Law Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. It’s grim-dark fantasy, a good pick for anyone who enjoyed Game of Thrones.Justin shared The Ideal City: Exploring Urban Futures, a book which chronicles the design of urban futures.The Last Dance on Netflix.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about the confidence gradient, how we’ve built confidence over time, and the funny circumstances that can take us out of our element. In The Sidebar, we share our first impressions of Windows 11 and talk about the growing convergence of operation system designs.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:WiggensAnca DobreaFrannie LaksYang YouHenning WitzelRitesh MandaliyaJeffrey AyigsiThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Followup:Shankar tweeted: Re: Brian’s question about creative Shortcuts. If you find yourself opening a particular tab or searching inside an app often, create a shortcut for that. Example: searching or viewing your podcast library.Sam Bernhardt approves of Marshall’s parenting hot takes. Also: Let’s bring back the spacer gif!Tweets:Ritesh outlined some reasons why he enjoys the show. Thank you for the kind words!Moody asked: is there a way to support the podcast aside from Patreon? – just keep listening! Sharing with friends, tweeting at us, or rating the show on Apple Podcasts are also helpful.Main Topic:This week, we talk about our experiences of being in high and low confidence situations, how we’ve dealt with confidence over time, and the funny circumstances that can take us out of our element.Cool Things:Brian shared Dreamland by Glass Animals. Very catchy, be warned.Marshall shared LEGO Masters Season 2, now from Australia and the UK! SO much LEGO, so little time.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we dig into the best way to think about margin and padding in your component system. In The Sidebar, we break down the basics of design advising and angel investing.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Graham ConnellEmily KimSjur GrønningsæterVincent Salamanca-GagnonFranckDominic KennedyRohan BondiliTomáš TrejdlJames GoncalvesClay CrenshawJack LoLiam FergusonThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Followup:Manny tweeted: What is the official name for the “three dots”…? I’ve heard “three dots”, “more icon”, “ellipsis” and “overflow” from different peopleWe replied: Yeah, it’s a bit confusing, but to my understanding, Android is “Overflow” and iOS is “Ellipsis,” but the label is typically “More,” so we just went with “Three Dots” to keep it generic 😊Raffaele tweeted: Episodes like 401 would be great with video or images content! I got lost several times in the words explanation of visuals/patterns. Does this make sense? 😁We agree, but since that’s not quite possible (easily) with our current setup, it’s become useful practice for us to have to describe visual concepts with crisp language.Main Topic:This week, dluft asks on GitHub: Brian mentioned the article "Margin Considered Harmful" by Max Stoiber. I can't wrap my head around the takeaway. Could you explain how to use margins in Figma as instructed by Max, please?Max Stoiber’s original article, Margin Considered HarmfulCool Things:Brian shared OldOS by Zane, a faithful recreation of iOS 4 in pure SwiftUI.Marshall shared TikTok, a brand new app that is sweeping the nation. You probably haven’t heard of it yet, but you should check it out. Marshall is always on the cutting edge, y’all 😅Byte, what could have been the spiritual successor to Vine.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about a ubiquitous design crutch: the three dot menu. We examine the spread of this pattern and discuss potential solutions to avoid it. In The Sidebar, we recap WWDC 2021 and dive deep into our favorite announcements.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Trí NguyễnMichael WangJustin WattsMichael GoliverBaruch PiTara UrsoThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Followup:Sean Sullivan tweeted: IMO Software can be finished. Think about software that ships on non Internet connected devices. We used to always ‘finish’ software products pre-SaaS. Big examples today would be secure embedded software systems.Charmie Kapoor mentioned us as one of her top 3 podcasts for design and product – thank you!Main Topic:This week, we talk about three dot menus, the now-ubiquitous interface element that can be conveniently used to hide secondary and tertiary functions. We rant about the spread of the three dot virus and discuss potential alternatives to avoid it.Cool Things:Brian shared the Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop, a gorgeous, albeit expensive, band for your Apple Watch.Marshall shared Inside, a New Tragedy from Bo Burnham. It’s beautifully written and performed, but very sad and poignant. A masterpiece.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we try to answer a simple question: is software ever finished? In The Sidebar, we talk money: compounding, investing, negotiating, planning, and more.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Uhl AlbertErol MujakCarlos SalazarTony HeLinusCrys FMChristopherThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, Graham Connell tweets: can software ever be finished? Most products these days get new features and keep evolving, but I can think of several examples where continual change isn’t always good/necessary. Curious to know your thoughts on this.iA WriterCool Things:Brian shared Project Hail Mary, the latest sci-fi novel from Andy Weir, author of The Martian. We both read and finished this at the same time, and absolutely loved the story. The audio version is a strong recommendation!Marshall shared Homebridge on Raspberry Pi, powered by CanaKit Raspberry Pi and homebridge-raspbian-image.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock 🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we talk about how the framework Strong Opinions, Weakly Held can be used to effectively critique visual design. In The Sidebar, we recap Google I/O 2021, discussing our favorite announcements, Material You, and the wild future of computers.Latest VIP Patrons:Javier AlavesAsh Oliver“Easily pronounceable”Michael WilkinsMark LeeZlatan HajrudinovicDerekBetty LauKe SunAlex MillerThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Follow up:Sam Chang tweeted: Curious how y’all feel about design folks who are curious and interested in non-design side projects. Would that also stand out to you?It depends! But it’s also your life, your website – certain things will just be more relevant than others in a job context.Apple previews AssistiveTouch, an awesome new set of accessibility tools for the Apple Watch.Main Topic:This week, Yu Zhao asks on GitHub: How to develop "strong opinion weakly held" for visual design critique?Here’s a good starting point on the this: Strong Opinions, Weakly Held — a framework for thinkingDiscord recently evolved their brand colorsCool Things:Brian shared The West Wing (available on HBO Max), a political drama created by Aaron Sorkin. It holds up!Marshall shared the Belkin 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe – it works great as an all-in-one stand for iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods Pro. Looks great, too!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :) ⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunes.Byeee!

This week, we dig into two frameworks for leveling up at work: Proof of Curiosity and The Helpful Hierarchy. Whether you’re looking for more accountability, want to stand out in a job interview, or just want to be more intentional with your professional growth, we think these frameworks will help.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Mark HuserStephanieFrancis CortezFrederik RømmingEthan MachadoLudens TranThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Follow up:Online workout trainer alternatives:growingannanas8fitUhl Albert tweeted: TIL: "Elephant paths" is another term for desire paths or desire lines.See more on 99% InvisibeMaximillian Piras tweeted: Although the mature product distinction does bring to my mind the Innovator’s Dilemma of being held hostage by your users’ feedback & what have you.Main Topic:This week we talk about how to stand out as a designer, centering on a WIP idea we’re calling proof of curiosity.Neil Sardesai is a great example of demonstrating a proof of curiosity on Twitter. Learn more about learning in public from Shawn Wang.Cool Things:Brian shared Paddington, just a wholesome, lovely movie that we finally watched together this past week. Part 2 to follow, we hear great things.Marshall shared Fist to Five, a technique for quickly getting feedback or gauging consensus during a meeting.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about the tension between building what customers explicitly ask for versus building towards a team’s internal vision. In The Sidebar, we talk about the lack of public software critique: Why isn’t there an MKBHD equivalent for software design?Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Olga SNoah CTemiRenato MandićAndrew KimPhoebe GoldenbergZé MarquesCindy CGiulio FagioliniMatthewChris JeongBrian LeachRachel DavisRadek BerkaThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Follow up:Bran Hills tweeted: the bit about not being a thought leader, but being more open about what I'm learning personally really hit home. This will help whittle away at imposter syndrome if I frame what I share in this way. Thanks fellas!Read more from Shawn @swyx Wang about learning in public.Michael Knepprath tweeted: Favorite newsletters rn:rendezvous with @cassidoo https://cassidoo.co/newsletter/@jbouie’s NYT newsletter (currently taking a break for paternity leave) https://nytimes.com/newsletters/jamellebouieJB Design joined Twitter for the show! Welcome to Design Twitter 😊Main Topic:Victor Kernes asks on GitHub:Curious to hear both of your thoughts on the decision making process of building features that you’re users explicitly ask for (i.e. edit button on Twitter) versus features that your team, whether it’s Design, Product, Engineering, feels are the right things to build based on the company’s priorities.User research plays a large part, however, it’s something I’ve been struggling with lately. Especially as I’m working on new features that the company’s prioritizing, which is another process I’ve been removed from so far.Learn more about elephant paths: Elephant path is a name for a path that is formed in space by people making their own paths and shortcuts; it is an unofficial route.This talk by Adam Mosseri, Data Informed, Not Data Driven, is a good one.Cool Things:Brian shared Invincible on Amazon Prime Video. Quick synopsis: Mark Grayson is a normal teenager, except for the fact that his father, Nolan, is the most powerful superhero on the planet. Shortly after his seventeenth birthday, Mark begins to develop powers of his own and enters into his father's tutelage.Marshall shared Returnal, a PS5 exclusive: After crash-landing on this shape-shifting world, Selene must search through the barren landscape of an ancient civilization for her escape. Isolated and alone, she finds herself fighting tooth and nail for survival. Again and again, she’s defeated – forced to restart her journey every time she dies.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we discuss the things we’ve done in our design careers that have had an outsized impact on our professional growth. In The Sidebar, we talk about the anatomy of icons and how that anatomy affects user interfaces.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Patrik LauBarton SmithAndy KnightMancini Tangreg leibowitzCindy ZAchille Perrin (French pronunciation)Yuna AkazawaAaron von KreislerJustin HaldaneThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Follow up:Walter Kimaro tweeted a mini music video on top our theme music. This is the kind of content we’re here for! Thank you, Walter 😊Main Topic:This week, we talk about “career cheat codes” — or: things we’ve done in our time as designers that have had outsized impact on our growth.Become “the person” for “a thing”Become a central “connector node” in your organization’s graphLearn in public by writing, tweeting, podcast, or anything else that puts your ideas out into the world in real time.Cool Things:Brian shared Money Stuff, the best weekday newsletter in finance by Matt Levine. It’s fantastic, funny, and will help you learn about the world of money.Marshall shared the HomePod mini. Turns out, it’s pretty great – when it works!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

It’s event recap week! In this week’s episode we share our reactions to everything announced at Figma’s Config 2021. In The Sidebar, we dig into our favorite updates and the confusing head-scratchers announced at Apple’s Spring Loaded event.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundAround is a better way to video call. It’s designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups together to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:lookiyamCharlieBlake LamD GThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we dig into everything announced at Figma’s Config 2021. We share our thoughts on FigJam, file branching, audio spaces, and the updated Figma mobile app.ConfigWhat’s new in FigmaCool Things:Brian shared Nike Run Club, a lovely little app from Nike to help you run. I was surprised at how much I liked the guided runs – they’re worth a try! Marshall shared TOPK magnetic charging cables, a nice quality of life improvement for all you designers out there overrun with low-battery test devices.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we caught up with Joey Banks to talk about contributing to open source design. In the Sidebar, we ask Joey bonus questions about ramping up in a new job, the design advocate role, and being Twitter famous.Latest VIP Patrons:Chris BarrettAmandaLiam MewsThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we grabbed Joey Banks to help us answer a listener question. Joey is a product designer working on design systems at Twitter. Before this, he was a design advocate at Figma.flyingjuggernaut asks on GitHub:Why would a designer contribute to open-source design communities? What are the benefits for a designer to spend valuable time contributing to these? Do you contribute and if so, why? I can see entry-level designers contributing to gain some experience or projects for their portfolio but for designers that have been working for some time, apart from exposure or reputation, I can't make sense of it.Joey on Twitter@joey on Figma110: MAMP Patient Zero ft. Joey BanksApple Design ResourcesTeehan+LaxFacebook Tools and ResourcesHand Mirror from Rafael CondeToo Beautiful to Live PodcastCool Things:Brian shared Screen Rant Pitch Meetings, a lovely playlist of sarcastic movie pitches that pokes fun in all the right ways.Marshall shared Olivia Rodrigo – start with drivers license.Joey shared HazeOver, a helpful macOS utility to dim distracting windows on the Mac.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about the hidden complexities of a designer’s favorite element: the button. In the Sidebar, we examine interfaces that defer moderation responsibilities onto the end user.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundThank you to Around, a better way to video call. The product is designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Miko Castillo (not Michael)Dym SohinBradford UlrichSkye JonesNLP StudioReginald CurtisAlec DavyAl PowerLiam LiuAxel KheddacheThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week we talk about the intricacies, details, and complexities of the designer’s favorite element: the button.Starting points for the psychology for rounding corners:How to rounded corners affect usabilityWhy rounded corners are easier on the eyesThe Bouba/kiki effectLickable buttonsCool Things:Brian shared Godzilla vs. Kong. Monke punch lizerd.Marshall shared Brandon Sanderson, the author of the Mistborn Trilogy, Warbreaker, Stormlight Archive, and more.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about how to become a more strategic designer: what should you be doing day to day, or thinking about more often? In The Sidebar, we talk about the downsides of using metaphors to describe the role of designers in building software.Golden Ratio Supporter:AroundThank you to Around, a better way to video call. The product is designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Tim NoetzelCollin HadleyKristin AuCamden GabaGabriel LibermanJosh HoubenPreethi ShreeyaEdward LakeNick GiordanoCaleb HillJames Molyneux-BirchThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Tweets:Nejat Seçkin Oral tweeted: I’m pretty sure I said this multiple times before but @designdetailsfm manages to answer questions that I’m seeking at that particular time. Almost every episode. I don’t know what magic it is but I’m here for it.Main Topic:Jessica Tong asks on GitHub: I work at a small startup with less than 15 people and I'm the only designer. Recently, I've had a performance review and my manager, who is the Head of Product has recognised that I am lacking in "strategy skills". I seem to mostly come up with short term ideas. eg. we have a problem regarding X, so i am able to come up with multiple solutions, etc. I've also been to a job interview where they said I was lacking high level, strategy skills. I am unsure as to how to develop this skill and think of my work more in the long term and plan for the long term. My manager has suggested a book called "Good Strategy/Bad Strategy" by Richard Rumelt but other than that, he does not know how to help - probably because he is from a product management background, and I should be developing a UX strategy skills. Do you have any advice, or resources you can point me to where I can grow in this area as a product designer?OKRs: Objectives and Key ResultsSpotify acquires Locker RoomStratecheryCool Things:Brian shared Readng, a beautiful app for tracking what you read, and following other people’s book recommendations. It’s like Letterboxd, but for books! And it’s beautifully designed, and a joy to use.Design by Aziz Firat – follow!Marshall shared Quadeca – From Me To You, a music video. Quadeca also comes from the YouTube world, alongside his own music productions, so dive into the backlog of videos.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we share tips and best practices for senior designers who are presenting their work in a portfolio review. In The Sidebar, we break down the qualities of great typographic hierarchy in interface design.Golden Ratio Supporter:MailbrewA huge shoutout to Mailbrew for supporting the show this week! Mailbrew is a personal daily digest for all the stuff you care about on the internet. We love it for delivering the top links and top tweets shared by the people we follow on Twitter, reducing FOMO and cutting down on social media time.Get started with a free trial, no credit card required, at https://mailbrew.com/dd. If you subscribe after the trial, you’ll save 30% on your first year’s subscription.AroundThank you to Around, a better way to video call. The product is designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Sam MackayBryan CesarNielsJochem DierxDestiny WilliamsDaryn CoxLaurens KersbergenTrixy WoodhouseFrederik KlovborgBryan ManiotakisJoe GrafThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:Aloni Sanbira asks: I feel like there’s a lot of discussion around entry level design portfolios. What’s your take on senior level portfolios? What do you think a seasoned designer should pay extra attention to when presenting themselves?We also tweeted the question out, and received some great repliesCool Things:Brian shared Enes Yilmazer, a YouTuber who tours very fancy and very expensive homes. We enjoy watching to find the little tiny details that we’d appreciate in our own lives someday.Marshall shared weighted blankets, in general. Check out this article diving into the science of weighted blankets. Having trouble falling asleep? Try one! Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we catch up with Kathryn Gonzalez, the Head of Design Infrastructure at DoorDash. We talk about building DoorDash’s first design system, how to scale a design systems team, balancing technical and design skills, how to become a better systems designer by learning outside of work, and much more.Golden Ratio Supporters:MailbrewA huge shoutout to Mailbrew for supporting the show this week! Mailbrew is a personal daily digest for all the stuff you care about on the internet. We love it for delivering the top links and top tweets shared by the people we follow on Twitter, reducing FOMO and cutting down on social media time.Get started with a free trial, no credit card required, at https://mailbrew.com/dd. If you subscribe after the trial, you’ll save 30% on your first year’s subscription.AroundThank you to Around, a better way to video call. The product is designed specifically to make it easier to gather small groups to collaborate in real time, without all the distracting and frustrating interfaces that comes with most video chat software. We love the small floating heads and emphasis on making it easy to work alongside the video call, rather than constantly having to app switch.You can get started for free by signing up at Around.co!Latest VIP Patrons:Nacho AllendesalazarMichelle BajurnyMonica ConradEugene DobrovolskyJosh RamiresPem Zhipeng XieChris AalidRyan MagalhaesPaige WoodNicoleBalázs BartaThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to the bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, we have an interview! We caught up with Kathryn Gonzalez, the Head of Design Infrastructure at DoorDash. We talk about her experience building DoorDash’s design system from scratch, working as a technical designer, hiring for design systems roles, and much more.@ryngonzalezKathryn’s websiteCool Things:Kathryn shared March Madness, which is actually happening this year!Brian shared The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, the newest Disney+ series for the MCU. We’re only one episode in, but it’s off to a good start.Marshall shared Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix. Even if you’re not into cars or racing, it’s a show that ramps you up and gets you invested in the players and teams.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about how to have better design reviews. Who, what, where, and when? We share our experiences, and frustrations, with certain formats and processes. In The Sidebar, we try to answer the question: WTF is up with NFTs?Golden Ratio Supporter:A huge shoutout to Mailbrew for supporting the show this week! Mailbrew is a personal daily digest for all the stuff you care about on the internet. We love it for delivering the top links and top tweets shared by the people we follow on Twitter, reducing FOMO and cutting down on social media time.Get started with a free trial, no credit card required, at https://mailbrew.com/dd. If you subscribe after the trial, you’ll save 30% on your first year’s subscription.Latest VIP Patrons:Gábor JuhászKateřina BruzlováKim RøenRod BlackneyJerel Johnson (machinic)Aashrey SharmaRaffaele Vitale ?Natalie LeeCatalina de León BellocJohn RimAriel ChuCristiano LuísAlvin GohThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to the bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails.Main Topic:This week, Clooks asks on GitHub: What does your design review process look like?What should a design review be and what shouldn't it be (what should be broken out into a different forum)?What are some helpful tips for remote facilitation to make design reviews fun, collaborative, and productive?Cool Things:Brian shared MusicalBasics, a YouTube channel with a ton of fun and interesting content around music composition and experimentation. In particular, the playlist about time boxed compositions is very fun to watch.Marshall shared two “reacting to movies” YouTube channels: Natalie Gold and Shanelle Riccio. Watching friends watch the movies we love is just so delightful.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we cover part two of our design tips and tricks series. We talk about naming conventions, thinking in divs, structuring frames, and share a few Figma pro-tips. In The Sidebar, we talk about design content overload.Golden Ratio Supporter:A huge shoutout to Mailbrew for supporting the show this week! Mailbrew is a personal daily digest for all the stuff you care about on the internet. We love it for delivering the top links and top tweets shared by the people we follow on Twitter, reducing FOMO and cutting down on social media time.Get started with a free trial, no credit card required, at https://mailbrew.com/dd. If you subscribe after the trial, you’ll save 30% on your first year’s subscription.Latest VIP Patrons:Thuy LuongEileen WongShumin WangEthelia LungFloraGina LinGiulio FagioliniGrant M HansenHidden RaynScuba SteveDylan RiessenChristophLucas LemonnierUlli StrozynskiPg GonniYasmin ShibibHeidi PengSeth DaggettHo Uyen ThaoLiu Ting YúThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we talk about how to deal with design content overload. If you live and breath design, this might be for you.Follow up:David Luft tweeted: It would be so helpful if you made a video companion to episode 386 that shows how you set up and use your grid systems in Figma.Keep an eye out, we’ll try to do something here!Camden Gaba tweeted: Should the vertical spacing between text elements be set by their line height or multiples of your grid interval? And thanks for another episode!Generally by line height, unless you just have a text-heavy site with many columns, in which case just let the text flow and then pick up the grid in between your content blocks.leading-trim: the future of digital typesettingNYT on how they implemented a baseline grid using CSSRichard Picot tweeted: Follow up question, do you conform to a grid for padding inside a button for example or is the overall size of the component more important?Vertical padding just ends up being whatever is required to make your button height a certain size (e.g. minimum tap target size). Leading and trailing padding can be some step on your grid (like 16pt or 12pt).Main Topic:This week Marshall continues with part 2 of design tips and tricks! We dig into naming conventions, thinking in divs, how to structure your frames, and some Figma-only pro-tips.Margin considered harmfulCool Things:Brian shared Mouseless, an indie app to help you build muscle memory for keyboard shortcuts in your most-used apps.Marshall shared The World’s a Little Blurry, the new Apple TV+ documentary about Billie Eilish.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we dig into specific tips and tricks to level up your craft game: how to leverage tools to make faster iterations, stay organized, and allow your mocks to easily scale over time. In The Sidebar, we dig into how to give design critique without having full problem or product context.Golden Ratio Supporter:A huge shoutout to Copilot, the best app for budgeting and tracking your personal finances. It’s our favorite tool for categorizing our spending, having our net worth available at a glance, and getting monthly (and yearly!) digests of all your spending.Get the app at copilot.money.Latest VIP Patrons:Tim SOlivier IfrahTaner AydınAlisa ZhukovaNordy VlasmanAnuja UpadhyeKaciePaulina DeraMirko PoloniJohannesJason LockwoodGary MoranMarshal UhlsxenolonJoshua GittoesZoe LeeSumire HibiyaCara BrashearsDaniel HermosoLakshman RameshSimon HuaAshish NegiAlexander DuffnerThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we talk about how to give design critique without having the full context on a problem or product area.Follow up:Stevanus Satria tweeted: The next MMORPG I play my character shall be a wizard hailing from the Northland wielding a powerful electric guitar 🤣 Please do!Main Topic:This week Marshall runs us through all his craft tips and tricks: little ways to use tools to make designing interfaces faster, more efficiently, with more organization, and in a way that will scale as you explore.Cool Things:Brian shared the Lift desk stand from Artifox. It’s expensive, but very pretty, and has some smart integration with magnets.Marshall shared Mistborn: The Final Empire, a story by Brandon Sanderson. The book is a fantasy heist kind of tale, where the magic is based on metallurgy and its interesting combinations. The audio book is 24 hours, so not too bad!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about designing with grid systems. In particular: when grid systems break, and what to do when they don’t align with our hardware screens perfectly. In The Sidebar, we talk all about design debt: how to work with it, pay it down, and eventually learn to accept it.Golden Ratio Supporter:A huge shoutout to Copilot, the best app for budgeting and tracking your personal finances. It’s our favorite tool for categorizing our spending, having our net worth available at a glance, and getting monthly (and yearly!) digests of all your spending.Get the app at copilot.money.Latest VIP Patrons:Leigh LaMonEdyta NiemyjskaJaimeBrandon HillsJonathan De WetGuilherme KaiserLillian LinAris AcobaKyle StuartHugo TuniusKish PatelMichael OttoDenis ZastanceanuKelvin O'SheaScott UnderwoodLachlan CampbellLucas VanGombosSam xiaRavi AujlaBrian NelsonThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we answer a listener question that can be ultimately paraphrased as: How do you deal with design debt?Main Topic:Joey Jungle asks on GitHub: Designing with grid systems? – and continues with many words asking why grid systems are often unintuitive, and don’t align neatly with our hardware screens. Great question!Cool Things:Brian shared the iA Quattro typeface, one of three beautiful (and free, open source!) typefaces from the iA team. It seems to be striking a happy middle ground between a sans and a mono, making it useful for adding a computer-y tone to an interface while staying readable.My thread with some work in progress screenshots.Marshall shared Little Nightmares II, a beautiful (and scary) indie side-scroller. It looks gorgeous, and the sound design is incredible.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about strategies and tactical tips for elevating a team’s bar to design high quality interfaces. In The Sidebar, we talk about how to transition from web to mobile design.Golden Ratio Supporter:A huge shoutout to Copilot, the best app for budgeting and tracking your personal finances. It’s our favorite tool for categorizing our spending, having our net worth available at a glance, and getting monthly (and yearly!) digests of all your spending.Get the app at copilot.money.Latest VIP Patrons:Marcel mcvVarada GavaskarAnas KAFede Sánchez SaorínStevanus SatriaEugeneCarlo FrancoSingYu LamSiegsSam WitheyRachel JinStephen CadyFelix ShinJon LeeRafał ZiółekMitchell WattsRemi ChuNancy ZuoThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we talk about things to learn and new mental models to adopt in order to transition from web to mobile design.Follow up:Vincent van der Meulen tweeted a very nice note: Best thing I did early on was spend hours listening to @designdetailsfm interviews. It taught me how to talk about my work and reflect on it long before I had any skills. I got my first internship by answering the interview Qs like I thought a designer on Design Details would 😆Thanks so much for your note! This makes it all worth it 😊 Main Topic:sallythat asks us on GitHub: What to do when the design team’s bar for UI is low?We discuss some tips and strategies for communication and finding leverage in systems to raise the bar for a product’s UI.Cool Things:Brian shared CleanShot X, a fantastic alternative to the default macOS screenshot tool. Highlights: auto-copy to clipboard and place window screenshots perfectly centered on your wallpaper.Marshall shared r/thatsabooklight, a subreddit about props in movies or shows that were repurposed from everyday household items.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about the real struggle of finding the time to do North Star design. It’s complicated! In The Sidebar, we try to find the digital equivalent of a Norman Door.Golden Ratio Supporter:A huge shoutout to Copilot, the best app for budgeting and tracking your personal finances. It’s our favorite tool for categorizing our spending, having our net worth available at a glance, and getting monthly (and yearly!) digests of all your spending.Get the app at copilot.money.Latest VIP Patrons:Ana MakJackie ChuiKyriakos SpiliotopoulosStacy HolmstedtChrisAislinn KellyEric StahlNathan LindahlTim von BischopinckJoshua McDonaldThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we try to decide what is the “Norman Door” of digital design.nosam7 asks: What, if anything, would you consider the "norman door" of the digital space?What are Norman doors? A Norman door is a poorly designed door that confuses or fails to give you an idea whether to push or pull. It was named after Don Norman, the author of The Design of Everyday Things which explored the phenomenon.Don Norman wrote The Design of Everyday Things.Follow up:Domenico Flauto tweeted at us: To me, invisible design is all about removing friction and making the interaction (or trigger) blending in with your subconscious. This creates a "wow moment" the first time, but then gets taken for grantedFabio Giolito followed up to our notes about motion sensors as invisible design: About lights with motion sensors. Our apartment had them when we moved in, but I had to ask the landlord to remove it after one night because we have cats.Gus Johnson, Every Cat At 3AMNancy Zuo tweeted: another invisible experience I thought of is going back to eating seeded grapes after eating seedless grapesMain Topic:John Cafazza asks: With a typical day being filled with heads down work, review sessions, and all the things necessary for shipping new features, how do you and your larger design team find the time and headspace to design for the future of your product? A proverbial North Star vision for the entire Product.Cool Things:Brian shared The Sinner, an anthology series that examines how and why ordinary people commit brutal crimes. Not a whodunnit, but a “why-“dunnit.Marshall shared Ready Player Two, the follow up to Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. If you want some 80’s nostalgia candy, this is for you.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about “invisible design” – those products and experiences that go unnoticed when present, but would be immediately noticed if absent. In The Sidebar, we react to the new Tesla Model S refresh.Latest VIP Patrons:Ben PattonGrzegorzDanielle SchechterHavana NguyenJohn CafazzaThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we react to the latest Tesla Model S refresh.Follow up:Following up on last week’s conversation about phygital experiences:Harish Shivaraman DM’d us: Ledger's hardware crypto wallet has just 2 buttons that you can interact with and they've got Mac and iOS apps for buying, selling cryptocurrencies.NYT piece on lost passwords locking people out of Bitcoin fortunesDivya Tak tweeted: One other company which has a good phygital experience is Airbnb. Not sure if it fits the discussion but their experience does move out of just the app. – we can’t believe we forgot this example!Main Topic:Kevin Fernandez hit us up in the DMs: Hey guys! I loved today’s episode ( maybe because my name got mentioned 😎 ) but also because you’ll touched on some great topics. One which really peaked my interest was services/products that are invisible but make a difference in everyday life. I would love to know more of these services/apps/products that are out there. I think it would be a great topic for a future podcast!Our definition of invisible experiences: experience that go unnoticed when present, but would be immediately noticed if absent.Doug DeMuro reviews cool cars and shares interesting features at the high end.Cool Things:Brian shared Tempo, a hyper minimal email client with great UI details and helps you beat your email habit with batches.Marshall shared Jujutsu Kaisen, an anime with a compelling story about supernatural curses.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we talk about designing experiences that weave between meatspace and screens. In The Sidebar, Marshall gives a deep dive into using modifier keys to level up your Figma productivity.Latest VIP Patrons:SherriKevin FernandezVeronica JeffersonBrian MirelesJohn BradyJade TuckeyCathy GuarinoWillThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we dig into the power of modifier keys in Figma, sharing our tips and tricks for making the most use of ⌘, ⌥, and ⇧. PixelSnap 2xScope by The Iconfactory.Follow up:We declared bankruptcy on our GitHub issues. If you have a question or topic you’d like us to discuss on the show, open a new issue!Divya Tak tweeted: isn't the philosophy of just shipping but not focusing on details is what leads into lazy products which are feature clustered but soul less? In my experience we can't expect to focus on just utility and make products that people love.Really good point: we don’t view these as mutually exclusive ideas!Main Topic:Flyingjuggernaut asks: Your thoughts on designing for phygital and omni-channel experiences?Some good examples that came to mind:MapsWatch or CarPlayExercisePelotonApple Fitness+ShoppingAmazonStarbucksAudioSonosAirPodsMedicalOneMedicalCool Things:Brian shared Hades, an absolutely gorgeous rogue-like dungeon crawler from Supergiant Games. Truly addicting, incredible learning curve design, and super satisfying gameplay - it’s only $25!Marshall shared Hush for Safari, a simple add-on that blocks those pesky cookie tracking nags on the web. This is also available for iPhone and iPad for free.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByeee!

This week, we dive into scope creep: how to deal with it, how to avoid it, and how to build its inevitability into our workflow. In The Sidebar, Marshall shares some Smart Office tips for working at home.Latest VIP Patrons:Kyle ConradJulia Chuanyan WuEli HorneKjartan KennedyFirst Name Last NameTri NguyenAvni LevyKeliNatalie Krickpeng zhengMay ChenThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, Marshall outlines a smart home setup for people who are working at home with a significant other.Main Topic:Jessica Perelman asks: How do you deal with random and out of scope ideas from stakeholders?Cool Things:Brian shared:And Then There Were None, a wonderfully delightful mystery from Agatha Christie. If you read this, follow it immediately with the 2015 miniseries by the same name.WandVision is kicking off Phase 4 of the MCU. The first few episodes are...weird, but good. Give ‘em a watch if you like Marvel.Marshall shared:If you were into Marshall’s past recommendation, Robert Parker, you might also enjoy KavinskyNight Candy by Mattie Maguire – 80’s elevator music?Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesTen little soldier boys...

This week, we catch up with Priyanka Kodikal, a design manager leading consumer design at WhatsApp. We talk all about her journey as a designer, and what it's like building WhatsApp. In The Sidebar, we answer a simple question: should designers learn Figma in 2020?Latest VIP Patrons:Belinda HuiNuzi BarkatallyEugene FedorenkoMike GriffinUX VietnamSam CardenThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we answer a listener question from our Twitter DMs: Would it be a good idea to begin transitioning to Figma as my primary design tool, or do you think it matters as long as I'm producing quality work and shipping features at my current job? Would learning Figma help future-proof me? I just need to be sold on the idea and I figure you two would have good insights as Figma users.Follow up:Divya Tak tweeted: one of the things that I feel like why it's easier to praise someone who just does the work is because creative professionals have a myth that "doing the work" is enough. So we find it easier to praise those people. And I also think (this is a bit darker) but it's easier to be not threatened by someone who has 100 instagram followers but makes art everyday, vs someone who makes art once a week but each piece gets over a thousand likes.Michael Knepprath tweeted: the bit about your writing voice changing - I try to fight this every time and mostly fail every time, I think. I want my posts to feel like longform tweets!Interview:This week we caught up with Priyanka Kodikal, a design manager leading consumer design at WhatsApp. Before WhatsApp, she was a designer at Facebook Groups and Ads, a product designer at Evernote, and spent the years before working in the non-profit sector.In this interview we talk about Priyanka's path through companies and teams to eventually land at WhatsApp. We discuss the design culture of WhatsApp, how they build products for so many different kinds of people around the world, why WhatsApp looks the way it does, and so much more.Follow Priyanka on Twitter and share a tweet if you enjoyed this episode!Jan Koum talks about the WhatsApp journeyCool Things:Brian shared Shape Up, a product development book by the team at Basecamp. If you are interested in learning more about product strategy, this will probably be useful for you.Marshall shared The Pedestrian, a creative 2.5D side scrolling puzzle platform. You enter a wild 3D world playing as a character on a public sign. It's short, but only $20!Priyanka shared two things:bon appétit's website, which is just lovely and has a really neat search flow that returns possible recipes given a set of ingredients you have on hand.Steve Jobs' lost 1995 interview, a 70 minute bootleg of an old interview with lots of product and design wisdom.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesKeep it simple!

This week, we talk through our playbook for shipping personal projects. In The Sidebar, we weigh the tradeoffs of building an online persona. Should designers thought lead?Latest VIP Patrons:Adrian CorscaddenMartin MaričákPolina SogolovTereza KavinskaEric EngKuldarKelly HaganJameson BryantMaxym NesmashnyMatt KubotaAdam HaasZachary Schwartzyang shuoGavin NelsonHoodnunShaun SmylskiJai MitchellAlex LongAlona SanbiraHerculano CamposPip NguyenNatalie TongprasearthRay CanapiniBe LeBen EwingDamian BilskiThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, Karl asks: Where do you both land on the idea of having a web presence that is focused on showcasing your opinion versus showcasing your work?Follow up:We reflect on our 2020 goals, and think about the year ahead. Listen to our 2020 goals episode from a year ago.2020 goals:Marshall: ship a SwiftUI app, update personal websiteBrian: Write more, revenue generating side project2021 Goals:Marshall: Be more like Ted Lasso whenever possibleBrian: Shifting creation:consumption ratioTweets:Keaton Taylor asked for an example of the variant grid in Figma that Marshall uses. Here's Marshall's sample file.Gabriel Valdivia made concept show art, among many other podcasts. We dig!Main topic:Michael Knepprath asks: Do you have a checklist you run through when launching new products or features? Also, is Product Hunt as important as it used to be for this?Check out lily dex on the App Store!Cool Things:Brian shared Darkroom, a fantastic iOS, iPadOS, and now macOS application for editing your photos.Marshall shared the iFixIt Pro Tech Toolkit, a wonderful set of tools for getting into the meat of your electronics.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBonsoir!

This week, we compiled all of our cold opens, stingers, and outtakes into a single 2020 Clipstravaganza! This is our final episode for 2020 – thank you everyone for listening and supporting us this year. We'll catch you in 2021!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBonsoir 2020!

This week, we talk about the skills and tools that designers can learn to become future-proof. In The Sidebar, we share our impressions, tips, and best practices for using Figma Variants.Latest VIP Patrons:Jesper AndrellDavidNikita KhapankovKeyla RodriguezTanner WoodworthJoshMilesJason ZuritaJohn ThachilKatherine RRoss PWTimothyGrady CongdonJon WoodThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we do a deep dive into Figma's recent release of Variants. We talk about the interface itself, best practices, and tips for making the most of Variants.Followup: Gabe Valdivia's tweeted a thread with more points about how to think about job tenure in tech.Figma VariantsCartesian productNot yet live, but this preview of a Figma plugin to generate missing variants looks fantastic.Follow up:Katherine tweeted some solid praise for our Patreon - thank you for supporting the show!Main topic:This week's listener question comes from Loucas Papantoniou on GitHub: Design has matured as a discipline, there are a lot of good people in the industry, we've design systems, better processes, but it also becomes more commoditized. In what skills do you think an experienced designer should invest now to be 'Future-proof' in the next few years? For instance 3D and AR/VR are expected only to get more and more popular, AI and machine learning are already very much in demand, etc. What do you think? On what do you invest yourself in nowadays?Cool Things:Brian shared Talking to Strangers, the newest book from Malcolm Gladwell. Here's your teaser: Something is very wrong, Gladwell argues, with the tools and strategies we use to make sense of people we don't know. And because we don't know how to talk to strangers, we are inviting conflict and misunderstanding in ways that have a profound effect on our lives and our world.Spaghetti Sauces videoMarshall shared Dr. Garuda on YouTube, a fascinating channel of montage-style videos of clay masterwork. The creations are wildly good and the videos showing the process are inspiring.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBonsoir!

This week, we talk about tips and processes for shipping a high quality UI. In The Sidebar, we discuss the Silicon Valley trend of job hopping every few years.Latest VIP Patrons:Matt CrowleyYannickMegan LearnC. AndersonJohn TyrrellMatt MakaranJohn-George SampleJames BartlettKramer CanfieldJames SmetKatu MuadinohambaSophie BondGraham BushellRenata VenturiniAlex BinderJohnny TerlajeJason YooThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we answer a listener question: how long should you stay at a company before moving on? We weigh the tradeoffs of specializing in an industry, the downsides of Silicon Valley job-hopping culture, and more.Follow up:Sam Mason asked if we will ever see Apple introducing custom icon packs. Probably not!Priscilla Then asked if we would record the show on video. Probably not, but it's an interesting idea we could maybe do as a one-off someday!Main topic:This week we answered a listener question sent to us in the direct messages: Should designers perform UI reviews after dev implementation, or should QA be responsible for that?Cool Things:Brian shared Robbie Tilton, a creator making fascinating digital toy concepts. Go to that Media tab on Twitter and enjoy!Marshall shared Miles Morales, a stunning Spiderman game that Marshall actually decided to play (and not just watch). Strong endorsement!Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBye bye!

This week, we talk about the tradeoffs and considerations of designing for consistency. In The Sidebar, we share tips and strategies for starting a podcast.Latest VIP Patrons:Ashish NegiAlyssa ZhangTiffany C YuAleksandra StrączekRichard PicotSam OlendiKamil LafereJackie CarrJoaquin KunkelFabian ValkenbergBelén LozanoRuobing ChenRyhan HassanJesse BoxThomas BishopOscar NewmanDavid BillThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we share tips and strategies for starting your own design podcast. We need more!Follow up:Jay Sowell brought up a great point on Patreon about the current shortcomings and limitations of widgets in the Apple ecosystem. We speculate about their future.Tobias Gärder tweeted: After an unexpectedly easy transition to android from forever iphones I actually tried to switch to PC a year ago, nooot as easy, but been on it since. First hard to find hardware that felt good enough (went for Surface Laptop 13") but Windows.. yikes.We have more design tricks to save people from themselves:Divya Tak mentioned a pattern where users have to confirm the name of the thing they are deleting, like when you delete a repository on GitHub.Havana Nguyen mentioned three:"Don't show me posts like this" tips on content sites."Did you mean today or tomorrow?" helpers for when you set an alarm near midnight.The simplified "driving mode" players on apps like Audible and Spotify.Jordan Morgan showed an example of a confirmation toast after a drag and drop interaction. It reminded us of the new iOS 14 pasteboard toast.Main topic:This week we talk about the tradeoffs and considerations when designing for consistency. Specifically, we talk about Google's recent icons redesign and the new Big Sur rounded square shape for app icons.Nick Keppol dissects the history of app icon shapes on Inspecting Yosemite's Icons.Google's new logos are badSketch uses transparency in their new Big Sur app icon.Android supports adaptive icons that allow OEMs to choose between circles, squares, or squircles.How to build a memory palaceCool Things:Brian shared Omniverse II, a buck-wild Line Rider track that David Lu created over 11 years.Marshall shared Good Sudoku, a beautiful and simple sudoku app for iOS and iPadOS.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBye bye!

This week, we discuss the future of designing on Macs. Are we moving to a PC-dominated future in the field? In The Sidebar we nit pick through the latest changes in Figma's Auto Layout v3.Latest VIP Patrons:Maxime DaraizeJamie RhodesVitaly OdemchukYuyang LuoYu ZhaoJaynish ShahShanbergAndy SantanaErica LesterChristopherMark GuillJørgen EidemThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we dig into everything new with Figma's Auto Layout v3: what we love, what we're hoping for, and other minor complaints about Figma's interface design.Main topic:Tamara Didenko asks: Is the Apple era going to be over eventually?MKBHD: Tiem to RecalibrateCool Things:Brian shared Design Theory, a YouTube channel that focuses on teaching the principles of great industrial design.Marshall shared the specs for his new gaming PC. Here's the key parts in case you're in the market to drop some stacks:Ryzen 9 Zen 3 5950XROG Strix 3090 OCROG Strix X570-E32GB 3600 DDR4 (8GBx4)Lian Li O-11 Dynamic case360mm Water-cooled CPURGB EverythingDesign Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByyyee!

This week, we discuss the career paths and tradeoffs for someone who wants to do both design and development. In The Sidebar, we recap the Mac event and share our first impressions of the new iPhones.Latest VIP Patrons:Jordan IsipMatej HrescakFabiano SouzaDarren SoulsbyPriscillaOscar LingerGreg CorbyTamara DidenkoThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we recap the One More Thing Apple event, talking all about the new Macs and M1 chip. We also give an updated review on the iPhone 12s, now that ours have arrived.Follow up:Last week's episode has been turned into a blog post: Design to Save People from ThemselvesMain topic:dluft asks: I’m a Graphic Designer who wants to grow in his career. I want to change my job to either Product Design or Development (unsure if front or back end.) How should I decide which path to go down?Designer FundForm CapitalCombineCool Things:Brian shared Raycast. It's like Alfred, but designed for developers.Marshall shared Indie Game Devlog, a YouTube series following Robert Thomson's design process for a new computer game. The art styled is inspired by Mobile Frame Zero.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesByyyee!

This week, we brainstorm design patterns that help save people from themselves. From stopping the spread of misinformation, to saving eardrums, to screening spoilers, these design ideas are often clever and non-obvious. In the Sidebar, we discuss why radio and checkbox inputs are the way they are, and how to use them well in your designs.Latest VIP Patrons:JakeRichard SaseunHenningMelissa OhRichie PlanekJay SowellErin MayerThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we discuss why radio and checkbox inputs are different, and how to think about designing patterns to make form fields obvious to your users.Follow up:Jesse Box tweeted about a process that works for building a culture of excellence at their company:Include design quality tickets in each sprintQA lots of small tasks rather than one huge taskMichel van Heest tweeted: Also, @brian_lovin should write a book or something, or they should just transcript @designdetailsfmSurprise! We recently started transcribing episodes. They're rough, and pull requests are appreciated. Browse the transcripts hereMain topic:Divya Tak asked on Twitter: Not sure if this has already been tackled, but what are things that you do to "save the users from themselves" along the lines of @gamemakerstk's video for same thing for game design.Cool Things:Brian shared a person, Patrick McKenzie aka patio11 on Twitter and HNKey blog posts to start with: Salary Negotiation: Make More Money, Be More Valued and Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names.Otherwise dig into Patrick's greatest hits.Marshall shared Control, a third person action-adventure mystery-paranatural type game, and it is stunning. Be sure to watch the trailer or head to YouTube for some gameplay; this game is compelling.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesAnd that's the way it is!

This week, we dig into practical steps for creating a culture of design excellence. In The Sidebar, we share strategies for designing adaptive interfaces that work well on any screen size.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. With float you can send your team their work schedule (daily or weekly) via Slack or email, and keep them in the loop of any changes to their tasks and projects with live notifications. You can also let your team know where you're working from with Float's scheduled status. Working from the lake house next week? Add it in Float to let your team know, ahead of time! Learn more at float.com/designdetails.Latest VIP Patrons:Ivaylo HadzhievEsteban GarcíaAli DashtiMaddy PascoDanny ThunderMordechai HammerThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we share strategies and workflows for designing consistent interfaces across all screen sizes.Follow up:Last week we talked about designing for one handAction sheets specPopovers specFitt's lawWhy are left-handers called southpaws?Shoutout to Geetha Kardahally for another week of transcript edits!Tweets:Connelly Rader says: One of my favorite thumb-able interfaces is Pocketcast’s customizable action bar at the bottom of the player. Allows the user to prioritize features and keeps them reachable 👏🏻Tweetbot has customizable tabs.Main topic:Andrew C. Asks: ...What steps can we take to make sure that not only is the work done properly after handoff, but try to establish a more widespread culture about caring about the work everyone is doing?Cool Things:Brian shared Halide Mark II, a fantastic camera app that unlocks the power of your iPhone's camera. Major design inspiration here.Marshall shared a posture corrector for men and women that has helped him to stay structurally sound in the age of COVID.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesSayonara marinara!

This week, we discuss the tradeoffs and challenges of designing interfaces for one-handed use. In The Sidebar, we talk about strategies for collaborating effectively with brand and product design.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. With float you can send your team their work schedule (daily or weekly) via Slack or email, and keep them in the loop of any changes to their tasks and projects with live notifications. You can also let your team know where you're working from with Float's scheduled status. Working from the lake house next week? Add it in Float to let your team know, ahead of time! Learn more at float.com/designdetails.CuriosityStreamLearn about any topic with CuriosityStream; the first on-demand documentary streaming service. There is always something new to learn about with thousands of award-winning documentaries on Technology, History, Nature, Food, Science, Travel, and more! Can’t decide what to watch? Try CuriosityStream’s new feature, ON NOW, to watch a continuous stream of the best documentaries. Get an entire year of streaming for just $14.99 when you sign up at curiositystream.com/design.Latest VIP Patrons:Andrea MolnarAaron BurkhartDominic HolmesAltay AydemirAustin SchaferPfutzMable WongThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we talk about how to effectively collaborate between brand and product design.MKBHD discusses MagSafeRead more about Apple's breathing lightStacy Holmstead asked about how to get The Sidebar and full Patron episodes in one feed - you can! Grab the RSS feed from our Patreon home page and paste it into any podcast app (we recommend Pocket Casts).Stewart Scott-Curran wrote a Twitter thread outlining how they redesigned Loom as a unified brand and product design team.Follow up:Nectar by Joji continues to be on repeat.A reminder about our work journaling episode.Ya'll have pushed the first PRs to edit our transcripts! Check out the tweet and the code.Main topic:vinnie329 asks on our GitHub: I would love to get both your takes on the one-hand myth that a lot of designers seem to buy-in to when designing for mobile. The myth suggests that all people use one hand to interact with their phones and so interfaces should be designed accordingly. This may have been true on the early smartphones which were smaller and where apps tended to be simpler. However, with devices getting bigger and heavier it seems like people use both hands for more complex, high-stakes tasks (buying something) and one hand for simple, low-stakes tasks (scrolling through a feed). Is this what you guys have found to be true? And is there any recent research around how people use their hands to interact with their phones?Luke W. writes about designing for large screen smartphones.Read the Material spec for bottom app bars.Things and Halide have great bottom oriented UIs.Cool Things:Brian shared Loom, a fantastic little tool for quickly recording and sharing presentations to the cloud.Kap is still great.mmhmm looks neat, too.And we DescriptMarshall shared Cracking the Cryptic, a YouTube channel that gets real nerdy about sudoku. But trust us, these videos are amazing. Start with this one.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesArrivederci!P.S. Gorlami

This week, we talk about the shallow parts of design culture, where superficial work tends to generate far more attention and praise. We dig into potential solutions for this, too. In The Sidebar, we recap and share our spicy takes on the iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and HomePod mini.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. With float you can send your team their work schedule (daily or weekly) via Slack or email, and keep them in the loop of any changes to their tasks and projects with live notifications. You can also let your team know where you're working from with Float's scheduled status. Working from the lake house next week? Add it in Float to let your team know, ahead of time! Learn more at float.com/designdetails.CuriosityStreamLearn about any topic with CuriosityStream; the first on-demand documentary streaming service. There is always something new to learn about with thousands of award-winning documentaries on Technology, History, Nature, Food, Science, Travel, and more! Can’t decide what to watch? Try CuriosityStream’s new feature, ON NOW, to watch a continuous stream of the best documentaries. Get an entire year of streaming for just $14.99 when you sign up at curiositystream.com/design.Latest VIP Patrons:JorneJBraden SweetenAlterrique IngramThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we recap and share our spicy takes on the Apple Event, iPhone 12, and HomePod mini.EverythingAppleProBrandon ButchzollotechHomePod miniiPhone 12iPhone 12 ProFollow up:Gavin Nelson asked: "How does everyone organize their product design Figma files?"Brian's current approach is a file per release, a page per feature.Transcripts are going to live on our Design Details repository - we appreciate any and all contributions! We'll be pulling these onto the site in the future.The first transcript is here, let us know how this works for now!Tweets:Marvin Messenzehl has been work journaling, glad to hear it's working!Main topic:Daniel Burka tweeted: The current culture of design is weird:"I designed an icon with a gradient fill" ... everyone loses their shit 🎉"I wrote a book explaining a design process" ... polite clapping 👏"We spent three years designing a voting system used by millions" ... crickets 🦗We discuss what designers can do to generate more excitement about larger, more systemic projects on social media.Cool Things:Brian shared TheLazyPeon, a YouTube channel dedicated to everything MMORPG. If you're a fan of the genre, you might find something new here.Marshall shared Nectar, a new album from Joji. It's currently on repeat for both of us.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesHasta la vista!

This week, we discuss strategies for teaching design fundamentals and how to make the process engaging and fun for new designers. In The Sidebar, we discuss the pain of noticing problems right before you ship.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. With float you can send your team their work schedule (daily or weekly) via Slack or email, and keep them in the loop of any changes to their tasks and projects with live notifications. You can also let your team know where you're working from with Float's scheduled status. Working from the lake house next week? Add it in Float to let your team know, ahead of time! Learn more at float.com/designdetails.CuriosityStreamLearn about any topic with CuriosityStream; the first on-demand documentary streaming service. There is always something new to learn about with thousands of award-winning documentaries on Technology, History, Nature, Food, Science, Travel, and more! Can’t decide what to watch? Try CuriosityStream’s new feature, ON NOW, to watch a continuous stream of the best documentaries. Get an entire year of streaming for just $14.99 when you sign up at curiositystream.com/design.Latest VIP Patrons:FloraKamil WanzekFrank MylesDevin RajaramKathy HatchThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we discuss the pain of noticing things you want to fix right before a ship – and how to avoid this situation!Follow up:Several of you volunteered to help transcribe (or proofread our transcriptions) for future episodes. We're going to figure out a process here - it will most likely live on GitHub!Listener question:This week, Carrie Rong asks:I'm a student in Canada, where I just started my university's first design community to introduce product, UX, and web design to people who have otherwise never heard of it before. I want to make sure that I teach others to have the mindset of correct design thinking and fundamentals, but I'm self taught myself and not sure how to approach this when everyone seems to just want to jump on the software and make pretty things (especially when my personal style is try to make stuff first, and basics later). I know that being a designer is more than knowing how to use Figma, and I don't want to breed mediocrity in design.Do you have any suggestions on getting people excited about design fundamentals and how to teach them? Or are the basics more something that you learn with time and practice?Laws of UXAbstract on NetflixThe Gap by Ira GlassCool Things:Brian shared Schitt's Creek, on recommendation from listener Manny XuMarshall shared Sideways, a YouTube channel that dissects the use of music in pop culture. For film essay nerds, this one is for you.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesAu revoir!

This week, we talk about how to have effective brainstorms: what does good prep look like, and what should be done alone or with a group? In The Sidebar, we share our spicy takes about brutalism in interface design.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. With float you can send your team their work schedule (daily or weekly) via Slack or email, and keep them in the loop of any changes to their tasks and projects with live notifications. You can also let your team know where you're working from with Float's scheduled status. Working from the lake house next week? Add it in Float to let your team know, ahead of time! Learn more at float.com/designdetails.CuriosityStreamLearn about any topic with CuriosityStream; the first on-demand documentary streaming service. There is always something new to learn about with thousands of award-winning documentaries on Technology, History, Nature, Food, Science, Travel, and more! Can’t decide what to watch? Try CuriosityStream’s new feature, ON NOW, to watch a continuous stream of the best documentaries. Get an entire year of streaming for just $14.99 when you sign up at curiositystream.com/design.Latest VIP Patrons:Christopher CosThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we share our spicy takes on brutalism in interface design. This comes from a GitHub issue:hey guys, have you covered the movement of brutalism in design, and how its resurgence can be used to break out of the "design dogmas" in web design which have created a kind of banal /sameness to what we see online. i.e. sites are clearly functional but have lost brand personality. I've recently been thinking about how these new dogmas of web have perhaps led to a democratization of design and less opportunity for more senior designers to flex their creativity. Thoughts?This is what a brutalist world would look like on your phoneBrutalist websites galleryLearn more about Jakob's law: Users spend most of their time on other sites. This means that users prefer your site to work the same way as all the other sites they already know.Follow up:It's totally acceptable to like the Lobster typeface.macOS Big Sur Beta 9 has an updated QuickTime icon and it's much better.Listener question:mlamond asks: Do you prefer to brainstorm solutions with peers or coming up with solutions on your own? Does your work environment encourage one over the other?Mural is a nice tool for having remote brainstorms.Cool Things:Brian shared Ted Lasso, a new show on Apple TV+. It's a ray of sunshine in an otherwise dark timeline.Marshall shared Better Touch Tool, an indie macOS application that allows you to customize the behavior of your Mac's trackpad. Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBlue eyes, white dragon, can't lose.

This week, we discuss options for designers to close the gap to becoming a senior. In The Sidebar we try to identify what is the duct tape of design.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. With float you can send your team their work schedule (daily or weekly) via Slack or email, and keep them in the loop of any changes to their tasks and projects with live notifications. You can also let your team know where you're working from with Float's scheduled status. Working from the lake house next week? Add it in Float to let your team know, ahead of time! Learn more at float.com/designdetails.Hover You don’t have a website yet? Are you even a designer? Today is the day - go get your domain name right this second. Hover has over 300 domain name extensions to choose from when building your brand online. No matter what area of the creative space you are in, there’s a domain name waiting for it - from .DESIGN, .ART to .INK, .PHOTO and so much more. Get 10% off your first purchase when you sign up at hover.com/designdetails.Latest VIP Patrons:Rachel TruongDiogo SergioKoenJayDomenicoThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, we try to figure out what is the "duct tape of design."This week's Sidebar question comes from Matt on GitHubIf you haven't seen the Papyrus SNL skit, now is the time.Swipies are awesome for sketching - it's reusable dry erase paper. We also have a discount code for you: DESIGNDETAILS will save you 10%.Industry Talk:This week we discuss what it takes to close the gap between being a junior and senior designer. Of course, our notes are not exhaustive, but hopefully offer some ideas for people in that situation who are looking to grow!Learn more about the Principal Agent Problem and learn to think like a principal.Cool Things:Brian shared eye masks, in general. Having trouble sleeping? Traveling and not going to be in a consistently-lit room for a while? An eye mask is not just for cartoonish rich people in the movies - you too can enjoy their benefits!Marshall shared Raised by Wolves, a new series on HBO that will certainly, for sure, without a doubt, take you away from all the troubles of the modern world. No sarcasm here, nope.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBonsoir Elliot!

This week, we sat down with Danae Holmes, a UX researcher at YouTube Gaming to talk about everything UX research. We dig into research methodologies, effective collaboration with design, tips to get better at user research, the future of the field, and so much more.Golden Ratio Patrons:Float Float has been a lifeline for teams working remotely in 2020. It lets you keep track of who's working on what and plan your team's time, from anywhere! Float gives you an accurate view of your team's availability and capacity., allowing you to set custom work days and hours and schedule a status to let your team know where you're working from. Learn more at float.com/designdetails.Hover Hover has over 300 domain name extensions to choose from when building your brand online. No matter what area of the creative space you are in, there’s a domain name waiting for it - from .DESIGN, .ART to .INK, .PHOTO and so much more. Get 10% off your first purchase when you sign up at hover.com/designdetails.Sponsors:This week we're supported by Webflow! Webflow gives designers the power of code in a visual interface, allowing them to directly build whatever they have in mind without engineers.Webflow helps you take that next step in your design process by bringing the power of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript into a visual interface so designers can build completely custom designs without worrying about writing code. If you already know your HTML and CSS, you can drag in unstyled HTML elements for full control of your designs. If you’re not familiar with those languages yet, you can use pre-built pieces of interface for complex elements like sliders, tabs, background videos, and more. If you’ve used Figma or Sketch in the past, you’re going to be instantly familiar with Webflow’s symbols feature, allowing you to define your own shared components so that changes propagate across all of your pages, all at once. And of course, your creation won’t be real until you have real content populating the page - Webflow has you covered here, too, allowing you to work directly with a CMS or e-commerce data to build a rich, high fidelity website.Learn more at http://wfl.io/designdetails for 10% off annual plans on any new account. Latest VIP Patrons:Andrew HongSara KinellMariana BricioMark McCulloughAndrew PomeroyHugh LeoidssonAndre RodriguesTheStevenOlmosZhuohui LiJoseph PearlmanAndreas KaparosThe Sidebar:The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to full episodes going forward! Sign up at https://patreon.com/designdetails.In this week's Sidebar, as with all interview episodes, we ask bonus questions! This week we ask Danae:What skill do you think researchers overvalue?What skill do they undervalued?Is your success mostly the result of luck or hard work?Follow up:@muffmasterflash aka Monica says: I am filled with nitpicky rage when I see things under Settings that aren't things you can actually set, like FAQ, Contact, About, or T&Cs. But what to call that stuff collectively? "Help"?From now on, all new Sidebars will be posted separately on Patreon to make it easier for people to catch up on the backlog.Interview:This week we sat down with Danae Holmes, a UX researcher at YouTube, to talk all about user research in software design. We discuss the function of UX research in organizations, research methods (and how to choose one), the difference between qualitative and quantitative data, the pros and cons of using scripts, collaborating with product designers, and tips for anyone interested in learning more about research.System Usability Scale (SUS) provides a “quick and dirty” but reliable tool for measuring usabilitySet Phasers on Stun: And Other True Tales of Design, Technology, and Human ErrorUX Ya'll is a conference happening later this week. Learn more about Danae's presentation. Cool Things:Brian shared GitHub CLI, a simple but powerful new way to interact with GitHub from the command line. It's beginner-friendly, too, so if you're interested in learning more about git and GitHub, check it out!Danae shared Glyph, a molecular spirit with a beautiful design, good taste, and environmentally-conscious creation.Marshall shared all the neat new features in the latest AirPods Pro firmware update, including the magical spatial audio feature.Design Details on the Web:📻 We are @designdetailsfm🎙 Brian is @brian_lovin🎙 Marshall is @marshallbock📬 Don't have Twitter? Email us at [email protected]🙌 Support us on Patreon - your support literally makes this show possible. Thank you ❤️❓ Got a question? Ask it on our Listener Questions Hub, and we'll do our best to answer it on the show :)⭐️ Enjoying the show? Leave us a review on iTunesBye bye bye!