Simplicity, or Laziness? 5 Things Simplicity Should Never Be
With all the fuss about keeping things simple, it’s becoming increasingly easy to use simplicity as an excuse for laziness. If keeping things simple ends up taking less thought than doing things the complicated way, then you’re probably overusing it.
What It Is, and What It Isn’t.
A simple (or lazy?) desktop wallpaper for your enjoyment.
Simplicity is really just another form of usability–it isn’t an easy thing to achieve, nor is it equivalent to non-existent design or a lack of good features. It is an aspect of design that takes a lot of effort, and should be treated with both respect and caution.
I’ve compiled a list of the top 5 things simplicity should never be, so here you go…
Simplicity Should Never Be…
- A lack of necessary features.
- An excuse for bugs.
- A design that fails to communicate the emotions and personality of those it represents.
- A lack of sufficient content.
- Confusing.
Have any to add, or examples of sites taking simplicity to an unhealthy (and not-so-simple) extent?
Ok you’ve clearly stated what simplicity isn’t or what it may hide within itself. But should a designer decide to create a site based on simple techniques or layouts, could you offer a correct way or example of simplicity.
True simplicity shouldn’t be lazy, but when can simplicity just be simple?
Yeah, I’ll be doing that in another post sometime soon.
[...] Elliot weighs in with what simplicity should never be: [...]
When you come up with what it means to you, send a trackback here, eh?
http://www.adamduvander.com/simple/what-does-simplicity-mean-to-you
“less is more” -hadrian jongolar
translates to music too.
Simplicity is not avoiding complexity. It is mastering complexity and hiding it behind simplicity.
Simplicity is like a modest man with great knowledge and wisdom inside him.