Book · ~200 pages

Don't Make Me Think, Revisited

Steve Krug · sensible.com Paid Beginner

The most accessible, practical intro to usability ever written, you can read it in a weekend and immediately fix your product. The definition of 'make it obvious, not clever.'

  • Self-evident design is the goal, kill anything that adds thinking.
  • Users satisfice: they scan and click the first reasonable option.
  • Cheap, frequent usability testing beats large formal studies.
Open on sensible.com ↗

It answers 15 questions

  1. What are the core UX principles every founder should know?
  2. How do I know if my product is confusing to users?
  3. Why does good design actually matter for an early-stage startup?
  4. How do I show a prototype to users without biasing their reaction?
  5. What are the psychology 'laws' behind good UX?
  6. How do I run a quick usability test on my app when I don't have a budget or a research team?
  7. My onboarding has too many steps and people drop off before they see value. How do I cut it down?
  8. I keep tweaking the landing page instead of launching. How do I tell polishing from procrastinating?
  9. I keep hearing "don't make me think" but what does that actually mean when I'm designing a screen?
  10. Should I just copy the UI patterns of apps my users already use, or does that make my product forgettable?
  11. How do I make a no-code app feel polished and trustworthy instead of looking like an obvious template?
  12. How much should I invest in design polish for an MVP versus just shipping something functional?

And 3 more across the hub.

Read with it

  1. Design tactics written specifically for developers and non-designers who need to ship good-looking UI without a design... refactoringui.com Book · ~250 pages Refactoring UI Adam Wathan & Steve Schoger
  2. The single best thing ever written on customer conversations. It teaches you to ask about the customer's life and past... momtestbook.com Book · ~130 pages The Mom Test Rob Fitzpatrick
  3. The single most-cited usability framework in the field, from the definitive UX research authority. A checklist you can hold... Nielsen Norman Group Article · ~15 min read 10 Usability Heuristics for User Interface Design Jakob Nielsen
  4. The foundational text on human-centered design that every product person should read once. It rewires how you see every... jnd.org / Basic Books Book · ~350 pages The Design of Everyday Things Don Norman
  5. This is the piece that gives you permission to stop waiting for a big study. Nielsen shows that just five people uncover... Nielsen Norman Group Article · About a 10 minute read Why You Only Need to Test with 5 Users Jakob Nielsen
  6. This is the short, practical manual for actually doing a test yourself, no training required. Krug walks you through running a... Steve Krug (New Riders) Book · About 168 pages Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Finding and Fixing Usability Problems Steve Krug
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