Simplicity On The Web: Designing To Hide Features

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  • http://www.whyui.com Danny

    Great post, One more for the team in the features war.

  • http://evanmeagher.net/ Evan Meagher

    Good use of examples. All the images are great.

    With all the easy-to-use Javascript libraries out there (jQuery, Mootools, Prototype), it’s never been easier to hide features. Hopefully more designers will start to do so, and decrease the amount of cluttered layouts on the internet.

  • http://ever-real.com JD

    Well done post,
    Hiding is quite an import subject in the interface design phase.

  • kinky

    “Hidden features” are features that most users won’t find unless someone tells them.

    Users won’t spend time searching for “hidden features”: they only find them by accident.

  • http://arthurkoziel.com Arthur

    It’s all about removing/hiding the obvious, and adding the meaningful.

  • http://www.jeremyjohnsononline.com Jeremy Johnson

    I actually just posted about this same topic recently. I called it “revealing interfaces” and it’s a way to remove complexity from User Interfaces.

    http://www.jeremyjohnsononline.com/2008/03/06/revealing-interfaces/

    I believe User Interfaces have crossed the road from expected complexity to “why can’t it be as simple as…” – which is a challenge for Designers, and a win for the users.

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  • http://stever.ca Stever

    @kinky, you’re right.

    I only recently found the “hidden” stuff at istockphoto after using their site for months. But I just never had a need to click on my control panel or even the advanced search (thought their meta search engine sucks). Photographers are brutal keyword spammers it seems.

  • http://www.jeremyadamdavis.com Jeremy Davis

    One of my favorite examples of this is the Ministry Index tab at the top of the Stonebriar Church website. http://www.stonebriar.org/

    Insightful article, BTW.
    Thanks.

  • http://www.designvsart.com/ Alexis Brion

    Hey Jeremy (Davis), thanks for that example. It’s great!

    Thanks for comments!

    Alex

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  • http://www.artifacting.com/blog hubs

    http://www.artifacting.com/blog does a great job of this by putting all of there blogpost meta-data in a sliding menu by clicking each blog posts title.

  • http://waitingonthenewmoon.wordpress.com/2008/01/21/angel-sightings/ Kudzu Fire

    hidden gold

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