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Understanding the Design Process through Avengers: Endgame

Understanding the Design Process through Avengers: Endgame

For those new to design, this is an overview of the process as seen through the lens of the super-villain Thanos, of course.

Khoi Vinh

May 02, 2019
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  1. Khoi Vinh May 2, 2019 Understanding the Design Process through

    Avengers: Endgame This is a talk I gave to the team of audio producers at Gimlet Creative to help them better understand how designers work. Where relevant, supplemental narrative from my talk track appears at the bottom right corner of the slide. NOTE
  2. I lead the design team for Adobe XD, a new

    tool for designing app and websites
  3. Adobe XD is also the first and only tool that

    lets you design with voice for devices like the Amazon Echo
  4. adobe.ly/wireframe And I’m the host of Wireframe, a podcast that

    tells in-depth stories about the world of design
  5. SECTION NAME Mon Apr 22 From: Rachel To: Khoi Would

    you be interested/able to give the Gimlet Creative team an hour of your time to help us get a little smarter about design?
  6. SECTION NAME Wed Apr 24 From: Khoi To: Rachel Hi

    there, sure, I’d be happy to do this. When did you have in mind?
  7. SECTION NAME Wed Apr 24 From: Rachel To: Khoi Crazy

    idea - what about a week from Thursday?
  8. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 That left me about eight days to write a new talk…
  9. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 Though of course nothing got done on Wednesday
  10. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 And I was actually traveling so the rest of the week was lost
  11. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 And then, with kids, weekends aren’t really productive either
  12. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 Monday was my first day back in the office, so I didn’t get to work on the talk all day
  13. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 So Tuesday was going to be the day that I got it all done! But then this happened…
  14. Confirmation #: 161756482 Auditorium: 5 Reserved Seats: K8, K9 Tickets:

    2 Adult Your Movie: Avengers: Endgame (PG-13) Showtime: 6:00 PM on Tuesday, April 30, 2019
  15. Turns out it’s hard to write a new talk when

    you’re watching a movie with a three hour running time © 2019 Marvel
  16. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 Obviously, nothing got done Tuesday
  17. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 So I had to do it all Wednesday, but where to start?
  18. Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 24 25 26

    27 28 29 30 1 2 And now here we are on Thursday morning, so I have a proposal for you…
  19. I probably shouldn’t have spent time on this, but somehow

    I managed to write a review over at Letterboxd Because I have opinions!
  20. So he conspires to kill half of all living beings,

    believing that the remaining lives will flourish
  21. “Design [is] a plan for arranging elements to accomplish a

    particular purpose.” — Charles Eames Hat tip to @odannyboy
  22. Thanos can’t implement his plan without the technology of the

    Infinity Gauntlet and its stones, which do a bunch of magical stuff
  23. So what is the design process? There are many different

    processes, but most of them boil down to these basic steps…
  24. 1. Did he define the problem? 2. Did he imagine

    the possibilities? 3. Did he test a hypothesis? 4. Did he repeat? So Thanos doesn’t get a passing grade here. But…
  25. We can learn from bad design as much as we

    can from good design. Let’s dig into each step of the process a bit more…
  26. Hello, there’s a
 power stone If you think of the

    problem that way, you might consider using the power stone to solve the universe’s resource needs?
  27. Research means understanding your user. • Who are they? •

    What do they want? • In what context do they want it? • What challenges do they face?
  28. Ways designers research. • Make a researcher do it This

    is the best way to do it, because researchers are unbiased and much more effective. But if this is not an option…
  29. Ways designers research. • Make a researcher do it •

    Run a survey • Ask users to keep a log • Examine data • Observe firsthand • Assume the role of the user
  30. Ways designers research. • Make a researcher do it •

    Run a survey • Ask users to keep a log • Examine data • Observe firsthand • Assume the role of the user This is an important research method but it comes with a caveat…
  31. 2. Imagine the possibilities. This is the “creative” part, where

    designers create mockups to express what the solution might be, (usually) through visual means
  32. Constraints are a filter for ideas. And ideas are the

    result of a voracious appetite for inspiration.
  33. Creative processes are a balance between time, quality and resources.

    Fast Good Cheap The old cliché that says you can only ever have two of these three is mostly true
  34. Problem Statement Resource production is insufficient 
 for the current

    population If your creative process is optimized for possibilities, you might consider…
  35. “I design how it looks” Comps and Mockups Prototypes and

    Multidimensions Single-user Collaborative “We design how it works” Design is no longer a solo endeavor, if it ever was
  36. To have good collaboration, you need good collaborators Thanos surrounded

    himself with henchmen © 2019 Marvel It’s no wonder it went all wrong for him, then
  37. Thanos fell in love with the idea of snapping his

    fingers and killing half the universe But he never validated his idea before he implemented it
  38. Prototypes allow you to get something very close to “real”—without

    committing to code that you may ultimately want to discard
  39. If a picture is worth a thousand words, 
 a

    prototype is worth a thousand meetings.” “
  40. And a static mockup is even better, but it still

    can’t show you the intended interactivity in the design Design by Howard Pinsky • @pinsky. • letsxd.com
  41. Creating a prototype creates clarity. For clients and stakeholders. And

    for designers. Prototypes can help you fall out of love with bad ideas
  42. The “godhead genius” archetype of design is a myth. Solutions

    don’t just magically present themselves to creative savants