10 Laws of Simplicity Developers should know
Recently I revisited “” by John Maeda. He is a graphic designer, visual artist, and computer scientist at the MIT Media Lab. In the book, John proposes 10 laws for simplifying complex systems in business and life.
Although the book are mostly focused on product design, it could be applied to anything especially software development. It doesn’t matter whether you are coding or designing simplicity will always work and sale. Simpler code means less bug and less maintenance cost. Simpler interface means easier to learn and use.
The 10 laws are
Law 1: Reduce
The Simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reductionLaw 2: Organize
Organization makes a system of many appear fewerLaw 3: Time
Savings in time feel like simplicityLaw 4: Learn
Knowledge makes everything simplerLaw 5: Differences
Simplicity and complexity need each otherLaw 6: Context
What lies in the periphery of simplicity is definitely not peripheralLaw 7: Emotion
More emotions are better than lessLaw 8: Trust
In simplicity we trustLaw 9: Failure
Some things can never be made simpleLaw 10: The One
Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious, and adding the meaningful
Comments so far
Law 11: Two Words
Start each law with two words, then a simple worthless description
Hi,
I enjoyed reading your blog very much and was hoping to ask for your permission to republish. Could you please shoot me an email.
thanks,
Wei Ling
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