Quality expectations

Be it version three or an MVP, the experience we deliver should

  • be valuable to specific users
  • be usable by those users
  • conform to or enhance the user’s understanding of the subject area
  • be pleasant to use
  • be visually polished
  • deliver value in results and conveniences
  • minimize toil
  • be complete in its delivery of the uses we offer
  • be complete in its states, messages, and errors
  • make good use of familiar controls and interaction paradigms
  • make success obvious
  • be obvious in expected actions and right action
  • be self-explanatory, relying on recognition rather than training and recall
  • be well-labeled
  • be instrumented so we can witness users’ successes and difficulties

…even if the scope is small, even if it’s a little slice of functionality from a bigger, longer-term plan, even if it is a fragment of the excellent future we envision. Even the basics should be built completely, with thoughtfulness and pride.