
Ask HN: Best way for a developer to learn design? - casem921
I&#x27;ve been a developer for several years now, but trying to learn the basics and fundamentals of designing web apps. Any recommendations or resources you&#x27;d suggest?
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wprapido
Despite being somewhat dated, "Design for Hackers" is certainly the best book
on a given subject.

[https://www.dailyui.co/](https://www.dailyui.co/) is a great resource.

Dissecting and replicating other designers' work gets you a long way when it
comes to learning.

Design is a craft and a thought process. As such, picking it is not beyond any
determined individual's reach.

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jppope
There are some good books out there... such as (slightly outdated) "Design for
Hackers" and "the design of everyday things"

... But if I were going to recommend a place to start I think you need to
start small... begin by going to dribbble.com or awwwards.com and look
around... get a sense for what you like, and more importantly, try to figure
out why you like it. After you get an idea and take notes on the subject...
try to fiddle around with copying the things that you like => personal blogs
are amazing for this.

As a developer you should understand many of the principles that will get you
to a good design: reducing complexity, intensional organization, being of
service to the user, iterating your way to better designs, getting feedback/
testing your work.

Last tip: get some skin in the game. Charge someone for design work... nothing
lights a fire under your ass like having your reputation on the line ;)

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QueensGambit
Garry Tan (Former Partner @ YC) recommended these 2 design books as a must for
engineers:

\- Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability

\- The Design of Everyday Things: Donald Norman

If you want be a really good designer, he recommends 4 more books:
[https://www.collectoral.com/collection/101397753425638859326...](https://www.collectoral.com/collection/101397753425638859326/com_283155/im-
an-engineer-how-do-i-learn-design-1560860407511.html)

You might also want to watch his video on design for startups:
[https://blog.ycombinator.com/design-for-startups-by-garry-
ta...](https://blog.ycombinator.com/design-for-startups-by-garry-tan/)

~~~
roland35
The design of everyday things should be a must-read for all engineers. I love
talking about confusing doors to people I know, they probably all hate it by
now!

~~~
asnack
I always see people recommend this book, but the reviews on amazon are
terrible. I feel like it gets recommended a lot because it's popular/old, not
because it's actually good/insightful.

~~~
QueensGambit
It is insightful and makes us understand the fundamentals of usability - very
much like math is for software development. But, it may not be immediately
usable for developers in designing web applications. If readers are expecting
widgets/screens, they might be disappointed with this book.

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ggregoire
Graphic design? UX? For me it's testing a lot of online services and pay
attention to details, figure out what works or not, what makes information
easy to find, what makes tasks easy to be completed. Pick ideas here and
there. It becomes "natural" after a while.

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mmvs
Haven't read it yet, but I saw some people were recommending this book:
[https://refactoringui.com/](https://refactoringui.com/)

