The case against user interface consistency

  • Authors:
  • Jonathan Grudin

  • Affiliations:
  • MCC Human Interface Lab, Austin, TX

  • Venue:
  • Communications of the ACM
  • Year:
  • 1989

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Abstract

Designers striving for user interface consistency can resemble Supreme Court justices trying to define pornography: each of us feels we know it when we see it, but people often disagree and a precise definition remains elusive. A close examination suggests that consistency is an unreliable guide and that designers would often do better to focus on users' work environments.