The Practitioner's Guide to User Experience Design

by Luke Miller, General Assembly (Editor)

Sell a hamburger. Run an airline. Build a website.

No matter how simple or complicated your business is, there's one thing that determines if it's a success or not: the customer.

The Practitioner's Guide to User Experience Design breaks down the essence of what it takes to meet a customer's needs and shows you how to apply these principles while working in tech. From finding your inspiration to creating prototypes, this book pulls from case studies, research, and personal experience to give you the tools and tactics you need to survive in the fast-paced world of UX design.

Genres: Design

192 pages, Hardcover

First published January 6, 2015

Reviews

[Lucas Terra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading this one can be a good experience for those that know nothing about interaction or user experience design. I wouldn't say I knew much about it before reading — and neither did I after fishing it. The book felt quite shallow/introductory to the theme and the examples often go back to his "work of a lifetime" NY Times app — making the author come across as someone who lacks repertoire.

I was expecting a much more structured read: introductory at first but that lead to more depth on the following chapters, but it all seemed a bit scattered and that read never really took off.

[Sam Jacob Dev · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book. Though it will not take into more details of every bits and piece of the UX. It gives you an overall picture of the field and how you can go through it in short in a concise 5 chapters. If you stick to 1 chapter a day then you can finish this book in 5 days.

The author had beautifully covered all the aspects of what you can expect as a UX designer and also shared in a way with his own real world experiences.

[P · Rating 3 out of 5]

- Felt "hands-on" because topics discussed were very relevant to the present world of web design
- Could've been more tightly written/more structured... some sub-sections just felt a bit scatter gunned/self-indulgent
- Examples were quite mobile app focused but that's to be expected, considering the author's background
- Collaboration section was good reminder of how to deal with different interest groups
- Found it a bit dry visually

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not only is Luke a fantastic instructor but he also is a fantastic writer and story teller. His examples are approachable and incredibly informative; a true reflection of the author. With the real life examples and reflection on UX practices that he takes us through, this book helps prepare the reader to be a successful UX designer. Anyone interested in user experience, at any level of knowledge, should check out this book.

[Seema Rao · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid book for those looking for an intro primer to the User Experience Design field, with useful diagrams and definitions.

[Vee · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a self-taught UX designer and being the only UX designer in the team, this book gave some insight to what a senior UX designer's day to day might look like. The author didn't shy away from the mistakes he made on the job and what he would have done better. He writes about the practical importance of UX research and testing as well as giving UI tips. The book is a bit outdated with tool recommendations but the UX principles remain the same. The book is easy to read and I'd recommend it to anyone thinking about going into UX or junior UX designers/researchers.

[Dev Govindji · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gives a nice overview of what it is like to work as a UX Designer. It is not much of a technical handbook; more so it provides insights into how UX Designers view the world and their place within a company.

The writing fits the content and purpose of the book. It is a fairly quick read. The author is adept at writing from this viewpoint and narrates effectively.

I recommend this book to anyone exploring a career in UX.

[陈 元伟 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genourous General Assembly

Miller gave a very good overview of UX design and dive deep into the intracacies and common pitfalls, before giving some excellent advise on how to take your UX designs to the next level. A must read for any modern business leader.

[Justin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not too useful

[Marcela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Font made it hard to read. Ok overview.

[Pam Mooney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great case studies. A good primer. Author has great insight into the mind of the user as well as responses that are apt and appropriate. Not reinventing the wheel is a great tactic to take in all cases.

[Catie Carlson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It really is for practitioners. You won't learn any basics of UXD, but will hear practical advice and stories from a practitioner in the field. Miller is an engaging writer with a wealth of experience demonstrated.

[Ron Bergquist · Rating 5 out of 5]

not too deep, but meaningful and based on practical experience. It is a good guide.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Your mileage will vary with this one.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good. Covered a lot of good topics. However I felt it got a bit disjointed at the end and lacked a good conclusion. Could of been shorter I feel.

Still worth a read.

[Nilay Gandhi · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of those things you don't want to end. The end is pretty heavy on socializing UX principles and basically hinting at change management. Some more pure UX strategy would be useful. But this is a great introduction to the discipline, and one I imagine I'll be at least flipping through before every client project. Also, LEMErS is life.