Dieter Rams: Principle 4
Principle 4: Good design makes a product understandable.
In Dieter Rams: As Little Design as Possible, Rams is quoted from a 1980 lecture in which he outlined fifteen questions to ask for developing good designs. The fourteenth question Rams asked was, “Does it [the design] make an action or activity on the whole more complicated or simpler, is it easy to operate or do you have to learn to use it?” (p. 343). Products that are understandable can be used immediately. Dieter Rams designed objects with the end user in mind. It is annoying for a user to flip through an instruction manual to determine the right sequence of buttons to turn a product on or function in a certain way. Rams’ design principles were motivated by the desire to make better products that made for a positive human interaction with those objects. Understandable products ease the user’s experience and interface with products.
Rams, who often worked in a limited color palette, preferred to use color for a particular purpose. His purpose was to create a more understandable product which communicated its function clearly to the user. Dieter Rams: As Little Design as Possible quotes Rams, “using color as a signal, I find, is often better than coloring the whole product” (p. 238). Colors can be used to signal instructions to a user. In places where street lights are color coded, green can communicate “go” or “start”. In a similar way, red can communicate “stop” or “off”. This type of communication between object and user allows for a much easier interaction and immediate use. Rams continues by saying:
I have always laid emphasis on the fact that a product can be brought to ‘speak’ through good design. My aim has always been to raise the self-explanatory aspect. I never trusted instruction manuals—we all know that most people don’t read them. The information always came through how the product looked—with the color-coding / labeling. Red is demanding, green is more restrained and so on (p. 239).
Understandable design is ultimately user-oriented and not market-driven. Market-driven design pursues profitable ends through expedient means. User driven design takes time and the experience of the design team to develop a product which will generate a better experience overall. This investment in time and effort often results in a product that generates profitability, but not on the timeline of the marketplace. Understandable products generate knowledge which can be applied to other products. Ultimately, understandable products are satisfying to use and not frustrating.
The next time you are frustrated using a product, ask yourself if the frustration is a result of your inability or an effect of poor design.