A small picture or design that represents an idea, function, or some other type of visual concept. For example, in computer graphics and web development, an icon is a pictorial representation of a program or file type.
A field of study that aims to understand the user experience of a product or service. Conducting UX research includes interviewing, observing, and surveying users. Understanding the user experience is important because it helps designers understand how to design a better product that will be more appealing and usable for people.
Also called a line break, when you want to keep the text in one paragraph and not follow it with an airy space.
A graphical representation of the user on a device, used to represent various users in different contexts. It can be a photo, image or drawing.
The art of drawing original characters and symbols — especially for decorative purposes.
The width and height of a document, after having been cut down to size from a larger sheet.
The surface quality of an element.
The part of lowercase letters that goes above the baseline when used in running text. As such, ascenders are considered less condensed than those used for numerals and other capital letters. Some examples of ascenders include b, d, h, k, and l. The opposite of an ascender is a descender.
The art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable, and appealing when displayed.
Text that flows from right to left and is the default reading direction of a page with its content aligned on the right margin.
A system of columns and rows designers use to create layouts. It's used in graphic design and web development to align elements for easy use on the page. Grids are a key part of design because they help you create balance, rhythm, proportion and hierarchy in your layout.