A concept used in systems design to describe the negative consequences of making seemingly innocuous design changes. Shorthand for a product's delayed but inevitable need to be reworked due to earlier, seemingly trivial decisions not having been fully thought through in the original release.
Designers incur this "debt" by making quick and easy choices that save time in the present but cause more complex problems later on down the road when it becomes necessary to change or add something.
The primary graphic that appears at the top of a webpage, designed to grab people's attention.
An observation in Psychology that suggests that the number of mental objects the average person can keep track of is seven (plus or minus two).
The use of light or dark objects positioned over colourful backgrounds. Blurred backdrops allow bright colours to come through and convey a sense of frosted glass.
The use of design features that are shaped to resemble a familiar object or thing in order to facilitate user interaction.
A graphic element that has a definite length and direction. Examples of vectors would be straight lines, edges, or curves.
The intensity of a color relative to its own brightness. Colours are said to be saturated when they have a strong hue and high intensity.
The setting on a camera's lens which controls how much light comes into the camera. Aperture settings can usually be set to F-stop values ranging from F1.4-F22. The higher the aperture value, the smaller the opening is, and vice versa, which affects the depth of field in photos and how much light reaches and illuminates a subject or scene in a photo.
The area of negative space around and between elements in a design.
The perception that people have of a business and its reliability, authenticity, and attractiveness. It's also the set of impressions an individual has when they think about a brand.
Layout is a defining characteristic of design. It dictates the positioning of content and design elements. Layouts can range from the simple, such as a four- or two-column layout, to more complex designs like grids with multiple hierarchy levels.