🧰 Design Methods Toolbox

# Further Reading

This list is, by nature, woefully incomplete, because corralling reading resources is like trying to divert a fire hose — there will always be One More Thing to read and learn from. That said, if you've got resources (print, online or otherwise) that have helped you practice good design, please make a PR against this document (opens new window) (including a link and brief description) so your favorites can get on the list, too. The more, the merrier!

# Other people's toolboxes

  • 18F Methods (opens new window): 18F, the user experience agency internal to the U.S. federal government's General Services Administration, offers a card-based methods kit divided into four key phases (discover, decide, make, validate). Includes special attention to guidance specific to federal government regulations.
  • UXFrameworks.design Toolbox (opens new window): A collection of tools broken up into phases for research, synthesis, and ideation, many including helpful worksheets.
  • Design Kit (opens new window): Created by commercial design agency IDEO, this card-based kit is separated into three broad phases (inspiration, ideation, implementation) and includes some very high-level methods for bringing design thinking into settings where it may not have been considered in the past. Note, though, that most methods assume in-person, synchronous settings.
  • Open Design Kit (opens new window): A four-phase (explore, define, make, validate), card-based toolbox specifically targeted for the needs of distributed teams — and open source to boot. (Sadly, activity in their repo seems to have declined as of late, but the methods are still useful!)
  • Mozilla Open Innovation Toolkit (opens new window): A community-sourced toolbox for incorporating human-centered design into product development, particularly relating to open-source projects. This card-based kit offers time estimates and difficulty levels for various commonly used design thinking activities.
  • IBM Enterprise Design Thinking (opens new window): An enterprise-specific set of tools based on IBM's three-step Loop (opens new window) framework (observe, reflect, make), with a focus on making design succeed in larger, often legacy, orgs.
  • Stanford d.school Resources (opens new window): A broad range of ideation exercises with a focus on empathy and inclusivity. While not as much of a "choose your own" toolbox, includes helpful foundational methods.
  • Interaction Design Foundation's Design Thinking Collection (opens new window): A beginner's guide to design thinking that defines key ideas and offers a variety of outbound links to tools and further reading (including many of the toolboxes mentioned here).
  • Usability.gov (opens new window): The U.S. federal government's original guide to user experience, offering basic methodologies for a spectrum of topics from content strategy to project management.

# Classics of the literature

# Awesome generalist resources

# Open sourciness and meta-design

# Design for the decentralized/distributed web

# Design and ethics

# Design and inclusivity

# UI systems and other visual design systems

# Quick reads

# Great examples of research

# Eye candy

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