ON CREATIVE SELECTION
The creative processes in Apple during Steve's reign
I think the first time I came across the cover of this book was on Twitter, now X. A book about the design process at Apple during Steve Jobs's time? I thought, "I'm sold." I went straight to Amazon.com to check it out since I thought there was a low probability of finding this niche book in libraries in my hometown.
As most people who know me are aware, I don't buy a book if its cover doesn't appeal to my aesthetic taste. The cover passed the visual test (sort of), more so with the help of my curiosity to know more about the content.
No doubt, Apple is one of the finest tech companies out there, where the combination of quality, aesthetics, and human-centered products makes them one of, if not the leading company in this sector by huge margins.
Having read Steve Jobs's biography by Walter Isaacson a couple of years back, which I also highly recommend, I wanted to know as much as possible about the day-to-day life in the design sector of Apple. This is especially true if you are a product designer and want to learn from the best.
The book, written by Ken Kocienda, a former Apple software engineer, shares his experiences working on groundbreaking products like the iPhone and the Safari web browser. It delves into the principles and practices that fueled Apple's success, shedding light on the company’s culture of innovation and its relentless pursuit of excellence.s.
Having read Steve Jobs's biography by Walter Isaacson a couple of years back, which I also highly recommend, I wanted to know as much as possible about the day-to-day life in the design sector of Apple. This is especially true if you are a product designer and want to learn from the best.
The book, written by Ken Kocienda, a former Apple software engineer, shares his experiences working on groundbreaking products like the iPhone and the Safari web browser. It delves into the principles and practices that fueled Apple's success, shedding light on the company’s culture of innovation and its relentless pursuit of excellence.
Some of the key themes of the book are:
CREATIVE PROCESS
Kocienda emphasizes the iterative nature of design at Apple. The concept of "Creative Selection," akin to natural selection, highlights how ideas were continuously tested, refined, and either adopted or discarded based on their merit.
PROTOTYPING
The book underscores the importance of building and refining prototypes. Kocienda explains how early, rough versions of products were crucial in shaping the final, polished outcomes.
COLLABORATION
Insight into the collaborative environment at Apple shows how engineers, designers, and other team members worked closely together. The interplay of different perspectives and skills was vital to the success of Apple's products.
ATTENTION TO DETAIL
Kocienda’s narrative reflects Apple’s obsessive attention to detail and the high standards set by Steve Jobs. This meticulousness was a key factor in creating products that were not only functional but also elegant and user-friendly.
* * *
What fascinates me most, is something Ken mentions frequently in this book: they didn't test the products or the features with real users but trusted their intuition most of the time, testing only among themselves. If you work in the product design world or on UI/UX-related projects, you may already know some methodologies to follow when building a digital product at any level. There's the research part, knowing your users, their needs, painpoints and so on, gathering as much information as possible so your product fits their needs and isn't a waste of time and money.
So, it makes me wonder, if a company such as Apple, can create breakthrough generational products with a huge success without going through what a team of designers and researchers typically does to create a product, should product designers rely more on their intuition rather than making the whole process dependent on lots of information from users? Is Design Thinking or other similar methodologies a little overrated?
I strongly believe that the research part is vital, but still, we should rely more in our sixth sense, because let's not forget that we are also a user, maybe not directly to the product we are designing, but through empathy we must let a bit more to be guided by our intuition.
ON CREATIVE SELECTION
The creative processes in Apple during Steve's reign
I think the first time I came across the cover of this book was on Twitter, now X. A book about the design process at Apple during Steve Jobs's time? I thought, "I'm sold." I went straight to Amazon.com to check it out since I thought there was a low probability of finding this niche book in libraries in my hometown.
As most people who know me are aware, I don't buy a book if its cover doesn't appeal to my aesthetic taste. The cover passed the visual test (sort of), more so with the help of my curiosity to know more about the content.
No doubt, Apple is one of the finest tech companies out there, where the combination of quality, aesthetics, and human-centered products makes them one of, if not the leading company in this sector by huge margins.
Having read Steve Jobs's biography by Walter Isaacson a couple of years back, which I also highly recommend, I wanted to know as much as possible about the day-to-day life in the design sector of Apple. This is especially true if you are a product designer and want to learn from the best.
The book, written by Ken Kocienda, a former Apple software engineer, shares his experiences working on groundbreaking products like the iPhone and the Safari web browser. It delves into the principles and practices that fueled Apple's success, shedding light on the company’s culture of innovation and its relentless pursuit of excellence.s.
Having read Steve Jobs's biography by Walter Isaacson a couple of years back, which I also highly recommend, I wanted to know as much as possible about the day-to-day life in the design sector of Apple. This is especially true if you are a product designer and want to learn from the best.
The book, written by Ken Kocienda, a former Apple software engineer, shares his experiences working on groundbreaking products like the iPhone and the Safari web browser. It delves into the principles and practices that fueled Apple's success, shedding light on the company’s culture of innovation and its relentless pursuit of excellence.
Some of the key themes of the book are:
CREATIVE PROCESS
Kocienda emphasizes the iterative nature of design at Apple. The concept of "Creative Selection," akin to natural selection, highlights how ideas were continuously tested, refined, and either adopted or discarded based on their merit.
PROTOTYPING
The book underscores the importance of building and refining prototypes. Kocienda explains how early, rough versions of products were crucial in shaping the final, polished outcomes.
COLLABORATION
Insight into the collaborative environment at Apple shows how engineers, designers, and other team members worked closely together. The interplay of different perspectives and skills was vital to the success of Apple's products.
ATTENTION TO DETAIL
Kocienda’s narrative reflects Apple’s obsessive attention to detail and the high standards set by Steve Jobs. This meticulousness was a key factor in creating products that were not only functional but also elegant and user-friendly.
* * *
What fascinates me most, is something Ken mentions frequently in this book: they didn't test the products or the features with real users but trusted their intuition most of the time, testing only among themselves. If you work in the product design world or on UI/UX-related projects, you may already know some methodologies to follow when building a digital product at any level. There's the research part, knowing your users, their needs, painpoints and so on, gathering as much information as possible so your product fits their needs and isn't a waste of time and money.
So, it makes me wonder, if a company such as Apple, can create breakthrough generational products with a huge success without going through what a team of designers and researchers typically does to create a product, should product designers rely more on their intuition rather than making the whole process dependent on lots of information from users? Is Design Thinking or other similar methodologies a little overrated?
I strongly believe that the research part is vital, but still, we should rely more in our sixth sense, because let's not forget that we are also a user, maybe not directly to the product we are designing, but through empathy we must let a bit more to be guided by our intuition.
