Designing Design Tools
When it comes to designing software for digital content creation, traditional user-centered design methods often fall short. The domain of non-linear complex software in general requires a distinct kind of software design and UX, as evidenced (among other places) by Barbra Mirel's seminal book, Interaction Design for Complex Problem Solving: Developing Useful and Usable Software.
If you're trying to add automation to complicated human enterprise, then your software cannot dodge this complexity, all it can do is control it.
Martin Fowler - Domain Driven Design
The Complex Nature of Creative Work​
Complexity is often viewed as undesirable in application design. Yet, what happens when the inherent nature of the task, say authoring a song, 3d character rigging, visualising data sets or illustrating posters, demands it? When this is the case, all you can do to remove complexity is to remove utility which is self-defeating as users need to do their work, and if your users can't do their work, they can't use your software. This is our challenge. To recognise that complexity doesn't equate to difficulty. To envision systems that, while fully featured, remain intuitive, empowering, and efficient
Why a Guide Like This is Needed​
Unlike general UX, designing for creative software is a specialized skill set. The work involves balancing rich functionality with seamless user experience, a combination rarely needed in consumer apps. Inspired by Barbara Mirel’s perspectives on complex problem solving, this guide serves as a toolkit for understanding how to align the software’s design with the nuanced workflows of artists, designers, and other content creators. It’s not about removing every obstacle but supporting the journey of creation, iteration, and refinement.
What We'll Cover​
Topics we’ll cover include how to intentionally design a conceptual base for your software which will serve as a ground truth for developers, designers, documentation and testing, ensuring a shared vision and fixing a plethora of issues before they can even appear. We’ll also look into the importance of balancing complexity in an interface along with both high level and low level interface design considerations. After this we’ll move onto designing workflows for complex tasks, the importance of context and designing useful and efficient information architecture. Finally we’ll take a deep dive into how you can test usability in DCCs, we’ll cover the best technique to use if you want the outcome to be a list of defects, and the best framework to use if your desired outcome is an evaluation of past design decisions that you can use to level up your design game moving forward.
Building a Platform for Creativity​
Drawing from my extensive experience designing complex software for the TV and film industry, along with insights from respected figures in product design like Barbara Mirel, Jeff Johnson, Daniel Jackson, and others, I hope this guide offers a comprehensive guide to navigating the world of DCC design for designers, product managers and developers alike.