Peace Out Clutter!

Clutter, clutter, clutter…Clutter is everywhere. It’s in rooms, cars, houses, and even people’s writing styles. For class this week, we were assigned to read two more chapters of Krug and a chapter of Reddish. However, since the final chapter of Krug and the chapter of Reddish aren’t uploaded yet, this post will be a little shorter and focus just on Krug’s chapter 5 from his book, Don’t Make Me Think, “Omit Needless Words,” which you guessed it, focuses on clutter.

In this chapter of Krug, he focuses on keeping things simple. He stresses the idea that we should reduce the clutter that is on the page, and by doing this we are making it easier for the viewer to use the site more accurately. They are able to actually read the page as opposed to skimming it and they are able to see and understand the information hierarchies.

Another idea Krug mentions is “happy talk.” This is essentially introductory talking that warms the reader up to the material you are going to be giving them. I have done this in about half of my blog posts but don’t always depending on whether or not I think it is needed. According to Krug, “happy talk” is not actually that beneficial to the reader and adds clutter to the page.

Along with making “happy talk die,” Krug also discusses how instructions are not necessary because everything should be self-explanatory enough for the reader to figure out the information on their own. This idea is something I personally agree with. If the purpose of the product is targeted around the idea that it’s something people need and should use, why is it always so complicated to first figure out? This is Krug’s point, and he goes on to say that a small blurb about the product or what is does is more than enough to help the user use this self- explanatory product.

I really liked Krug and all the readings we have had from him. This is unfortunately my last post and some of the information he discusses is information I had wish I knew going into my blog so it would be even better. However, I hope you have enjoyed reading my blog as much as I enjoyed writing it! So long friends, it’s been real!