Occam's Razor?
18 Sep
I recently read about some designers who adhere to Occam’s Razor as a key principle by which they develop web sites. You can click the link to see a definition in Wikipedia, but essentially it refers to the “law of succinctness.”
In web development, this means if there are two possible ways to solve a problem, the lesser complicated solution always wins.
Hmmm… I’m not sure I completely agree. Don’t get me wrong–I don’t advocate needlessly complicating projects. However, I do subscribe to another theory that may contradict Occam’s razor from time to time. Call it “Wendy’s Usability Check” if you like, but it goes something like this: Nine times out of 10, something that makes the designer’s life easier ends up making the user’s life more difficult.
I’m not even sure where I first heard that phrase, but it was enough years ago to become a part of virtually every project I encounter. My point is this… if Occam’s razor tells me to select the least complicated method of developing a site, that should mean I’ve selected the method of site development to ultimately make the user’s life less complicated (regardless of whether it affects mine). What do you think?
