HIERARCHY
Just some extra research to get to grips with Hierarchy.
'A hierarchy (Greek: hierarchia (ἱεραρχία), from hierarchies, "leader of sacred rites") is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) in which the items are represented as being "above," "below," or "at the same level as" one another. Abstractly, a hierarchy is simply anordered set or an acyclic directed graph.
A hierarchy (sometimes abbreviated HR) can link entities either directly or indirectly, and either vertically or horizontally. The only direct links in a hierarchy, insofar as they are hierarchical, are to one's immediate superior or to one of one's subordinates, although a system that is largely hierarchical can also incorporate alternative hierarchies. Indirect hierarchical links can extend "vertically" upwards or downwards via multiple links in the same direction, following a path. All parts of the hierarchy which are not linked vertically to one another nevertheless can be "horizontally" linked through a path by traveling up the hierarchy to find a common direct or indirect superior, and then down again. This is akin to two co-workers or colleagues; each reports to a common superior, but they have the same relative amount of authority. Organizational forms exist that are both alternative and complimentary to hierarchy. Heterarchy (sometimes abbreviated HT) is one such form....' - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hierarchy
Designing For A Hierarchy Of Needs
Is this true? Or could a design that’s hard to use still succeed because it makes users more proficient or meets certain creative needs? Do you have to get all of the low-level needs exactly right before considering higher-level needs? To answer these questions, let’s start by looking at Maslow’s hierarchy...'- smashingmagazine.com/2010/04/26/designing-for-a-hierarchy-of-needs/
Functionality
A design must be able to function before anything else. An MP3 player needs to be able to play, pause, rewind and fast-forward MP3 and other digital audio files in order to be considered an MP3 player. If it can’t perform these functions, then the design has failed.
Number of features is another story. Even though one MP3 player can pull in album cover art, others don’t necessarily have to. But if most MP3 players can do this, then yours will need to as well. What defines which features are required? The product itself? The designer? The market?
Designs that meet only basic functionality needs are considered to be of little to no value. A design is expected to meet basic functionality needs; doing so isn’t considered anything special.
Characteristics of a website that meets functionality needs might be pages that load in a reasonable amount of time, working links and pages that respond to basic browser buttons like “Back” and “Forward.”
Reliability
Once your design has met functional needs, it can move up to the next level in the design hierarchy: reliability. Your design should now offer stable and consistent performance. It not only works, but works again and again.
If your MP3 player sometimes plays and sometimes doesn’t, then it has failed to meet reliability needs. If it always plays but does it erratically (skipping here and there, slowing down and speeding up at times), then it has also failed to meet reliability needs.
Designs that meet only reliability needs are perceived to be of low value. Again, we expect the products that we buy to work and to work consistently.
A reliable website functions consistently. What worked yesterday should work today. When new pages and sections are added, they function just as well as existing pages and sections.
Usability
How easily can users accomplish basic tasks? Can the person with the MP3 player easily figure out how to turn it on and off? What about how to play, stop, pause and select a song? These are usability needs. Your design now works consistently. The question is, can people figure out how to use it?
In addition to being easy to use, is your design forgiving? Pressing the wrong button shouldn’t delete all of the songs on your MP3 player. Consequences for simple mistakes shouldn’t be dire. If a slip of the finger deletes all music, then the MP3 player has failed to be usable.
Usable designs are perceived to be of moderate value. We do have some basic expectations of usability, but we recognize that many things don’t quite work as we expect or would like. A usable design partly distinguishes your website from those on lower levels.
A usable website has a navigation system that is easy to understand and use, an organization that makes content easy to browse, readable text, and a layout in which orienting oneself is straightforward.
Proficiency
Does your design empower people to do more and to do better? Does the MP3 player allow you to build playlists and easily search through songs? Does it provide an easy mechanism for downloading songs from the Internet and transferring them to and from other devices?
These are proficiency needs. It is not imperative that your MP3 player makes recommendations of new songs based on your favorites, but it is desirable and would improve the design considerably.
Designs regarded as proficient are perceived to function at a high level. A design that allows people to do things not previously possible and to expand on basic functionality is considered to be great.
A proficient website might include advanced search options, the ability to combine data from different sources into more sophisticated levels of information and Web-based tools.
Creativity
Once all of the lower-level needs have been met, your design can move on to creative needs. With these met, your design can now interact with people in innovative ways. The design can explore and create things that expand on the product itself.
Perhaps your MP3 player teaches music theory by making recommendations based on the musical structure of the songs you listen to most, and it provides chord charts and notes that play visually in time with the audio. Your MP3 player might allow custom skins or allow you to combine parts of songs to create new music. Your MP3 player might be the most beautiful one on the market.
Designs that meet creative needs are perceived to be of the highest level. They generate a loyal fan base. If you’re confounded by Apple’s success, wonder no longer. It satisfies creative design needs.
A creative website might include AJAX effects, aesthetic appeal and interaction through voice commands.
Criticism of the Design Hierarchy
The same criticism applied to Maslow’s hierarchy could be applied to the design hierarchy. Does a design have to be reliable before it can be usable? Can’t you meet both at the same time? Could your design satisfy proficiency needs for advanced users while not being the most usable for beginners?
Do we really have to get everything right at one level before committing resources to higher levels? Will a market tolerate a product that fails for no reason 10% of the time if it does everything beyond expectations the other 90%?
Again, while the hierarchy intuitively makes sense, the needs and desires of the market will likely determine what is most critical to improve in the hierarchy.
Anatomy of type-- I just had another look into this to remind myself
- Ascender - The part of some lowercase letters (such as b, h or d) which ascends above than the x-height.
- Descender - The part of some lowercase letters (such as y, p or q) that descends below the baseline. In some typefaces, even uppercase letters like J or Q may descend below the baseline.
- Terminal - Not a serif but a curved stroke usually apparent on the tail or stem of some letters (such as j, y, r and a)
- Stem - The main vertical stroke(s) of a letter (most evident in I and H)
- Two-story character - Letter that has two counterspaces where one is above the other.
- Serif - Small, finishing strokes on the arms, stems and tails of characters. Traditionally, Serif typefaces are considered better for large volumes of text because the serifs make it easier for eye to move along, horizontally.
- Apex - The uppermost point of a character where the vertical strokes meet. There are different apex types such as rounded, pointed, hallow, flat and extended.
- Bar (Crossbar) - Horizontal stroke or arm thatconnect two stems (as in H or A)
- Arm - Unattached horizontal stroke (as in F or E) The sloping stroke in the letter K would also be considered an arm.
- Counter - The enclosed (or partially enclosed) space within letters such as c, e, S, H or g.
- Bowl - The enclosed oval or round curve of letterslike D, g, b, and o. In contrast to a closed-bowl, an open bowl's stroke does not meet with the stem completely.
- Ear - Small finishing stroke that projects from the upper right side of the bowl (as in many versions of the lowercase g)
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