Qualities of Design: It Works and It’s Durable

Published on Oct 13, 2007 (updated Sep 23, 2022), filed under design (feed). (Share this on Mastodon or Bluesky?)

Attempting to improve my simplified definition of design—“design reveals”—I’d like to point out another important attribute beside functionality, namely durability (or robustness). This means that a design—be it physical or intangible—that works may nonetheless be bad if it breaks quickly or needs frequent updating.

We just need to think of an iPod, a product that is usually considered well-designed, and imagine it broke after a few weeks. Or something industrially designed, an excavator for instance, that doesn’t make 100 miles. Or a website that is communicating clearly and converting well but written so poorly that it needs to be refactored each time a new feature is added. Good design, and yet still not good because not robust.

The simplified definition appears to work, and this “extended definition” seems to complement it nicely. Although, almost any definition that filters out decoration may work better than popular readings of design.

About Me

I’m Jens (long: Jens Oliver Meiert), and I’m a web developer, manager, and author. I’ve worked as a technical lead and engineering manager for small and large enterprises, I’m an occasional contributor to web standards (like HTML, CSS, WCAG), and I write and review books for O’Reilly and Frontend Dogma.

I love trying things, not only in web development and engineering management, but also in other areas like philosophy. Here on meiert.com I share some of my experiences and views. (I value you being critical, interpreting charitably, and giving feedback.)