Guest Lecture for the Data Visualization class at Ateneo de Manila University. Basic design principles for Computer Science students. For educational purposes only, no copyright infringement intended.

1. 10 PRINCIPLES OF
GOOD DESIGN
DIETER RAMS

2. WHO IS DIETER RAMS?
an influential German
industrial designer famous
for his work at Braun
PosterbyHeyStudio

3. GOOD DESIGN IS
INNOVATIVE
1
The possibilities for innovation are not, by any means, exhausted.
Technological development is always offering new opportunities for
innovative design. But innovative design always develops in tandem
with innovative technology, and can never be an end in itself.

4. Nicholas Feltron
2012 Annual Report

5. GOOD DESIGN MAKES
A PRODUCT USEFUL
2
A product is bought to be used. It has to satisfy certain criteria, not
only functional, but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design
emphasises the usefulness of a product whilst disregarding
anything that could possibly detract from it.

6. Nicholas Feltron
2012 Annual Report
Reporter App

7. GOOD DESIGN IS
AESTHETIC
3
The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness
because products we use every day affect our person and our well-
being. But only well-executed objects can be beautiful.

8. Moritz Stefaner
Stadtbilder is an attempt to map the digital shape of cities.
While traditional maps show us buildings, roads and physical infrastructure, these maps reveal where and in which form the city is alive.
http://stadt-bilder.com/

9. GOOD DESIGN
MAKES A PRODUCT
UNDERSTANDABLE
4
It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the
product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory.

10. Center for Public Integrity
The Center for Public Integrity's “Dark Money Inc.” investigation uncovered more than $173 million in political contributions from about one-
third of the 300 largest companies in the United States to trade associations and other politically active nonprofits and unveiled ways
companies advance their political agendas.
http://www.publicintegrity.org/2014/01/16/14093/follow-corporate-cash-flow-nonprofits

11. GOOD DESIGN IS
UNOBTRUSIVE
5
Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither
decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should
therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the
user’s self-expression.

13. GOOD DESIGN IS
HONEST
6
It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or
valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the
consumer with promises that cannot be kept.

15. GOOD DESIGN IS
LONG-LASTING
7
It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears
antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even
in today’s throwaway society.

16. Harry Beck
Original Tube Map Design 1947
London Transport Authority
Modern Tube Map Design 2014

17. Massimo Vignelli
New York Subway Diagram 1972
Michael Tyznik
Rail Transport in Westeros

18. GOOD DESIGN IS
THOROUGH DOWN
TO THE LAST DETAIL
8
Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in
the design process show respect towards the user.

19. Wittgenstein Centre for Demography and Global Human Capital in Vienna
Global Migration Patterns
http://www.global-migration.info/

20. GOOD DESIGN IS
ENVIRONMENTALLY-
FRIENDLY
9
Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the
environment. It conserves resources and minimises physical and
visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.

21. Wizarts
This visualization was created for the University of Copenhagen. The design relies on simplicity and functionality, combining
the experience of reading the time with the new function of monitoring your building’s energy consumption.
In an attempt to nudge the user towards saving energy, progress towards preset energy saving goals is presented to the user
every time he or she looks at the clock. Also, GPS is used to coordinate access to the energy consumption data.
http://www.wizarts-inc.com/

22. GOOD DESIGN IS
AS LITTLE DESIGN
AS POSSIBLE
10
Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects,
and the products are not burdened with non-essentials.
Back to purity, back to simplicity.

23. schemadesign
Transit Patterns (Urban Data Challenge)
Public transit ridership over the course of 24 hours in 2012. Activity in San Francisco is more evenly spread out, both spatially and over the
course of the day. These insights are useful for city planners and transit authorities, who can see what areas see high and low ridership and
understand what areas are underserved by public transit. Visualizations for Geneva and Zurich are also available.
http://www.schemadesign.com/transitpatterns/