In brief: UI is the user interface: the visible, interactive elements through which a person communicates with a website, application, or device.
How I use UI (User Interface) in practice
I assess UI (User Interface) in the context of the whole page. The heading, copy, controls, speed, and feedback must together explain what can be done and what will happen next. I first fix obstacles that prevent the task from being completed; decoration and effects come only after the fundamentals work.
What to watch out for
A component is not complete merely because it works with a mouse. With UI (User Interface), I check the keyboard, contrast, zoom, screen reader, slow network, and no-script state. Accessibility and performance are not add-ons; they are part of the same experience.
Questions for decision-making
- What task does a person want to complete on the page?
- Where could they hesitate, make a mistake, or lose context?
- Does the solution work on mobile, with a keyboard, and on a slow network?
- What signal will show that the change really helped?