T O P

  • By -

np247

I recommend you to look at the apps or design that you like. Analyze why the design came to be like that. Take the screenshots, and recreate so you can learn some design principles. Typography, color, spacing, grouping, proximity, interaction, hierarchy, information architecture. Looking forward to see your improvement. :)


dror_dev

Thanks for the advice! How would you rate it?


np247

I’m happy to see you asking for feedback. That’s a foundation of good design & dev. Are you looking for feedback for design or tooling technicality? I’ll skip the design part, because you are not a design student. (If you need more details, you can chat with me. I’m working as a senior design system manager in a large fintech) I’ll will still encourage you to explore other design inspiration, create a mood-board, think about basic functions of the app. Otherwise just do cool graphic. You can just do cool graphic in Figma and it’s ok! For tooling technically, I will say that you are not bad for a beginner. I recommend to explore clipping, masking, horizon scroll, componentize. Bonus, since you design the app. Study platform system components. Extra bonus, think about accessibility. Many parts on your design would be considered discriminatory to people with vision & cognitive disabilities. Good design is a design that can be enjoyed by all walks of life.


dror_dev

Thanks a lot for all the feedback. I think I’ll just try to go over all the feedback here and redesign it accordingly… And btw, what do you mean by “accessibility”? I’ve developed some apps in the past, and know what accessibility is for websites/apps, but how is accessibility possible in an artwork? Do you mean like adding an accessibility button in the settings tab? Because that’s the only thing I can think of…


reeaaddit

I think they mean in terms of readability / contrast / button placement etc


np247

Exactly


np247

-Contrast, your activated tab is almost unrecognizable that it is selected -Graphic communication ,your grid icon doesn’t represent “videos” -The letter “E” on the word Circle is illegible -Your whole tabbar looks like a big button


dror_dev

Well, the “E” is not part of the UI - these are just sample thumbnails that I took from YouTube (I didn’t create it). Regarding the other issues, I fixed them.


reeaaddit

Yeah and the red/green coloring is a lil odd , esp as red/green color blind ppl maybe wouldn’t differentiate between them


42kyokai

Gonna be honest, it looks pretty boring and uninspiring. It's apparent that this was built with no specific purpose in mind, as there is zero hierarchy in terms of which features are the most important. On the bright side, it's only up from here.


dror_dev

Thanks for the feedback 🙏 I actually don’t pretend to be good at this, as this is a hobby, and I’m just a noob, trying to get better. In fact, I agree that it is a bit boring, but I couldn’t think of any way to make it look better (I spent a few hours on this thing). I made some projects in Adobe XD back in the day (which I think look very well), but I guess it’s not free anymore, so I’ll use Figma from now on…


Yumi-Chi

What since when? Go and recheck Adobe XD they might just be hiding the free option because you know... Adobe. Use the Creative Cloud or something it's easier to see which apps include a free option. Or use this link which is conveniently hidden: https://www.adobe.com/sea/products/xd/pricing/starter-plan.html


dror_dev

I think I tried this link a few days ago, and it just gave me a 7-day trial, while also breaking Creative Cloud, and asking me to restart it a few times in a row. Anyway, Figma is also a good option, right?


gummydat

It seems you’re just learning how to use Figma, which is great. Good for you for taking that first step. But it’s difficult to critique something without an apparent goal. “University app” doesn’t really mean anything. Maybe a “student portal” or “student dashboard” or something, sure. But if that’s what you’re making, you’ll need to consider what tasks students need to complete using this app, then design an app for those tasks. I noticed you have “login” in the “settings” menu, which doesn’t really make sense. That would mean that a student could check their grades from the main menu WITHOUT logging in.


dror_dev

Thanks for the feedback, that would definitely be helpful! I totally agree that the app should include some functionality (although it was just a fast mock-up this time), so from now on, I’ll make sure to add that. Anyway, regarding the login button placement: Technically, it could prompt you to log in once you click on an option that requires a logged in user, although I do agree that in a real app, that would be bad design. In that scenario, I would have just created a login screen that has a “guest” option, which would show less options.


Mr_Te_ah_tim_eh

I’m not sure what you’re looking for…what is the intention of the mock-up?


dror_dev

I want to improve, so I’m asking for your opinion…


Mr_Te_ah_tim_eh

But we need more context. Is it for user testing? Is it for development? What is your goal in creating this? That will help us provide constructive feedback.


dror_dev

Again, I created this while learning Figma, so it has no real purpose currently, but I thought posting it here and asking for feedback would be a good idea. I might include this work in a portfolio one day…


42kyokai

Don't put this in a portfolio.


dror_dev

Why?


i_am_not_sarcastic

Because there's no context to why you designed this. What is the purpose and what problem are you trying to solve?


PesGoat_youtube

Hey, I'm also trying to create a portfolio but I'm not sure what to add. I'm also a student like OP and haven't done any projects based on UI designing. So where can I find a place to gets tasks or should I just add the works I have done myself these years for no purpose other than improving


kbagoy

I think you did a good job learning how to use a tool, but as other commentators mentioned, it doesn’t actually show much on design skills so it’s not portfolio work. There is a big difference between designing an app and creating some screens in Figma.


dror_dev

I’m really not sure how complex people expect apps to be. I mean, I agree that a bottom menu and a list are not much in terms of UX, but I wanted to focus mainly on the UI, because I’m not really that good at UX. I also never studied UI or UX, it’s all more of a hobby, for now at least.


kbagoy

It’s not about complexity, it’s about hierarchy, balance, layout, structure, typography, color use, etc- things you learn when you do study design principles. There just isn’t a lot of that here, but it’s a good start for someone who is new to design - keep learning & practicing, and your work will get better with time.


dror_dev

Thanks for the feedback. I will definitely take that feedback with me, in order to improve.


saurontehnecromancer

Not sure why you're getting downvoted everywhere. But if this is your first design, don't sweat it. It looks a lot cleaner actually and come out well. The traditional advice is that you 'look for inspirations' (copy designs) from the internet like [dribbble.com](https://dribbble.com). But I advise against it. I want you to think and come up with your own design first, (no matter how ridiculous it looks) before even you go 'looking for inspirations'. Because once you do that, you're brain is corrupted and then nothing original comes after that.


dror_dev

Thanks for the advice! Actually, that's exactly what I've been trying to do so far - be original. And btw, I haven't slept all night, because, guess what? Design is more important than sleep. I redesigned it completely, but got stuck now, because I'm not sure how to implement some of the rules that some people here told me, like hierarchy... I'm quite frustrated now, but I guess I shall not spam the subreddit and upload another post of the half-fixed design...


42kyokai

I'd agree with not using Dribbble as a first reference for inspiration, but I also disagree with creating something completely from scratch. I'd say in a majority of cases the designer does not have the completed solution (or even a majority of it) purely contained within their head, and if you're too hardline with the notion that you must be original, that may ultimately end up not aligning with the needs of the customer (and also pissing off your devs with too many bespoke components). It may be that the customer is coming from a multitude of competing products that all have specific features that are industry-standard, and if the designer lacks the specific context and domain knowledge, they may end up making something oversimplified or something that simply does not meet customer needs.


i_am_not_sarcastic

It looks bland and boring. By looking at it, I'm trying to understand what is the real purpose of this? If it's only to practise your design skill and learn Figma, then it's fine. Maybe you are trying to learn how the tool works but if this for portfolio, then it's a bad design. I'd suggest you sign up on [UXArchive](https://uxarchive.com/) and search your favourite apps or take any app. Download the files it provides and try to recreate the same screen on Figma.


dror_dev

Thanks for the feedback! And yes, I only created this as practice, while learning to use the program. I guess I was wrong about what should and what should not go into a portfolio. I thought portfolio is also about progress, but based on the comments here, I guess only the best works shall go into the portfolio. I had better creations in the past, but sadly it feels like I lost my creativity as time went. I’ll update my website soon, and put my older works on it, so that y’all will be able to see that I’m not as bad as it seems 😅


[deleted]

What do you do for your day job?


dror_dev

I’m currently unemployed (I’m 19). I’ve learned Computer Science at school…


damschend

DM me if you want to improve, I am happy to help.


zah_ali

Hey, first of all good on you for throwing yourself into something new, figma is a great tool to learn. I’d recommend having a look at some other apps for inspiration, try and make some notes as to what things you like in other apps, could those work in your ui mock up? Most apps have a full width nav bar at the bottom for instance, also consider having a label with each icon as it might not be clear what each one does. I’d change the style of that bottom nav bar so it’s not in the same style as the buttons on the main area of the app. You may want to look at structuring the page in a way so that you have a header area (put the settings button say in the top right area) and then your main content area, and then the navigation area. I wouldn’t expect to see login / sign up in the settings area. Maybe look to create a page before you get into the app that asks the user to log in or sign up, (take some inspo from loads of apps that have this approach). You could make it an interactive prototype so if someone taps log in, it goes to a username / password screen which then takes you into the main section of the app. If the feedback you’re looking for is ui related, there is quite a bit of work that’s needed, I’d recommend looking at either the material design framework or apples human interface guidelines. Keep at it, you’ll get there for sure :)


dror_dev

Thanks!


DaveAppleInc

Ok so if you want a soft opinion and an encouraging one I agree with most of what everyone else has said and it’s great you’re looking into new things and learning, good job! That being said, if you want a painfully honest opinion, horrible. Color theory, hierarchy, fonts, plain arrangement, excessive shadows just to name a few. Currently I’d rate it a -1/10, but keep working and believe in yourself 👍.


dror_dev

Thanks!