UI and UX Optimization · Design decisions · Component

The decision

What was chosen — recorded so a later change knows what it is changing.

The deliverable

What it is

Interfaces accumulate decisions. Each is visible in the result and none of them explains itself, which makes every later change partly a guess.

A one-line record per non-obvious decision is enough and takes less time than the discussion that produced it.

One level in

What it is made of

Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.

  1. The choice

    What was decided.

    3 attributes: Decision · Date · Decided by

    Learn
  2. The alternatives

    What else was considered.

    3 attributes: Alternative · Why not · Obvious

    Learn
  3. The scope

    Where the decision applies.

    3 attributes: Scope · Places affected · Pattern

    Learn

Record the obvious alternative and why it was rejected. That is what a later designer will propose.