In the tech industry, Apple is infamous among programmers — or more accurately, to developers who are newcomers to the Mac or iPhone — for the tall stack of detailed guidelines (aka rules) on how applications should look and feel and behave. Some of the iPad’s guidelines were revealed recently.
UX magazine offered the list along with a short paragraph for each item, making sure we all saw the note that this is copyrighted material from Cupertino.
Here’s the bullet points in order
* Support All Orientations
* Enhance Interactivity (Don’t Just Add Features)
* Flatten Your Information Hierarchy
* Reduce Full-Screen Transitions
* Enable Collaboration and Connectedness
* Add Physicality and Heightened Realism
* Delight People with Stunning Graphics
* De-emphasize User Interface Controls
* Minimize Modality
* Rethink Your Lists
* Consider Multifinger Gestures
* Consider Popovers for Some Modal Tasks
* Restrict Complexity in Modal Tasks
* Downplay File-Handling Operations
* Ask People to Save Only When Necessary
* Start Instantly
* Always Be Prepared to Stop
This list is very interesting and no doubt some of the guidelines will cause consternation among iPhone/iTouch appmakers who just want to port their apps up to the new platform. There is a lot to consider here.
Apple appears to suggest iPad users should be presented with a clean, focused application without a lot of buttons or controls. At the same time, the guidelines seek to avoid modality. This balancing act may be tricky for developers.
Enhance Interactivity (Don’t Just Add Features)
The best iPad applications give people innovative ways to interact with content while they perform a clearly defined, finite task. Resist the temptation to fill the large screen with features that are not directly related to the main task. In particular, you should not view the large iPad screen as an invitation to bring back all the functionality you pruned from your iPhone application.De-emphasize User Interface Controls
Help people focus on the content by designing your application UI as a subtle frame for the information they’re interested in. Downplay application controls by minimizing their number and prominence. Consider creating custom controls that subtly integrate with your application’s graphical style. In this way, controls are discoverable, but not too conspicuous.Minimize Modality
iPad applications should allow people to interact with them in nonlinear ways. Modality prevents this freedom by interrupting people’s workflow and forcing them to choose a particular path.
In addition, Apple wants developers to avoid swapping out the screen, something they do all the time on the iPhone with its limited screen real estate. It suggests to only update the areas of the screen that need updating. The guidelines advise that with fewer full-screen transitions “your application has greater visual stability, which helps people keep track of where they are in their task.”
I was intrigued by the notation about the iPad being used by several persons, giving a new meaning to multifinger gestures.
Consider Multifinger Gestures
The large iPad screen provides great scope for multifinger gestures, including gestures made by more than one person.
David Chartier at Agile Web Solutions, the maker iPassword, posted a look at mockups of its forthcoming iPad version.
Check out those gorgeous icons, the item list with alphabet scroller, and the stylish bolts that really bring the item detail area together. And yes, we have popovers! I told you we’re hitting the iPad in a big way.
If you want a look at some of Apple’s UI for the iPad, developer Fraiser Speirs posted a gallery on his Flickr page.
