UI design versus UX design
It is common to hear these two terms associated or used indistinctively, and in some cases, both responsibilities are merged into the same role in a team, which adds to the confusion. While there is some overlapping, as often happens in computer science disciplines, we will focus on the differences for learning purposes:
- UI design is in charge of defining the visual language to represent information and capture user input to interact with the application. It covers the design of visual styles, typography, interactions, colors, sizes, animations, sounds, and so on that make up the interface between humans and computers (software and hardware). This applies to visual mediums (web, mobile, etc.) as well as other types such as natural language interfaces (think of AI assistants such as Siri, Alexa, etc.).
- UX design includes the conditions that affect and guide the UI design but encompasses a broader view focused on the user’s perception of...