black
grey
blue
red
brown
white

If you are making a chair, the sandpaper can make it smoother. But no amount of sandpaper will turn a chair into a table.

Alan Cooper

We don’t fight about music. We don’t fight about artistic direction.
ALAN COOPER

Artistic Direction Fight Music Think
No matter how beautiful, no matter how cool your interface, it would be better if there were less of it.
ALAN COOPER

Beautiful Better Cool Interface Less Matter
Keep it simple: In general, interfaces should use simple geometric forms, minimal contours, and a restricted color palette comprised primarily of less-saturated or neutral colors balanced with a few high contrast accent colors that emphasize important information.
ALAN COOPER

Balance Color Contour Contrast Form General Geometric High Interface Keep Minimal Palette Restrict Should Simple
I just try and learn to be a good husband and be a good father before I am a good rock star. That means saying no to certain things that go with the business.
ALAN COOPER

Before Business Certain Father Good Husband Just Learn Rock Star Thing Try
There’s only one thing you can use against pure logic, and that’s common sense.
ALAN COOPER

Against Common Logic One Only Pure Sense Thing
In other words, humans have special instincts that tell them how to behave around other sentient beings.
ALAN COOPER

Around Begin Behave Human Instinct Other Sentient Special Tell Word
Run for your lives-the computers are invading. Awesomely powerful computers tackling ever more important tasks with awkward, old-fashioned interfaces.
ALAN COOPER

Computer Invade Life Live Run
If your persona has goals and the product has magical powers to meet them, how simple could the interaction be? This kind of thinking is useful to help designers look outside the box.
ALAN COOPER

Box Designer Goal Help Magical Person Power Simply Think Useful
As these machines leak into every corner of our lives, they will annoy us, infuriate us, and even kill a few of us.
ALAN COOPER

Annoy Corner Even Every Few Infuriate Kill Live Machine
In turn, we will be tempted to kill our computers, but we won’t dare because we are already utterly, irreversibly dependent on these hopeful monsters that make modern life possible.
ALAN COOPER

Computer Dependent Hopeful Irreversible Kill Life Modern Monster Possible
I’m an ‘evolve or die’ kind of a musician. I think it’s cool to try new things.
ALAN COOPER

Cool Die Evolve Kind Musician New Thing Try
It has also been said that the software industry is an example of midgets standing on the toes of other midgets.
ALAN COOPER

Industry Midget Software Stand Toe
Men do not greet one another like this … except perhaps at rugby club dinners.
ALAN COOPER

Another Club Dinner Except Geet Men One Perhaps Rugby
It has been said that the great scientific disciplines are examples of giants standing on the shoulders of other giants.
ALAN COOPER

Discipline Example Geat Giant Other Scientific Shoulder Stand
Define what the product will do before you design how the product will do it.
ALAN COOPER

Before Define Design Product
To scenes by memory’s silver chain Close-linked, and ever yet apart, That like the vine, whose tendrils young Around some fostering branch have clung, Grown with its growth, as tho’ it sprung From one united heart.
ALAN COOPER

Around Branch Foster Memory Scene Silver Sprung Tendril Until Vine Young

If you are making a chair, the sandpaper can make it smoother. But no amount of sandpaper will turn a chair into a table.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

If you are making a chair, the sandpaper can make it smoother. But no amount of sandpaper will turn a chair into a table.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Alan Cooper Quotes