Quotes About Utility

the subjective theory of value

The difference 'twixt poet and coxcomb is precisely that the latter stops gaps like a ship fitter caulking seams, merely to keep the boat afloat, while the former doth his work as doth a man with a maid: he fills the gap, but with vigor, finesse, and care; there's beauty and delight as well as utility in his plugging

I don't care if you hate me now, I already know you only treat me nice when you think I am useful to you.

Design must be functional and functionality must be translated into visual aesthetics, without any reliance on gimmicks that have to be explained.

Simplicity is somehow essentially describing the purpose and place of an object and product.

The architect should strive continually to simplify; the ensemble of the rooms should then be carefully considered that comfort and utility may go hand in hand with beauty.

The best design is the simplest one that works.

Design has to work. Art does not.

Design is art that people use.

The principal and only way to make an heirloom product is to design something that people will need not just this year, but for the next 50 or 100 years.

Design exists to serve some purpose.

A chair is the first thing you need when you don't really need anything, and is therefore a peculiarly compelling symbol of civilization. For it is civilization, not survival, that requires design.

Web users ultimately want to get at data quickly and easily. They don't care as much about attractive sites and pretty design.

If you want a golden rule that will fit everybody, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.

Usable designs are not necessarily enjoyable to use.

In the 1980s, in writing The Design of Everyday Things, I didn't take emotions into account. I addressed utility and usability, function and form, all in a logical, dispassionate way—even though I am infuriated by poorly designed objects. But now I've changed. Why? In part because of new scientific advances in our understanding of the brain and of how emotion and cognition are thoroughly intertwined.

A conceptual model is an explanation, usually highly simplified, of how something works. It doesn't have to be complete or even accurate as long as it is useful.

your product will help save your customer time or money, you want to say so. Avoid elusive language like "fulfilling" or "satisfied" and instead use specific language like "you'll save time this summer" or "your lawn will make your neighbors jealous.

Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.

The book, like the bicycle, is a perfect form.

La atracción por la utilidad es tan irresistible, que vemos personas dispuestas a todo por el placer de dar sus comodidades a quienes se les metió en la cabeza que no podrían vivir sin su auxilio.

Possessions are mere transient effects that come when they are required, and after their purpose has been served, pass away.

[U]sefulness is happiness, and... all other things are but incidental.

Tomlinson had already written an E-mail utility for Tenex, BBN's new time-shared operating system for the PDP-10, and had also begun to experiment with a new version of the Arpanet's file-transfer protocol. So putting the two together seemed a natural step.