NI Design Tenets
Design tenets for LabVIEW and National Instruments software, balancing respect for existing workflows with contemporary design and user efficiency.
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Respect the History
Change familiar patterns only when doing so is a clear improvement. Aim for migration, not just parity with previous versions.
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Stay Trustworthy
NI users can process complex information. Build trust through accuracy and appropriate complexity—avoid oversimplification that causes frustration.
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Direct Focus
Don’t obscure the workspace. Elevate essential aspects and defer to the user’s content, which should always be clear and readable.
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Be Cautious When Assuming User Intent
Users need to feel in control. The frustration of fighting unwanted automation far exceeds the effort of doing a task manually.
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Promote Confidence
Exploration depends on users predicting behaviour and trusting the experience is error-tolerant. Use consistent patterns and clear visual cues.
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Progressive Disclosure
Reduce cognitive load by revealing complexity gradually. Help novices focus on priorities; save experts time scanning rarely-used features.
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Encourage Direct Manipulation
Let users interact with objects directly for non-repeated tasks. It promotes rapid learning and makes actions easier to understand.
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Provide Batch Operations, and Promote Property Inheritance
When objects are out of sight or actions span multiple items, provide a single place to apply settings rather than requiring direct manipulation.
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Provide the Appropriate Level of "Scrappiness"
Allow non-linear workflows from multiple starting points, unless users might be overwhelmed or need guided, step-by-step progress.