User Experience

The sum of the experience a user has as a result of their interaction with a product or service.

Function Look Feel
Designing a great user experience means having a deep understanding of the underlying technology of whatever it is that you're designing for. Sometimes it means getting your hands dirty and spending time mastering a system before even beginning to think about other facets. Ultimately, when a system looks good but lacks in function, this frustrates us all as users and doesn't provide for a good user experience. The look of an interface defines the first thing that the user experiences when they interact with a system. It is the outward representation of its inner workings. Molding a look to provide for a great user experience is more than applying subtle gradients and rounded corners. A look must fit its purpose and functionality. It must be aesthetic, intuitive and meld into its environment. You can't have a great user experience without a great look. Feel can either be something physical, like touch, or something internal. After all, what do we mean when we say that a user interface feels right? It's not enough for an interface to be easy to use, it must also be exactly what we as humans expect. Many systems today are built to make their users adapt to the system. This doesn't provide for a good user experience and these systems do not have a good feel to them.