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Michael Gaigg
@michaelgaigg.bsky.social
350 followers 340 following 330 posts
Group UI Engineer Manager & UX/UI Tech Center Lead at #Esri • Author • Speaker • Doer • Husband • Dad • Soccer coach • #UX #UI #Apps #Maps #Design #California #Austria
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michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Michael Gaigg @michaelgaigg.bsky.social · Oct 7
VERY excited to announce the release of my latest book "The Hitchhiker's Guide to Design" - a witty field guide to the world of #UX methaphors. It's part reference, part survival guide, a LOT of FUN, and a must-have for designers and product folks. #Design #books #DontPanic
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Hicks Law: cluttered interfaces and excessive options slow users down.
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/hicks-l...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
36 • Hick’s Law - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Hick’s Law describes how the time it takes a user to decide increases with the number (and complexity) of choices presented. In UX, it’s a reminder that clut...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:16 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Recency Bias: End strong, that’s what users remember.
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/recency...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
35 • Recency Bias - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Recency bias is the tendency for people to weigh the most recent information or experience more heavily than earlier ones, sometimes even disproportionately....
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:29 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Really? $145 for parking at the FIFA World Cup 2026? Do we agree?
November 11, 2025 at 1:22 AM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Primacy Bias: First impressions count, design them well.
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/primacy...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
34 • Primacy Bias - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Primacy bias describes how people tend to remember and be influenced more by the first items in a sequence than by those that come later. In UX, it shows up ...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:59 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Don't rely on the first piece of information you see #AnchoringBias
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/anchori...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
33 • Anchoring Bias - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Anchoring bias happens when people rely too heavily on the first piece of information they see, the “anchor”, when making decisions. In UX, it shows up when ...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:59 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Friends, also follow me on x.com/MichaelGaigg
Michael Gaigg (@MichaelGaigg) / X
Michael Gaigg (@MichaelGaigg) / X
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November 6, 2025 at 9:14 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Confirmation Bias: Seek disproof, not just validation
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/confirm...
#bias #UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
32 • Confirmation Bias - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Confirmation bias is the tendency to favor information that confirms what we already believe, while ignoring or discounting evidence that challenges our assu...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 6, 2025 at 9:13 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Sunk cost fallacy: Realize when something just isn't working.
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/sunk-co...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
31 • Sunk Cost Fallacy - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Sunk cost fallacy is the tendency to keep investing time, effort, or money into something, just because you’ve already invested so much, even when it’s clear...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 5, 2025 at 4:00 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Fix the cracks, users notice the small stuff. #BrokenWindowsUX
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/broken-... #UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
30 • Broken Windows UX - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Broken Windows UX happens when small, visible flaws in an interface, like typos, misaligned elements, or inconsistent colors, create a perception that the en...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 4, 2025 at 4:00 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Are you ruled by the Highest Paid Person’s Opinion? Learn strategies on how to avoid the #HiPPO
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/hippo/
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
29 • HiPPO - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
HiPPO stands for Highest Paid Person’s Opinion. It describes the all-too-common situation where decisions about design, product, or strategy are driven not b...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
November 3, 2025 at 10:20 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Test before you launch, send in the cavalry (eh, canary). #CanaryRelease
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/canary-...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
28 • Canary Release - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
A canary release is a deployment strategy where you roll out a new feature or version to a small subset of users first, like sending a canary into a coal min...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:35 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
UX Theater = Design Thinking without impact.
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/ux-thea...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #books #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor #DesignThinking
27 • UX Theater - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
UX Theater is when a team goes through the motions of doing user experience work, but without improving the experience. It’s the performance of design thinki...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 30, 2025 at 3:21 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
#AI is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get. Right or wrong?
October 29, 2025 at 4:20 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
#Design isn't a #UX potluck, avoid #DesignByCommittee
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/design-... #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
26 • Design by Committee - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
“Design by committee” happens when too many voices get equal weight in the design process, and instead of a clear vision, you end up with a safe, bland compr...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:13 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Remember that not everyone thinks like you. #FalseConsensusEffect
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/false-c...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
25 • False Consensus Effect - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
The false consensus effect is the tendency to assume that others share your opinions, beliefs, and preferences more than they do. In UX research, it shows up...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 28, 2025 at 3:21 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
I saw those the other day. Great reminder that good #GraphicDesign requires time and effort (and costs money). #design
October 28, 2025 at 5:15 AM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Errors happen, design for them #SadPath
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/sad-path/
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
24 • Sad Path - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
A sad path is the scenario where something goes wrong in a user’s journey, whether it’s an error, invalid input, unexpected behavior, or a dead end. In UX, d...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 27, 2025 at 10:39 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Hello #ArcGIS #ExperienceBuilder team: Could you simplify this input to "https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=" plus an input field for the font name?
October 24, 2025 at 6:13 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
I removed the paywall on hitchhikersguidetodesign.com - all articles are available for free. Please like and share.
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook
The Hitchhiker's Guide to Design
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 24, 2025 at 5:56 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Design for joy. But don’t ignore the detours along the #HappyPath
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/happy-p...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
23 • Happy Path - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
The happy path refers to the ideal, friction-free journey a user takes through your product when everything works perfectly, no errors, no edge cases, no une...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 24, 2025 at 5:54 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
So true..
oregonthedm.bsky.social Oregon 🕎🎲 @oregonthedm.bsky.social · 20d
"and the Human did not refill the food bowl and denied the right of midnight zoomies during his sleep"
Cat giving scary night stories Halloween
October 23, 2025 at 11:20 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Are you #DogFooding? Get a taste of what your users experience
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/dogfood...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
22 • Dogfooding - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
Dogfooding is the practice of a company using its own product in real-world conditions, just like its customers would. It’s a way for teams to experience the...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 23, 2025 at 4:18 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
See what's new in ArcGIS Experience Builder, October 2025 - lot's of good stuff in there (theming, #accessibility, widgets)
doc.arcgis.com/en/experienc... #ArcGIS #ExperienceBuilder #Esri #a11y
What's new—ArcGIS Experience Builder | Documentation
New features in the latest release of ArcGIS Experience Builder are described.
doc.arcgis.com
October 23, 2025 at 3:27 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Senior leaders fly into your meetings, swooping and pooping over your designs - sound familiar? Learn how to minimize the #ExecutiveSeagullEffect
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/executi... #UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
21 • Executive Seagull Effect - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
The executive seagull effect describes a situation where a senior leader swoops into a design discussion at the last minute, makes loud, disruptive critiques...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:57 PM
michaelgaigg.bsky.social
Don’t let your #ABtests rest in peace.
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com/book/ab-ceme...
#UX #Design #UI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignThinking #books #ebook #DontPanic #UXFails #DesignHumor
20 • A/B Cemetery - Hitchhikers Guide to Design
The A/B Cemetery is where all those countless tests go to die, forgotten, undocumented, and often unreconciled with product strategy. It’s what happens when ...
hitchhikersguidetodesign.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:27 PM