Prototyping

Why

Develop, evaluate or communicate a concept, design or problem solution. Make your ideas concrete to learn whether they work and to discover any technical limitations or opportunities.

How

Determine which challenge you want to tackle in the upcoming prototyping cycle. Choose the most suitable prototype to evaluate the outcome. Prototypes can be made with simple materials like paper, wood or polystyrene.

Ingredients

• Willingness to tackle the riskiest and difficult parts first.

• A purposeful ‘making’ attitude and prototyping skills.

• Ability to ‘kill your darlings’ if the feedback is negative.

• A clear view of what you would like to learn from your prototype.

Practice

Prototypes can be used to talk about your ideas with your client, but can also be used to test how well a technology can be applied in your situation, before you fully take the plunge. Some developers create many throw-away prototypes to find a novel solution direction.