strawthingy
A place for ideas under construction.
Nothing here is finished. Nothing is sacred. Have a look, have a play, and tell me what works, what doesn't, and what you'd change.
On the bench
Each of these is a proposition: a starting point put up to be poked at. Open one, try it out, then tell me what you think.
What is a strawthingy?
A starting point, not a sacred cow.
It's an idea, proposal, model or solution put forward to get things moving. Like a strawman, but built specifically to move things forward, without anyone getting emotionally attached to it.
Challenge it. Improve it. Change it. And if it's rubbish, burn it down and build something better. The objective is progress, not defending the original idea.
A strawthingy is not intended to be right. It is intended to help us discover what is right.
The thinking borrows from hypothesis testing, Lean, iterative development and Deming's Plan–Do–Study–Act cycle.
How to take part
Be honest. Be specific. Point at the actual page, button or screen you're talking about.
Build it
Something gets put up, rough edges and all.
Challenge it
Click around. What's confusing, missing or wrong?
Improve it
Suggest a better way. Sketches and examples welcome.
Burn it
If it needs a complete rethink, say so. No hard feelings.
Criticism is useful
"This doesn't work because…"
Tells me where it falls down. Please say which page or element, and why.
An alternative is gold
"Here's how I'd do it…"
Gives me something better to try next. Even a quick scribble helps.
Everything here uses test data, never real customer information. Please don't share these links beyond the people they were sent to.