Tablet applications from the designer’s point of view

Saulo Ribas, creative director at Editora Globo in “Epoca Magazine” was also the guest of today’s Oxford Tablet Summit. He shared his ideas from the designer’s point of view. He is responsible for the success of “Epoca Magazine’s” iPad application, which was downloaded 2.000 times in 2 weeks.

“Epoca Magazine” wanted to be the first brazilian newspaper on iPad. They succeeded with this approach and gave 5 tips to the publishers:

1. It’s an application. Not a magazine, not a newspaper. Take advantage of the knowledge people already have with iPhone OS that is similar in ipad – they prefer interfaces, buttons, transitions, etc:

• good apps are non linear
• you can access content from anywhere in the app. There’s no dead ens in the app
• back/lists, searchbuttons are essential

Good app supports both otrientations: horizontal and vertical. They dont’ require user to learn, if u need instruction, it’s poorly designed. You have to be clear in the interface.  Very simple information hierarchy is needed – simplify and eliminate the unnecessary. Apps allow the user to leave and come back to where he stopped – try to produce the best reading experience.
2. The designers should think about templates not pages. They must now build templates useful to several articles. All the graphic styles they use in newspapers or in magazines must work on the tablets as well
when it looks great on iPad, it will look great on any other tablet. Remember that iPad is the testing ground also for the other tablets.
3. Personalize – the reader is now in control. Allow the reader to define the settings of the app easily. The more , the better. Personalize the layout, typography, etc. Give reader a new reading experience.
4. Technology is also content. ave programmers as part of the newsroom. Editorial team will have that way much more control over the final product.
5. Choose the right flow of the information inside the iPad app. Change the content not the menus. Ideal architecture of an app is connected, non-linear and dynamic. Remember, it is something totally different than the newspaper flow.

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