Four Levels Of Customer Understanding
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Vitaly Friedman) |
What people say, feel, think, and do are often very different things. To understand the underlying reasons for user behavior, it helps to look beyond the surface and explore hidden motivations, root causes, and the different layers of reality that shape how people act. Brought to you by Measuring UX... read more
Advanced Tree Counting: Mathematical Layouts With `sibling-index()` And `sibling-count()`
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Durgesh Pawar) |
Meet `sibling-index()` and `sibling-count()`. Staggered cascade effect in one line of CSS without `:nth-child()` rules or JS workarounds. Works for 5 items or 5,000.... read more
Ten Data-Backed Truths Of User Experience ROI
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Carrie Webster) |
Every extra second of friction has a measurable business cost. Carrie Webster shares ten data-backed UX facts that link user experience directly to revenue, retention, and long-term growth.... read more
Practical Interface Patterns For AI Transparency (Part 2)
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Victor Yocco) |
Why traditional loading patterns like spinners fail in agentic AI experiences, and how interface patterns that reveal the system’s process, status, and decision-making can improve transparency and build user trust.... read more
The Architecture Of Local-First Web Development
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Durgesh Pawar) |
An honest perspective on building local-first web apps in 2026, written for developers who’ve been doing this long enough to be skeptical of silver bullets.... read more
Rethinking The Experience Of System Tools
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Kyrylo Levashov) |
Design always starts with function — function shapes form. But if that function can’t be made completely invisible and people still have to interact with it, it inevitably becomes part of their experience. In this article, Kyrylo Levashov shares four common software design assumptions.... read more
Designing Stable Interfaces For Streaming Content
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Joas Pambou) |
Streaming UIs are an easy concept on the surface, but are quite complicated in practice. There are many considerations that need to be accounted for, from layout shifts and motion preferences to proper markup and various states, that may not be instantly obvious. What happens if the stream is interr... read more
A Fresh View In May (2026 Wallpapers Edition)
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Cosima Mielke) |
Let’s welcome May with a new collection of desktop wallpapers! Following our monthly tradition, the wallpapers were created by the community for the community and can be downloaded for free. Enjoy!... read more
The “Bug-Free” Workforce: How AI Efficiency Is Subtly Disrupting The Interactions That Build Strong Teams
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Casey Hudetz and Eric Olive) |
AI tools are eliminating the need to “bug” colleagues for help, but the informal interactions they replace are the very scaffolding that builds team trust, belonging, and innovation. Casey Hudetz and Eric Olive explore the research and potential impacts behind that risk and offer practical strategie... read more
The UX Designer’s Nightmare: When “Production-Ready” Becomes A Design Deliverable
hello@smashingmagazine.com (Carrie Webster) |
In a rush to embrace AI, the industry is redefining what it means to be a UX designer, blurring the line between design and engineering. Carrie Webster explores what’s gained, what’s lost, and why designers need to remain the guardians of the user experience.... read more