The point of a wireframe is not to create a beautiful piece of  ”design art.” Solving design problems can get messy.

When working on a new interactive problem wire frames are sometimes a good way to work out the ideal on concept that is “in your head”

The point of a wireframe is not to create a beautiful piece of “design art.”

You are working through a problem. This process can get messy.  I want you to take a moment and think back to the first time you tried to recreate what you can see by drawing a picture. Your drawing would show this visual noise of trial and error. They where not perfect. Your process was not a straight line. Visually you where solving a design problem.

You worked on your entire project in your final output medium. ( paper and pencil ) You solved the problem in a nonlinear fashion. Working from different areas of focus from general to specific. Your progress was evaluated in real time. Leaving parts of your drawing or system alone and refining those that needed refinement. your evaluation was based on the sum of all the parts in the system. (or the entire page )

Good wire frames bring clarity to your idea or concept.

here are 5 tips that I have found helpful when developing wireframes

WE DON’T KNOW
Lose the idea that “I know what I want, I just don’t know how to do it ”

GO WITH WHAT YOU KNOW
work in what ever medium you can get the idea out of you head first. For me that is usually, a white board, paper, or photoshop. Doing this Allows you to focus on solving the problem rather than learning a new tool.

PROTOTYPE
As soon as you think you have your initial concept worked out in way that makes sense to you move to the medium that your final solution will be exported to. Work back and forth between your medium of comfort and the final output medium working from general to specific.

FRAME WORKS ARE YOUR FRIEND
You don’t need to invent the pencil to draw a master piece. Use existing frameworks in the development your concept. evaluate your understanding of them, or lack of. If the framework, however, takes more time to learn than the benefit it offers, then you are better off without it.

BREAK IT DOWN
Break down your solution into manageable components. Just like drawing can be broken down into a series of components. Cylinders, Spheres and wedges. Interactive projects can be broken in to a set of core components.

ex: navigation, preview content , main content.

All interactive projects are simply solving the how of accessing these core components. Identify the core components that are needed to solve your problem. Quickly test and evaluate your knowledge of these components.

Simplify To your core components evaluate if the solution is feasible.
Simplify To your core components evaluate if the solution is feasible.
Simplify To your core components evaluate if the solution is feasible.