Setting Up Your Design Toolkit
You do not need an expensive stack to get started with the process taught in this course. This reading covers the minimal toolkit used in the rest of the modules.
One Tool Per Stage, Not One Tool for Everything
Pick a lightweight tool for notes and research, a separate one for wireframes, and a separate one for interactive prototypes. Trying to do everything in one tool usually slows each stage down.
Naming and Versioning Files Early
Decide on a naming convention for wireframe and prototype files before you have more than three of them. Retrofitting a naming system after the fact is far more painful than starting with one.
A Shared Reference Library
Keep a running folder of screenshots, patterns, and references you like. When you're stuck on a screen, pulling from your own library is faster than searching from scratch every time.
Practical Review Checklist
Before moving on, confirm that you can:
- State the primary objective in one clear sentence
- Identify the assumptions that still need evidence
- Choose a small set of meaningful success measures
- Explain the process to another person without hidden steps
- Record what should be reviewed during the next iteration
Conclusion
The goal of a toolkit isn't to look sophisticated — it's to remove friction so you can move between empathizing, defining, and prototyping without losing momentum.