From software to architecture as part of User Experience

- when software developers become a model for developers in construction?

Do you remember the last time your smartphone crashed just when you wanted to take a picture? Or when you wanted to check the route on google maps? It does not happen very often, but when it does, it can be terribly annoying.

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What makes us decide on this or any other smartphone? Or why do we decide to download one app instead of the other?

More and more we value the way we interact with the device or app. The functions of various applications are very similar, the parameters and purpose of existence also, however, the so-called User Experience determines the success or class of a product or service.

What was the standard for the IT industry yesterday today boldly enters other industries, including construction and lighting. How many times have we heard about the so-called "Effect wow!"? It is not only the term heard in the marketing bureaus, but now you can also hear it in the engineering design offices.

Today, is not enough for a user that something works - this is "the obvious obviousness" for them. The user expects much more today: pleasure, safety, comfort, control and individual treatment. This is bad news for those who believe that good practices from 00s and more years ago will continue to perform as well as they used to. But it is good news for those who want to change something and are not afraid to reach for new solutions where User Experience becomes a key issue.

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So who is this mysterious User? The answer is very simple - the ultimate user of our product or service. What counts is who will use the product or service and what are his or her expectations. At the time when millenials enter the labour market, your client may be your employee. It can also be your final customer or investor building industrial halls and its employees. It is ironic that the word developer describes both application developers and large construction companies that create spaces in which we work and live ...

Since the vocabulary is the same, why not the method? The app designer thinks about how their work will be perceived by the user. Similarly, it should be in the case of construction projects. If we want a user-friendly environment, we come to the next term from software "user friendly".

There are many ways to achieve user satisfaction, you can use sophisticated materials, or you can experiment with the function of rooms. However, there is another possibility that will always be noticed by every user. Light.

Light architecture is still an undervalued area, but in the era of modern society it is the light that guarantees the "wow effect". Adequate play with light and its form can arouse various emotions, both positive and negative, and yet the main task of public spaces is to influence people's feelings and behaviours.

It is a duty of cinemas to put visitor in a good mood and inflame their imagination. Hotels must make guests feel special but at the same time comfortable. Offices, on the other hand, apart from providing optimal working conditions, should motivate teams and awaken admiration in contractors.

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All this can be achieved with the help of light, its colour, intensity, saturation and modulation. An inexpensive lighting controller can become a controller of human moods and behaviours. Examples of good practices can be noticed in few hotels, shopping centers, offices and cinemas. Bad examples are unfortunately much more frequent. Lack of knowledge and sometimes ignorance result in luminous monsters that threaten their users and outsiders, which is why it is often worth using the help of experts who will advise and help achieve the intended effect.