IXD414 - Designing with Systems

This is a studio course about designing digital products for the screen, with an emphasis on designing with systems in mind. This syllabus will be updated with more information throughout the semester. I'll let you know in class about updates.

Questions? mattk@ku.edu.

Your Site

In which we will

Show our work.

Texts

In which we will

Read and respond to some things.

Calendar / Clock / Compass

In which we will

Design a simple user interface and expand into a design system

Fearless Inventory

In which we will

Build a system from an existing brand, and practice working with it

The Best One in Your Row

In which we will

Reverse the previous process: start with a design system and build up into an interface

Niche, Please

In which we will

Apply what we've practiced to serve a small audience of your choosing

Spring 2026 Schedule

This is a rough plan; we'll go faster if possible! This schedule will be updated as we progress through the semester. I'll make adjustments as needed for interuptions like weather, conflicts, etc.

Wk	Dates	Target
01	Jan 20/22	Day 001. Let's get started! Day 002. Calendar / Clock / Compass kickoff.
02	Jan 27/29
03	Feb 03/05
04	Feb 10/12
05	Feb 17/19
06	Feb 24/26
07	Mar 03/05
08	Mar 10/12
--	Mar 17/19	Spring Break - no class, no deliverables
09	Mar 24/26
10	Mar 31/A2
11	Apr 07/09
12	Apr 14/16
13	Apr 21/23
14	Apr 28/30
15	May 05/07
--	Finals Week! 5/16 at 1.30pm	In lieu of a final, you'll be turning in your course site as the final project. The due date for your site is Friday May 16, at 1.30pm. We will NOT meet to review this; I will just look at your sites at that time.