I was reading a menu at a diner in the rain and couldn't make out the specials

It was a gray afternoon and I stopped at this little place off the main road. The specials were written on a chalkboard with light yellow chalk on a dark gray background. I was maybe six feet away, squinting, and the guy next to me just read them out loud without even looking up from his coffee. He said, 'It's the chili, always is on Tuesdays.' That's when it clicked for me. I design stuff for screens, and I've run all the contrast checkers, but I never really thought about how it works in the real world with bad light and people who aren't looking for it. That chalkboard probably looked fine to the person who wrote it, standing right there in the well-lit kitchen. But from across a dim room? Total washout. Made me go back and look at my own site's 'important announcement' banner with fresh eyes. Has anyone else had a moment where a real-world fail made you rethink a digital design rule?

3 comments

3 Comments

taylorknight2mo agoMost Upvoted

That "total washout" line is so real lol

olivia_barnes972mo ago

My hair looked like a wet rat for three days straight.

nina8341mo ago

Totally get that, it's wild how a real world moment can flip a switch in your head. @taylorknight is right about the washout thing, it's a perfect way to put it. That's why I always tell people to check their designs on a cheap tablet in direct sunlight now, not just in a dark room. Makes you see color and contrast problems you'd never catch on a good monitor.

-1