Here is an interesting use of Excel. Use it to design User Interface Prototypes.
A UI Prototype is one of the steps we do while developing systems. It contains a clear and detailed user interface mocked up so that we can clearly find-out how end-users would react to such a system.
Now, there are a ton of great tools to build UI prototypes, easiest of them being pencil and paper. But I have been using Excel (ahem!) for creating UI prototypes for the last few years with great success.
In almost all the projects where I worked as a business analyst, I used Excel (or Powerpoint) to create clear, well defined UI mockups to show what the end system would look like. This has helped greatly in understanding various unstated needs of users and speeded up system development.
A Practical Example of UI Prototypes made in Excel
Today I want to show you a practical example of how UI prototypes designed in Excel helped me choose one alternative over other.
While creating Excel School sales page, I needed to clearly show both options and provide a way to select one of them for the prospective students. I had 2 ideas in mind. I wasn’t sure which one would work. My initial thought is to draw both of them on paper and show it to my wife and find-out which one she would prefer. But then, my drawing is as good as my skateboarding. Just plain awful.
Even though I cannot draw a peanut on paper, I can create a whole peach tree in excel. So I turned to it and created 2 exact mockups of what I had in mind.
Then I showed both of them to my wife. She pointed to the one on left.
So I went with that option and designed it in HTML / CSS later that night.
But, this is a lame example. What if I want to make a complex UI in Excel?
Of course my example is lame. But you can make complex UIs in Excel with same ease. Remember form controls? You can use them to quickly create a mock up of almost any system and show it to your users to get instant feedback.
Here is an example:
Download Excel UI Prototype Examples Workbook:
In this workbook, you can find above 3 examples. See them, play with them, poke them to get inspiration for your next UI prototype.
Do you use Excel for Prototyping?
As I said, I have more than once impressed my customers by quickly churning out a mockup using excel. You can easily add drawing shapes, icons, form controls and place them on the grid layout to give perfect alignment and look. I think this is a great use of Excel.
What about you? Do you use excel for UI Prototyping? Share your experiences using comments.
30 Responses to “Great News: Chandoo becomes MVP”
Congratulations! It's well deserved. 🙂
This is amazing. Hearty congratulations and a rocking new year ahead!!!
Congrats! I have learnt alot from your site... and the most important is learning how to achieve the most with the simplest concepts.
Thanks for the excel calendar. Is it possible to get a simple big fonted calendar printable on an A4 size paper without any distracive notes or visuals? BTW, I have already signed up for your newsletter. With warm regards and
Gratefully yours
50+ year old CHarish.
Hey Chandoo,
Great to hear that. Congratulations! The best new year gift, I would say. Keep it up, u've been doing extraordinary work for the excel users community.
Regards,
Pankaj Verma
Congrats dude... fantastic news!
congratulations! your site is great, this is well deserved
Rich
I recently found your site, I visit many. The tips that you provide are in the top 1% of all the sites I visit. Keep on Excelling.
Arnold
South Africa
Congratulations, Chandoo! That's a great way to start the year and make the PHD even better.
Congratulations, Chandoo.
Your site is one of most useful on the net. Happy new year and lot of ideas you will present for us.
Congrats.
Just read your name in an email from Abhishek. Well deserved.
Congratulations, and Happy New Year.
Greetings from Rio de Janeiro my friend! You trully deserve it!
Nive way to start 2009! Keep up the good work!
FC
That was quite forseeable , so you have now really got your PhD in excel.
Anyways Chandoo you have made excel a real Fun doo
I will like you to write some more on INDEX and MATCH function in near future.
@Hey Chandoo ! Congrates....
Ab to treat mangta hai !
Well deserved Chandoo!!
Congrat's!! Very well deserved 🙂
i always browsed mr.excel and used to see MVP writtne below names of people who used to solve queries in excel forum there......i just used to admire as to what they have special in them that they are MVP......
but now i got my answer...............u deserve it man..........
@All: thanks everyone 🙂
Congratulations Chandoo, nice job!
Chandoo,
A well deserved recognition and a good start to the New Year. Continue your good work.
Subbu
Many Congratulations.
You deserve a Ph.D. 🙂
congrats.....
Congrats dude. Rock on!
[...] charting community in 2007 and has been growing strongly ever since. In year 2009, I have received the MVP award from Microsoft. Just few days back I have become a dad [...]
Respected sir,
I am impressed!.... Good job done.. Keep it up...
Sir, How to be a MVP certified person. What level of knowledge is required for it? send me links if possible.
Please reply...
Regards,
Dipak Khalasi.
Dipak -
The first thing you need to cultivate is the ability to search the web effectively. You could start by Googling "Microsoft MVP".
[...] boy and girl which has been made hectic and incredibly fun ever since to their life.He has been awarded MVP status in 2009 by Microsoft(and renewed in 2010,2011 & 2012).His MVP profile is here.If you want to contact him direct then [...]
Congrats Chandoo!!
[…] Chandoo becomes MVP […]