Do you even care about using a Design System?
Hello Indie Hackers Community!
I'm reaching out today to start a conversation about something that's been on my mind lately - Design Systems.
For those who might not be familiar, a Design System is a collection of reusable components, guided by clear standards, that can be assembled together to build any number of applications. Essentially, it's a library of UI/UX components with a set of guidelines that helps us maintain consistency across different parts of an application, or even across different applications. Some popular examples are Material Design by Google, Ant Design, and Chakra UI.
Design Systems can be a game-changer when it comes to improving the developer experience, ensuring UI consistency, and speeding up the development process. But the question is, how do you decide on a Design System that works best for your project or organization?
Here are a few guiding questions to kickstart the discussion:
- Have you used Design Systems in your projects?
- If yes, which ones?
- What factors influenced your choice of Design System?
- Was it the community support, comprehensive documentation, company requirements, or something else?
- How has your experience been with the Design System you chose?
- What did you love about it, and what challenges did you face?
- If you have used multiple Design Systems, how did you find the transition?Which aspects made a certain Design System stand out over the others?
- Would you recommend your chosen Design System to others? Why, or why not?
I'm really looking forward to hearing about your experiences and learning from them. If you've never used a Design System but are curious about them, feel free to ask any questions you might have, too!
Thanks in advance for your insights and happy coding!
Best,
For small companies creating them seems to be a waste.
I like https://www.untitledui.com/ as a starting point so companies can ship faster. For React you can also use https://ui.shadcn.com/ for components
I built my own design system "ish" https://versoly.com/versoly-ui for others to use for their marketing sites. Saves a lot of time.
One issue I have found is that designers/developers think it is cheating to use design systems. Or they want to "learn". Not sure how to get around these objections as they seem more personally than logically.
Creating design systems from scratch can be seen as "work" but are actually a chore. You have to keep your codebase updated, you have to manage versioning and you have to make sure all your eng/designers are onboard with the decision.
It's quite an investment.
Love the recomendations.
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After working with design systems and starting projects from scratch, I have found that design systems built from scratch tend to show more personality, and I am more satisfied with the final outcome.
Unless native components are being used, I believe it is best to create custom design systems for each project - this will also sharpen your creative skills.
However, in cases where a project does not require a significant amount of personality, such as a corporate website, premade design systems can serve as a useful shortcut for completing the project more efficiently.
I am with you on that. Pre-made Design Systems can feel quite "cookie-cutter" designed. Mostly because they were taught for a specific target in mind.
However, creating a Design System from scratch is a lot of work. Do you use any shortcuts to get there faster?
I agree, it’s more work and can take longer. But after doing it enough times it becomes muscle memory and part of the process. I use figma, and build my design system, creating components as I go.