I recently answered an email that explained an oft-arising issue regarding design patterns…
RE>so just
what is the difference between a pattern and a guideline? The big windows [from A Timeless Way of Building – vl ]
pattern sounds like guidence.
Patterns do provide guidance, but they’re not guidelines, they’re much more. Watching how people do something, you’ll notice actions they repeat again and again. These are patterns. If we document this pattern, noting the context, the problem, examples, illustrations, and a solution (which is more specific than a guideline), then you end up with a design pattern.
Here’s a guideline from useit.com:
“Visibility of system status
The system should always keep users informed about what is going on, through appropriate feedback within reasonable time. ”
Whereas a pattern will result in a solution that corresponds with actual repeated human actions. Here’s an example from Common Ground:
“Solution: Change the affordance of the thing as the pointer moves over it. ”
Hope that’s more clear.