14 Prototyping and Wireframing Tools for Designers
A website wireframe is a basic design draft done before any artwork and used in web design to show the structure of a website, custom user paths, most important user interface elements, their position and relationships between website pages. Wireframes lay out in black and white schematically most important elements in the interface such as header, footer, contact form, navigation.
Wireframing is a process that can significantly decrease the amount of time required in design and development by removing potential visual distractions and focusing the attention of project stakeholders on vital functionality and strategic marketing factors.
Here are a few key reasons you should always wireframe:
- Allows you get a clear picture of what information will be needed on each page before design
- Allows you to spend time and really focus on what each page’s purpose is. Careful plannings is paramount.
- Allows you a fail-safe for uneducated clients who tend to change their minds during the design phase of the project. If the site is planned out properly in the wireframe stage the functionality of the individual pages shouldn’t change much.
- Allows you to set a fallback point. When a client signs off on a wireframe that means they agree to what’s on that page. Education of the client also plays an important role here as well as they need to know that changing items already signed off on the wireframe can and probably will bloat the budget.
- Allows you to have a clear look at how the site will react to various visitors without the clutter of color or design elements.
- Allows you to remove any clutter that may be added to to the site that may be unnecessary and detrimental to the site goal.
- They’re easily adjustable (pre-signoff) and easy to produce allowing the planning process to move along smoothly and efficiently.
- Reduces the chance of scope creep.
- Gives the designer a clear view of what needs to be designed
- Gets the client deeply involved in the planning process early and opens communication between both parties
In this article we'll look at a few neat Wireframing & Prototyping solutions available out there.
1. Omnigraffle
Type: OSX App
OmniGraffle can help you make eye-popping graphic documents quickly by keeping lines connected to shapes even when they're moved, providing powerful styling tools, importing and exporting Microsoft Visio files, and magically organizing diagrams with just one click.
2. ConceptDraw Pro
Type: Windows App
ConceptDraw PRO is a full-featured diagramming platform that lets you display, communicate, and dynamically present.
3. Pidoco
Type: Online
Pidoco is a real time collaborative online wireframing and GUI prototyping tool that used to enhance software projects as it saves time and lowers the options of rework. Picodo also helps to increase the profit margin of firms as it reduces the cost and augments usability.
4. Balsamiq Mockups
Type: AIR App
Balsamiq Mockups is a wireframing tool that is designed specifically to mimic hand drawn designs whilst giving you the quick easy to update properties of programs like Microsoft Word.
5. Mockingbird
Type: Online
Mockingbird is an online tool that makes it easy for you to create, link together, preview, and share mockups of your website or application.
6. Pencil
Type: Firefox Addon
The Pencil Project's unique mission is to build a free and opensource tool for making diagrams and GUI prototyping that everyone can use.
7. iPlotz
Type: Online / Flash-Flex
With iPlotz you can create clickable, navigable wireframes to create the experience of a real website or software application. You can also invite others to comment on the designs, and once ready, you can then manage the tasks for developers and designers to build the project.
8. ProtoShare
Type: Online
ProtoShare is a collaborative online tool to build website wireframes and dynamic, navigable website prototypes that team members can then review and comment on in real-time.
9. HotGloo
Type: Online
Hot Gloo is the online wireframe application currently in free beta. You can drag and drop elements, scale, link, name and rename them. You can also edit, comment & share any moment of the developing process with colleagues and clients.
10. MockFlow
Type: Online
Design, collaborate (in real-time) user interface mockups for your software and websites.
11. Gliffy
Type: Online
Gliffy free wireframe software makes it easy to create website wireframes and to share web mockups with anyone. You can export your wireframe for future use in other applications as well.
12. Cacoo
Type: Online
Cacoo is a user-friendly online drawing tool that allows you to create a variety of diagrams, such as sitemaps, wireframes and network charts.
13. Creately
Type: Online / Flash-Flex
A powerful and easy to use online diagramming tool that runs right in your web browser. With an intuitive UI and built in collaboration features, Creately makes working with teams easy.
14. Lovely Charts
Type: Online
Lovely Charts is a diagramming application that allows you to create professional looking diagrams of all kinds, such as flowcharts, sitemaps, business processes, organisation charts, wireframes and many more...
*15. Mockup Builder
Type: Online / Silverlight
MockupBuilder is a new look to solve old problem with prototyping and sharing sketches with customers.
*16. Lucid Chart
Type: Online
Create diagrams and drawings such as a flowchart, mind map, network diagram, UML diagram, wireframe, user interface design and other drawings online with free flowchart software.
Please feel free to post your suggestions, reviews or new tools as comments.
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Comments
Thanks for these info about the framework and tools, i was looking for that ;)
Keynotopia isn't a tool, but definitely a resource worth looking into (keynotopia.com). I bought wireframe templates from there for Keynote & PowerPoint and LOVE that you can turn the wireframes into pixel perfect designs with just a few clicks! :) I think they also offer templates for OpenOffice and they keep coming out with these AWESOME free updates. Really great for designing apps + web 2.0.
nice tool softwear, i like it
Perfect tools to utilize in professional creativity, thanks for sharing as some new for me as well.
Thank you for share, these tools are really awesome, please keep sharing, you have been a great help..likely to get back here..
Chris Harris
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Mockup Builder is soooo awesome, I use it on a daily basis!
yeah
very nice post
Pencil will 'not install on FireFox 6.0xxx, so you will have to download the standalone version. I was interested in it because as an extension it would take up less resources & space on my tablet.
Guess I'm just a year or two late....
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