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Taste is not just personal preference: there is such a thing as good and bad design, and a maker's taste can be wrong.

Drawn from what Paul Graham said

designtaste
What these subjects mean

design How things should be made and judged: what makes a design good, who should do the designing, and what an interface is for.

taste Whether good and bad exist in made things, and how a maker comes to tell them apart.

designunder our view: Taste is real, one person has to hold it, and the makers should work in the medium What is taste, and why does it matter now?under our view: Taste is real: some things are better than others, and saying so is the point What makes a design good?under our view: Good design solves the right problem for real people, and whether it did can be told Which mental models should a designer think with?under our view: Taste is trained: expose yourself to the best work and ask why it works

What Paul Graham actually said

  1. Paul Graham Co-founder of Y Combinator and Viaweb
    Saying that taste is just personal preference is a good way to prevent disputes. The trouble is, it's not true. You feel this when you start to design things.

Added to korrents 6 Sept 2026 · How quotes work · Something wrong? Tell us

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