Prototyping has long been an undervalued task in the world of software. It\u2019s often seen as a necessary evil\u2014useful, but riddled with downsides:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet, working prototypes are great<\/em> for several reasons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n For these reasons, product designers and user experience practitioners have long valued prototyping as a means to validate concepts before releasing them into the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the early days, experienced software designers relied on paper prototypes to mock up digital experiences and physical objects. Over time, digital tools evolved rapidly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some critics complain that LLMs generate low quality code. That may be true if you’re thinking about production applications that serve tens, hundreds, or thousands of users. But no matter how you slice it, today’s LLMs are excellent at assisting with building simple applications – prototypes.<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We are living in a golden age of prototyping, where AI and large language models (LLMs) have revolutionized the process. With these tools, you can mock up real software quickly. While the code quality can vary, it has never been easier to create functional prototypes from scratch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Over the past few months, I\u2019ve built a variety of prototypes with LLMs as my guide. There are so many tools out there available for free or cheap. LLMs like ChatGPT<\/a>, Claude Sonnet<\/a>, and Ollama<\/a>. IDEs like Cursor<\/a>, Windsurf<\/a> (My current favorite!), and Zed<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you start toying with ideas, it’s hard not to start building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Each of these has taken me a few minutes to a few hours to build the basic concept out and get a feel for the interface. It’s such a powerful feeling!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prototyping has moved from a behind-the-scenes option to a tool that can be used early and often, empowering builders to move faster, test smarter, dream bigger, and build things that people want! The barrier to entry has never been lower, and the potential to create impactful, real-world solutions has never been greater. Whether you\u2019re experienced or just starting out, there\u2019s no excuse to sit on the sidelines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The tools are accessible, and the opportunities are endless. If you\u2019re ready to explore, reach out\u2014I\u2019d be delighted to give feedback on your practice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Critics complain that LLMs generate low quality code. Maybe true. But, today’s LLMs are excellent at building the simplest applications: prototypes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-professional"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n
The Evolution of Prototyping Tools<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Enter the Golden Age<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Prototypes I\u2019ve Built<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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The Call to Action<\/h3>\n\n\n\n