Looking for some examples of GUI apps with great design [closed]

Question

I will start developing my next desktop application in about a month. In the past I have delivered functional software that hasn't wowed anyone, including myself, in the usability or aesthetics department.

Does anybody know of any resources or guides or even books that could showcase examples of good design in desktop software?

There seems to be a lot of resources for web apps, but such resources for desktop applications are rather slim.

Answer 1

I enjoyed these dot net rocks tv videos by Mark Miller on The Science of a Great User Experience really got me thinking about good ui:

http://www.dnrtv.com/default.aspx?showNum=112

http://www.dnrtv.com/default.aspx?showNum=123

Answer 2

Where you can really make a difference with GUI design is if you are addressing a difficult to understand concept in a GUI.

When you are doing that, creativity is critical. When dealing with complex hardware configurations (something I had to do a lot, but probably doesn't apply to you), I've had good luck going to tech manuals and tech support people and trying to completely understand the problem. Then I took the methods they used to show me (diagrams from the manuals, whiteboard drawings, etc) and tried to code them into a GUI.

Had a couple massive successes with this.

Iteration is also critical. Prototype something quickly then beg everyone you see to try it. Ask them to solve a problem, then watch where they go first and watch what they have problems with.

Address every problem and stumbling block.

Don't be afraid to throw it all away and start over, it was only prototype code.

Separate your GUI from your implementation so that you can swap out the GUI if you find a better approach.