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Defaults 0:44
A 44-second explainer of Defaults, narrated over the same demo you can try yourself.
Try the interactive Defaults demo
What this video covers
A default is the choice already made for you - the value a field starts with, the box that's pre-ticked, the option selected before you touch anything. Because most people never change them, defaults quietly decide the outcome for the majority, which makes choosing them one of the most powerful - and most ethically loaded - decisions in an interface.
With smart defaults the form was all but done - you skimmed, agreed, moved on, because the choices already made were the ones you'd have made anyway. Blanked out, the very same form demanded a decision at every line. Most people never change a default; that's exactly why the default you choose for them matters so much.
