App Interface Design Principles in Action: Tim Corey’s Tournament Tracker UI

Starting the UI Design

Tim begins by saying the user interface design step is a fun part of app development because it lets us see a rough version of what the app will look like. He points out that he uses a whiteboard or legal pad to sketch the forms, even though he admits he is not an artist. Tim insists that the drawings do not need to be perfect or proportional—they just need to show the basic idea of what the forms should include and how they should work.

Tim’s main point here is that the UI design phase is about planning, not beauty. He stresses that the goal is to identify which forms/pages are needed and what each should contain. This approach is crucial for clarity and helps developers and designers stay aligned during the design process.

Where to Start Designing

Tim addresses a common question: “Where do I start?” He explains that it doesn’t matter where you begin. If you’re unsure about one part of the app, start with the part you are sure of. Once you complete the clear parts, you’ll often have a better idea of the uncertain sections.

He also notes that building momentum helps—after designing a few forms, you’ll feel confident and ready to continue. With this mindset, Tim chooses to start with the Tournament Viewer Form.

This method supports good user flows, because it encourages designers and developers to focus on how users will navigate from one screen to another.

Why Not Design in Visual Studio First?

Tim explains that you should not start designing in the Windows Form Builder inside Visual Studio. He warns that doing so causes two main problems:

1. You waste time tweaking layout and controls instead of planning the design.

2. You shortcut the design process, meaning you may miss better options or leave hidden problems because you don’t want to redo your work.

Tim says designing on paper allows you to erase, try new ideas, and even test “silly” concepts that might become great solutions. This is a crucial principle in UI design because it keeps the focus on what the app should do, rather than how it looks in the first draft.

Tournament Viewer Form

Tim reveals his first rough UI: the Tournament Viewer Form. He explains that this form will display all the information about a specific tournament.

Create Tournament Form

Tim then moves to the Create Tournament Form, which he says is likely needed after the tournament viewer.

Create Team Form

Tim then designs the Create Team Form, which includes:

• Team Name

• Select Team Members

• Add New Member

Tim highlights the importance of consistency between forms. He says the team name layout should match the tournament name layout to create a cohesive design.

He also explains that this form allows users to add existing team members from a list, or create new members directly in the form. Tim says he prefers keeping the member creation within the same form to avoid deep navigation layers (i.e., opening multiple forms).

He explains that adding multiple layers would be confusing and slow. Therefore, he chooses to keep the design compact and user-friendly. This supports a simple and intuitive app interface that reduces the time users need to complete tasks.

Create Prize Form

Tim’s Create Prize Form is simple. It includes:

• Place Number

• Place Name

• Prize Amount

• Prize Percentage

Tim notes that only one of the last two fields should be used at a time (either amount or percentage). He says the form will need validation logic later, but for design purposes, the layout is straightforward. This is a good example of how design principles help create a polished, functional interface.

Tournament Dashboard Form

Finally, Tim discusses the Tournament Dashboard Form, which he admits he is not completely happy with. He explains the challenge: Windows Forms applications typically have one main form that stays open. If the main form closes, the application ends.

This creates a problem for a tournament tracker because users may want multiple tournaments open at once. Tim initially considered automatically opening the create tournament form if no tournaments exist. But he realized that closing the create tournament form would end the application.

So Tim designs a central dashboard form that stays open at all times. This dashboard allows users to:

• See existing tournaments

• Load a tournament

• Create a new tournament

Tim explains that the dashboard will stay open even if other forms are closed. It acts as the central navigation point of the app. While he admits it may look “stupid simple,” he says it works, and he may later add design elements or animations to make it more visually appealing.

Conclusion

Tim wraps up the video by emphasizing that the goal is simply to identify the forms needed and decide what each form should display. He says once the UI is designed, the next step is logic planning, where he will plan how the UI elements connect to the data model and the back end.

Tim’s UI design process shows that designing an app interface is about planning, consistency, and clarity—not about creating perfect visuals early on. This approach helps developers and designers stay aligned and ensures the final application is easy for users to navigate and use.