In the early stage, wireframes act as a tool for exploration and concept development, when sweeping changes are expected and encouraged. Throughout a project lifecycle, wireframes can be used for different purposes depending on the stage. The same wireframe in sketchy and traditional representation.

These allow computer wireframes to look more like quick, hand-drawn sketches while retaining the reusability and polish that we expect from digital artifacts. There is a growing popularity toward something in the middle: Computer-based sketchy wireframes. This speeds up the ideation process, but doesn’t always produce presentable or maintainable documentation. To compensate for the drawbacks of traditional wireframes, many practitioners put aside the computer in favor of simple pencil sketches or whiteboard drawings. While these artifacts have served us well, they can also be slow to produce, burdened with unnecessary detail and give a false impression of “completion.” However, using traditional diagramming tools like Visio, OmniGraffle, and InDesign, most wireframes today look the same as their ancestors did from a decade ago – assembled with rigid, computer-drawn boxes, lines and text.

When it comes to user interface documentation, wireframes have long been the tool of choice.

Omnigraffle vs sketch