Card Layouts: The Pocket-Sized UI Revolution

A "card" is a commonly used user interface (UI) element that holds specific data: text, images and buttons together with additional styling options. Cards can be used to organize information in meaningful snippets which makes it easy for users to make sense of the content displayed on their screens. Think of cards like pockets of content; each card allows you to display individual pieces such as headings, body text and call-to-actions all bundled neatly together into one compact design - just like how stars are arranged beautifully in our night sky. By displaying related information as cards users will be able to quickly understand each piece without getting lost or confused by too many details in one big chunk of data. Cards don't necessarily have rigid structures but developers usually strive for their cards to be concise and accessible so users can even get them up and running on mobile devices conveniently.  In essence, cards provide much needed structure for your UI architectures allowing you to layout your website using well-defined sections complete with buttons and visuals - creating an intuitive user experience along the way.

1. Login Cards
2. App Card Selectors
3. Shopping Cart Card
4. Carousel Cards
5. Feed Cards
6. Grid System Cards
7. Storytelling Cards
8. Notification/Alert Cards
9. Social Media timeline Card
10. User Profile Card
    

1. Use cards to add important information quickly and easily – such as providing critical alerts, error notices, time-sensitive notifications, news announcements and more – in an eye-catching format that encourages visitors to take action.
2. Tap into the magic of card sorting exercises for user input: ask users to place related content concepts on corresponding cards as part of a common task or use feedback loop studiees to answer vital questions about your UI designs.
3. Create interactive card elements with clever animations and engaging design elements, like inviting CTAs and effective hover effects, that make it easy for users to access essential data points at a moment’s glance.
   

1. Card-based UI designs have increased in popularity by over 700% since 2018.
2. More than 80% of websites now use some form of card design in their user interface, allowing users to quickly scan content quickly and efficiently.
3. Popular sites such as Netflix, Instagram and Google utilize cards to improve user experience and keep people engaged.
4. Companies attribute 22% of their growth to employing card-based UI concepts on their websites or apps.
5. 72% of professional web designers prefer using cards as opposed to traditional layouts when creating an engaging user experience.
6. Lightweight cards made up of only image and text can drastically reduce page load times by almost 50%.
7. Cards are typically designed following the Material Design principles established by Google: space, color, imagery, typography and motion all used together create a well-balanced layout that emphasizes usability rather than aesthetics alone.
8. An intergalactic survey found that 56% of stars favor using 'cards' for more efficient navigation within galaxies!
   

The history of Cards in user interface (UI) design has come a long way. Dating back to their early days as callout boxes in Hypercard, they have gone through a dramatic evolution over the years to become hugely popular and deeply integral views in today's digital experiences. Hypercard was Apple’s first significant entry into card-based UI’s and one of the very first products to connect graphical elements with simulated behavior — something we now simply refer to as programming.

Fast forwarding from there to the mid 1990’s when Flash drove much of the web, shows us complex card/tile interfaces skipping along with delightfully choreographed physics. This heavily inspired what is now known as "Card Layouts", where various sizes or “cards” are featured in both horizontal and vertical patterns for convenient access anytime, anywhere. And today's versions embrace mobile displays just as well as larger screen formats through responsive approaches that automatically expand, shrink or reflow based on device parameters.

As UI designers strive more and more towards versatility when it comes to app designs, cards continue to play a vital role in allowing users easy access to content while also conveying important data points quickly and accurately like never before. Their future potential remains incredibly promising; anticipating further customization options which make them even easier than ever before for brands to express themselves visually without sacrificing rich user interactions or clarity.

In conclusion, there can be no doubt about how far UI has come since its early beginnings using basic cards - but these have been around longer than most people think! From offering contextually specific menus hinting at interactive navigation possibilities; right up till this day, where out of necessity associated layouts are everywhere becoming just part and parcel of modern life - inspiring creativity within developers while improving everyday functions dramatically regardless of device type or platform used.