Prototyping helps create fast, graphical representation of ideas, functions and content and is often used in order to get feedback and improve appearance or functionality of a digital artefact.
Different disciplines use different strategies to prototype ideas – object makers tend to work at smaller scale with cheap, easy-to-modify materials to produce three-dimensional prototypes; animators, film and video makers often tend to sketch up storyboards to visualise their ideas before undertaking laborious and potentially expensive production; web and software designers often engage in the simplest form of prototyping to test layout, site mapping and interactivity – using just paper and a black marker can be the most effective way to visualise your idea.