The focus of this book is on designing for older adults. At the heart of good design for older adults is an awareness of, and adherence to, design principles that recognize the needs, abilities, and preferences of diverse groups of older adults. Comprehensive design guidelines are presented in our most recent book, Designing for Older Adults: Principles and Creative Human Factors Approaches, Third Edition, and the reader is encouraged to consult that book (and other books in the Human Factors and Aging series) for valuable information regarding designing useful and usable systems for older users. Principles and guidelines are important, but not sufficient; good design as a process and is facilitated by seeing principles and guidelines in action, and by understanding how to use the methods and tools available to evaluate design. This book – Designing for Older Adults: Case Studies, Methods, and Tools – is intended to be a standalone book. The goal of this book is to provide illustrative “case studies” based on real design challenges faced by researchers of the Center for Research and Education on Aging and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) over the past two decades. These case studies are instances in which CREATE investigators have used human factors tools and user-centered design principles to understand the needs of older adults, identified where existing designs fail older users, and examined the effectiveness of design changes to better accommodate the abilities and preferences of the large and growing aging population. Presented case studies span many different domains including health, transportation, living environments, and communication and social engagement. Each chapter describes a method or tool vital to good design for older adults as well as important issues to consider in their use, specifically with older adults. After this description, relevant instances are presented in which that method or tool was successfully deployed, followed by a discussion of what was learned in terms of design. Chapter 8 presents an extended case study in which multiple methods and tools are applied to a single design challenge: the development of a computer system specially designed for older adults at risk for social isolation. To provide context for these case studies, methods, and tools, this chapter has three primary aims: (1) to present a conceptual model for design, (2) to discuss the importance of designing for older adults, and (3) to discuss characteristics of the aging population in terms of perceptual, cognitive, and motor abilities; diversity; and technology use, adoption, and preferences.