ConfPad

Just because you're a programmer doesn't mean you shouldn't make good user experiences. UX is often a second thought as we developers crunch time towards our own brand of "good" software; we spend all the time on tests, clean code and tidy commits. But we devs are actually the first line of defense in the war for user experience; good UX is not optional. We'll discuss how to think as a developer that encourages good user experiences. We'll look back at how the web evolved, and how we geeks think differently from your average user. We'll see exactly why developers tend to suck at UX. And we'll show how bad experiences can kill even the greatest apps. Then the good stuff: real tweaks to your workflow, as a developer, that makes good UX a first-class citizen in your project. Writing error messages and alerts. The evils of modals and validation balloons. Why even copy should be subject to scrutiny. How to clean up your interface and implement simple A/B testing to make the most of your design. Finally we'll cover the lifestyle changes - both as a professional and as a developer - we all need to make. Dogfood our own stuff. Keep detailed logs and information streams within our code to track user habits. Set up staging servers and field test your design over lunch. Make a habit of testing every page of your app on every device. Find true love... And then ask them to test your app, too.