Designing in the Open

Designing in the open is about sharing your work and progress publicly through the course of a design project. I’ll explain how this works, where to start, and why it’s good practice for all designers. We’ll also discuss how you can give back to the WordPress community through design contributions to Core and WordPress.org.

Transcript

1. Designing in the Open A talk by Mark Uraine
2. Mark Uraine I’m an interdisciplinary designer dedicated to making the web more accessible and human friendly by facilitating the transfer of information through design. I work at Automattic contributing to the open source project, WordPress.
3. Photo credit: Alamy
5. It’s about sharing your work and process with the public.
7. Photo credit: StarWars.com
9. Well have you tried ? this other thing
11. We’re upset at all the questions about things we’ve already tried. We’re super excited that the client seems to be interested in our work.
12. Designers can learn from math. How can we solve this?
13. How did you come up with that solution?
14. SHOW YOUR WORK
15. When given a problem, show how you arrived at the solution.
16. Nothing is sacred.
17. Research & Findings Sketches Wireframes Mockups Prototypes Hypothesis    
18. Scientific Method 1.Formulate a question 2.Hypothesis 3.Prediction 4.Testing 5.Analysis Designing in the Open 1. Design Thinking 2. Propose a solution 3. Prepare metrics 4. Prototype 5. Feedback & results
19. is reflected in the confidence of their process Maturity of a Designer
20. “Let me work and get back to you” We design and experiment with our process in secret. “Check out these wireframes” We might share specific steps when we feel good about them. “Let’s build it together, right now” We sit down with the client and share our process while formulating ideas and iterating. 1 2 3
21. Benefits Challenges Examples How to start Convincing others Giving back to the Open
22. Benefits of designing in the open
23. Community involvement Diversity of ideas. User insight. Early feedback Early feedback means quicker iterations. Help spotting mistakes. Less pressure No BIG REVEAL relieves stress. A confidence in launch. Become a leader Sharing your process and work allows others to learn from you. Accountability Accountability isn’t just to the user or the business.
24. Challenges of designing in the open
25. Uncomfortable It’s difficult to share your unfinished work. Early feedback Lots of public feedback, much of which may not be helpful. People stealing ideas (myth) “Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who implement them are priceless.” Time When everything is in the open, there’s a lot to sift through.
26. Examples of designing in the open
32. How to start designing in the open
33. Be inclusive Make sure you’re aware of who’s involved in your project. Be accessible Make sure your designs are accessible to everyone. Design in steps Make sure your steps are apparent, purposeful, and accessible. Encourage feedback Reach out to everyone for feedback. Recognize others Give props to others who have contributed to the process.
34. Convincing others that designing in the open is good
35. Focus on benefits Share the benefits of designing in the open with them. Speak their language Map their goals with the benefits. Sharing process can present them as a “thought leader” in their field. Ease their nerves Let them know you won’t be sharing any legally sensitive material or proprietary information.
36. Giving back to the Open
38. https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ https://github.com/WordPress/WordPress
39. Design Development Documentation Testing Marketing Accessibility Support Translations Community Organizing Training Get involved
41. http://wordpressdotorg.polldaddy.com/s/editor-survey Editor Experience Survey
42. Embrace your fear. Be kind. Share your knowledge. Encourage others. Be constructive. Recognize the efforts of others. Have fun.
43. Resources Designing in the Open by Brad Frost http://bradfrost.com/blog/post/designing-in-the- open/ Designing in the Open by Sean Martell https://www.slideshare.net/AllThingsOpen/designing- in-the-open Fonts Open Sans Condensed Source Code Pro
44. Thank you. Twitter: @mapk WordPress.org: mapk markuraine.com