Usability Matters: Practical UX for Developers and other Accidental Designers

Summary

Usability Matters: Mobile-first UX for developers and other accidental designers gives you practical advice and guidance on how to create attractive, elegant, and useful user interfaces for native and web-based mobile apps.

Purchase of the print book includes a free eBook in PDF, Kindle, and ePub formats from Manning Publications.

About the Technology

Just because a mobile app works doesn’t mean real people are going to like it. Usability matters! Most mobile developers wind up being part-time designers, and mastering a few core principles of mobile UI can make the difference between app and crap.

About the Book

Usability Matters is a guide for developers wrestling with the subtle art of mobile design. With each expertly presented example, app developer and designer Matt Lacey provides easy-to-implement techniques that instantly boost your design IQ. Skipping highbrow design theory, he addresses topics like gracefully handling network dropouts and creating intuitive data inputs. Read this book and your apps will look better, your users will be happier, and you might even get some high-fives at the next design review.

What’s Inside

• Understanding your users
• Optimizing input and output
• Creating fast, responsive experiences
• Coping with poor network conditions
• Managing power and resources

About the Reader

This book is for mobile developers working on native or web-based apps.

About the Author

Matt Lacey is an independent mobile developer and consultant and a Microsoft MVP. He’s built, advised on, and contributed to apps for social networks, film and TV broadcasters, travel companies, banks and financial institutions, sports companies, news organizations, music-streaming services, device manufacturers, and electronics retailers. These apps have an installed base of more than 500,000,000 users and are used every day around the world.

Matt previously worked at a broad range of companies, doing many types of development. He has worked at startups, small ISVs, national enterprises, and global consultancies, and written software for servers, desktops, devices, and industrial hardware in more languages than he can remember. He lives in the UK with his wife and two children.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction

Part 1 Context
Chapter 2 Who’S Using The App?
Chapter 3 Where And When Is The App Used?
Chapter 4 What Device Is The App Running On?

Part 2 Input
Chapter 5 How People Interact With The App
Chapter 6 User-Entered Data
Chapter 7 Data Not From A User

Part 3 Output
Chapter 8 Displaying Items In The App
Chapter 9 Non-Visible Output

Part 4 Responsiveness
Chapter 10 Understanding The Perception Of Time
Chapter 11 Making Your App Start Fast
Chapter 12 Making Your App Run Fast

Part 5 Connectivity
Chapter 13 Coping With Varying Network Conditions

Part 6 Resources
Chapter 14 Managing Power And Resources

Appendix A Exercise answers
Appendix B Put it into practice
Appendix C Recommended reading
Appendix D Bibliography