Joshua Buckwalter visit

Josh Buckwalter came to speak about User Experience and User Interface. I thought it was a really interesting and insightful talk. He started out by talking about the difference between the two. User experience is about the usability and information architecture while user interface is about the aesthetics and prototypes of a website. He also talked about different projects he worked on. The first was called Engine Yard. This was a company that hosted PHP apps. They did a lot of research by spending time with the client. They did different exercises to learn more about the product they want to produce. They had a card sorting exercise where they picked out different words they would want to describe the website. They created mock-ups and wireframes and eventually came up with the design. They used a term called sprints which means prioritizing what you accomplish weekly instead of having a set deadline. Another great thing he talked about was the open design hour. It is 20 minutes of individual exploration and then everyone  presents what they have. They then vote on the best design. I think this is a good way to explore everyone's ideas without shooting anyone down. The most important thing I learned was that you should always be curious. I should want to go out and ask people about their design and why did this or that. I would learn a lot more and become a better designer.