The Third Degree

An Event Apart, Seattle 2007: Day One

The event opened with a grandiose welcome from Mr. Jeffrey Zeldman, who went on to introduce Eric Meyer for his first topic, "Secrets of the CSS Jedi." Meyer went into reset styling techniques, default browser display differences, then wrapped up his first session with an interesting look at creating graphs using table elements and CSS. Yes, Eric Meyer in person is exactly what you would expect...

After Mr. Meyer dazzled us with his methods, the one and only Jeffrey Zeldman took the stage. Mr. Zeldman took us down a path of words by showing us how words impact the interface. Zeldman broke down the different levels of copy on a web site, and gave examples of good and bad usage. This all goes back to the thinking of better content (or copy) better site. Clear, concise copy should be used for what is referred to as "guide copy" or copy that directs/informs the user of a path to take. Zeldman also covered topics on brand and audience appropriate copy. It seems to me that Zeldman should write another book solely devoted to writing copy for the web (I'm thinking... "Designing With Words" ). One of the things Zeldman didn't delve into is copy and how it effects SEO, I thought would have been a valuable addition to the presentation.

Jeffrey Zeldman (center), and James III (right).

Philadelphia's own Jason Santa Maria followed the two cofounders up with a presentation on design process, inspirations, and an insight on what gears are under the Happy Cog hood. Jason's presentation was laid back, yet funny, and kept people interested. He ran down the list of standard design principles and how they impact the end result.  He also spoke about his own process of collecting designs and inspirations to keep in a catalog or "morgue." I find it incredibly interesting to hear about what other designers and developers struggle with and how their process works. So Jason, when's the book coming out? 

Tim Bray , co-creator of XML, gave his presentation "Reporting From the Engine Room," which I regretfully missed due to my unfortunate hotel adventure ...  

Shawn Lawton Henry's presentation, "Getting Real With Accessibility" opened people's eyes to a world that is relatively unknown and/or ignored by the majority of designers and developers. Accessibility is a topic that I have recently found myself being extremely passionate about. Over the past 2 years, I have been reading up on standards, guidelines, and best practices of designing/developing with accessibility in mind. This isn't just adding alt attributes to your img tags, this is about developing your site to be accessible to all groups of people. I had a chance to talk with Shawn at the after parties and got some real insight on accessibility from someone who works for the W3C , and cares a great deal about accessibility. (Stay tuned for a dedicated post about my discussions with Shawn Lawton Henry and accessibility on the web. In the meantime, go read her book Just Ask: Integrating Accessibility Throughout Design and learn something new about accessibility.)

Shawn Lawton Henry and James Van Arsdale III

The UK's Andy Budd , of Clear Left , presented "Are you experienced?" A look at User Experience and how it is more than a "Web 2.0" buzz phrase. Andy outlined some of his methods of creating an ideal user experience in his energetic presentation. He touched upon the practice of creating "persona" and how it keeps the development of a site or application in tune with the user experience. During development, if there's a question or problem about any aspect of the site or application, you can always go back to the "persona" and determine what would be the best result for the "persona." Andy also focused on personalization/customization and how it impacts the end user. By paying attention to details and delivering personalized content to each user, it brings a better experience and will deliver a better end product. 

Stay tuned for "An Event Apart, Seattle 2007: Day Two" wrap up post... 

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About The Third Degree

The Third Degree is James Van Arsdale III's personal blog. Topics covered will range from web design and development techniques to rants about cabs hitting cyclists, and everything in-between. I encourage all to join in on the discussions, or contact me directly.