066: Is Web Design Dead? with Jeffrey Zeldman

User Defenders podcast
Web Design
066: Is Web Design Dead? with Jeffrey Zeldman
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Jeffrey Zeldman answers the provocative question, “Is Web Design Dead?”. He enlightens us to what the Web was, where it’s at now, and where it could go in the future. He touches on the many short-sighted predictions that tend to prod our delicate psyches such as automation and new technologies poised to replace Web Designers. He encourages us to ignore the rhetoric and continue to learn as tools change how Web Design is done. He also emphasizes that the Web was built on sharing, and that we must continue to share if we want to not only protect its spirit, but keep it alive and thriving.

Jeffrey Zeldman is the Godfather of Web Design, and unquestionably the greatest friend of the Web. He’s a guy behind highly esteemed Web Design content initiatives such as A List Apart, An Event Apart and A Book Apart. He’s a prolific speaker and heavily influential blogger. He’s the Author of the our industry’s staple: Designing with Web Standards. He’s the host of The Big Web Show. He’s also the founder of renown Web Design studio Happy Cog. Back in the day, he played synth and Casiotone with The Insect Surfers, a DC post-punk techno-surf band.

  • Godfather of Web Design (3:58)
  • Is Web Design Dead? (5:58)
  • Moving to In-House Design (12:59)
  • Opposition (21:25)
  • How’d It Make You Feel? (26:14)
  • Ask Customer Service First (31:20)
  • Small Business Owners and The Web (39:27)
  • Early Days of The Web (41:13)
  • Keeping the Spirit Alive (49:40)

Continue reading 066: Is Web Design Dead? with Jeffrey Zeldman

051: Accessible Design = Better Design with Derek Featherstone

User Defenders podcast
Accessibility
051: Accessible Design = Better Design with Derek Featherstone
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Derek Featherstone teaches us how designing for people with disabilities is really just better design for everybody. He shows us how people with disabilities aren’t different from us, they just use different tools to accomplish the same things. He encourages us to apply empathy to grow our skills in learning how to design for accessibility. He also reveals how taking small steps to incorporate something new into our design process could change everything.

Derek Featherstone is an internationally known speaker and authority on accessibility and inclusive design. He has been working on the web since 1999, starting as a web developer. He migrated to the field of accessibility and quickly discovered the need to move thinking about accessibility and inclusion into the design process. He founded and led an international team of accessibility and usability experts at Simply Accessible, which was recently acquired by Level Access, where Derek is now the Chief Experience Officer – focused on ensuring that accessibility and inclusion are seen as an integral part of user experience and service design, rather than as a simple checklist afterthought. Derek lives in Ottawa, Canada with his wife and their 4 children. He’s also a fitness instructor and 3 time Iron Man triathlon finisher.

  • Origin Story (5:53)
  • What Were Your “Aha” Moments? (12:02)
  • Why Do We Tend to Forget About Disabled Users? (17:15)
  • Tools Disabled Folks Use to Navigate (20:47)
  • Accessibility, Greater Than Aesthetics (31:37)
  • Has Designing for Accessibility Ever Made Things Worse for Majority of “Able” Users? (36:14)
  • Story of Biggest Triumph in Designing for Inclusivity + Accessibility (42:36)
  • What’s a Roadmap for Learning this Stuff? (44:56)
  • Contact Info (47:35)

Continue reading 051: Accessible Design = Better Design with Derek Featherstone