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276: Hidden Shortcuts, Formal Educations, and "Builders"

December 12, 2018

This week, we answer three listener questions: one about hidden shortcuts, one about the line between designer and developer, and one about the necessity of a design degree. And as always, we share a couple cool things, like a trailer a few people have seen and a channel that make videos about speedrun progressions.


Listener Questions

  • Race Swisher says: "You guys should talk about hidden shortcuts that can be super confusing for users."
    • Article: "This iOS 12 Keyboard Trick for Non-3D Touch iPhone Users is Going Viral"
    • iOS:
      • In the keyboard, 3D Touch anywhere on the keys to move your cursor freely
        • Gboard for iOS has a phenomenal swipe-typing feature, in addition to many other nice little time-savers
      • In the keyboard, drag from the 123 button to a key in the alternate keyboard, then release to return to the ABC keyboard
      • In the keyboard, long-press on keys for additional character options
      • In the iPad keyboard, drag the Dismiss Keyboard button to split and reposition the keys
      • In the keyboard, double-space for a period followed by a space
      • On the home screen, 3D Touch app icons for quick actions (in supported apps)
      • On iPhone X, swipe down on the Home Indicator to trigger Reachability (Settings > General > Accessibility > Reachability On)
      • In Tweetbot, two-finger swipe vertically to switch between Day/Night mode
      • In Google Maps, double-tap-and-drag vertically to zoom
      • In Spotify, swipe horizontally to go to the previous/next track
      • In Spotify, tap the Search tab a second time to bring up the keyboard and focus the Search field
      • In Spotify, long-press the Search tab to start a voice search
      • In Tweetbot, long-press-and-drag to reassign the last two tabs
      • In Safari, type in the address bar and scroll down the autocomplete suggestions to Find in Page
      • In Safari, long-press on the Refresh button to Request Desktop Site
      • In Safari, long-press on the Tabs icon to create a New Tab or Close All Tabs
      • In Control Center, 3D Touch-and-drag on certain platters for pre-defined options (Timer, Flashlight, Camera)
      • In Messages, 3D Touch on avatars in the list for quick actions (Call, FaceTime, Pay, Contact Details)
    • macOS:
      • [Mojave] At any time, press Cmd+Shift+5 for more detailed screenshot options
      • At any time, press Cmd+Opt+Shift+3 or 4 to send the screenshot to your clipboard
      • At any time, press Cmd+Space for Spotlight
      • In a text field, press Cmd+Ctrl+Space for the Emoji picker, and type to search by emoji name
      • At any time, press Cmd+Tab to switch to your most recent app, or continue holding Cmd and press Tab again to move forward or ~ (or Shift+Tab) to move backward through the list
      • In applications with multiple windows, press Cmd+~ or Cmd+Shift+~ to navigate between windows
      • In Chrome, press Cmd+Opt+Left or Right (or Cmd+Shift+[ or ]) to navigate between open tabs (or Cmd+1 through 0 to jump straight to one of your first ten tabs)
      • In a text field, press Cmd+[ or ] to adjust the indentation
  • Colin Lees asks: "What kind of design-related education do you (or your peers) tend to have? Is there a case for designers with no formal education at all?"
    • Our answer: Having a college degree, regardless of focus, can be a signal to employers that you're more likely to be a responsible, knowledgeable person, but it's not necessary to get a job, as long as you can show that you know your shit. And getting a degree in HCI or Interaction Design is a great way to gain knowledge and get a head-start on good processes, but again, it's unnecessary, as long as you've learned those same lessons on your own.
  • Sam Chang asks: "Something that's been on my mind lately is the overlap between a designer and a developer. I've noticed, for example, that Brian has taken on more of a developer role at Spectrum, and so I'm curious to hear if Brian sees himself as more of a designer or a developer, or maybe just a builder?"
    • Our answer: Should designers code? Ultimately, having an understanding of what your developers do every day will help you to be a better designer, and vice versa. So learning how to write code, especially in the same language your colleagues use, can help build empathy and a better understanding of what happens after your mocks are finalized. As the line between "designer" and "developer" continues to blur, maybe the term "builder" is a nice middle ground.

One Cool Thing:


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