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15 Comments

Design skills for developers ?

Hi guys , I am a developer who loves building stuff(duh). I like the technical side of things like programming the logic, dealing with databases, cloud providers... etc.

But I can't get a grip on design and making my app look good. I would like to learn how to do this rather than hire someone. What is the best way to do this assuming I have very little artistic talent.

What tools should I use other than the obvious like (adobe Photoshop, illustrator..etc).
What courses can I take that specifically focus on bridging the gap between the technical and artistic side of things..

  1. 4

    The content in this book is phenomenal
    https://refactoringui.com/

    Really helped me improve my designs.

  2. 2

    I would highly recommend Eric Kennedy’s blog https://learnui.design/blog/. He also has a course that’s really in-depth if you were willing to pay to get some top notch coaching.

    Keep in mind that the UX of your software is more important than how it looks! Steve Krug’s “Don’t make me think” is a great place to start for UX: https://books.google.com/books/about/Don_t_Make_Me_Think.html?id=g1QBFJxB_eEC

    I’m a designer who’s read many design books. Message me if you want more recommendations!

    1. 1

      Hi @nevans86 I'd be curious to learn design/ux/ui book recommendations. Have already read Don't Make me Think, Design of Everyday Things.

  3. 2

    I would recommend using a UI library that already has built-in components that look great by default and that are easily customizable.
    Material UI is my favourite and I currently use it for my projects. You can try Bootstrap or even Foundation.
    You still have to change the colours and find a great font but there really is no shortcut for that. I usually ask the designers at my day job if they can give me a bit of feedback.

    1. 1

      I use Mateiral ui react for my web projects..but it doesn't stand out...

  4. 1

    I would also recommend Figma for UI design. To getting started with, the courses from https://designcode.io are very clear and starts from scratch.

  5. 1

    I see many people recommending Sketch but I would like to counter that recommendation with Figma. Sketch is amazing but it's limited to osX only. Figma is browser-based so it works anywhere. It's also free until you have larger teams.

    1. 1

      great will look into it....

  6. 1

    I'm in a similar boat as yourself,
    The things that have been extremely helpful to me are the following;

    • The book Refactoring UI
    • Just sticking to using sketch
  7. 1

    I'd highly recommend looking into Sketch (sketch.com). There is a ton of resources that will help get you started (tutorials, templates etc). You will be able to export the CSS of what you design to help with the frontend dev too.

    1. 1

      I have a windows and linux pc ...any worthy alternatives..

      1. 1

        adobe xd (but probably more $$)

    1. 1

      looks interesting will checkout . Thanks

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