Technology Topic Connection

I will focus on UI (user interface) and UX (user experience) careers in this blog post. These two disciplines interact with each other and are integral to each other's success but are often confused as one another. UI is a job where designers build interfaces in software, focusing on looks or style whereas UX focuses on how the UI should function and be used (UX Planet 2019).

  • UX focuses on:

    • Conducting user research

    • Creating user personas

    • Determining the information architecture of a digital product

    • Designing user flows and wireframes

    • Creating prototypes

    • Conducting user testing

    • (White, 2019)



  • UI focuses on:

    • Graphical user interfaces (GUIs)—Users interact with visual representations on digital control panels. A computer’s desktop is a GUI.

    • Voice-controlled interfaces (VUIs)—Users interact with these through their voices. Most smart assistants—e.g., Siri on iPhone and Alexa on Amazon devices—are VUIs. 

    • Gesture-based interfaces—Users engage with 3D design spaces through bodily motions: e.g., in virtual reality (VR) games.

    • (The Interaction Design Foundation, n.d.)



UI/UX couldn’t exist without the important work of Charles Babbage creating the analytical engine in 1837 which is considered the first programmable computer (Vista College, 2018). 
  • Ada Lovelace then expanded upon his work and created operational instructions for his analytical machine which ended up being considered the world’s first computer program (Vista College, 2018).
  • Modern programming today utilizes the if statements (conditions) and loops which were aspects present in the analytical engine set. 

When programming, there are certain hardware recommendations which include:
  • Intel CPU: Quad core 2GHZ or Higher 
  • AMD CPU: Quad core 3GHZ or Higher 
  • 8 GB RAM minimum recommended 
  • 500 GB Standard Hard Drive (250 GB Solid State Hard Drive) 
  • Monitor: 1080p or higher, more than one screen is recommended
  • Internet: Broadband with 10 Mbs download and 1.0 Mbs upload.

While UX doesn’t necessarily require programming, it is advantageous to have an understanding of HTML, CSS, and Javascript (Morales, 2020). Knowing these languages help communicate and develop realistic expectations for developer implementation. In larger companies, the UX department makes wireframes that the UI department implements, making it less necessary to know programming languages but in a startup environment it is useful to a jack of all trades. 

UI automation testing is a technique where testing processes are performed using an automation tool. Instead of having testers click through the application to verify data and action flows visually, test scripts are written for each test case (Perfecto by Perforce, 2020). 
  • There 5 popular programming languages that are popular for UI test automation:
    • Java
    • Javascript
    • C#
    • Python
    • Ruby
  • Test automation:
    • Simulate and test an application’s interaction with end-users. 
    • Automate all testing activities for the application under test (AUT)
    • Integrate UI tests in the development process 
    • Submit test results and generate reports with your application package.
  • UI automation benefits
    • Time
    • Cost
    • Accuracy 
    • Scale

The traditional term for database software is database management system or DMBS.
A database program is the heart of a business information system and provides file creation, data entry, update, query and reporting functions (PCMAG, n.d).
  •  For programming, having a client/server network would probably be best. 

    • It’s advantages include:

      • A Client/Server network contains a centralized system making data backup easier.

      • It’s a dedicated server that improves the overall performance of the whole system. 

      • Security is better in Client/Server network as a single server administers the shared resources. It also increases the speed of sharing resources.

      • (JavaTpoint, 2021)

    • It’s cons include:

      • It’s expensive as it requires a server with large memory. 

      • A server has a Network Operating System (NOS) to provide the resources to the clients, but the cost of NOS is very high. 

      • It requires a dedicated network administrator to manage all the resources.

      • (JavaTpoint, 2021)

 

References

JavaTpoint. (2021). Computer Network Architecture - javatpoint. JavaTpoint. https://www.javatpoint.com/computer-network-architecture. 

Morales, J. (2020, September 22). Does UX/UI Design Require Coding?: Adobe XD Ideas. Xd Ideas. https://xd.adobe.com/ideas/career-tips/does-ux-design-require-coding/. 

PCMAG. (n.d.). Definition of database program. PCMAG. https://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia/term/database-program. 

Perfecto by Perforce. (2020, May 26). Switching to UI Automation: Everything You Need to Know: by Perforce. Perfecto by Perforce. https://www.perfecto.io/blog/switching-ui-automation-everything-you-need-know. 

The Interaction Design Foundation. (n.d.). What is User Interface Design? The Interaction Design Foundation. https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/ui-design. 

UX Planet. (2019, February 24). What is UI vs. UX design? What's the difference? Medium. https://uxplanet.org/what-is-ui-vs-ux-design-and-the-difference-d9113f6612de. 

White, C. (2019, March 29). What Does A UX Designer Actually Do? CareerFoundry. https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/ux-design/what-does-a-ux-designer-actually-do/. 

Vista College. (2018, December 4). History of Information Technology and Evolution of IT Jobs. Vista College. https://www.vistacollege.edu/blog/careers/history-information-technology-evolution-jobs/.



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