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Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

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Re: Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

#51
Picasa's UI was done entirely using Photoshop files. Layer names=widget names, etc. Our small-company team loved it. But at Google, I found very few engineers who wanted to touch Photoshop, ever.

Biggest issue with using Photoshop in your actual production pipeline: "programming in the large" - you can't do code reviews or merges on PSD files, not nearly as easily as .cpp files. So as a team gets big, it is very hard to scale up.

Often the tools (Flash [not Flex], Photoshop, etc.) you use as a small team of <10 people just do not work when you have 20-50 people working on the same project. Then again, maybe teams never should get that big!

Re: Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

#52

I strongly dislike Photoshop for mockups and think that using it is indicative of poor practice. In my experience it leads to premature optimisation of styling over basic design, tends to lock down designs too soon and gives no real insight as to usability. A Photoshop mockup is inherently static and turning it into a clickable prototype generally requires a great deal of duplicated effort. My preferred tool is Keyno…

I've not tried Keynote, but I loooove hotgloo for wireframes and quick mockups. If you haven't used it, I suggest checking it out.

www.hotgloo.com

(note: not affiliated with hg in any way)

Re: Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

#56

I have thought about making video tutorials on how to use Photoshop to create practical design elements. Ie, how to make a button or how to design a header. Something every programmer making their own webapp could use that doesn't really require much Photoshop knowledge. Would there be any interest?

Yeah, do it!

Re: Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

#57
I know photoshop really well but not from the interface design perspective (Fine Arts major in college concentrating on Photography so I know Camera RAW and the associated photo related tools really well). It always amazes me how many features it has and how useable it is with all of those features (I have been using it since 5.5 which has, as far as I can recall, has a very similar interface for a number of the primary photo type tools -curves, layers, etc.)

Re: Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

#59
While I don't your tool has to be Photoshop, knowing design is somewhat significant in web development.

I know we're not specifically on the topic of hybrid producers here, but I really believe that a programmer should be able to assemble a design or help create a blended approach to UX while working on a project.

"I'm a coder, not a designer" is a poor argument. I use Photoshop daily as well as my language of choice, IDE, JS/jQuery, etc. and I'm no MENSA candidate by any stretch of the imagination.

I think if you love web development, you want to be involved in the whole process.

Re: Ask HN: Do you know Photoshop?

#60
While your tool doesn't necessarily have to be Photoshop, knowing design is somewhat significant in web development.

I know we're not specifically on the topic of hybrid producers here, but I really believe that a programmer should be able to assemble a design or help create a blended approach to UX while working on a project.

"I'm a coder, not a designer" is a poor argument. I use Photoshop daily as well as my language of choice, IDE, JS/jQuery, etc. and I'm no MENSA candidate by any stretch of the imagination.

I think if you love web development, you want to be involved in the whole process.

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