An Event Apart DC 2010

Thursday, September 16

1. 9:00am–10:00am

   Web 2.1: The Medium Comes of Age

   

   Jeffrey Zeldman, author, Designing With Web Standards, 3rd Ed.

   Webkit-powered smartphones like iPhone and Droid have come along at precisely the moment when HTML5, CSS3, and web fonts are ready for action; when standards-based web development is no longer relegated to the fringe; and when web designers, no longer content to merely decorate screens, are crafting provocative, multi-platform experiences powered by research, strategy, and years of social media know-how. Zeldman kicks off AEA by studying the thinking and inventions that led to the web, and showing why we stand at the dawn of a newer, more mature, more ubiquitous web, powered by standards.

2. 10:15am–11:15am

   Object Oriented CSS

   

   Nicole Sullivan, co-author, Even Faster Websites

   How do you scale CSS for millions of visitors or thousands of pages? What happens to the size of your CSS file as more pages and modules are added? The answer, for most sites, is that it grows out of control and becomes an unmaintainable tangle of spaghetti code. Object Oriented CSS allows you to write fast, maintainable, standards-based front-end code. It adds much needed predictability to CSS so that even beginners can create beautiful websites. OOCSS is not a framework or a tool (though in this session Nicole will demo both); it is a better, saner way to write and maintain style sheets.

3. 11:30am–12:30pm

   The CSS3 Experience

   

   Dan Cederholm, author, Bulletproof Web Design and Handcrafted CSS

   In a fast-paced hour of design ideas and techniques, learn how advanced CSS and CSS3 can add richness to your site’s experience layer, and discover the role CSS3 can play in enhancing interactivity.

4. 12:30pm–2:00pm: LUNCH

5. 2:00pm–3:00pm

   Mobile First!

   

   Luke Wroblewski, author, Web Form Design

   More often than not, the mobile experience for a web application or site is designed and built after the PC version is complete. Learn the three reasons web applications should be designed for mobile first instead: mobile is exploding; mobile forces you to focus; and mobile extends your capabilities.

6. 3:15pm–4:15pm

   Message and Medium: Better Content by Design

   

   Kristina Halvorson, author, Content Strategy for the Web

   Designing for multichannel content delivery (mobile, anyone?) means an entirely new set of considerations and challenges for web professionals everywhere. Unfortunately for content creators, it’s nearly impossible to predict whether their writing will maintain impact and readability across each and every platform. But forget about the medium for a minute; it’s the message that matters most. We’ll learn how to identify your key business messages, how they inform your content strategy, and how they impact multi-channel content development and design.

7. 4:30pm–5:30pm

   Anatomy of a Design Decision

   

   Jared Spool, Founder, User Interface Engineering

   What separates a good design from a bad design are the decisions that the designer made. Jared will explore the five styles of design decisions, showing you when gut instinct produces the right results and when designers need to look to more user-focused research.

8. 7:00pm–??pm

   Opening Night Party

   

   Sponsored by (mt) Media Temple

   MadHatter
   1319 Connecticut Avenue N.W.
   Washington, DC 20036
   (202) 833-1495
   

   Media Temple’s opening night parties for An Event Apart are legendary. Join the speakers and hundreds of fellow attendees for great conversation, lively debate, loud music, hot snacks, and a seemingly endless stream of grown-up beverages.

   Kindly RSVP if you plan to attend.

Friday, September 17

1. 9:00am–10:00am

   Everything Old Is New Again

   

   Eric Meyer, author, CSS: The Definitive Guide, 3rd Ed.

   Faux columns. Sliding doors. Image replacement. We rely on these techniques on a near-daily basis, but how will they be affected by the expanding vocabulary of CSS3? Will they be reworked, slimmed down, or abandoned altogether? An Event Apart cofounder and CSS mastermind Eric Meyer pulls some old standbys out of the toolbox and applies the capabilites of CSS3 to see how they can be made leaner, meaner, and more powerful.

2. 10:15am–11:15am

   Paranormal Interactivity

   

   Jeremy Keith,
   author, DOM Scripting

   Interaction is the secret sauce of the web. Understanding interaction is key to understanding the web as its own medium—it’s not print, it’s not television, and it’s certainly not the desktop. Find out how to wield HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to craft experiences that are native to the web.

3. 11:30am–12:30pm

   Learning To Love Humans—Emotional Interface Design

   

   Aarron Walter, author, Building Findable Websites

   Humans, though cute and cuddly, are not without their flaws, which makes it a challenge to design for them. By understanding how the wet, mushy processor works in these hairy little devils, you can design interfaces and web experiences that will have them hopelessly devoted to your brand. Aarron will introduce you to the emotional usability principle—a design axiom that identifies a strong connection between human emotion and perceived usability. Through real-world examples, you’ll learn practical interface design techniques that will make your sites and applications more engaging to the humans they serve.

4. 12:30pm–2:00pm: LUNCH

5. 2:00pm–3:00pm

   Hardboiled Web Design

   

   Andy Clarke, author, Transcending CSS

   Take an uncompromising look at how to make the most from modern design tools and browsers, up-to-date techniques and processes. In this practical, design-focused talk, Andy will discuss the “how” as well as the “why,” and challenge your preconceptions to help you make better work for the web. Learn the most modern, forward-moving, and sometimes experimental CSS techniques, and why a forward looking approach to CSS will pay real dividends.

6. 3:15pm–4:15pm

   A Dao of Flexibility

   

   Ethan Marcotte, co-author, Handcrafted CSS and Designing With Web Standards, 3rd Edition

   “The Way is shaped by use, but then the shape is lost.” Our sites are accessed by an increasing array of devices and browsers, and our users deserve a quality experience no matter how large (or small) their display. Are our designs ready? Explore sites that think beyond the desktop and have successfully adapted to their users’ habits. Ethan will also discuss how bring an extra level of craftsmanship to our page layouts, and revisit popular CSS techniques in this ever-changing environment.

7. 4:30pm–5:30pm

   How the Web Works

   

   Jeff Veen, author, Art & Science of Web Design

   Turns out that the fundamental principles that led to the success of the web will lead you there, too. Drawing on 15 years of web design and development experience, Jeff will take you on a guided tour of what makes things work on this amazing platform we’re all building together. You’ll learn how to stop selling ice, why web browsers work the way they do, and where Rupert Murdoch can put his business model.

8. 6:00pm–8:00pm

   WebINK Cocktail Party

   

   Sponsored by Extensis

   ONE Lounge
   1606 20th Street NW
   Washington, DC
   

   Ready to debrief after a long day of presentations? Join your fellow attendees and speakers to chat about the day over appetizers and festive libations. Just a few blocks from the Hilton, we look forward to seeing you there!

Saturday, September 18

A Day Apart

HTML5 and CSS3 are the most exciting news in web standards in over a decade, and serious browser support is nearly at hand. What will the new specifications mean to you? How will they change your work? What benefits do they provide to web designers, clients, and users, and how can you start using them today?

To answer these questions and more, two of our favorite speakers (and your favorite authors) have created a special one-day learning event focused on practical, usable takeaways and exciting new creative possibilities.

Understand HTML5 with Jeremy Keith

• Learn about the history of HTML5 and the design principles that drive its development.
• Find out how new native form controls can provide a level of accessibility that stopgap emulated solutions could never match.
• Come to grips with the new structural elements and ARIA roles introduced in HTML5.
• Learn about new rich media elements that you can start using today.
• Figure out a strategy for migrating to HTML5.

Explore CSS3 with Ethan Marcotte

• Learn what’s new in CSS3.
• Master progressive enrichment with CSS3 that works today.
• Explore web fonts and the future of type.
• Enjoy flexible color with RGBA.
• Experiment with transitions and transformations for happy modern browsers.

A Day Apart DC follows An Event Apart DC and runs 9:00am - 5:00pm on Saturday, September 18. You can register just for An Event Apart or just for A Day Apart — or save over $100 when you register for all three days.