They say agile developers don’t have time for user-centered design. They say web standards and accessibility don’t matter to real-world sites. They say usability is a luxury, good graphic design doesn’t matter, and writing is just something you dump into a template. They are the message board grumblers, the mini-pundits and rainmakers on other people’s parades.
Their view of what matters on the web might be right. But nobody bothered to tell the five hundred-plus designers and developers who have signed up for An Event Apart Boston. The show has now sold out, and the waiting list is a yard long.
The surprisingly robust interest in this event is surely because of our extraordinary speakers. I also see it as evidence that, whatever the nay-sayers may take comfort in believing, the fact is that many people who make websites actually love their users. They love them enough to constantly work at perfecting their craft. They want their markup to support their content, their content to meet their users’ needs, and their design to facilitate that fulfillment.
That’s what your work is about. And mine, too. It’s what motivates every issue of A List Apart, even if not every issue hits the mark. And, now more than ever, it is what we hope to bring to the stage during two days of design and code in Boston’s beautiful Back Bay. To all who are coming, thank you, and let’s rock.
[tags]aneventapart, boston, design, webdesign[/tags]
