Table of Content

Tools to be used

Figma (Design)

I’m pretty sure that all of you are already familar with this app already (especially those of you who did the hi-fi technical ). If you don’t, tldr; it's basically a design tool that allows us to create and collaborate on user interfaces, graphics, and/or prototypes for websites and apps. It is also now the industry standard tool for creating UI/UX . (no Adobe XD/Sketch because Figma is just the goat ).

Making an Education Account (DRAFT)

To fully access all the features that Figma offers (e.g Dev mode), you will need an education account. So, simply go to https://www.figma.com/education/ to get verified with your [DRAFT] email.

[DRAFT NOTE - still need confirmation with execs if subcomm will have their own devsoc email]

Install DevSoc’s Typeface

We also have our own font, TT Commons Pro, which ensures design uniformity across all projects. Please make sure that you download this font to your local machine. You can install the font at:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14TPMH_JNvuEwr_IuG09k_3BfhaFxY-Kq?usp=sharing

and use it whenever you build stuff for DevSoc in Figma.

Note that this typeface is exclusively licenced for web apps and cannot be used in mobile applications.

Join the Team on Figma (DRAFT)

Once that's completed, join our team in Figma . [LINK TBA]

Collaboration on Figma

There is no limit to the amount of people who can collaborate on a design file, so feel free to use voice calls or work asynchronously to work on your tickets, especially if you need to collaborate with one of your teammates.

Make sure not to make significant changes to someone's design while working with them. Create a duplicate and make changes there so that others can decide whether or not to implement your design and ideas into their own creation.

Confluence (Documentation)

If you aren't familiar with this app (i mean you're basically using it right now ), Confluence is basically a tool for creating and compiling documentation and it is the go-to place if you want to see what the team have been up to . With Confluence, we will use it to compile:

General Documentation

These are literally anything other than meeting minutes (like this page rn ). Throughout the whole thing, we will be developing various kinds of documentation (e.g project feedbacks, etc). Please organise them in their relevant categories/folders, and maintain documentation as detailed and up to date as possible, not only on Confluence, but everywhere else, to make all of our lives easier. Being a part of UI/UX, proper documentation is basically very important after all .

Meeting Minutes

Meeting minutes will be created at all of our meetings and compiled in a folder labelled Meeting Minutes 2024. Please check them out if you miss any meetings so that we can all keep up to date!

To follow along with the notetaker in real time (since this feature is not that obvious - bad ux moment), just click the pencil/edit button located at the top right of the page.

Open

Linear (Ticket & Sprint Management)

Linear is basically a workflow/project management system similar to Jira/Trello, but it has more features and better UI/UX .

[LINK TBA]

Tickets

In a nutshell, a ticket is a problem or task that needs to be completed/done. When a ticket is made and assigned to you, you are responsible for completing it.

Open

Each rectangle/card is a ticket here

You can also view all the tickets under "active" or "backlog".

• "Active" basically lists all tickets that have already been assigned to someone and are currently "active."

• “Backlog” lists all of the tickets, whether active or not.

Open

View active/backlog tickets here

A ticket can have numerous child issues. We do this so that “chonky” tasks can be broken down and simplified, making life easier for everyone.

Cycles/Sprints

A cycle (as it’s called in Linear) or a sprint (as it’s called in Jira/Trello) is a timeframe during which we aim to work on a set of tasks or goals.

We will work in two-week cycles, so every two weeks, you will be assigned a new ticket or tickets, and it will be your responsibility to do your best to complete them.

Don’t worry about not finishing a ticket. We understand that this isn’t always possible, but if you're having trouble, please get in touch with a director so that we can take this feedback and adjust the way we plan future work .

Open

View current/upcoming cycles here

Open

Stats for each cycle

Other Features

You can also view some updates about your ticket (Inbox), your assigned issues (My Issues), filter your issues in a fancy way (Views), view our/other project’s timeline (Roadmaps) and see what is happening with other teams (Teams).

Open

Discord (Communication)

Since you are basically required to use this app when you join DevSoc, I'm pretty sure you are all already familiar with it (it’s pog so no complaints here ). Basically, though, Discord will be our main channel of communication for all things UI/UX and DevSoc-related .

Announcements

Messages here usually are pretty important and should be read/responded ASAP especially if there is an action item (e.g filling out a form, etc). They will either be sent by the Execs in the server's main #announcement channel or by us (the directors) in the team's #announcement channel (they share the same name).

An example of an announcement can be seen below:

Open

Notice the yellowish background. This means that you have been pinged/notified

Meetings

Whenever we hold an online meeting, it will take place in these channels on Discord:

#meetings

This is where we will have our online meetings. It’s a voice channel only accessible by our team + execs.

Open

General Communication

There are many #general channels on the server, such as one for the entire DevSoc and another for the UI/UX team. Feel free to have fun and chat around, but make sure to have meaningful conversations in their respective channels (e.g, have ui/ux related chats in the #general ui/ux channel).

Aside from the #general channels, there are many other bunches; spend some time to explore them, say hello, and mingle . Everybody here is literally the friendliest bunch of people you’re probably going to meet (they wont bite i promise ).

Also feel free to ask enquiries outside UI/UX in the #anything forum. We have some of the most talented people in CSE here (some are tutors, others have industry experience, and some are simply enthusiastic individuals with a wealth of knowledge ).

Github (UI Component Library) [DRAFT]

Getting Setup

[DRAFT]

Contribution Etiquette

You will most likely be primarily working on our UI component library, which is essentially a library consisting of components in our design system but in CODE . This library will make it easy for our project people to implement our design while maintaining a consistent look across all DevSoc projects.

https://github.com/devsoc-unsw/ui-components

Before you contribute, make sure you follow the following guidelines:

1. Always work on a branch that is not main!

2. Follow conventional commit message practices https://www.conventionalcommits.org/en/v1.0.0/ .

3. Ensure that the changelog is properly updated before pushing to main.

4. Tag a director when making a pull request (PR). Also make sure that your PR titles also follow the conventional commit message practices.

Meetings

General Meetings [DRAFT]

These will be held weekly [TIME TO BE DECIDED] and will either be completely in-person/online. This is where we will talk about what we have done and a time for you to ask for help if you’re struggling with a ticket.

Retrospectives

These will be held at the end of each sprint to reflect on how we are all going.

• What was done well?

• What could have been done better?

• What steps are you taking to improve/resolve any problems you had?

Expectations

Stuff to do

Aim to complete at least 1 ticket each week. If you feel like a ticket is too big/complex, please let a director know so that we can either split up the ticket into smaller tickets or assign it to someone else.

Apart from this, we are also starting an initiative to try and upskill you guys with the knowledge required to do this. Reason why is because we realised that there are people who are unfamiliar with the features that Figma has. Being integral to our workflow, we decided to hold upskilling workshops (for Figma, etc.) and consistently share important resources on Discord.

Communication with other Projects [DRAFT]

What to do when you’re not feeling it?

If you feel like you can’t complete your tickets because you’re feeling burnt out or are busy with assignments/exams , don’t worry. We have been there before and completely sympathise with you . It’s totally cool to take a break every now and then to destress. The last thing we want is for you to burn out and hate what you’re doing.

All we ask is that you let one of the directors know about the problem that you are facing and let us know if you would like to take a break and for how long. Whatever you do, just don’t go MIA and not respond when someone pings you.

Social Aspect of Dev

Okay that was a lot but now we can talk about the fun side of Development. Here, we work hard and play hard .

There will occasionally be announcements from the VP Devs or us directors, informing you about a social event. Some of the events that we have had before, including parties at penthouses in the city , coastal walks , paintball , dinners , karaoke and more. If that sounds like your thing, then feel free to react to these announcements and attend . We hope to see you there .

Also, if you have any concerns, please contact the UI/UX directors or the GEDI officer. We're here to help . If you don't want to discuss the situation with the parties involved but still want to escalate it, you can contact the GEDI officer directly.