Best Practices for iOS User Interface Design

University of California, Irvine via Coursera

Go to Course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/ui

Introduction

### Course Review: Best Practices for iOS User Interface Design If you are an aspiring iOS developer or a designer seeking to deepen your understanding of user interface design, the course "Best Practices for iOS User Interface Design" on Coursera offers an invaluable educational experience. This comprehensive course not only teaches you the essential principles of user interface design but also equips you with hands-on skills necessary for creating modern, user-friendly iOS applications. #### Overview In this course, you will learn to develop sophisticated user interfaces with a focus on best practices, UI animations, and responsive design. The curriculum is meticulously structured to guide you through the complexities of iOS design, from fundamental concepts to practical implementation. Key topics include the usage of essential UI widgets, effective mapping interfaces, and view restoration techniques, all of which are crucial for building a seamless user experience. #### Detailed Syllabus Review 1. **Getting to Know iOS Design Concepts** - The course kicks off by introducing you to the basic concepts underpinning iOS design, including Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and the Human Interface Guidelines (HIG). The use of dynamic constraints through the auto-layout engine is an exciting beginning, allowing learners to grasp how to create adaptive interfaces that respond to different screen sizes and orientations. The peer review assignment, "Layout with Dynamic Constraints," fosters collaborative learning and practical application. 2. **The Design Solutions that Come with iOS** - In the second week, the course dives deeper into design solutions that iOS provides. You will explore HIG and HCI principles alongside practical techniques for achieving the optimal design. This week’s quiz serves as a helpful checkpoint to solidify your understanding and retention of the concepts introduced. 3. **View Controllers and Map Interfaces** - Week three introduces you to view controllers and map interfaces, crucial for any application involving geographical data or location services. The hands-on peer review assignment, "The Basic Map View," challenges you to integrate location data into your applications, offering a rewarding and practical task that emphasizes the real-world application of your learning. 4. **Table Views, Core Data, and User Interface Integration** - The final week wraps up with a focus on table views, core data management, and overall interface integration. You will learn to seamlessly connect data and visuals, culminating in the peer review project, "To Do Manager." This assignment not only synthesizes the skills you’ve acquired throughout the course but also provides practical experience in creating applications that manage persistent data. #### Overall Impression The "Best Practices for iOS User Interface Design" course is well-structured and engaging, combining theoretical knowledge with practical assignments that promote hands-on learning. The emphasis on peer reviews encourages interaction with fellow learners, significantly enhancing the collaborative aspect of the course. The instructors are knowledgeable, and their insights into industry practices contribute to an enriching learning experience. #### Recommendation I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in iOS development or user interface design. Whether you're a beginner looking to build foundational knowledge or an experienced developer seeking to refine your design skills, this course is a worthy investment of your time. By the end of the course, you will not only gain valuable skills but also develop a keen understanding of the principles that drive effective user interface design on iOS platforms. In conclusion, if you want to elevate your iOS applications and create interfaces that users will love, "Best Practices for iOS User Interface Design" on Coursera is the perfect choice for you. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to advance your skills in this ever-evolving field!

Syllabus

Getting to know iOS Design Concepts

Welcome to Best Practices for iOS User Interface Design! This week, we will take a deep dive into getting to know iOS design concepts. We will cover iOS, HCI, and HIG plus complete a peer review assignment called Layout with Dynamic Constraints that, as the name suggests, uses the auto-layout engine to make dynamic user interfaces.

The Design Solutions that come with iOS

In week 2, we will discuss the design solutions that come with iOS. We will cover HIG and HCI principles plus learn how to achieve the design. We will wrap up this week with a quiz to test your knowledge on what you have learned this week.

View Controllers and Map Interfaces

This week, we will look at view controllers and map interfaces. We will cover user interface construction plus complete a peer review assignment called The Basic Map View. Who doesn't want to be able to put locations on a map!

Table Views, Core Data and User Interface Integration

In week 4, we will look at table views, core data, and user interface integration. We will cover table views, table views plus core data, and you will finally learn how to put it all together. We will end the course with a peer review assignment called To Do Manager.

Overview

You will learn to develop sophisticated user interfaces for iOS, with a focus on user interface design best practices, UI animations, and responsive design. You will learn about the key UI widgets, mapping interfaces and view restoration.

Skills

Reviews

The course is quite nice, but actually I was expecting something more design / ui related and less code.\n\nThe name of the course and description is a bit misleading.

This course really taught me how to design better app UI.

Very detailed lectures help me to understand iOS app development a lot. Thank you :-)

Be ready that the week 4 has much longer assignment than the previous weeks.

Very descriptive, that's good for learning. Besides, peer assignment works are very effective. Anyone interested in iOS development must try this course.