A speech by Bill Buxton in Dublin in 2012, which is worth reading even today, as most ideas about design are rather timeless, and so are some books. Enjoy!

It's been a while since I last visited Dublin or Ireland, with my last visit dating back to 1982. I remember climbing Carentoon Hill during that trip. Now, let's dive into the topic at hand.

In a recent survey, we asked how many of you are designers and how many are developers. But what about the rest of you? Are there any architects, students, CEOs, or management executives among you? How many of you are involved in the business or finance side of things? Ideally, we should have an equal representation of people from design, technology, and business disciplines. These are the three pillars necessary for any business enterprise in today's world.

Now, preparing for this talk was a bit challenging, not because I had nothing to say, but because I was trying to figure out what would be worth saying. I first used a computer in 1971 to compose music for a film soundtrack. That computer had a mouse, real-time sound synthesis, computer graphics, two-handed input, music notation, and a piano keyboard. It was easy to use, and I've spent the rest of my life trying to recreate that simplicity.

My first published work on pen-based input was in 1978, and we were working on multi-touch technology by 1984. This long history in the field has made me realize the importance of getting things right. We are on the cusp of a major change, with a new generation of technologies about to launch. The game is changing from simply making things work to creating smooth, elegant experiences. The challenge now is not just about making things, but deciding what to make and how to make it. More...

Functional Testing is like Eagon Spengler, the brains behind the Ghostbusters team, often overshadowed by more flamboyant characters but indispensable for their success. That accomplished yet humble individual belies the very essence of functional tests. Just like him, functional testing plays a crucial yet understated role in the software development process.

In the world of software testing, we are so often enamoured by the technological characters: UI testing with its flashy complexities, API testing with its mysteries of wire protocols and data payload formats. Yet, the quietly diligent and most dependable hero - functional testing - is often left in the shadows. More...

In the realm of software systems, the concept of application programming interfaces (APIs) is commonplace. Often, you'll find services or components in these systems that are deployed with over-the-wire APIs. But, what do these APIs entail? Are they exclusive to backend services instructed by various user interfaces via some remote access protocol such as HTTP? Not quite. The term "API" may typically be used in this context, but it isn't necessarily limited to it. In this exploration of API testing, we are defining an API as a remote backend service that is an integral segment of a software system. More...

Software testing has undergone a dramatic evolution over the years. It has metamorphosed from mundane, manual tasks to a truly dynamic and automated process. Specifically noteworthy is the potent concept of automated testing via the user interface(UI) realized through the advent of profoundly adept modern technologies.

In contrast to traditional unit tests that primarily perforate lines of code and evaluate their intended functionality, automated tests foster interaction and inspection of the application in its full glory. They robustly scrutinize the complete assembled system via its UI. Consider the tests as an intrepid globetrotter, navigating through the labyrinth of web applications, smart devices, virtually or physically, Android or Apple. The main idea is to simulate real user interactions and accurately replicate user experience. More...