PR review sessions are also an activity for designers. Here's one that just happened around a new page in the design guide about how applications can design for handling of multiple wallets. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0K-UG-ozb4
FOSDEM and Creative Freedom Summit are currently open for talk submissions. Both are great open-source conferences full of interesting people worth checking out. If you're working on design on open-source, maybe consider attending and presenting.
Creative Freedom Summit is a virtual conference dedicated solely to the features and benefits of Open Source creative tools on January 23 to 25. Proposals are due December 1.
https://creativefreedomsummit.com
FOSDEM is about free and open-source software, with a specialized track on open design. It's in Brussels, on February 3 and 4. Proposals are due December 8.
In our community call yesterday, we discussed the newly formed Bitcoin Design Foundation. It was founded to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Bitcoin Design Community. We went over the backstory, where we are now, and the curvy path in between.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avVK5YaRkqU
Thank you to everyone who made it to the call. And an especially big shout-out to nostr:npub1tg779rlap8t4qm8lpgn89k7mr7pkxpaulupp0nq5faywr8h28llsj3cxmt for becoming the first donor. The foundation is in service of the community, let’s use it to do more good design work and move the bitcoin experience forward together.
We use Open Collective to host the Foundation. To learn more, donate, get in touch, and more, visit the website here:
Newsletter #52 just went out with community activity, updates to the design guide, active discussions and project news, and lots of small bits and pieces. Take a peek.
https://bitcoindesign.substack.com/p/bitcoin-design-newsletter-52
Designing for bitcoin is a unique challenge. As the internet of money, it is a canvas for creativity and fresh new ways of thinking. Plus, it's permissionless, so you can blaze trails one pixel at a time together with a global community.
https://bitcoin.design/guide/getting-started/why-design-for-bitcoin/
In 2021, Patrícia Estevão gathered some very thorough research on how people use and perceive bitcoin, via live interviews from participants all around the world. Her findings, especially the personas she created, can be very useful for guiding projects. More below...
Read the full 14,000 word report. It's absolutely worth it, not only for the findings, but also the process.
https://patestevao.com/work/bitcoin-ux-research/
The Bitcoin Design Guide includes a summary for the personas for quick reference by designers and builders.
https://bitcoin.design/guide/designing-products/user-personas/
And if you'd like to put your feet up and watch a video, here's the presentation by Patricia herself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ_6LRXbebo
It can be hard to put ourselves in the minds and contexts of the people we design and build for. Luckily we have UX researchers to help us with that.
In yesterdays Bitcoin Design Guide Jam Session, we discussed backup solutions around descriptors, user flows for miniscript-based recovery paths, multi-wallet design considerations, code resources, and an upcoming case study for nostr:npub1j9kttlc86w63emmldd4h74rekyqpksqup6p9trhp5gjsf374qlyszvuswx.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HhYjG4wYkQ
Our next session is on November 20. Join us. https://github.com/BitcoinDesign/Meta/issues/590
Happy bitcoin logo day. 13 years ago today, the bitcoin symbol we know and recognize was proposed on the Bitcointalk forum by a user named bitboy. We have more info on this topic in the "Visual language" page in the guide. https://bitcoin.design/guide/getting-started/visual-language/#update-by-bitboy
What principles do you base your design decisions on? In the Bitcoin Design Community, we identified self-custody, security, inclusion, interoperability, transparency, privacy, and decentralization. Read all about them here: https://bitcoin.design/guide/getting-started/principles/
The latest Bitcoin Design newsletter just went out with lots of activity in the community from the last few weeks. https://bitcoindesign.substack.com/p/bitcoin-design-newsletter-51
Shout-outs to nostr:npub1j9kttlc86w63emmldd4h74rekyqpksqup6p9trhp5gjsf374qlyszvuswx, nostr:npub1funq0ywh32faz0sf7xt97japu8uk687tsysj8gndj4ehe825sq4s70gs0p, nostr:npub1vy6wcgw6jhhtcmpawvlnsfx7g8qt8r40z7qlks9zwa4ed57vm5eqx527hr, nostr:npub1getal6ykt05fsz5nqu4uld09nfj3y3qxmv8crys4aeut53unfvlqr80nfm, nostr:npub1mutnyacc9uc4t5mmxvpprwsauj5p2qxq95v4a9j0jxl8wnkfvuyque23vg, nostr:npub1xnf02f60r9v0e5kty33a404dm79zr7z2eepyrk5gsq3m7pwvsz2sazlpr5. #Nostrasia #herecomesbitcoin
A new version 0.1.10 of the Bitcoin Icons was just released with 11 new icons and 1 fix.
Let's look at 6 ways you can use these 125 icons:
- Figma plugin
- Figma source
- SVG & PNG download
- React module
- Vue module
- SVG module
The Figma plugin lets you search icons, toggle between outline and filled, and insert them into your design with a click. Very handy.
https://www.figma.com/community/plugin/1087677534293009133/bitcoin-icons
If you want to go directly the source of the icons, grab the Figma community file. Also great if you'd like to contribute.
https://www.figma.com/community/file/948545404023677970/bitcoin-icon-set
Just want the files directly? Get the icons as SVG and PNG zipped up from the release page on GithHub.
https://github.com/BitcoinDesign/Bitcoin-Icons/releases/tag/v0.1.10
Technically inclined? Just install the modules and you're ready to go.
https://www.npmjs.com/package/@bitcoin-design/bitcoin-icons-vue
https://www.npmjs.com/package/@bitcoin-design/bitcoin-icons-react
https://www.npmjs.com/package/@bitcoin-design/bitcoin-icons-svg
Missing any icons? Got some suggestions for improvement? Reply here or add an issue on GitHub to request.
https://github.com/BitcoinDesign/Bitcoin-Icons/issues
nostr:npub1xnf02f60r9v0e5kty33a404dm79zr7z2eepyrk5gsq3m7pwvsz2sazlpr5 merged several accessibility improvements today. These can make the difference between someone understanding the interface and being able to manage their bitcoin, or having no idea what is in front of them.
https://github.com/ZeusLN/zeus/pull/1590
Many wallets still have some pretty easy-to-fix accessibility issues. Often, it is just a matter of adding a label to an icon button, giving feedback on user interaction, or correctly grouping elements. If you'd like to help, see our accessibility hit list where we already gathered specific improvements for several projects.
https://github.com/BitcoinDesign/Meta/issues/516
Thing is, we're a design community, and we need help from developers to make these changes. We'd love if it you could chip in. Reach out via the issue above, or in the #accessibility channel in our Discord.
Did you know bitcoin wallets can have fallback keys that only become active after some time? How that works, other use cases, and more are explained in the new Custom spending conditions page. Big thanks to nostr:npub1aa0jg0dygjqarz6ptj96lzvqrqt2aw7xe6pw8z7z9we9xx0rhl9qh06zud for putting it all together.
https://bitcoin.design/guide/how-it-works/custom-spending-conditions/
Next on Michael's to-do list is a follow-up page that dives into UX best practices for this functionality. Stay tuned. For now, we'd love to get your feedback on the new page.
Newsletter #50 just went out. Make sure to take a look at the 3 hackathons starting this week. Those are great wide-open spaces to learn, commingle and let your creative juices flow 🥤🌊. https://bitcoindesign.substack.com/p/bitcoin-design-newsletter-50
Join us tomorrow at 8:00 UTC for a design review session with nostr:npub15369wu3wzzar5fclhecyqfv683x69n6nhlg7rxqnsg2dydgxflpq3apswl .
Which open-source bitcoin projects & companies are looking for designers or design support?
There are two exciting hackathons coming up next week via nostr:npub1funq0ywh32faz0sf7xt97japu8uk687tsysj8gndj4ehe825sq4s70gs0p, Legends of Lighting Vol 2 and Nostrasia. Join the fun.
Some say the ideal way to spend a weekend is to watch recordings of Bitcoin Design calls (not sure who says that, maybe AI bots?). On this weeks menu are an Etta Wallet design review, UX research on Geyser, and a Bitcoin Core App design catch-up. Happy binging. https://www.youtube.com/@BitcoinDesign/videos
For upcoming calls, check out our calendar, and you're welcome to join. https://bitcoin.design/calendar/
Fees are tricky in bitcoin, and lightning makes them even more complex. We updated the "Send fees" page in the Bitcoin Design Guide with extra details around different scenarios, and how to design for them. Contextually appropriate explainers and options are the key.
https://bitcoin.design/guide/daily-spending-wallet/sending/send-fees/
These concepts are important for designers and other contributors to understand as well. If you have not been part of a reading group, give it a try. Even just listening in is often a great way to learn a few things. nostr:note1djag7592ls4q0psh2dq2rj0y0c26cfsne6ca2eumnfkvw43mrwrqn5nm94