“Actually, it's more of a guideline than a rule...”
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Research
Perhaps the most important stage of any project is the research process. This step involves exploring every aspect of the project and its goals in order to draw up a concrete foundation to work from. A project´s content and functionality are outlined, reviewed, and finalized for the development cycle. At the end of the research phase a skeleton of the project is in place and ready to be built upon.
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Design
The design stage organizes and gives structure to the core elements of the project after they have been vetted in the research phase. This step is very broad and ranges from creating simple wireframes to polishing off colorful mockups of your project. It is not all about colors and slick graphics; the design phase is an important factor in the project´s ability to be structured, well organized, and usable.
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Implement
Now that the project is defined, structured, and given a nice shiny coat of paint, it is time to build the final product. All the elements of the project are brought together and used to build the final version of the project. If the previous stages of development were done correctly there will be minimal hindrances towards the creation of the project. No square pegs in round holes here.
But most importantly... adapt & educate
I did not go into details of each step of my process because, well, it´s tough to describe something that is based mostly on the project itself. There are plenty of workflows and processes that I follow for each project but the majority of the details of each step change and adapt to the needs of the project I´m focusing on. Being adaptable to the project is absolutely necessary when creating for the web due to the evolving nature it possesses. Sticking to a stagnant game plan will leave you with an overpaid website built in tables slapped together by frames (remember those?) that will not be supported in future browsers.
But above all else, educating the client and user through teaching and the project itself is highest goal in my process. The sharing of knowledge and educating users progresses the web for a better and brighter future. The development of the web is finally achieving a unified voice and the more people that become aware of its benefits the faster we will progress towards a better experience for all.
