When designing for native apps, understanding both the restrictions and capabilities of the language your app is built in can significantly improve the workflow between designers and developers. This is of course true for visual frameworks like SwiftUI, where even a basic understanding can go a long way to reduce monotonous feedback loops in the design process.
When designing for SwiftUI, it is important for designers to have a good understanding of the framework's capabilities and limitations. Some key things that designers should know about SwiftUI design:
1. SwiftUI is a declarative framework
SwiftUI uses a declarative syntax for building UI, which allows teams to define the layout and behavior of their apps using simple, easy-to-read code. This can be a more efficient and intuitive way to build UI compared to using a traditional imperative approach.
2. SwiftUI is built for flexibility and adaptability
SwiftUI is designed to be flexible and adaptable, allowing you to build interfaces that work well on a wide range of devices and screen sizes. This can be especially useful for building apps that need to work on multiple platforms, such as iOS, macOS, and watchOS.
3. SwiftUI provides a range of built-in components
SwiftUI includes a range of pre-designed UI components, such as buttons, sliders, and text fields, that you can use to build your app's user interface. These components are designed to be intuitive and easy to use, and can help you to create consistent and effective user experiences.
4. SwiftUI has built-in support for accessibility
SwiftUI includes built-in support for accessibility features, such as VoiceOver, which allows users with disabilities to interact with your app. It is important to design your app with accessibility in mind to ensure that it is usable by as many people as possible.
5. Leverage assistive tools
There are tools out there like Judo that can help designers easily translate designs into production-ready code for their SwiftUI apps. Designers can build app UIs visually with SwiftUI components in Judo’s canvas while Judo writes the code in the background. Simply provide the code to the developers and create a more harmonious and efficient handoff process. Give it a try!
Designers should have a good understanding of the capabilities and design principles of SwiftUI when designing for the framework. This will help them to create effective and intuitive user interfaces and work more effectively with others on their product team.
