An inside look

Creative Selection by Ken Kocienda is a book about working inside Apple as a software developer. I must say Ken's creditability is pretty amazing given that he wrote the iOS keyboard software. His book takes a unique perspective on what it was like working at Apple.

Prototyping

The first thing that I think is important, he emphasized the routine of demoing software. It wasn't just one demo and the work was done, it was an iterative approach to meet the quality and taste of Apple. I empathize with this idea coming from the mechanical engineering background. Prototyping is essential to making anything physical. You'll never get it right the first time. The story behind making the iOS keyboard is amazing. I took it completely for granted how something which looks so obvious nearly killed the project entirely.

Design

A quote really resonated with me.

Most people make the mistake of thinking design is what it looks like. People think it’s this veneer – that the designers are handed this box and told, “Make it look good!” That’s not what we think design is. It’s not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.

Ken's book describes how this ethos was applied in his work.

An amazing summation

A small group of people built a work culture based on applying the seven essential elements through an ongoing process of creative selection

To find out what the seven essential elements are you'll have to read the book 😉. The book is very easy to read and not overly technical. Happy reading!