Web Directions North 2009 in Denver

I’m thrilled to be speaking at Web Directions North (WDN) in Denver this February 2-7, 2009. This intimate conference is the perfect opportunity to sharpen your professional skills and rekindle your passion for all things web. The program has been handcrafted for web designers, developers and UX professionals to soak up the latest best practices. What makes WDN so special? It is geared towards the intermediate to expert level web professional, not beginners.

I can’t wait to hear John Allsopp share his research on The State of the Web 2009, a survey of practicing web designers and developers, which aims to capture how people are developing for the web right now. And how can you resist these sessions:

• AJAX – the State of the Art by Dion Almaer and Ben Galbraith, founders of ajaxian.com.
• Tap is the New Click by Dan Saffer, author of Designing for Interaction by New Riders.

The special Ed Directions Symposium on Tuesday, February 3rd will focus on the challenges of educating the next generation of web professionals. How do you developing curricula and training for web designers and developers? In the constantly evolving web profession how do you make sure your employees and/or students are equipped with the foundational knowledge of current best practices and standards? I’m looking forward to sharing a realistic glimpse of the state of web standards education on my campus, the University of Texas at Austin. Key speakers for Ed Directions include:

• Aarron Walter – author of Building Findable Websites: Web Standards, SEO, and Beyond (New Riders, 2008), Professor of Interactive Art and Design, member of The Web Standards Project and the lead of The WaSP Curriculum Framework project.
• Leslie Jensen-Inman – assistant professor of art, design, business, and technology, board member on the Chattanooga Chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA)
• Bill Cullifer – founder and executive director of the World Organization of Webmasters
• Chris Mills – organiser and editor of the Opera Web Standards Curriculum

You can’t afford to miss this chance to learn, be inspired and refuel on practical and valuable insights and techniques.

Did I mention, the conference has an optional ski trip at Breckenridge? Imagine swooshing down the mountain on the perfect ski trail, then meeting up at the lodge to sit by the fire and talk about semantics and interactive design. (Sigh)