Overview
Mid-Summer 2024 I learned that audIT was being merged into Network Detective Pro. I’m responsible for design for the RapidFire Tools Suite which Network Detective Pro is a part of. The merging of the two tools presented challenges, such as needing to merge a fully fleshed out web app into/alongside another, and also deliver everything on time so that the new version could ship by DattoCon 2024 in October.
I worked rapdly and steadily with the expanded product management team (involving product managers from the ND Pro and audIT platforms), product development, and overall team management to deliver an experience that is harmonious with RFT/ND Pro and genuine to the features and experiences existing audIT users know to expect, along with any within reach ux improvements we could address for version 1.0 of the new audIT in Network Detective Pro.
UX Improvements/Modernization
During the migration process we were able to include some ux and design system consistency improvements. For the examples shown here, pages with the green header are the original audIT screens and pages with orange are the new audIT within Network Detective Pro screens.
For instances of the drawer component, we adopted a newer standard that includes a shadow over the contents outside of the drawer. This helps users focus on content within the drawer while still keeping any previous page locations or action in context.
Settings pages in original audIT lacked consistency. Some included expandable containers to help break up sections and reduce information overload in the mostly open white-space full page layout, while others were just a long list of fields and inputs. We made sure all settings pages followed similar conventions with expandable sections. Also we improved rendering of uploaded logos to maintain correct aspect ratio of the uploaded image. Previously, logo images had a tendency to distort or stretch, liable to cause frustration to anyone involved with brand or presentation on audIT reports.
Tables in audIT also needed some work. List results that could exceed hundreds of items had no pagination and limited filtering/sorting capability. Pagination and improved filtering/sorting ensured better consistency with other features already present within RapidFire Tools and Network Detective Pro. I was glad we could address some of what may have been old ux tech debt or design system features that had been skipped over in favor of other priorities.
Developer Support in Advance of DattoCon
Active design work essentially wrapped on audIT in Network Detective Pro during August. At that time my role shifted more to supporting the development team as they proceeded with scoping out and creating the features we had outlined. From then until when work was finished before DattoCon, I attended bi-weekly dev team syncs and worked with developers, product owners, and scrum masters to identify issues and missing edge cases and address them quickly (so as not to hold up any issues between sprints). Most issues that came up were small fixes, and anything that took more than a day was still simple enough to address with time enough for any developer to close their ticket.
I always appreciate the pressure relief that comes with reaching any “design done” milestone, but also I understand the mounting pressure facing development teams when it comes their time to take and run with any work I have prepared. I take this time very seriously since I don’t want any of my teammates to be left in a difficult place because we couldn’t address something in time. If any effort was large enough to require altered requirements or bigger strategizing than small fixes, product ownership did a good job of prioritizing issues and calling the right meetings without overwhelming everyone’s calendars during scarce time.
Overall the team working on the migration/improvement did a great job delivering everything on time, making smart compromises when necessary, and scoping work/effort/management well so that all parties involved could keep moving toward the goal of on-time delivery for DattoCon.