UX Best Practices

What are some best practices for customizing UX apps? If you built and extended your first UX apps by following the examples and exercises in my previous articles, you'll probably remember that HTML (Polymer 1) or JavaScript (Polymer 3 or ReactJS) view files were stored in your local folders. By recognizing this behavior, you can make regular backups of your work.

Tip: What is UX? The standard definition of "UX" is user experience. But for simplicity, I'll refer to the TRIRIGA UX framework as "UX".
Note: If you don't have a business need to modify TRIRIGA-built Perceptive apps or develop your own custom-built UX apps, then you don't have to worry about these general best practices. But if you choose to customize your own UX apps, then follow these best practices to avoid most issues.

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Best practices for customizing UX apps

By Jay Manaloto

I. What are some best practices for customizing UX apps?

If you built and extended your first UX apps by following the examples and exercises in my previous articles, you'll probably remember that HTML (Polymer 1) or JavaScript (Polymer 3 or ReactJS) view files were stored in your local folders. For example, if you added the jay-uxbo-view.html starter file, the jay-uxbo-view folder was also created. By recognizing this behavior, you can make regular backups of your work.

Note: Be aware that by customizing TRIRIGA-built Perceptive apps, there's no guarantee that future upgrades of these Perceptive apps will be backward-compatible with your custom changes. So don't forget to document your changes by commenting in your HTML/JS view files or elsewhere.

II. Simple backup of HTML/JS views

Here are the basic steps for backing up your HTML/JS views:
  • Make a backup copy of your HTML/JS view folder and its files.
  • Rename your backup folder with an easy identifier, like today's date.
  • Create a new revision of the related UX view metadata record.
  • Continue to work with your active HTML/JS view folder and its files.

III. Advanced backup of HTML/JS views and UX metadata

Here are more advanced steps for backing up your UX metadata:
  • Make a backup copy of your HTML/JS view folder and its files.
  • Rename your backup folder with an easy identifier, like today's date.
  • Create and rename a brand new UX view metadata record.
    • Rename your active HTML/JS view folder and its files to match this new metadata record.
    • Add your active HTML/JS view, and any other supporting HTML/JS and CSS files, to this new metadata record.
    • Create, rename, and reconnect any brand new UX model, data source, model-and-view, and application metadata records related to your new UX view metadata record.
  • Continue to work with your active HTML/JS view folder and its files.

IV. Compare and merge HTML/JS views

Because HTML/JS tools, practices, and requirements can vary from organization to organization, team to team, and developer to developer, it is the responsibility of your organization to determine the details of how to compare and merge your custom HTML/JS views with upgraded versions.

Here are the basic steps for comparing and merging your HTML/JS views:
  • Perform a simple or advanced backup of your HTML/JS views.
  • Use a HTML/JS "diff" (difference) tool to compare the versions.
    • If a customization has no related upgrade, use the customization.
    • If no customization affects a related upgrade, use the upgrade.
    • But if a customization affects a related upgrade, make a decision to use the customization, use the upgrade, or take a new approach.
  • Continue to test and work with your active HTML/JS views.