News and Updates

Why the American People Deserve a Digital Government

OMB released new policy guidance for government that includes a variety of actions and standards to help federal agencies design, develop, and deliver modern websites and digital services. Memo M-23-22, Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience, will make it seamless for the public to obtain government information and services online, and help agencies fully implement the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA). — via The White House

Sep 22, 2023

USWDS mission and vision

USWDS Monthly Call - September 2023

We’ll explore what it means to pursue mission-centered design and decision-making.

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Sep 21, 2023 2023

A website refresh in 3 months

A website redesign doesn’t have to be a big project. By approaching it as a process of iteration, we launched a refreshed site in the span of several weeks. — via 18F

Sep 21, 2023

Creating a functional inventory database for website content audits

The Office of Natural Resources Revenue recently completed a site-wide content inventory and audit. Here is how they modified an existing content inventory spreadsheet to act as a functional database for enhancing content throughout the site. — via Office of Natural Resources Revenue

Sep 21, 2023

User Experience

Cultivating a dynamic career in UX

Join us for a discussion on how to adapt your career in user experience (UX) to a quickly changing world.

Sep 19, 2023 2023

6 lessons from a project handoff

Project handoffs are not simple. Teams have their own cultures and work styles. Without planning, a project could lose institutional memory, time, quality, and funding when it passes from one team to the next. Here are 6 lessons we learned as a recent project changed hands. — via USA.gov

Sep 19, 2023

NASA Releases First Season of Spanish-language Podcast

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, NASA is releasing new content for Universo curioso de la NASA, the agency’s first Spanish-language podcast. A five-episode season will start Tuesday, September 19, with new episodes released weekly. In each episode, Universo curioso will highlight the contributions of NASA’s Hispanic and Latino workforce to the agency’s groundbreaking work in Earth and space exploration. The season features interviews with NASA experts, including an astronaut, a space weather scientist, an astrochemist, and oceanographers. Episodes focus on some of NASA’s top missions, bringing the wonder of exploration, space technology, and scientific discoveries to Spanish-speaking audiences around the world. — via National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Sep 15, 2023

From pageviews to progress

A 10-year recap of GSA’s Digital Analytics Program (DAP) highlights its impact on federal government agencies and the public, high-level observations using government-wide website analytics and trends, and new goals set for the next decade to help generate useful answers to meaningful questions to make government websites better.

Posts by Jack Avery Posts by Marina Fox Posts by Tim Lowden

Sep 12, 2023

A conversation about content audits

Content audits can be tedious. Two content designers discuss why we do them anyway, and how to get started.

Posts by Michelle Rago Posts by Ryan Johnson

Sep 12, 2023

Catching up with the TANF Data Portal project

Around 800,000 low-income American families receive cash assistance through Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) each month. 18F and the Administration for Children & Families’ Office of Family Assistance partnered on building a new data portal for TANF. We caught up with Office of Family Assistance leaders to see how their agency is continuing with the work. — via 18F

Sep 07, 2023

Infrastructure as a (public) service

Over the next few months, CISA will initiate major changes to the .gov top-level domain (TLD) tech infrastructure, laying a foundation for the services we will offer in the coming years. — via DotGov Registry

Sep 06, 2023

Infrastructure as a (public) service

In fall 2023, we’ll launch a new registrar: a better way to get and manage a .gov domain. — via DotGov Registry

Sep 06, 2023

First, do no harm: mistakes to avoid in creating accessible user experiences

Accessible design and development practices help us build inclusive experiences. But we can lose sight of the people we serve if we don’t steadily work to better understand our users. To create accessible experiences, avoid these mistakes. — via 18F

Sep 05, 2023

Making the case for sentence case on USAGov’s websites

What is the best case style to use for titles and headings? For the new USAGov websites, we discuss the decision to use sentence case on USAGov products. — via USA.gov

Sep 05, 2023

Quarterly PMA Updates Lead the Way for Improved Service Delivery and Trust-Building

Today, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released its latest updates to the President’s Management Agenda (PMA). This quarter, the Implementation Leads for Customer Experience (Priority 2) share updates on where we are with this PMA priority. — via Performance.gov

Aug 30, 2023

Inclusivity and automation

Bots can help us improve our inclusivity by gently nudging us to use more appropriate language, explaining why some terms are offensive, and prompting us to consider others.

Posts by Frances Carden

Aug 28, 2023

Blind Veterans can now read decision letters

VA now offers accessibility to blind Veterans so they can independently read decision letters online. — via U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Aug 24, 2023

Seven tips on facilitating unplanned topics in meetings

Facilitating a workshop can feel like a daunting task. Here at 18F, we’ve identified seven tips to keep your workshop organized and flowing, despite unplanned scenarios. — via 18F

Aug 22, 2023

Advanced Section 508 compliance testing: moving beyond automated testing and screen readers

Members of the Office of Natural Resources Revenue team recently completed the free, six-course Trusted Tester accessibility compliance training and certification from the Department of Homeland Security. Here’s what they learned, and how they applied this new knowledge to the two websites they manage. — via Office of Natural Resources Revenue

Aug 21, 2023

USWDS product roadmap updates

USWDS Monthly Call - August 2023

What’s in the newest iteration of the U.S. Web Design System’s product roadmap.

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Aug 17, 2023 2023

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