Launching DD Development Studio Alpha
We finally made it! After months of development, we're excited to announce the alpha launch of DD Development Studio. This milestone represents our first step into the public sphere, where we can begin real-world testing and gather valuable feedback from early adopters.
While we understand that content is not finalized and some features may need adjustment, we believe this alpha release provides a solid foundation for testing our core functionality. Our primary focus is on validating the authentication system, form submissions, and account management features that will power our future platform.
In order to facilitate better testing, we are moving the website onto the internet in an alpha stage. We understand that content is not finalized, wording will need adjustment, layouts may be wonky, and some things might just not work out of the gates. We have tried to minimize these issues, but we can't predict every scenario. We are more focused on our core targets and will make the appropriate adjustments and cleanup as necessary along the way.
The primary focus for this release is comprehensive testing. We need to validate our form submissions, authentication system, and the my account panel functionality. Everything should work, but the emails and some of the supporting forms are still in progress and lack the level of polish that a reasonable person would expect. These will be addressed in upcoming releases.
Feel free to explore the site and provide feedback. Your input during this alpha phase is invaluable to us.
“The best way to test a system is to put it in front of real users with real use cases.”
— David Davis
If you want to help test the site, we encourage you to create an account. The site is growing, and having an account will ensure you get notified when there are major updates that we feel are worthy of a new visit. Your participation helps us build a better platform for everyone.
One common concern we anticipate is account persistence through updates. The implementation of single sign-on will sit alongside the current credential sign-on process. This means your existing credentials will remain intact and you can continue using them without interruption. If you take the time to sign up for an account, we will make every effort to ensure that your account does not get lost. At a bare minimum, we will try to preserve your verified email address and provide an easy way to reconnect if the worst case becomes a reality.
We have provided several forms under the 'Contact' menu that can be used to submit feedback to us. If you run into a bug, you should use the Technical Support form. We take all feedback seriously and will respond as quickly as possible.
Looking ahead, the next release will feature the full single sign-on process deployment. In our system, a credential account is a requirement. Once that account is created and verified, you will then be allowed to link your single sign-on provider accounts for future 'Sign In' use. This keeps the system clean and secure, which is what all legitimate site users want at the end of the day. We also plan to add more photos of our time around the Tampa Bay area to give the site more personality.