How to explain an app to a freelance developer

Question

I need to build a web app. I will design the user experience and interface, and I will hire a freelance programmer to do the coding.

What information should I give the developer and how (screenshots, functional mockups, descriptions, etc)? What are the best practices? Is there any post/book you would recommend me to read?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Hi, You may want to consider learning UML

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unified_Modeling_Language

http://www.intelligentedu.com/newly_researched_free_training/UML.html

Google "Free + UML + Tutorials"

Keep an eye out for use case diagrams and class diagrams

Answer 2

I suggest you write the user manual of the web site. The manual should provide the user, including the administrator, how to do various tasks. You should provide logic, screenshot, etc., as you are really writing a manual to explain it to your user. That manual will explain itself how your website will look like, along with the required functionalities, and the developer will have clear view of what you really want.