Subatomic: The Complete Guide To Design Tokens

13h 27m 4s
English
Paid

Course description

A deep and comprehensive course on design tokens: from concepts and variables in Figma to code, processes, best practices, and much more.

Instructors: Brad Frost (creator of the Atomic Design methodology) and Ian Frost - recognized experts in the field of design systems. They share everything you need to know to create an effective design token system that will help your organization scale design and development.

Read more about the course

What the course includes:

  • More than 10 hours of detailed video lessons
  • Architecture samples in Figma and code
  • Work processes for naming and management
  • PDF with examples and useful materials

"Design systems make everything the same." Sound familiar?

If your organization supports a multitude of products, platforms, brands, and modes, you know how challenging it is to find a balance between uniformity and flexibility.

The answer is design tokens.

For more than ten years, we have helped dozens of organizations - including many from the Fortune 500 list - build design token systems that enable consistency while maintaining individuality. It is complex. That's why we have compiled all our knowledge into this course, so you can avoid our mistakes and build a reliable, scalable token system.

Course Structure (8 Chapters):

  • Basics of Design Tokens
    • Why they are needed, where they are used, how they are structured, and how they are connected with modern design systems and tools.
  • Token Architecture
    • Three-level token system, color and typography systems, spacing, borders, animations, and more.
  • Naming and Structures
    • Naming principles and patterns, recommendations for structure and synchronization between design and code.
  • Building a Token System
    • Variables in Figma, Style Dictionary, automation, and synchronization processes.
  • Publishing Tokens
    • Distribution via Figma libraries, npm packages, and internal release processes.
  • Adapting Tokens in Practice
    • How designers and developers use tokens in real practice.
  • Support and Development
    • Branching, versioning, expansion, management, and long-term evolution of systems.
  • Advanced Topics
    • Dark themes, sub-brands, white-label, multi-product and multi-platform solutions, the future of tokens, and AI.

The course is accompanied by architectural templates in Figma and code, process diagrams in FigJam, and rich slides with a multitude of additional resources.

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#1: Welcome!

All Course Lessons (359)

#Lesson TitleDurationAccess
1
Welcome! Demo
01:58
2
About your teachers
02:34
3
Who This Course Is For
01:18
4
Course Structure
03:03
5
What's Included
01:07
6
Chapter 1 Introduction
00:45
7
The Problems Design Tokens Solve
01:23
8
The Multi-All-The-Things Organization
10:54
9
The Business Case For Design Tokens
10:32
10
The New Separation of Concerns
05:55
11
The ROI of Design Tokens
03:54
12
The History of Themeable User Interfaces
04:38
13
Design Tokens Origin Story
02:03
14
What Are Design Tokens?
04:09
15
Tokens in Design Tools
01:07
16
Tokens in Code
03:21
17
The Role of Design Tokens in a Design System Ecosystem
06:10
18
Chapter 1 Summary
01:34
19
Chapter 2 Introduction
00:52
20
Brand Style Guide Vs Product Reality
02:22
21
Creating an MVP Token System
08:16
22
The Three-Tiered Token Architecture
11:36
23
Themes
05:44
24
Color Systems - Introduction
02:28
25
Color Systems - Brand Considerations
02:52
26
Color Systems - Visual Considerations
01:15
27
Color Systems - UX Considerations
02:27
28
Color Systems - Accessibility Considerations
02:28
29
Color Systems - Three-Tiered color tokens
07:53
30
Typography Systems- Introduction
00:43
31
Typography Systems- Brand Considerations
00:39
32
Typography Systems- Visual Considerations
01:13
33
Typography Systems- UX Considerations
01:06
34
Typography Systems- Accessibility Considerations
01:13
35
Composite Tokens Definition
00:56
36
Typography Systems- Tier 1 Tokens
01:45
37
Typography Systems- Tier 2 Tokens
02:16
38
Typography Systems- Tier 3 Tokens
01:39
39
Spacing - Use an 8pt or 4pt grid
00:18
40
Spacing - Three-tiered Tokens
02:11
41
Spacing - Summary
00:22
42
Border Tokens
01:52
43
Shadow Tokens
01:23
44
Animation Tokens
02:32
45
Chapter 2 Summary
02:30
46
Chapter 3 Introduction
01:28
47
Why Naming Matters - Humanity's Superpower
02:00
48
Why Naming Matters - Shared Understanding
01:08
49
Why Naming Matters - Collaboration
01:00
50
Why Naming Matters - Contract
01:03
51
Why Naming Matters - Infrastructure
02:24
52
Why Naming Matters - Traceability & Measurement
01:51
53
Why Naming Matters - User Experience
00:54
54
Why Naming Matters - Maintainability
01:05
55
Why Naming Matters - Synchronization & Automation
00:41
56
Why Naming Matters - Summary
01:54
57
Why Naming Is Hard - Two Hard Things In Computer Science
00:35
58
Why Naming Is Hard - Invented Language
01:01
59
Why Naming Is Hard - Subjectivity
02:50
60
Why Naming Is Hard - What Actually Matters? It Depends!
00:35
61
Why Naming Is Hard - Rigor & Organization
01:13
62
Why Naming Is Hard - Consistency
00:52
63
Why Naming Is Hard - Designer/Developer Divide
00:57
64
Why Naming Is Hard - Environments & Contexts Differ
02:17
65
Why Naming Is Hard - Summary
02:29
66
Naming Principles - Introduction
02:49
67
Naming Principles - Clarity Over Cleverness
00:37
68
Naming Principles - Legibility Over Succinctness
01:04
69
Naming Principles - Consistency Is Key
00:38
70
Naming Principles - Use Existing Conventions
00:31
71
Naming Principles - Communicate Hierarchy
00:37
72
Naming Principles - Pragmatism Over Pedantry
00:49
73
Naming Principles - Environment Agnostic
00:37
74
Naming Principles - Summary
00:54
75
The Importance of Cross-disciplinary Collaboration
01:15
76
Cross-disciplinary Roles for Naming
01:55
77
Naming Parity - Critical but Impossible!
00:35
78
Naming Parity Differences - Global Namespace
00:50
79
Naming Parity Differences - Viewport
01:37
80
Naming Parity Differences - Animation
00:38
81
Naming Parity Differences - z-index
00:45
82
Naming Parity Differences - Named and Unnamed Defaults
01:18
83
Naming Systems and Preferences
01:50
84
Synonyms
01:17
85
The Naming Algorithm
03:24
86
Naming Algorithm Figjam Intro
00:24
87
Naming Algorithm Figjam Tour
05:13
88
Naming Algorithm Process
03:13
89
Naming Tokens By Category
00:40
90
Global Prefix
01:37
91
Tier Identifier
00:53
92
Token Category
00:18
93
Color Token Names - Tier 1
03:04
94
Color Token Names - Tier 2
03:33
95
Color Token Names - Tier 3
01:15
96
Color Token Names - Summary
01:15
97
Typography Token Names - Tier 1
03:41
98
Typography Token Names - Tier 2
03:21
99
Typography Token Names - Tier 3
00:48
100
Typography Token Names - Summary
00:29
101
Spacing Token Names
01:42
102
Border Token Names
00:50
103
Shadow Token Names
01:00
104
Animation Token Names
01:05
105
Breakpoint Token Names
00:21
106
z-index Token Names
00:25
107
Chapter 3 Summary
02:12
108
Chapter 4 Introduction
01:23
109
Introducing...Frost'd Tokens!
00:59
110
Demo Tour in Figma and Code
06:28
111
Token Build Process Overview; Cross-disciplinary Approach
02:07
112
1. Choosing Tools for Figma
01:31
113
1. Choosing Tools for Code
01:14
114
2. Environment Setup for Figma
01:10
115
2. Environment Setup for Code - Prerequisites & Config
05:12
116
3. MVP Tier 1 Tokens in Figma
01:37
117
3. MVP Tier 1 Tokens in Code
00:45
118
3. MVP Tier 2 Token in Figma
00:30
119
3. MVP Tier 2 Token in Code
00:45
120
3. MVP Tier 3 Token in Figma
00:54
121
3. MVP Tier 3 Token in Code
00:45
122
3. Add Global Prefix to Code Config
00:45
123
3. Add Theme Prefix to Code Config
01:59
124
3. Expanding MVP Tier 1 Color Tokens in Figma
00:40
125
3. Expanding MVP Tier 1 Color Tokens in Code
00:13
126
3. Expanding MVP Tier 2 Color Tokens in Figma
00:51
127
3. Expanding MVP Tier 2 Color Tokens in Code
00:20
128
3. Expanding MVP Tier 3 Color Tokens in Figma
00:33
129
3. Expanding MVP Tier 3 Color Tokens in Code
00:38
130
3. Wiring Up MVP Tokens in Figma
01:32
131
3. Wiring Up MVP Tokens in Code
01:36
132
3. Scoping Figma Variables
05:00
133
4. Building a Full Theme Intro
00:30
134
4. Theme Tier 1 Colors in Figma
01:15
135
4. Theme Tier 1 Colors in Code
00:46
136
4. Theme Tier 2 Colors in Figma
01:36
137
4. Theme Tier 2 Colors in Code
00:32
138
4. Theme Tier 3 Colors in Figma
01:09
139
4. Theme Tier 3 Colors in Code
01:21
140
4. Tier 1 Typography in Figma
00:50
141
4. Tier 1 Typography in Code
00:19
142
4. Understanding Relative Units and Differences between Figma & Code
06:19
143
4. Understanding Unitless Line Height and Differences between Figma & Code
02:05
144
4. Tier 2 Typography in Figma
01:32
145
4. Tier 2 Typography in Code
00:34
146
4. Responsive Typography - Core Concepts
02:45
147
4. Responsive Typography - Composite Tokens
01:49
148
4. Understanding the Difference Between Viewports & Breakpoints
02:21
149
4. Figma Modes and Viewport
01:10
150
4. Applying Responsive Typography in Figma
06:00
151
4. Responsive Typography in Code - Sass Mixins
02:05
152
Responsive Typography in Code - applying mixins
04:04
153
4. Typography Celebration!
01:05
154
4. Tier 1 Spacing in Figma
00:39
155
4. Spacing Tier 2 in Code & Sass Size Function
01:28
156
4. Tier 2 Spacing in Figma
00:43
157
4. Border Tier 1 in Figma
00:37
158
4. Border Tier 1 in Code
00:34
159
4. Border Tier 2 in Figma
01:28
160
4. Border Tier 2 in Code
01:01
161
4. Shadow Tier 1 in Figma
00:42
162
4. Shadow Tier 1 in Code
00:21
163
4. Shadow Tier 2 in Figma
01:03
164
4. Shadow Tier 2 in Code
01:56
165
4. Animation Tier 1 in Code
01:15
166
4. Animation Tier 2 in Code
00:37
167
4. Applying Animation Tokens in CSS
00:44
168
4. z-index
01:27
169
4. We Have A Theme! A Tour of Our Theme's Documentation
03:09
170
4. Our Theme Applied to Frost'd Tokens Products
01:22
171
5. Let's Add A Chocolate Theme!
01:06
172
5. Introducing the Vanilla Theme Concept
01:05
173
5. Add An Additional Theme in Figma
03:02
174
5. Core Tokens Introduction
03:04
175
5. Core Tokens in Figma
01:46
176
5. Add An Additional Theme in Code
01:46
177
5. Core Tokens in Code
01:08
178
5. The Magic Trick of Theme Switching in Figma
02:15
179
5. Theme Switching in Code
00:31
180
5. Revisiting The Vanilla Theme
02:46
181
5. Rounding Out Our Token System
01:46
182
Synchronization & Automation - Introduction
04:56
183
Token Czars
03:54
184
Synchronization & Automation - Fully Manual
02:22
185
Synchronization & Automation - Design Tokens Manager
02:58
186
Synchronization & Automation - Tokens Studio
06:08
187
Synchronization & Automation - Other Tools
03:12
188
Synchronization & Automation - Full Automation
01:44
189
Chapter 4 Summary
01:22
190
Chapter 4 Homework and Next Steps
03:35
191
Chapter 5 Introduction
01:03
192
Design Token Systems Are Products
03:39
193
Difference Between Products and Libraries
02:48
194
The Arc of Publishing A Token Library
02:12
195
Design Token System Makers & Users
01:40
196
User-Centered Design for Token Systems
03:11
197
Should You Publish Tier 1 Tokens?
06:18
198
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Proper Mapping
02:29
199
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Design & Code Alignment
00:43
200
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Scope Variables
00:31
201
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Hide From Publishing
01:50
202
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Check Accessibility
02:03
203
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Test Build
00:27
204
Pre-Publishing Checklist: Check Documentation
00:32
205
Publishing a Tokens Library in Figma
03:33
206
Quick Intro to Consuming a Tokens Library in Figma
01:27
207
Publishing a Tokens Library in Code - Intro
01:52
208
Publishing a Tokens Library in Code - Build Process
02:16
209
Quick Intro to Consuming a Tokens Library in Code
01:09
210
Chapter 5 Summary
03:27
211
Chapter 6 Introduction
02:35
212
Understanding Design Token Adoption
01:43
213
Spectrum of Token Integration - Reference
03:51
214
Spectrum of Token Integration - Importing Token Library
00:54
215
Spectrum of Token Integration - Importing Component Library
03:08
216
Design Token Users - You!
01:03
217
Design Token Users - Other Product Teams
01:00
218
Design Token Users - Devs Using Multiple Tech Stacks
01:21
219
Design Token Users - Auxiliary Users
01:36
220
Design Token Users - Stakeholders
00:48
221
Users Don't Care About Design Tokens
01:16
222
Adopting Tokens At Every Layer of the Design System Ecosystem
03:12
223
Subscribing to the Token Figma Team Library
01:41
224
Importing the Tokens Code Package
03:15
225
Wiring Up Tokens To Existing Figma Components
02:51
226
Wiring Up Tokens To Existing Code Components
02:51
227
Best Practices for Adopting Design Tokens in Existing Components
02:29
228
The Importance of Showing the Magic Trick
01:34
229
Wiring Up Tokens To New Figma Components
04:00
230
Wiring Up Tokens To New Code Components
03:02
231
Showing The Magic Trick for New Components
00:35
232
Best Practices for Adopting Design Tokens in New Components
01:48
233
Applying Your Token Nomenclature
01:10
234
Adopting Default Color Tokens In Figma
01:11
235
Adopting Default Color Tokens In Code
00:43
236
Adopting Brand Color Tokens In Figma
00:37
237
Adopting Brand Color Tokens In Code
00:53
238
Accent Color Tokens
01:30
239
Adopting Disabled Color Tokens In Figma
00:47
240
Adopting Disabled Color Tokens In Code
00:54
241
Adopting Utility Color Tokens In Figma
01:15
242
Adopting Utility Color Tokens In Code
01:36
243
Color Token Variants
00:31
244
Adopting Knockout Variant Color Tokens In Figma
01:23
245
Adopting Knockout Variant Color Tokens In Code
00:31
246
Subtle and Strong Color Token Variants
01:36
247
Adopting Tier 3 Color Tokens In Figma
01:19
248
Adopting Tier 3 Color Tokens In Code
02:22
249
Adopting Display Typography Tokens In Figma
01:32
250
Adopting Display Typography Tokens In Code
00:31
251
Adopting Headline Typography Tokens In Figma
00:55
252
Adopting Headline Typography Tokens In Code
00:21
253
Adopting Title Typography Tokens In Figma
00:39
254
Adopting Title Typography Tokens In Code
00:32
255
Responsive Typography In Figma
01:12
256
Responsive Typography In Code
00:37
257
Adopting Body Typography Tokens In Figma
01:42
258
Adopting Body Typography Tokens In Code
01:40
259
Adopting Label Typography Tokens In Figma
02:05
260
Adopting Label Typography Tokens In Code
02:34
261
Adopting Tier 3 Typography Tokens In Figma
00:53
262
Adopting Tier 3 Typography Tokens In Code
00:37
263
Adopting Border, Shadow, and Animation Tokens In Code
01:39
264
Using Token-Powered Components
02:16
265
Tokens at the Technology-Specific Implementation Layer
02:23
266
Tokens, CSS, and CSS Frameworks
03:57
267
Adopting Design Tokens in Native Mobile Apps
01:30
268
Adopting Design Tokens in iOS Apps
02:52
269
Adopting Design Tokens in Android App
02:33
270
Adopting Design Tokens in React Native
03:12
271
Tokens and Other Technology Environments
02:05
272
Technology-specific Considerations & Best Practices
02:48
273
The Power of Recipes
05:43
274
Recipes In Figma - Architecture
01:12
275
Recipes In Figma - Publishing A Card Component
00:51
276
Recipes In Figma - Creating Recipes
03:48
277
Recipes In Code
02:39
278
Recipes Best Practices & Considerations
02:15
279
Smart Components and Design Tokens
06:19
280
Design Tokens at the Product Layer
03:13
281
Chapter 6 Summary
02:58
282
Chapter 7 Introduction
01:39
283
Chapter 7 Overview
01:20
284
4 Phases of a Design Token System Product Lifecycle
01:33
285
Phase 1 - Goals
00:33
286
Phase 1 - Team
03:27
287
Phase 1 - Establishing the Virtuous Cycle
00:54
288
Atomic Design Connects Systems To Products
02:21
289
Atomic Design + Design Tokens = love
01:07
290
Pilot Projects For The (Quick) Win!
01:46
291
Pilot Project Criteria
03:04
292
Pilot Project Examples & The Importance of MVP
03:28
293
Finding Pilot Projects
03:15
294
Pilot Project Starting Point
02:44
295
Pilot Project - Maker and User Collaboration
07:31
296
Phase 1 - Vanilla, Considerations, and Best Practices
06:58
297
Phase 2 - Semantic Versioning
04:15
298
Phase 2 - Semantic Version Example and Branching Intro
04:41
299
Phase 2 - Branching in Code
03:33
300
Phase 2 - Branching in Figma
02:05
301
Phase 2 - Branching Example and Changelog
03:02
302
Phase 2 - Additional Pilots
03:47
303
Phase 2 - Version 1.0 and Pilot Project Considerations
04:49
304
Phase 2 - Considerations and Best Practices
01:51
305
Phase 3 - Picking a Third Pilot Project
03:41
306
Phase 3 - Shifting Maker and User Roles
05:08
307
Phase 3 - Governance Workflow Intro
02:57
308
Phase 3 - Governance Workflow Details
16:02
309
Phase 3 - Governance Workflow Summary
01:33
310
Phase 3 - Considerations and Best Practices
02:09
311
Phase 4 - Self-Service
04:37
312
Chapter 7 Summary
03:04
313
Chapter 8 Introduction
04:12
314
Dark Mode Introduction
04:29
315
Dark Mode In Practice
04:53
316
Dark Mode: User-selected
01:08
317
Dark Mode: System Settings
01:29
318
Dark Mode Summary
02:06
319
Subbrands
03:51
320
Subbrands Summary
01:13
321
White Labeling and CMS Implementation Introduction
02:27
322
White Labeling and CMS Implementation Details
06:00
323
White Labeling and CMS Implementation Summary
02:15
324
Multiple Product Families
04:31
325
Multiple Product Families Summary
01:46
326
Internationalization/Localization
02:53
327
Internationalization/Localization Summary
01:41
328
Redesigns, Refreshes, and Rebrands Introduction
05:10
329
Adopting Redesign/Refresh/Rebrand
02:33
330
Adopting Redesign/Refresh/Rebrand Scenarios
04:20
331
Redesign/Refresh/Rebrand Summary
01:37
332
Campaigns
03:24
333
Campaigns Summary
00:52
334
AI and Design Tokens Intro
05:48
335
AI and Design Token Nomenclature
04:01
336
AI and Design Token Naming Help
02:20
337
Figma AI
01:19
338
AI and Design Tools
01:12
339
AI and Developer IDEs
01:38
340
AI and Design-Code Sync Tools
03:40
341
AI-Infused Design Token Environment Setup
03:45
342
Using AI to Create an MVP Token System from Brand Guidelines
02:57
343
Using AI to Create an MVP Token System From an Image
02:07
344
Using AI to Create an MVP Token System from Existing Product
08:43
345
Build Out A Theme's Color Tokens with AI
03:27
346
Testing a Token System with AI
01:23
347
Creating a New Token-Powered Component with AI
02:31
348
Using AI to Adopt Tokens in Existing Application
02:33
349
Translate to Additional Formats With AI
01:06
350
Using AI to Help Create Dark Mode Theme
01:42
351
AI and Design Systems Is A Potent Combination
02:13
352
Principles for AI and Design Systems
03:34
353
Our Role In This New, Weird AI-Infused World
05:01
354
Chapter 8 Summary
02:57
355
Course Recap
10:28
356
Closing Thoughts
01:28
357
Certificate, LinkedIn, & Survey
01:32
358
Acknowledgements & Thank Yous
02:29
359
Follow Us, Thanks, and See Ya Soon!
01:24

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Read Book Subatomic: The Complete Guide To Design Tokens

#Title
1Chapter 0 - Intro
2Chapter 1 - Core Concepts
3Chapter 2 - Foundations
4Chapter 3 - Naming
5Chapter 4 - Building
6Chapter 5 - Publishing
7Chapter 6 - Adopting
8Chapter 7 - Maintaining
9Chapter 8 - Advanced

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