Completely leaves out visual design. Maybe because polish is harder to encapsulate with a single book or because it's so easy to pick up by cruising Dribbble for inspiration, but it's still worth mentioning.<p>Otherwise you get the average startup designer that's more of a developer in disguise.
Ever notice how a lot of start-up websites look pretty similar? Lots of the same typefaces, same visual approach, same graphic techniques and colors--you see Helvetica/Arial, the same set of textures, quasi-3D effects, and so on. The cumulative effect is generic. It says, "we're roughly imitating what everyone else is doing because everyone else is doing it." Bad message. Good design won't compensate for flawed business models, but it will maximize the potential of a strong one.<p>Independent thought and ingenuity trumps everything on this list, I'm afraid. The stuff there is price of admission; you're not even a designer without it in your toolbox.
I found "Designing Interfaces" disappointing. It is a list of interface widgets - for example an accordion menu - and some information about how to use it.<p>A far better book on usability is "Don't Make Me Think" by Steve Krug.
I bet if I made a list like this highlighting what a programmer must have when working for a startup there'd be some serious hating going on.<p>While this may be a good list if you want to read up for a month, this does not cover years of art theory, learning how to choose your battles, developing a refined sense of taste, pure objectivity, and a myriad of other skills that are subtly nuanced into almost every project.<p>I'm sorry, a good designer's "Must Haves" cannot be encapsulated in a list.
The skills are critical for any front-end designer, not just the ones in startups. Companies that embrace skilled designers as their culture compete much better than others.
I hate this list. Want to be good? Look at sites/apps you admire and learn to emulate them. Don't read a 300 page book on User Experience or ugh, UX... unless you're doing for enjoyment.