How to get started in UX
This is something I get asked at least once a month. Usually, by someone who isn't that far off. They are in another design field. Or development. Or used to be a web designer but had to quit. So,...
View ArticleHow offices work: buzzwords, expectations, realities
Applying for work, and being turned down because I travel or am not local already, reminds me of some of the frustrations arising from mismatches between what we all talk about as cool and trendy, what...
View ArticleThe Fanboi Effect
We've all seen some of the results. Reviews with amazingly slanted headlines, pointing out that iOS bests Android in some minor area, ignoring the rest. Cherrypicking data and comments. But no, I am...
View ArticleTowards a philosophy of digital interface design
Dissatisfaction with skeuomorphism leads to the question, if we're against it, what are we for? The obvious refrain was to design in a way true to the nature of the medium. See the Good Design...
View ArticleMobile Screenshots
Another in my series of "things you all should know, but I keep having to explain how I do it." If you design, specify, manage, develop or test, for mobile you have to take screenshots. Maybe a lot....
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When even Radio Shack had Good Design
A friend recently showed me this:It's a weather radio. Says so right on it, but what I found most interesting is how little else there is. It's a cube. With an antenna and a switch. The switch would...
View ArticleYou can love Apple, but do you have to /love/ Apple?
I didn't get why 10.9 was called Mavericks, and then was more confused when some people defended it as being all about Apple's inspiration and so on.This week I am at a conference in San Jose and far,...
View ArticleMy time with Pebble: The next revolution will be on your wrist
I am a watch guy. For some years now I have been wearing mechanical, dial-indicating timepieces.And not just as a fashion statement. I legitimately read the time with it, instead of my watch. I keep it...
View ArticleDesigners Can't Code
And again with this thing in which a key point is stipulated: We're talking about the Web.That incessant stipulation kills me every time. Because:Idon'tbuildWebsites.And if you do, you are probably...
View ArticleRaster Graphics for Android
The various cheat-sheet articles I see for this are now out of date, or focus too much on creation of the Launcher Icon, whereas of course we also need graphics inside our apps. Now, don't go...
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Back to School Technology
We have, for now, kids in Middle and High Schools, and the past week has included Back to School days for both of them. I'll try not to harp too much on the appalling school branding (now up to 13...
View ArticleDevelopers Misguided on App Platform Targeting
That could be the alternative headline for this article from TechCrunch. Let's look at a bit:Forrester found that more than a third (35%) of respondents target iPhones as their first priority device vs...
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Gesture Deathmatch: Leap Motion vs… Galaxy S4?
Kinesthetics is awareness of the movement of your limbs, or learning based on physical movement. It is also coming to mean gestures that are not those you touch and swipe across the screen of your...
View ArticleOn Greek Yogurt, Into Darkness, and Platform Choice
I like yogurt. Especially with cereal. There wasn't a lot I could eat as a child, so I grew up on Dannon vanilla and Grape Nuts. Later and over time I have learned how bad 80s yogurt was, and for a...
View ArticleSmart Watch Roundup and Some Thoughts
Boy there are a lot of smart watches and related connected devices finally coming out. No, I haven't used the majority of these. Partly as some are merely announced, and otherwise I mostly still have...
View ArticleM2M is Nice, but Don't Forget E2M
Or: "Your Favorite Pundit is Wrong: Moving Towards Hyper Toothpaste" Every single article I have seen that talks about the sorta newly-announced Apple iBeacon is getting the point totally wrong. The...
View ArticleI Wish Those Who Ignored History Would be a Little More Doomed, Already
Every day I see three stupid tech bloggers, often for the Verge or Wired or someone formerly serious, totally ignore everything more than 18 months old. Here's a typical sort of comment:Who would have...
View ArticleOnboarding Class for Your New Job
I have worked a lot of places. A lot. And since I have clients instead of employers now, I get to see how many other types work as well. Corporate onboarding is always a waste of time, as it doesn't...
View ArticleMore Tips for Business People: Calendars
You will have a calendar. It is probably digital, and if you work with others you are probably sharing it with them. In corporate environments this is required, so assume that, but if not you should...
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Making mLearning Usable: How we use mobile devices
This was published as a research report by the eLearning Guild in April 2014. For the full version of the report, and many others, join the Guild.Executive Summary Global mobile device usage is truly...
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