Links

Awhile back we started work on a customized human verification process for one of our clients to help the cut down on the amount of spammers. It recently came up again, and as I was digging through my memory, I also ran across this article by HOW Interactive Design that same day. Coincidence?

For the past few months, we’ve been working with TCI, a K-12 publishing company, redesigning their online application for students and teachers with new features, pages, and interactions within a responsive design for classroom learning.

While the Glossary was not the most difficult to design, it looks like it’s been well received. You can see a sneak peek of it (and a few other changes) here and stay tuned – TCI launches their new online app June 30th, so expect a blog article highlighting some of the exciting new changes!

We recorded a new podcast last week discussing our recent white paper about the benefits and drawbacks of responsive and mobile-specific design. Listen as we talk about screen sizes, mobile devices, browsers and Annie’s true opinion of her fingers. You can also check out our previous podcasts and subscribe in iTunes so you won’t miss another exciting episode!

Bryson Meunier has posted an article that outlines some rationale for why some businesses, such as restaurants, are better off with a mobile-specific version of their site instead of a responsive one.

Guy Kawasaki releases What the Plus!, in which he explains what “makes Google+ as special as Macintosh”.

I was a little surprised when I first read about this, as my experience of Google+ so far has been like walking down a deserted street, complete with tumbleweed and whistling wind. In all honesty, I’ve probably not been fair with it and wrote it off quite quickly. However, when somebody as well-respected as Guy Kawasaki makes such a bold comparison it did make me want to go take another look at it.

One of the points he makes is the clean interface, with plenty of white space. Google’s interfaces are not for everybody – often being described as utilitarian, but my feeble brain tends to prefer this style. The most important aspect though is whether or not there is any activity, and several months on (with admittedly small circles) I’m still seeing barely any activity. Going there makes you feel like you chose the wrong party. The few people there are standing at the edge of the room, and its all disturbingly quiet.

My prediction? The next Wave.

Planet Argon contributed to the design and development of ‘the Exchange’, a new addition to the Contiki site that aggregates the activity feed of the entire community. When users share travel tips and advice, the latest fashion trends, or upload new photos, ‘the Exchange’ curates these feed items into a centralized hub.

Recently we deployed our new work process called D^5. It’s a five step program that begins with an idea and transforms it into a deployed web app. The story of how it was created can be found in a series of blog articles.

The mark of an innovative company is not only that it comes up with new ideas first. It also knows how to leapfrog when it finds itself behind.

We love our Planet Argon shirts, and now they’re available for everyone! Show that you love Portland just as much as us by showcasing our shirts, coasters, posters, and more.

I just saw a video introducing a new Adobe Labs product- Adobe Shadow. Eric claims to have found the video this morning, but I ask- where’s the proof? Anyway, Adobe Shadow seems like a handy little app capable of wirelessly pairing a desktop/laptop to multiple devices- and sharing browser screens among those devices. I am particularly curious about the built-in Web Inspector that could be used to alter the HTML/CSS being served to the different devices on the fly. Web devs/designers out there- thoughts?