Sencha has recently begun targeting the Adobe Flex community, promoting their products as the panacea for development in the HTML5 arena. That message is not far from the truth. While these frameworks don't address common frustrations with JavaScript, such as its lack of compile-time checking, error-prone scoping and other language specific quirks, Flex developers will...
Read moreNFC (near field communications) is expected to bring sweeping changes to customer interactions at retail locations. Everything from check-out, to just-in-time couponing, to social networking will be affected. The hope is that NFC will be a great new tool for creating stronger customer loyalty and satisfaction while making the smartphone the...
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I knew about the soft launch of the Apple Store app, but it wasn't until yesterday when I happened to walk in to my local Apple store in search of a new set of earbuds that I realized what's actually happening
Apple just soft-launched one of the most powerful digital wallet services, and few have noticed.
First, let me walk you through the experience:
1)...
Read moreToday Apple introduced a new version of their iBooks iOS application alongside a new content creation tool, iBooks Author. This move was focused entirely on bringing textbooks to the iPad. After analyzing both Apple's announcement and the two newly released pieces of software, I have some interesting observations.
Why the iPad?
I think it is important to take a...
Read moreDigital publishing grew tremendously in 2011. With the unveiling of new technologies such as the iPad 2, the iPhone 4S and Amazon’s Kindle Fire, we’ve dramatically changed the way companies will disseminate information for years to come.
But we’ve only begun to scratch the surface of what’s possible in this space. While many industries have dipped a...
Read moreIt's the last day of the year, and I find myself reflecting on that ultimate U-X question; I've helped make the world more usable, but have I also contributed to make it a better place? Ok, maybe not quite the definition of UX but certainly part of the reason why we do this in the first place?
Designers and creative have a pretty good track record (I think) of...
Read moreAlthough starting a prototype on a computer is sometimes easier, it’s not the best way to visually problem-solve. When you need to ideate website layouts or mobile applications or to storyboard workflows and context scenarios, sketching is much more efficient. It keeps you from getting caught up in the technology, and instead focuses you on the best possible solution,...
This is an article that I wrote last year (republished last week) on how our minds interpret a design, and what really makes it good. So many people assume it's just a matter of taste, but there are certain things that can trigger a reaction by our brain. I tied some neurological research on aesthetics to what many designers...
And the winner is: PhoneGap! The reasons why are actually simple.
PhoneGap and Appcelerator Titanium are both very popular open-source JavaScript frameworks for packaging and deploying mobile applications. At Universal Mind, we have clients that leverage both and clearly both frameworks have countless successful implementations on numerous platforms. However, there are...
Read moreChoosing the right HTML5 framework can be a daunting task. Mobile compatibility, scalability, TV, embedded devices, browser, and extensibility are just a few things to consider. Start with jQuery and do your research. You CAN go wrong, so choose carefully. Let’s examine some of the choices.
jQuery — Possibly the most popular JavaScript library in use today, jQuery...
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