Discussions abound about how tablets have changed the way we consume content and Apple, of course, is at the heart of every conversation. Of all the trending discussions around Apple’s iPhone and iPad, the most surprising fact is that the iPad is used less as an office and on-the-go device and more as an in-the-home “companion device.” The phrase “home-brewed” interactive television experience was coined as a result of iPad owners using Wikipedia, IMDB and the like to research information on TV shows while concurrently watching.

While the way we consume content is changing, so are the methods of advertising to the users consuming that content. Entertainment brands are eager to get involved in this interactive TV evolution by creating companion apps to support the second screen experience. By creating “companion apps” brands are allowing viewers to interact with each other and find all the information they might need IMDB and Wikipedia for in one place, one app. Being that this concept is so new, a meaningful direct-to-consumer revenue model is still needed to support these companion apps. Thus challenging digital agencies to find more cost effective ways to pioneer this heavily sought after experience. CTIA hints to “lean UX”- a practice that helps to cut back on development costs by focusing more on the actual “experience” and less on deliverables.

Will scaling back big Hollywood vision, producing low-fidelity prototypes and sticking to lean UX practices be enough to move this emerging industry forward until the ROI strategy becomes clearer? CTIA thinks so and interactive TV fans certainly hope so.

Tags: ipad, blog, tablet, tablets, CTIA

I was in Chicago a while back on spring break with my wife and kids, waltzing back and forth to miss the endless crowds streaming my way along Michigan Avenue, when I took a glance down an alleyway. At first sight, I thought I saw two store workers stepping out of their building from a ledge, about 2 feet off the ground. I quickly realized that they weren't workers, they were customers exiting the store from the ledge. After stepping down, they stood confused for a moment, looking around, then began heading toward the street where I was standing.

Let's just put that into the "doesn't make sense" category...

However, it did immediately remind me of a UX Strategy visual I use quite often when discussing holistic strategy with customers, mainly because I quite often think of neighborhoods when I do UX strategy engagements, even more so in the past two years as customers want web experiences across multiple devices.

The Problem
You see, far too often organizations will do well in designing their product but don’t look outside of their boundaries and across the different parts of the company when making decisions around UX. They build narrow solutions by focusing on their own parameters, usually doing well with items like “defining objectives” and “project planning” and “restricting scope creep” in bringing the project to fruition, but failing in areas like holistic strategic experiences and organizational experience targeting. This typically leads to launching a product that is a silo solution for the organization, not paying attention to the other products and systems in the company. It may work well, may even look great. But basically, they’ve ignored their neighborhood as they built their building.

The Result
If a company ignores or pays just slight attention to the global holistic solutions that are present in their organization, they will end up with a silo result that runs a strong possibility -- maybe even inevitability -- of not meshing with the various systems, solutions, personnel, and strategies of the organization. They’ve essentially just built an “exit door to the alley” that drops 2 feet to the ground. Great exit door; works perfect. It just takes the user nowhere useful when they need to leave.

Along with this issue comes other results, such as higher costs of operations, less scalability in organizational systems, unneeded redundancy, skill set misalignment, and brand confusion to the end user, just to name a few. Ron Rogowski, Vice President, Principal Analyst Serving Customer Experience Professionals at Forrester, says that this type of “fragmented reality” results in disjointed experiences and unclear priorities for the organization1, directly impacting the customer experience. I wholeheartedly agree.

It also creates something called dependent independence, where organizations allow their silos to run in different directions yet still let them harbor the expectation that the larger corporation will fully support their solution, a position that is unsustainable over time. The disjointed units in the company have worked hard at their “buildings in the neighborhood”, this one constructing several high-rises, that one a few banks, this one a hamburger stand; none use the same utility systems (or create unrealistic demands upon it) and they in no way complement each other. Each has its own strategy for what the neighborhood will look like and the customers walk around wondering who is making the plans. The neighborhood is confusing to those walking through it and those living in it.

It leads to a lot of “that doesn’t make sense”.

The Solution
Just as a neighborhood being built needs a plan to be successful, so does an organization. UX is not a stand alone initiative; it is firmly tied to the organizational experience (OX) that is strategically targeted both internally and externally. The goal of those experiences are two-fold:

1. To be “expectantly invisible”, working so well that the experiences involved are just expected by the end users.
2. To be “extremely noticeable”, working so well that the experiences involved scream out to the end user that something is unique.

However, getting these experiences identified, aligned, and put in to place takes a lot of effort.

In the work we’ve done with companies around strategic experiences in digital ecosystems (building the neighborhoods), we’ve found that certain efforts are needed to not only bring these experiences to life, but to also identify and strategically connect the UX with the OX.

1. Identify, understand, and communicate the strategic experiences (both internal and external) that you as an organization want to target. This involves efforts such as Strategic Experience Targeting, which combines user research, trend watching, and analytics to determine targets and priority. This is like asking the question, “What kind of neighborhood do we want to build?
2. Link those experiences to determine execution. Knowing what actions are codependent and affect each other is critical. This also lets you see where resources can be shared. In terms of the neighborhood, this is similar to building the infrastructure that will be needed: water, electricity, sewer, gas, foundation, etc.
3. Ensure that the authority and accountability is in place to get it done. Getting decision-making capability to the appropriate level is imperative for execution. This involves both governance and the vehicles for letting the people accountable get it done. One can’t build or modify a neighborhood without permits and knowing what’s going to take place.
4. Go out and do it. Many organizations will stumble at this point either because they are afraid to take the first steps (and possibly experience failures or resistance) or they don’t have the ability and/or vision to do it. We always approach each one of these actions in an agile fashion, knowing that discovery is part of the process and that failure is sometimes experienced. When you build a neighborhood, the construction of a building will always have its little changes here and there; sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t. However, one thing never changes: when you are ready, you have to start building the building.

1Source: Why You Need a Digital Customer Experience Strategy, Forrester, June 15, 2011.

Tags: design, ux, strategy, forrester, blogs

• iOS Body Copy Style: Helvetica Light 16/20
• Kindle Fire Body Copy Style: Helvetica Light 19/23

Without previewing these font choices on devices, we would not have guessed these settings for an optimal, readable experience. Be sure to frequently test your font selections on your device even if you simply capture a screen grab of it and send it to your mobile. View it in the sun. View it in a dimly lit room. View it in the environment your users will consume it in. Be critical to the structure of your typographic elements—font size, kerning, tracking, leading, color—and adjust as necessary for desired results.

To accelerate the production of our work for SoDA, we relied heavily on custom InDesign templates and styles. We used the Adobe Digital Publishing Suite for this initiative. With DPS, you create your assets for publication in familiar Adobe Creative Suite tools with InDesign as the primary production environment. By leveraging the templates and style features of InDesign, we were able to work efficiently as a team to produce the designs for both platforms simultaneously.

Tags: ipad, mobile, blog, mobile apps, Digital Publishing, kindle fire, Adobe, digi-pub, SoDA

This second installment of the four part “Going Mobile” blog series highlights mobile websites - one of the most basic, and most important, approaches a business or organization can take in establishing a mobile presence.  Once an organization has determined their business strategy by evaluating customer needs and business goals, the mobile website can be an effective tactic in implementing their strategy and connecting with customers in the mobile space.

A mobile website can simply be thought of as a website that is formatted in content, design, and experience to work with a mobile browser.  While mobile browsers are able to browse standard Internet websites, the smaller screen size, nature of the device, and limited functionality of the browser yield many websites either inoperable or challenging to view and navigate.  Traditionally, mobile customers have been accepting of these limitations.  However, as the novelty of these devices wavers and they become the norm, the acceptance of a less than optimal mobile experience will quickly fade, becoming a liability for businesses that ignore this need.  Just as businesses have come to understand their website as the virtual face of their company, a poorly functioning mobile presence provides an undesirable image of the company to mobile users.

An effective mobile website is more than simply a translation of the current Internet website to fit the screen size.  The user experience design is absolutely critical for your site.  Identify and understand the needs and objectives of both your organization and your customers as it pertains to your overall strategy in the context of a mobile device.  Using this understanding, create the navigation, flow, aesthetics, and content for the site.  Avoid long text, extensive scrolling, and deep background details in favor of more situational-aware concise and current information.

Tags: mobile, blog, mobile apps

1. Choose a Client-Side MVC Architecture

Many developers will quickly become overwhelmed when examining the options for HTML5 web application frameworks.  With Flex, there was a defined class system, a defined component model, and a similar Model View Controller architecture that most of the micro-architectures implemented.  This is not the case in HTML5 / JavaScript applications. 

Within JavaScript you will find frameworks that differ greatly on each of these points.  For example, Backbone JS is a popular client-side MVC architecture for HTML5 applications, but it does not dictate how your user interface is rendered.  Some people pair Backbone with a client-side templating solution like Mustache JS while others use manual DOM manipulation and still others generate the interface entirely on the server side.

There are several key points to consider when making this decision for your organization:

• How documented is the framework?  Can your developers easily pick up new concepts solely from the documentation?
• Does the framework provide adequate real world examples?  These will be crucial for the internal learning process with your developers.
• Does the framework provide a level of flexibility for the type of applications that your organization creates?
• Does the framework allow for you to create testable applications?  Does the framework have a testing story already crafted for its applications?
• Does the framework provide the level or support needed for your organization?
• What level of support do you require?  Many frameworks are purely open source with no support options.  Some frameworks (like Sencha Touch / ExtJS) have a level of support available to organizations.

If your company is attempting to decide on an MVC architecture, I would recommend examining Backbone JS, Ember JS, Angular JS, and ExtJS / Sencha Touch.  Choosing a framework that contains both a client side MVC architecture and a mature class system is almost always going to be superior than piecing multiple frameworks together.  Picking a micro-architecture doesn’t have to be a permanent decision, but it will give your developers a place to start.  

In addition, your team can augment the framework that you have chosen over time.  For example, At Universal Mind we work with Sencha Touch and ExtJS (in addition to other frameworks).  To facilitate code organization and reuse one of our team members, John Yanarella, crafted DeftJS which adds dependency injection (among other things) to the core framework that powers both Sencha Touch and ExtJS.  In short, you can make a framework into what you want it to be.

2. Select a DOM Manipulation and AJAX Library

A DOM (Document Object Model) manipulation and AJAX library is an essential tool in JavaScript development.  In Flex, developers could leverage effects, transitions, and states as all of them integrated with the component model.  In JavaScript, to make something change visually within an application, a developer will have to modify the DOM to add elements, remove elements, change styling, and so on.  In addition, the way to modify the DOM differs across browsers.  A proven DOM manipulation library will make these tasks much easier and will work consistently across all of the popular browsers.  Most of these libraries will include functionality to handle HTTP requests in a consistent manner across browsers.

In many cases, the DOM manipulation library will not be included with your MVC framework.  Some solutions (like Sencha Touch / ExtJS) aim to provide an all-in-one framework, but that isn’t the norm. 

The most popular DOM manipulation library is jQuery, and it has a vast online community.  This also includes a large library of community plugins, but many of these may not meet the bar of quality that one would expect for an enterprise application. 

There are many other DOM manipulation libraries that exist such as Prototype, Dojo, and MooTools (just to name a few).  Determining which one is a best fit for your organization requires an examination of  your developers experiences, desired level of documentation, and proposed use cases.

3. Adopt Code Conventions Quickly

There was a level of consistency across most Flex applications in both MXML and ActionScript.  There were obviously subtle differences from one developer to another, but these differences pale in comparison to the differences that HTML / JavaScript bring to the table.  One of the first steps that any organization must undertake is developing a defined set of HTML / JavaScript code conventions. 

This task may seem daunting, so I recommend that your organization initially adopt standards that already exist.  As an example, Douglas Crockford, the Senior JavaScript Architect at Yahoo, has a brief list of JavaScript Code Conventions.  I would recommend starting with something like this and then expanding once your organization has some HTML5 development under its belt.

In addition, tools such as JSLint (also authored by Crockford) can force developers into following many of these best practices and conventions.  JSLint also has integration into many of the popular IDE’s including Aptana and WebStorm.

Organizations that skip this step will find that their code has little coherence between projects, and that it is increasingly difficult for developers to ramp up on a code base created by another team.

4. Develop a Testing Plan

Through its lifetime Flex developed a quality testing story.  Developers could leverage unit testing tools like FlexUnit and also enterprise functional testing tools such as HP’s Quick Test Pro.  Making the switch to HTML5 application requires building a testing plan that is just as rich.  Determining how to integrate your QA team into this process is crucial.

For the first piece of the testing plan, an organization will need to make a decision around testing units of code.  One popular solution is Jasmine, a JavaScript BDD (Behavior Driven Development) testing framework.  If you are looking for a more traditional TDD (Test Driven Development) framework, the jQuery project uses a custom framework called QUnit.  If your team prefers to use something similar to JUnit (which FlexUnit was based on), then I would recommend looking at JSUnit.

Another important area to consider is Code Coverage.  The current options for JavaScript are passable, and I hope that they will mature over time.  Options like JSCoverage can help your organization enforce an expected level of testing in your HTML5 applications. 

The next piece centers on functional testing of HTML5 applications.  This is one area where HTML5 development can exceed Flex.  With Flex development, the only truly powerful testing tool was HP’s Quick Test Pro (because Adobe wrote this integration into the framework).  With web standards development, the integration is a little easier.  Tools like Selenium provide for quality functional testing of your HTML5 applications.

5. Define a Build and Deployment Process

As Flex matured, many organizations adopted build tools such as ANT and Maven.  These tools all had integration with the Flex compiler, and building an optimized Flex application generally only took a few discrete steps.  The process becomes a bit more complicated with HTML5 applications.

As you build your applications, you will need to plan on having a build process that accomplishes the following (or a subset of these items):

1. Minify all JavaScript code
2. Combine minified JavaScript into a single file (to reduce the amount of files that have to be loaded)
3. Compile LESS/SASS CSS code (if your organization chooses to use one of these tools)
4. Combine CSS code into single file
5. Validate HTML, JavaScript, and CSS against organization or web standards
6. Run unit tests
7. Run functional tests
8. Execute load tests in a staging environment

This integration will generally be a combination of tools from different locations that all need to be scripted using a tool such as ANT.  You can utilize some of the command line tools to minify your JavaScript and CSS files (such as the YUI Compressor from Yahoo).  Some frameworks like Sencha Touch 2 and ExtJS 4 already have a build tool included that accomplishes these steps. 

Developing a repeatable and consistent process to push to production will certainly be key to your organization’s success.

Conclusion

Starting off on the right foot is crucial in this transition.  Empowering your developers with these new technologies requires careful research and planning.  By working your way through these items, you can approach your decision with the required amount of forethought.

Tags: html5, blog, javascript, Flex, Sencha, Jasmine, DeftJS

Not sure if the mobile market is a worthwhile investment?  A quick look at a few market statistics shows the undeniable importance of mobile.  There are 312 million people in the United States and 328 million mobile subscriptions – meaning there are more devices active on the mobile networks in this country than people.  If we limit this down to just data enabled devices, there are still 278 million – with smartphones and tablets comprise over one third of this number.  Data traffic on mobile providers networks increased by over 110 percent last year, and is anticipated to grow even more dramatically this year.    Consumer spending and purchasing behaviors via mobile devices continue to dramatically increase each year. Mobile device consumerism is growing and represents a significant opportunity. 

How do you get started?  It’s critical to avoid a common pitfall of jumping right to the technology.  Taking the next step into the mobile space is a business project – not a technical project.  This is an important difference as it reflects a new method for connecting with customers, and not simply a new piece of software.  As with any new business venture, it is critical to start with an understanding of the customer – their needs, wants, capabilities, common practices, etc.  Next, understand the business’s objectives and goals.  Once you understand your customers and your business, then you can formulate an overall strategy of how to best integrate the two.  Finally, the strategy is translated into the tactical plan of how to accomplish these goals, including what technologies to use and how mobile can be engaged to serve the business and customers. 

The most common approaches for “going mobile” are mobile websites, mobile apps, and mobile marketing.  Each has distinct costs, opportunities, and uses.  It is important to recognize there is no expectation that every business should engage in all three – these are highly distinct avenues and not appropriate for all businesses. 

Over the coming weeks, we’ll explore these various approaches and opportunities for entering the mobile space.  Each will cover the approach, appropriate uses, and benefits associated with the plan.  Stay tuned for this four part series on “Going Mobile”.

Tags: mobile, blog, mobile apps

1. Grab It in the Field: Capturing Photography, Video and Audio—If you are contracting photographers to capture imagery for you, and their equipment and techniques are up to date, you’re in luck! Be sure to direct the photographer to capture video during the shoot in addition to capturing stills. It’s best to capture the video in landscape for most uses later, but that is up to the discretion of the creative director. A full-page portrait oriented video is interesting for the openings of stories and the cover, even if the video is only a few seconds long.
   
   While in the field, the capture of audio can also provide you with wonderful opportunities for interaction. Many inexpensive apps can turn your smart phone into a powerful audio capture tool. A simple app like Mic Recorder can be very effective in a pinch for audio capture while on location.
   
   Keep in mind that your readers may expect a bit more depth and coverage from your content in your digital version of the publication. You can provide them with expanded insight and detail by covering and capturing "b-roll" content or behind the scenes footage. If your contracted photographer is unable to capture this while focusing on the main imagery, have an assistant or an art director record elements of the shoot. Use professional gear. Use your iPhone. Use whatever you have! The more assets you can capture in the field the more opportunities for expanded interactive experiences on your readers tablet.
    
2. Know the Features of Your Publishing Framework: Most publishing frameworks today, have a standard set of interactive components from which to choose from; leverage them! Use them in creative ways. For example, in the Adobe Publishing Suite there is an interactive component that allows a user to scrub their finger back and forth over a video to control the playback. If you capture your video in slow motion or in a 360 pan around your subject, this interactive control is especially compelling. Another interactive feature typically contained in today’s frameworks is the slideshow component. With a slideshow and a bit of creativity, you can create interesting controls to show and hide content in your designs.
    
3. Word Art: Utilize All of Your Publishing Tools: If you have limited availability to immersive, animated or video content, consider creating some ‘text art’. In the hands of a talented typographic designer, Adobe After Effects can create amazing text-based animated artwork. Leverage these skills if you have them. If not, see what local art schools have in terms of internships in their animation departments. Pulling in young and hungry design thinkers to extend your static content is an inexpensive way to amp up your content.
    
4. Liven Up Those Charts and Graphs: Your infographics and simple bar and pie charts are begging for life! Look to broadcast TV commercial reels for inspiration on turning those assets into beautiful interactive communication elements. Consider making charts interactive by showing them in layers, allowing users to drill into the information. For example:
   • Show a map of the globe and facts about sales, performance, etc.
   • Create touchable areas for North America, Central/South America, Europe, Asia, Africa or whatever regions are appropriate for your data
   • When a user touches a region, cross-fade to a hidden chart of the detailed performance of that region into view
   • Give your readers a reason to explore your data in different ways and reward them with engaging interactivity
      
5. Accept the fact that you will need to re-layout your content: A print design is a great starting point for your publication, but the differences between consuming content in print and on a tablet are great. For an optimum reader experience, plan to re-set the content for your specific platform. If you’re preparing to distribute to more than one device, and intend to make the experience the best that it can be, you'll need to consider creating independent version for each distribution platform. The promise of automated systems that design-once-deploy-to-many do not take into consideration the details of each platform like aspect ratio and display resolution. On iPad for example, a page should be designed to fit a 768x1024 container in portrait. An acceptable font size for body copy on iPad could be Helvetica 16 on 20pts. The same content for a Kindle Fire designed for a 600x1024 container could have a font size around 19 on 23pts. If the same design were to be used for both, the Kindle versions would be letterboxed due to the differences in aspect ratio and the font sizes would be too small to be easily read without zooming.

Digital publications are here to stay. They are an exciting addition and alternative to traditional publishing. Prepare your content with interactive features and custom layouts on your platforms of choice and you’ll delight your users with this new medium.

Tags: blog, Digital Publishing, digi-pub

I want to explore some of the most talked about features that are expected in the iPad Next and discuss what you the consumer can expect from this new breed of applications.

Improved Camera

The current camera on the iPad 2 was its most maligned feature and for good reason.  The resolution and quality are both significantly lower than anyone would have expected.  Apple has shown with the iPhone 4S that they can do a great job with camera optics in a mobile device, and I fully expect that the iPad 3 will move great strides over the current iteration in this area. 

The iPad is quickly becoming a standard in many industries.  One industry where it is gaining traction (and is expected to continue to gain) is health-care.  Imagine what could be possible with a quality high-resolution camera on the device.  What if doctors could take a picture of areas of skin and run a comparison against a large database of skin cancer images to provide early detection for melanomas, what if rural physicians could use a single device to send health records and have a FaceTime conversation with an expert while performing a basic surgical procedure that has run into complications, or what if emergency room nurses can quickly visually document injuries to be used in a future court case.   The possibilities here are endless, and there are many more industries that stand to gain a lot from an improved camera.

Increased Resolution

Rumors have been swirling about what the resolution will be for the upcoming iPad.  Both the iPad 1 and iPad 2 have had the same display, and one would suspect that it is due for an upgrade.  The current resolution on the iPad is sufficient, but it does not excel.  For example, you cannot view video at full 1080p.  As we see the increased resolution, we will see new media experiences be enabled on the iPad that are very similar to what we have grown to love on the iPhone 4 and 4S (but on a much larger scale).

Applications that center around media consumption and gaming will benefit greatly from this advance.  Games like Infinity Blade II could look unbelievably sharp because they will have over twice as many pixels to play with.  This will mean however that developers will have to put in some legwork to update existing applications for this new resolution, so these titles might not be updated right away.

Increased Processing Power

Most analysts have predicted that a new iteration of Apple’s processor will be in the new  generation of iPad devices.  Some reports have suggested a totally new quad-core architecture while others have hinted at an improved A5 chip.  In either case the iPad will have applications that can do more at a quicker speed than previous devices.  This has a large impact on the kind of experiences that can be crafted for the iPad.

First, it is important to note that increased processing power will be needed to power most of the other new features like the improved camera and increased resolution.  However, beyond that the possibilities are almost endless.  Application developers could begin to capitalize on advanced image processing, sophisticated video compositing, or even complex 3D manipulation.  I suspect that applications like iMovie will gain functionality that is currently only found in its desktop counterpart.  I also suspect that game developers will be able to utilize an even higher frame-rate which will result in games that are more clear, crisp, and responsive than the current generation of experiences.

Maintained Battery Life

This may seem like an odd item, but it is an important one.  The iPad has always had a more than adequate battery life, but if this new versions adds many of the features that I have listed it will be paramount that it maintains this status.  An improved processor and a more pixel-dense display will both tax the battery, but if Apple’s track record holds here the battery life will be maintained or even improved with the new version.

This is important to applications because the essence of the iPad is tied to its battery life.  As developers build applications that take advantage of the increased processing power and increased display, they can be assured that they won’t be severely limiting the amount of time a user can interact with their device.

Siri

Siri has been one of the biggest additions in the iPhone 4S, and it would make sense that it will make an appearance on the newest generation of iPads.  There are some that speculate that it won’t appear on the iPad because of the continual need for an internet connection to power Siri, but I suspect that Apple will place it on the iPads in spite of that.  The suspected addition of the 4G data connection should also Siri to be a success on the iPad Next.

In the end, a software update to Siri for the new iPad could have big ramifications for the entire iOS ecosystem.  Currently, Siri on the iPhone 4S is limited to working with Apple’s applications, but if Apple pairs Siri with a new API that developers can capitalize on then the new iPad just got a lot more useful.  For example, if you could simply ask questions like “What is My Hotel Confirmation Number” to an application like TripIt or request that the Twitter app to post a Tweet for you that you dictate all without opening a single application.  Some applications, like Remember the Milk, have found inventive ways to integrate with Siri’s capabilities, but it would be amazing to see what consumers could experience if Apple would open this to the entire development community. 

4G Data

There were a handful of people that were surprised that the iPhone 4S did not have a 4G internet connection.  Other phones from manufacturers like HTC and Motorola have been releasing 4G phones for quite a while.  Some have suggested that Apple was merely letting the carriers mature their 4G data network while others suggested the implementation of other hardware features slowed this.  Either way, customers expect that the next iPad will sport a 4G connection, and they could potentially view Apple in a different light if this feature is not included.

While this change doesn’t affect applications directly, Developers will be able to assume that users will have a higher quality connection for more of the time than they currently do. All that said, they will still have to account for both online and offline scenarios.  There could be one positive step that Apple can take due to this new feature: increasing the size of applications and assets that are allowed to be downloaded when not using a Wi-Fi connection.

Conclusion

While developers will anxiously be listening to every word that Apple utters at the March 7th event, consumers should be eagerly waiting in the App Store for amazing new experiences that will change how they experience their iPad.  As an architect who builds on the iOS platform, I’m truly excited to see these features become reality.

(This blog post was originally published as an article in Appolicious on March 5, 2012)

Tags: ipad, ios, apple, blog, iphone, siri, retina

DeftJS enhances Ext JS and Sencha Touch's APIs with additional building blocks that enable large development teams to rapidly build enterprise scale applications, while leveraging best practices and proven patterns we've refined over years of delivering cutting edge solutions across a wide range of platforms and devices.

This release of DeftJS includes a lightweight Inversion of Control (IoC) container for class annotation driven dependency injection (similar to Spring, Google Guice, AngularJS, and AS3 frameworks such as Swiz and Robotlegs), offering the following benefits:

• Promotes looser coupling between application components for easier mocking and improved testability.
• Eliminates boilerplate application startup and assembly logic.
• Enables business layer code reuse between Ext JS web and Sencha Touch mobile applications.

Stay tuned - there's much more to come! The current development road-map for DeftJS includes an alternative MVC implementation, client-side routing, route-aware navigation, deferreds/promises, and AOP.

Follow @DeftJS on Twitter to get the latest news.

Visit http://deftjs.org/ to learn more.

Tags: mobile, blog, mobile apps, Sencha, DeftJS

For the fourth year in a row, the Society of Digital Agencies (SoDA) has compiled the thoughts and opinions of ~700 marketers, agencies, technologists and digital industry insiders. Dozens of SoDA member companies have contributed thought-provoking articles and case studies to The SoDA Report (formerly known as the Digital Marketing Outlook). A broad array of guest contributors, CMOs and other senior-level digital marketers from a wide array of organizations (i.e., L’Oreal, Adobe, Google, Compete, E*Trade, Bloomberg and Samsung, among many other blue-chip brands) also provided their insights. The result: an invaluable planning resource for marketers and agencies in 2012. SoDA is releasing the publication in its traditional format today, and a tablet edition will be released in early March. SoDA will also be publishing smaller quarterly updates to The SoDA Report over the course of 2012.

The study, conducted by SoDA and its research partner, Econsultancy, revealed significant information regarding budgets, hiring strategies and what marketers value the most. For example, the 2012 survey showed that increased self-reliance is an increasingly common mantra among many marketing organizations, with almost two-thirds citing internal resource growth as their primary approach to expanding digital marketing efforts this year. For those looking outward, almost one-third said they’re seeking to diversify their agency mix based on niche areas of expertise (vs. pursuing a “one-stop shop” digital partner).

The publication also includes:

• 4 editorial sections (Industry Insider, Modern Marketers, People Power & Tech Talk), including related research findings from the 2012 Digital Marketing Outlook Survey. Content focuses on subjects critical to the digital marketing industry today, from evolving agency models and partner ecosystems to transformations at marketing organizations aimed at becoming more consumer-centric to finding and cultivating top digital marketing talent.

• One-on-one interviews with industry luminaries as well as panel discussions on topics ranging from change management to measurement and analytics.

• Case studies spanning a wide array of industries and digital platforms to inspire and inform.

Tags: reports, research, strategy, trends, digital solutions, marketing, SoDA

Here are ten things to consider before developing your app:

1. Agree on goals for the program.
When developing your strategy for digital solutions, the first area to examine is your organization’s goals for the program. Are you looking to be seen as innovator, or fend off competition by showing progress in the space? Simply showing initial momentum and previewing the future roadmap can often place you ahead of the competition. Do you want your digital solutions to help you build customer loyalty and enable greater customer self-service, or is your highest priority to create new revenue streams? Once you’ve agreed on the goals, prioritize them so you’ll know where to start first.

2. Understand your target users.
The next step is to understand who your target users are, what their goals and requirements are, and which technologies they use for which purposes. This will help define how to utilize each platform and take advantage of what each has to offer. This process includes researching the platforms your users are most likely utilizing and getting an understanding of the user experience. Every device is different, and every user has multiple needs. For example, a person might typically use an online banking application to pay a bill, while they’re more likely to use the bank’s mobile application to find the closest ATM.

3. Build a user testing focus group.
Spending time with your target users is the only way to ensure you really understand what they are looking for from a mobile application.  As you move through the process of discovery, you can validate ideas and assumptions with this group on a daily basis.  This group also provides value far beyond initial discovery as they can validate rapid prototypes from the early development phase.

4. Identify a minimally viable solution set.
We recommend that most companies not try to tackle the whole problem at once. Instead, they should identify a minimally viable solution set and start there. This strategy means releasing a basic but functional app as a foundation, then taking advantage of the efficient upgrade paths most devices offer to provide regular updates. This enables you to enter the market more quickly and refine as needed, as well as giving your users access to new developments as soon as they’re available and keeping your organization top-of-mind.

5. Plan for multiple releases.
With mobile applications, releasing the initial version is only the beginning.  Statistics show that many users will re-engage with your application when new features are added.  Spreading key functionality across the first handful of releases will keep your users engaged.  However, if you release too often, users may feel bombarded.  Finding the right mix for your targets users is essential.  In many cases, a 2-3 month window between major releases will keep your users engaged over a longer period of time.

6.   Balance your users and your business.
Balancing business drivers with real user needs can be difficult. In many cases, the two are at odds with one another. This is why it’s critical to arm yourself with the right information to make smart trade-offs, beginning with research such as user studies, subject matter expert research, and business viability and technical feasibility studies. This body of data can then be weighed to achieve the best balance between user-centric solutions and business-value gains.

7. Know what is out there.
It is important for anyone in the decision making process to spend time exploring apps in each of the platforms you plan to support.  This may seem like common sense, but this is an overlooked step in most organizations.  Each platform offers different interface paradigms and a different collection of applications.  Experimenting with the most popular applications will help you understand not only what is possible on the platform but what the expectations are of a user on that platform. If possible, make a different mobile platform device your primary platform during the exploration process.

8. Bring your IT team into the discussions early.
The far greater technical challenge is tying your backend business systems and processes to a digital solution that encompasses various customer touch points like smartphones and kiosks. The technology infrastructure for a multichannel solution goes well beyond the platform you choose for front-end development. In order to be successful, enterprises must consider how to architect data delivery and API Management as well as security, scalability, content aggregation, device optimization, API translation and many other factors.  Bring your IT team into the discussions before you get too far down the planning path.

9. Decide on a technology you can live (and grow) with.
As the mobile space has matured, there are now many more choices in how to develop applications.  In many cases, your goals will help determine what you choose here.  For example, if your goal is to reach as many users as possible across all platforms, you may choose an HTML framework with little hardware integration.  If your goal is to provide deep integration with the hardware for something like augmented reality, then you will probably develop a native application.  As mentioned previously, knowing your users and their expectations is the key to knowing what would work best in this space.  Decisions around the technology can directly affect the functionality that your application can provide.

10. Plan to analyze.
The final step in the process is agreeing on how to measure success. With a morass of potential features, devices, platforms, and technologies, success can be challenging to define. However determining your critical success factors in advance will affect your ultimate strategy. Consider the following questions:

• Will this increase our transaction volume and therefore revenue?

• Will this increase customer adoption and/or retention?

• Will this increase our brand recognition and/or loyalty?

• Will this decrease our costs?

• How many people do we want using our app?

•  How do we want to integrate the solution with our social media program?

•  How will we integrate with our existing analytics / measuring tools?

(This blog post was originally published as an article in Mashable on February 24, 2012)

Tags: ipad, mobile, android, blog, tablet, iphone, mobile apps, app strategy

Both Ext JS and Sencha Touch abandon DOM-oriented progressive enhancement and responsive design in favor of a component-based approach to building tailored, optimized desktop and mobile solutions. For the Flex community, working with these frameworks may feel like stepping back to Flex 1.0-1.5, but it's a far cry better than any other HTML5 option in terms of offering a documented, proven, cohesive solution. As Sencha matures (and as more Flex talent migrates to the platform), both developers and users will rediscover a Flex-like experience in the HTML5 world.

At Universal Mind, we have embraced Sencha as a valued partner and their offerings have become pretty popular with our development community. We see Sencha as a proven development solution, ready for enterprise class web-based applications, particularly where a large team is involved. With a sophisticated component model, Sencha is years ahead of the competition.

Both Sencha Touch 2 and Ext JS 4 are impressive offerings from top to bottom. Jump on in, the water’s fine. If you want to build a Sencha Touch 2 app in less than 5 minutes, try out the ST 2 Power Tools, created by David Tucker.

When should you use Sencha?

If you are building an enterprise class web based application with a desktop style UI, Sencha Ext JS is an obvious choice. Ext JS's sweet spot is anything far on the “application” end of the web interactivity spectrum. Ext JS excels for master/detail form-heavy applications. No other HTML application framework is going to come close to Ext JS from a feature perspective.

Sencha Touch 2 is a great choice for HTML-based mobile apps as well. The ease of use and advanced rendering capabilities make development simple and should reduce testing time across devices.

ExtJS and Sencha Touch are built on the same core. Business logic can be shared between Ext JS desktop and Sencha Touch mobile applications. However, you’ll need to write different user interfaces to reach both mobile and desktop because these frameworks provide UI component sets that are highly tuned for their target devices. This isn’t such a big deal since delivering good usability for desktop and mobile applications requires very different user interfaces anyway.

Sencha’s component-based API is feature rich and highly extensible. At Universal Mind we utilize an IoC container for dependency injection in conjunction with an alternative MVC implementation that can scale up to the needs of enterprise class applications and large development teams.

Top 10 Reasons to Use Sencha

1. Components

The Sencha Ext JS Component Library is as impressive as it is useful. The SDK is broken out into logical namespaces, rather than a flat one like jQuery. While the API is fairly prescriptive, it presents options that simply do not exist in other frameworks.

For example, Sencha's solution for managing classes in namespaces in Ext JS 4.0 is very clever. It defines a standard method for splitting up classes into packages and individual implementation files, annotating their dependencies, dynamically loading classes at runtime, and repackaging them in a minified form for deployment. This frees the developer from being concerned about the order in which the classes are defined in their source code, and provides a consistent structure for object-oriented development for large teams.

2. Data Management

In general, Sencha has done a nice job with data management. The genius and flexibility can be found in how they have broken up the data access responsibilities into Model, Proxy, Store, Reader and Writer components. The automatic translation from JSON to Model objects with typed properties is mighty nice. Thanks to the division of responsibilities, where you can easily swap in different types of data sources or destinations, this solution is clearly better than the typical “ActiveRecord” implementation you see in many other frameworks. With the option to use JSON, JSONP, AMF and SOAP OOTB, let productivity ensue.

3. UI Framework

Toolbars, Panels, Buttons, Icons, Cards, Carousel, Tabs… Oh My! There's no other UI framework for JavaScript that provides this much guidance, or components with this level of sophistication and performance optimization. Sencha is the only solution that truly leverages OOP throughout their framework. Mixins are a nice touch too, no pun intended.

4. Grids & Stuff

This is an area where Sencha has outclassed Flex, in terms of capabilities offered right out of the box. The infinite scrolling grid is damn impressive. Grouping, client and server-side filtering/sorting, cell templates, etc… Hard not to love it. It's clever how DataView, ComboBox, Grid, Tree, etc. all leverage Stores. These components offer custom HTML renderers (aka XTemplates) that automatically update when their associated Store changes. DataGrids in all their glory and then some…

5. Graphing

Awesome! Better than Flex. Not surprising, since they bought Raphael (and the talent behind it). Charts and drawing with SVG! Being a vector format, SVG output looks razor sharp both onscreen and on paper.

6. Offline Capabilities

Take your web application data offline in minutes with a simple API. SessionStorage and LocalStorage are easy Proxy types provided ‘right out of the box’ that can be used to toggle your web application into an offline state.

7. Styling & Theming

SASS & Compass provides a powerful and flexible option for controlling the look and feel of your application. I am sure some developers wish Sencha had chosen LESS (for its simplicity) rather than SASS/Compass, but Sass/Compass does bring more to the table. It is refreshing to see that Sencha uses a CSS meta-language, given the sheer amount of CSS and repeated configurable values involved. The 'slice' tool is a very nice and unexpected touch; generating corresponding image files necessary to support older browsers (*cough*IE*cough*).

8. Tools

Sencha Animator, Ext Designer & Sencha Designer provide a comprehensive HTML5 solution that no other vendor can offer (or as have even tried). These tools certainly have a specific audience, but it is nice to see the potential productivity gains and synergy between design and development resources.

9. Testing

Sencha’s frameworks play well with Jasmine, a popular open-source BDD framework for testing JavaScript code.  Sencha uses Jasmine internally to test Ext JS and Sencha Touch, and provides a tutorial for how to use it to test your own applications.

Unit testing user interfaces seems impossible with JavaScript. Wait, take a look at Siesta… Siesta is a testing tool built specifically for Ext JS. Siesta allows you to write unit tests in JavaScript, automate their execution and is specifically optimized for Ext JS. Siesta also comes with an easy to use user interface.

10. Documentation, Training and Support

Sencha offers a rich set of online API Documentation as well as professional training classes. From personal experience, they are quite helpful and enjoyable. More comforting than perhaps any components or feature is the fact that there is a proven successful company behind the products and frameworks offered by Sencha.

Summary

Make your life easier and use Sencha. Should you experience an exception for more than 4 hours, please consult your doctor immediately.

Tags: html5, mobile, blog, javascript, Sencha, Jasmine

While NFC technology will provide exciting opportunities, it is going to take quite some time before it reaches critical mass in the United States. Even buyers of the latest iPhones and most Android phones will find themselves without NFC capabilities. This means we have many years to go before a reasonable amount of users will be able to take advantage of NFC. 

Bummer right? Nope. It is already possible to create a truly exceptional retail customer experience utilizing the capabilities of nearly all smart phones today. Getting a little creative with the GPS, camera, and cellular data connection can produce solid results, and most importantly create experiences which elicit deep brand loyalty. Lets look at a few mobile solutions from Apple, Starbucks, and Square that do just that.

Apple Store Application
Not surprisingly, Apple continues to be a pioneer in retail store experience. Their Apple Store application gives customers a newfound independence while also making it easier to get support.  

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Utilizing GPS data, the app recognizes that the user is in or near a store. Then it provides support wait times, allows access to the queue, and provides other information and tools that enhance the store experience. The user can then easily get into the support queue while they browse or run other errands.

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Apple enables do-it-yourself checkout from a mobile device while in the store. A user is able to walk in, pick up an accessory, scan it, charge it to their Apple account, and walk out completely independently. I recommend trying this. On one hand it was liberating—Apple earned my trust by giving me theirs. On the other hand, I had anxiety that I'd be tackled by an unseen ninja on my way out the door. Irrational fear of Ninja's aside, I felt closer to the Apple brand after that experience. 

Starbucks Application
The Starbucks app takes a bit of a different approach to mobile payments. Here, the act of transacting is performed by either the customer or the barista scanning a barcode image presented in the app with traditional laser scanners. This deducts the transaction amount from the user's Starbucks Card account and and proceeds to update loyalty points. When combined with an auto-reload of the user's Starbucks Card, the app allows Starbucks customers to carry nothing but their phone into stores and still garner all the benefits of loyalty.

Square Card Case Application

Square has created an impressive solution utilizing primarily GPS and Cellular data. When the customer walks into (or near) a store, the merchant is alerted and provided both their picture and name. The merchant records the purchase via the Square merchant application and the charge is placed on the customer's "tab."  A paperless receipt is then provided to the customer via the application.

While these examples don't provide swipe and go access to payment systems or social networking, they succeed in creating the experience that has many so excited about NFC: a stronger connection to retail customers.

Tags: mobile, apple, retail, blog, strategy, starbucks, customer experience, NFC, Square

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) Walk into an Apple store, Find product, Open the store app.
2) Scan the product. Read reviews, yes - this is what you wanted.
3) Tap to pay with your iTunes card, using your own iPhone.
4) Take your purchased product and walk out the door.

Do you notice the self service aspect? As my friendly blue-shirt Apple store clerk said, "how do we know [you've purchased that?].. we don't, but we trust you guys!"  Certainly, this ethos will endure a few tweaks as the service rolls out, but the approach shows the confidence in how Apple is embracing the disruptive mobile force it itself has been part of creating. 

Why is this so special? In some ways, the move is simply good sense and fitting very nicely into the progression of Apple's dominance in pushing out new features just ahead of other major players (but notably behind the innovators or first movers in the space.)  But, the genius of this app/experience is that Apple has more power, in form of more unique users with a trusted credit card already in place, than any other digital platform. Yes, Google Wallet is launched and Android is currently selling more phones than Apple, but those users are notoriously slow to set up or activate a credit card; nor are they using their phones to buy like the users on iOS. (See the excellent Flurry article from Dec. last year.)

So, with more users already in place, and trained to use and trust the embedded credit card, Apple has managed, in one fell swoop, to launch an in-store payment app with more users ready to go than any other 'wallet' out there (caveat: that I know of…).

The Apple rumors have already talked about this near-field version from Apple, aka Google's digital wallet, but this experience sorts of begs the question of why that is needed. Or at least, it puts in question the experience pro's and cons of using one app to get info/reviews and then the same phone to "tap to pay" at the register; the older metaphor vs new thinking of self-service browsing/reviewing and buying in-store.

In my view, this is bigger than it's humble soft launch begs us to consider, but I'd love your take on it as well.

Tags: apple, retail, blog, strategy, Wallet

Why the iPad?

I think it is important to take a minute and ponder why Apple seems to be having success in the educational sector with the iPad, and why the biggest textbook publishers are on board with this. First, the lack of fragmentation with the iPad had made pixel perfect design possible on mobile. A tool like iBooks Author could not exist in the same way for Android because it would need to support a prohibitive number of resolution and pixel density combinations. In addition, school districts only have to worry with a single device. They buy from one company, handle all maintenance and repair inquiries with the same company, and frankly Apple is spending a lot of money to get many school districts and legislators on board.

In the end, the Apple ecosystem is seeing a lot of success in getting their devices in students' hands. Because of this, this move to empower these same students with textbooks on the device is extremely strategic and powerful.

What is a Book and What is an App?

While I was watching Apple's presentation, I couldn't help but express my feelings about how things are changing on Twitter:

I think we're about to see some of the lines blurred between 'Apps' and 'Books'.

— David Tucker (@mindmillmedia) January 19, 2012

It is true that lines are blurring. What differentiates an app from an iBook? In short, integration points and visual customization.

For now, there are few integration points with iOS in an iBook, and I think that is very intentional. There is no traditional provisioning and deployment process for an iBook, because in the end there is no way that an iBook can execute code that could cause negative consequences for the end user. This brings a tremendous amount of freedom to the content creators. Teachers can create an interactive textbook experience for a new topic they are covering, export it from iBooks Author as an iBook, and email it to all of the students. In turn, the students could install it in a single click from their iPads. The app deployment process is infinitely more complicated because of the risk to the user that is inherent. By allowing easy sharing of iBooks, Apple has actually made themselves an optional (not required) distributor of the content.

As for visual customization, there are certainly limitations with the initial release of iBooks Author. For example, when creating a custom HTML widget, you cannot customize the 'preview' display (beyond just placing an image) and the full version of the widget has the default chrome around it. At this point, those are limitations that designers will have to live with, but unlike the technical limitations described above I think the visual customizations will continue to become more full featured with the upcoming versions of iBooks Author.

Ownership

One sticky issue that has popped up on various blogs in the past day is the nature of the terms of service around iBooks Author. In short, if you develop content with iBooks Author, the presentation of that content (through an iBook) can only be sold through the iBooks Store. Many have decried this as evil, but this seems to be falling in line with Apple's past moves. In this case, they developed a piece of software (iBooks Author) and distribute it for free in order to make money on iBook sales. Undoubtedly, many will not use the software because of this issue, but it doesn't seem to have deterred the 'Big 3' textbook publishers.

Desktop for Content Creation

One interesting trend that we see with iBooks Author is that content creation still resides on the desktop. Over the past year we have seen both web based solutions and tablet solutions start to venture more heavily into content creation. In this case, Apple has reaffirmed their view of where serious content creation should occur. This does however mean that currently only Mac users can participate in the iBook creation process as iBooks Author is only distributed through the Mac App Store.

There was another interesting fact that hit me while watching the presentation:

It is interesting that the tools we see for digital publishing are looking more like Keynote/PPT and less like InDesign/Quark.

— David Tucker (@mindmillmedia) January 19, 2012

I think this reveals that Apple is doing its best to lower the barrier to entry, and get the average user more engaged in the creation process. Traditional page layout tools offer an extremely high level of customization, but Apple is betting that users and designers will give up some of that customization just to be able to get the content to devices.

Extensibility

Not surprisingly, Apple is allowing for a level of extensibility to the overall experience. This will be done with HTML and JavaScript. This allows organizations to easily reuse content that they have used in other mediums. At this time, the development process for these extensions uses Apple's Dashcode to create widgets that can be dropped in an iBook. No official word has been given on any native integration through these extensions. In addition, Apple clearly states in the user guide for iBooks Author that "In iBooks Author, video and audio files used in HTML widgets are not DRM (digital rights management) protected." Presumably most publishing companies will stick with the widgets that Apple has created.

This does bring up one interesting point. Apple has now joined the ranks of the companies who are reaffirming HTML and JavaScript development and its role in their ecosystem. That certainly isn't to say that Apple hasn't done this before, but Apple certainly reaffirmed their support.

The Design and Development Process

Overall, I was impressed with the ease of creating an iBook with the authoring tool. There is no SDK to download or developer portal to login to, but instead a single free application that is downloaded through the Mac App Store. Once this application is installed, you can start from one of six templates for your first book. After selecting a template, it is extremely easy to edit test, add images, and add in widgets.

Once you have made your first edits, you can easily preview your book on your iPad. You will first need to update to the newest version of iBooks. Next, you will need to launch iBooks and connect your iPad to your computer. The preview process is fairly straightforward and quick, but it isn't a live preview. I certainly hope that in future versions you can get a near realtime view of your current book on the device as you make edits on the desktop. After the authoring tool has been deployed to your iPad, you can interact with it just as you would any other iBook.

Because iBooks have somewhat limited integration points with iOS, you don't have to go through the provisioning and deployment process that you do with a traditional app.

Conclusion

I really think that iBooks Author and the new iBooks 2 will create a splash in the classroom. Apple is using the high school market as a testbed, but if it does well I would expect to see it expand quickly into colleges and universities. By creating an amazing ecosystem and quality content creation tools, Apple has set itself up for a big victory.

Tags: ipad, ios, apple, blog, javascript, Digital Publishing, App Store, education, iBooks, iBooks Author

But we’ve only begun to scratch the surface of what’s possible in this space. While many industries have dipped a tentative toe in the water, most have yet to take full advantage of all the capabilities of mobile technology, and make the move from paper to digital, from passive to interactive.

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We predict that 2012 will see a wave of new digital publishing apps across a wide range of industries. Here are five new types of “digi-pubs” to watch for in 2012.

1. Movie Tie-Ins

There are already apps and games that build on the characters and storyline of films; however, a huge amount of film content has yet to be tapped by a mobile framework. But this is just around the corner.

For example, books based on children’s films essentially contain stills of the movie. With a relatively small effort, studios may start to turn children’s films into interactive picture books enhanced with games and clips from the films.

And considering the amount of work that goes into creating the bonus materials for a DVD, can the “making of” digi-pub for every major film be far behind? Unlike a book or a DVD, this content can also be made interactive and social. For example, an app could enable you to see all the actors’ tweets or to follow them on Facebook.

2. Music Appumentaries

Several musicians and labels have really started to embrace mobile technology to tell a deeper story and share directly with fans, and we’ve seen the early emergence of what some are calling the “appumentary.”

For example, the Jimi Hendrix – The Complete Experience app showcases pivotal moments in Jimi’s life and career, streams his music and offers an interactive approach to storytelling. The This Day in Pink Floyd app contains thousands of music facts, a guide to every one of the 167 studio tracks the band officially released, as well as Pink Floyd images, quiz questions, video footage and more. The Sting 25 app offers access to Sting’s seminal performances, rare photos and personal stories over the past 25 years of his music career.

I anticipate that as more artists and labels embrace this new medium, we’ll see an increase in digital music downloads and an explosion in new types of artist content, maybe even a new fan club paradigm with advanced and/or exclusive access to media or artist-driven content.

3. Medical Exam Apps

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How many times have you been to the doctor and had them bring a laptop into the exam room? Probably not very many. While some medical practices have begun introducing some of these basic tools into their patient interactions, there’s still a shocking lack of mobile technology usage in the medical industry.

In 2012, the medical industry will have the opportunity to create a new paradigm for doctor/patient interaction using tablet technology. With the presentation of digital publications and apps that can distill complex medical theories and procedures into consumable bites, our understanding of conditions and treatment options will expand.

Imagine your doctor sitting with you to go over some test results. With a digital records application, she could display your results on an interactive comparative chart that displays the averages of people in your area by age, race, gender, occupation or lifestyle. It could contain embedded videos of procedure descriptions. Your doctor could share access with you, enabling you to request other opinions from physicians across the world. You could tie in social experiences on community boards with people that have undergone similar procedures. All of this could be presented in an interactive and personal publication that embodies your entire medical history.

4. The Digital Textbook

In some ways, the foundational paradigms of education are in transition. There are opportunities in the education market that are huge and potentially transformative.

Should students be carrying four or five textbooks to school each day? Could students purchase only certain chapters of books? Could books include text that is updated by authors in real-time? Could the concept of a “textbook” be a compilation of Wikipedia entries, content queried from Wolfram|Alpha, a professor’s thoughts and musings and social network contributions?

Not only is the content of today’s textbooks ready to be challenged; the way this content is consumed is already in a state of transition. The introduction of e-text and Amazon’s early versions of the Kindle changed how we read. No longer do we need to consume “printed” text in one form. Kindle devices and Kindle applications allow today’s readers to enjoy published works in their choice of context – Kindle device, desktop, mobile app – and seamlessly switch between them. With Amazon’s latest Kindle Fire tablet, consumers are now empowered with the Kindle experience on top of a mature Android platform. This platform of power and functionality will allow for new types of content presentation: interactive charts and graphs, embedded media, embedded discussions, sharing and borrowing, live discussions, etc.

5. Interactive Retail Catalogs

Using mobile technology in retail is practically a no-brainer, since investing in tech to reach consumers can pay off quickly. Brands like IKEA and Lands’ End have already begun to embrace the functionality of interacting with consumers on their mobile devices. In fact, many big-box and online retailers have begun to offer catalog apps that allow you to browse content on your iPad. However, most have simply taken their existing materials and published them in a similar form to their print counterparts.

In 2012, there is a huge opportunity for retailers to bring their catalog experiences to life on the iPad. For example, shoppers should be able to build avatars and virtually try on clothes, making mobile shopping an interactive, enjoyable and functional experience. Homeowners should be able to take pictures of their living rooms and upload them to the catalog app, then “decorate” rooms with the items from the catalog. And forget paint swatches – soon you will be able to take a picture of a room, choose and try different paint colors on the walls, click to buy, and have it ready to pick up at a nearby store in 15 minutes.

What are some digital publishing applications you’d like to see this year?

(This blog post was originally published as an article in Mashable on January 14, 2012)

Tags: ipad, ios, retail, android, blog, tablet, entertainment, Digital Publishing, kindle fire, digi-pub, education

Designers and creative have a pretty good track record (I think) of reaching out to their community and helping others. The same qualities that makes us good designers - empathy, the ability to visualize how to best tell a story or solve a problem, among other stellar traits - makes us receptive to the needs of those around us. And, as a group, more idealistic, and bent on making a difference whether it is social change for the community, or perhaps being part of a project that is set on a global scale.

I feel pretty lucky in having worked on many meaningful projects both professionally and personally, but at the end of the year it still does not quite seem good enough. With this in mind that I started a inspirational tour around the web - get myself geared up for the year ahead. Below is my list, collected with a little help from some great friends, that I wanted to share it with fellow designers and UX'ers out there who need a little inspiration as well. If you have sites or causes you think could be added, please email me and I'll include it here as well (or post a comment).

First on my list was AIGA (and my local chapter in San Francisco.) They are always a great resource for the design profession and I've found that getting together with fellow professionals is a great way to get something started. Nationally, AIGA have a Design for Good section or take a few min to look at the video or jump right in with the Pro Bono job listing.

Speaking of inspiration, I like both TED.com and good.is makers of Good magazine. They recently created the maker.good.is section that follows the now familiar "challenge" and crowd utilization for getting good ideas or designs. This seems to make it that much easier to 'find the time' and also utilize your professional skills by finding a challenge that is inspiring. There seems to be more of these sites coming online, but perhaps my favorite is openideo.com.

Living in a great city, there are many opportunities to be part of a community, but I found both volunteermatch.org or a program like studentmentor.org to be excellent resources for matching time and talent with worthy causes.

I was also made aware of worldchanging.com, a collective of journalists and designers that brings awareness to green future issues around the world. Definitely worth a visit.

Happy New Year!

Tags: ux, Better, Human Experience, Pro-bono

Although 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, freeing you to take risks that you might not otherwise take.

Many articles discuss the power of sketching and why you should do it, but they don’t go into the how or the methods involved. Sketching seems straightforward, but there are certain ways to do it effectively. In this article, we’ll cover a collection of tools and techniques that I (and many other UX and design folks) use every day.

Tags: ux, articles

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 take for granted; the ability to create a deep connection through design.

Tags: ux, articles

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 enough significant differences between the two products that it doesn’t really make that much sense to compare them directly. The fundamental difference is that PhoneGap is a web-based solution where Appcelerator Titanium is a pure JavaScript API that creates native code. At the core, they serve different functions for an organization.

At this stage we see many more PhoneGap implementations than Appcelerator Titanum for a few simple reasons. Appcelerator allows developers to utilize JavaScript to write a mobile application and compile down to native code for deployment. PhoneGap allows you to utilize HTML5 standards to write your mobile applications while also providing a JavaScript SDK to access native device capabilities. This clear differentiator is not one to be taken lightly. Simply put, if you want to re-use the same code that you deploy with your HTML5 enterprise desktop apps across other tablet, mobile and connected TV platforms, PhoneGap is the right choice.

PhoneGap is a web app that runs in a native web browser view. It lets you utilize HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript, as well as all of the frameworks, like jQuery Mobile, Sencha, etc. described above. Appcelerator is pure JavaScript that compiles to Native Code. PhoneGap supports more platforms but Appcelerator may give you better performance in specific instances.

I have dropped literally 30+ HTML5/CSS/JavaScript applications into PhoneGap, which run without issue on the desktop, and deployed them to Android, iOS, and Google TV without changing one line of code. PhoneGap clearly promotes the most re-use and provides the easiest transition from desktop to mobile.

Appcelerator is like writing a native application with JavaScript and the Titanium SDK. Thus, if your goal is to re-use your HTML5 code base across mobile, tablet, desktop and TV then PhoneGap has to be the natural choice. Appcelerator touts improved performance because they compile to native code but truthfully we don’t see many use cases where this is a differentiating factor. Organizations usually choose Native iOS or Native Android over a “Native JavaScript” option. PhoneGap also supports deployments to more device platforms than Titanium because it doesn’t need to compile to a native form. It is probably a more natural analysis to compare Native Platform development to Appcelerator.

PhoneGap:

• JavaScript API that provides access to Native Functions
• Supports HTML5/CSS3
• Supports Web Standards & Re-use Across Enterprise Apps
• Supports DOM based JavaScript Libraries/Frameworks
• Supports the most platforms

Appcelerator Titanium:

• JavaScript API that provides access to Native Functions
• Compiles to Native Code
• Could provide better performance.

Tags: html5, ios, javascript, jQuery, Sencha