My first introduction to Blend wasn’t a pleasant one, so bad that when Blend2 came out I promptly ignored it. However, while attending the Day of .Net Conference I sat in on a demo of Blend 3 with Sketchflow. It was impressive to see the improvement that has been made in the Blend, and with the addition of Sketchflow. To dive deep into the capabilities of Blend, I downloaded the trial version and set out to create a prototype for a future design of this blog (and do some R&D for how to use this on my project team). Below are some thoughts I had while cranking out this concept. Continue reading →
I know the majority of my readers are UX designers, so most of this will preaching to the choir. But, I promised the attendees an online version of my slides with what I wanted to say during the presentation. For you seasoned presenters I look forward to any feedback you might have on the quality of the presentation and the content. Hope you enjoy! Continue reading →
The art of designing is one filled with failing early and failing often. These iterations allow a designer to learn from their mistakes to get to a proper solution. Learning from your failures is real challenge though, especially if there is a close personal connection to a design. The slippery slope is when we don’t learn from our failures, for we are destined to make the same mistakes all over again. The act of ‘sucking less than I did last time’ is an art that any designer needs to learn if they hope to be successfully.
Later this month I will be speaking at Day of .Net, a local developer conference here in St. Louis. The topic of my presentation is ‘UX != User Interface’. I hope to clear the room on what User Experience is and how it helps developers effectively do their jobs. Since I don’t have nearly all the answers, I am hoping the User Experience community will provide me with a few talking points that are important to them. Continue reading →
Seeing Things Differently – It is always best to keep in mind the people that always need a little help.
Designing A Unified Experience – Kim Goodwin gives an outstanding overview of design. Great video to check out.
Todd Zaki Warfel – redUX DC ‘09 – Todd gives us a great run down of the workshop he gave on prototyping at the IA Summit back in March. Continue reading →
It is obvious to say that times are tough financially. Every business is trying to control its costs in order to best weather the storm, which makes asking for money difficult. What can you do to convince your manager that it is worth the time and money to send you to a conference like IDEA 09? Here are some tips to help you sell the idea of going to a conference. Continue reading →
Ghost in the Pixel is one of my favorite Interaction Design blogs. Last May, Uday Gajendar posted some insightful questions to guide young designers on the path they want to take professionally. I found this helpful in allowing me to better define the type of designer I want to be when I grow up. Below are my answers. Continue reading →
My wife and I finally completed all the necessary classes at the hospital where my son is going to be born. I used the title for this post ‘Certified Parent’ sort of as joke, but at the end of the parenting class we were actually presented with a certification. Now, I understand that labor, delivery, parenting, and changing the first diaper are all serious topics. But, there has to be a better way to educate first time parents on what to expect when the big day happens and you go from being a married couple to an actual family. Continue reading →
10 UI Design Patterns You Should Be Paying Attention To – Great additions to your design pattern library. Smashing Magazine never disappoints.
Four Must Read Pieces on UX Matter – You can never have too much reference material.
Visual Decision Making – Investigation on the importance of visuals and how they encourage people to engage at a deeper levels. Continue reading →