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You should see my sketchbook
It is truly one of my favorite design “tools:” A good notebook. Personally, I like the full size Moleskine models, but whatever you can manage to carry around will work best. I carry mine everywhere with me, always with a pencil attached. Check out these notes, if you dare, which preceded my recent talk with…
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Bill Buxton Inspires Me
The greatest lesson I learned at Interaction08 last weekend was from Bill Buxton, during his keynote talk. Here’s his list of things that, as a designer, you must know: What makes you distinct. Your value lies in your distinctiveness. That makes you a minority. There will be pressure to conform. Your value is lost in…
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Super Tuesday 2008 Infographic Design
As I’ve mentioned before, election night is one of my favorite nights of the year. All the big media outlets pull out their infographic design “big guns.” One of my favorites for the Super Tuesday 2008 Primary results is at the New York Times: It simply describes the current situation in the largest states that…
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The Potential of Bathroom Air Dryers
It’s a really nice bathroom sign. It really is. But seriously, can we do something about the air dryers in this country? I appreciate the fact paper towels are a complete and total waste of resources, but the hand dryer situation is…well…out of hand. If those things could blow just 2 or 3 times harder,…
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Hello strange little popup friend
Apparently, my battery is dying. As you can see in the photo, my computer is proudly displaying the fact that my battery is “reaching the end of its usable life.” I’m not sure what that means, but boy would I like to know more. Unfortunately, when I click on that little weird box that does…
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Civil Twilight and User Observation
You know how it feels when a song just sort of hits you? You’ve liked the band for a while, listen to their music frequently, but then all of a sudden you’re completely struck by a particular song? That happened to me tonight. Perhaps I’m just tired from the holidays, work, and life, but I…
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Aloha Hulu
I’m giving Hulu a shot. So far it’s pretty sweet. Don’t be mistaken, the success of a service like Hulu is greatly dependent on one thing: the programming. And I don’t mean software programming. It’s all about the shows, baby. When it comes to programming, Hulu’s got a great start. There’s a bunch of shows…
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The Story of Stuff
The Story of Stuff video is incredible. So much learning packed in to 20 minutes. You have to see it. Now.
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Buying New Technology: Blackberry Pearl Edition
I’ve long held the opinion that it’s important to think long and hard before upgrading to new technologies. Often a single technology purchase causes a daisy-chain of purchases, as illustrated below: Nintendo Wii > Big, giant, flat TV > Cable > Premium Channels (Total upgrade cost = $250 + $1,000 + $60/mo + $10/mo =…
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Experiencing the power of Java
So this evening I’m reinstalling Java. Not by choice, but because the annoying little balloon keeps on popping up in the corner of my screen. Then, while it’s installing, the installer has the audacity to say something extremely stupid like: By installing Java, you will be able to experience the power of Java…” NO WAY!…