RoyG

This is pretty interesting, but can someone please tell me the advantage of using CSS instead of Javascript? Is it to reduce code cruft in each page, or because some people turn Javascript off?

Tempurpedic all the way. We've had one for 8 years, and it's the only mattress my wife, who has a chronic back condition, sleeps well on.

Your choice of pillow is important as well, and Tempurpedic's pillow is also top notch. Also, a lot cheaper than the mattress, if you want to start there.

Despite Sir Howard's pretensions, Sony still doesn't really 'get it,' instead they just want to fight the old way, kind of like the English redcoats marching rank and file through Indian country.

Read Geohot's blog response to the hack, and you'll get a much better read on the problem:

Traditionally the trust boundary for a web service exists between the server and the client. But Sony believes they own the client too, so if they just put a trust boundary between the consumer and the client(can't trust those pesky consumers), everything is good. Since everyone knows the PS3 is unhackable, why waste money adding pointless security between the client and the server? This arrogance undermines a basic security principle, never trust the client.

http://geohotgotsued.blogspot.com/

How would people respond if the article were changed to this:

'Dear Writer, You Aren't That Special'

"In essence, writing is not a chaotic expression, it’s a measured approach to creation. We cannot create a good writing solution by shuffling elements randomly around a blog until something happens to work."

Think about it that way, and the author disproves his own point. Yes, his post is grammatical, and contains thoughts that are communicated, but not very well. The best one can say is that it is passable, and worth the price paid. This is true for design as well; most companies claim to want great design, but are secretly willing to accept the passable, as long as the price is right.

It's in vogue to desire developers who have a 'design sensibility,' as if this is the answer, but would it make as much sense to ask for a developer with 'copyrighting sensibility?' After all, design and writing have much more in common than developing and designing.

Meanwhile, here is a much more cogent post on the original topic, that counters this argument much more clearly and eloquently...because it was written by a professional writer, not just somebody who has a blog.

How Wannabe Designers Burden the Profession http://sixrevisions.com/project-management/wannabe-designers...

It would have been a much better article if he did it with HTML 5 and Canvas.

Lots of good investment advice; my advice is to guard against losses:

1.) Keep the hookers and blow to a minimum.

2.) If you think you've met 'the one,' be sure to get a prenup.

This will be great...once somebody inverts the law of physics; it says it uses RGB inks, which is physically impossible.

Ur missing the blinking GIF animation, 'WARNING: your website may be infected!'

I appreciate that Kadavy actually delves into the technical deficiencies of Comic Sans before he gets to the real heart of the matter at the end.

He misses the larger 'hacker design' point, however - unless you are an experienced designer, you are much better off picking a standard classic font, such as Helvetica, than trying to get all 'design-y' and picking some weird display font, in the mistaken belief that somehow this is adding 'personality' to your design.

It seems that people associate meditation with Zen-style sitting meditation, which seems to be the canonical example. However, there are also standing, walking and moving forms of meditation, as practiced in Tai Chi, Chi Kung, Ba Gua and Yoga.

These practices emphasize mind-body unity and alignment, and focus on the moment, and the results are very similar to sitting meditation, with the added advantage of physical involvement, and less time per session.

I do a Tai Chi short form at different times throughout the day, as a stress break. It only takes 5 minutes or so, and is very helpful in calming the mind and aligning the body. The down side is that the learning curve is long, and a teacher is needed, in order to ensure that ur doing it right.

It's a different matter in a job posting; in that case, it's a synthetic PR move, where the posters think they are showing how hip and cool their company is. Usually also a sign of unrealistic expectations.

Thanks Colourlovers and Bubs, for putting this together. It's interesting qualitative data, and useful in many ways, though not for everybody. Color is more art than science, which probably accounts for some of the negative comments here.

I think the quantitative approach to color is largely a dead end, anyway; remember that Doug Bowman left Google out of frustration, citing their preference for endless color testing as a surrogate for expert design choices.

“You can do everything that the iPad can with existing off-the-shelf technology and hardware for probably $300 to $400 less per device,” Professor Soloway said.

Really? This is why they refer to it as the Ivory Tower!

While I agree with the author's general points, the examples were very general and vague; for example, he uses the bike design seemingly to show a designer who was uncoupled from engineering, yet I would bet this bike design was created by engineers, as hubless wheels are an engineering fascination.

Also, using Google circa 1999 as an example of great design through engineering is way behind the times. Look up what Douglas Bowman had to say about his tenure as Design Director at Google, and you will find quantification outrules design qualification at Google – if they can't measure it, it's worse by definition.

Today, Google is a UI mess, as they haven't changed with the times, and keep adding content to their once clean design. (Even KISS sites need to be refreshed).

Finally, he missed the opportunity to dispel another Engineers' myth about design, by lauding the addition of the Google logotype as exemplary design – as if slapping a new logo onto an engineer's layout somehow transforms a Plain Jane site into high design. We're not in 1999 anymore, and the bar is higher.

Overall, the assertions are correct, however, I feel that the author could have taken the time to come up with better/deeper examples to help prove his points.

This isn't just a programming issue; it reminded me of my younger days as a freelance designer, where I would meet with many prospective entrepreneurs who would tell me something like 'I'm very good at design, I just need somebody to work the software.'

Invariably, there is more to both programming and design than meets the eye. While learning can help obviate this problem it's not a cure-all; it is also important to learn how to a.) prioritize and simplify when your reach exceeds your grasp and b.) have realistic expectations for outcomes vs. budget.

It's a good idea to learn both, but again, the execution is more problematic.

Form factor means everything; look at how many new iPad only apps there are, strictly due to increased screen size. Jobs made this clear when he nixed the 7" iPad.

Here is an example of what this kind of thinking leads to:

Craigslist SF: Web Designer/Front-End Guru Intern

• Demonstrable years experience creating consumer web/mobile applications • Masterful command of the Adobe Creative Suite: Photoshop, Illustrator • Sophisticated knowledge of HTML, XHTML, CSS • Experience with JavaScript, AJAX, and a JavaScript framework such as jQuery, MooTools, etc • Knowledge of browser compatibility issues and web standards • Embrace the practice of rapid prototyping, and working in a fast-paced environment where constant change is the norm and the bar for performance is set high. Sense of humor and a positive attitude are non-negotiable. Brownie points for: - Advanced Flash skills - Illustration - Experience with mobile application design

//

Guru Intern = ¡LOL!

This is from Formative Labs, veteran entrepreneurs, backed by blue chip angels, yet...they don't see the need to actually pay anything for the task of doing the actual design work. (it dangles the plastic carrot of 'it could easily turn into a full-time job,' presumably meaning it's a full-time job to start, but they might decide to pay...someday.)

//

Again, I don't totally disagree with the premise of tfa, but it's just to closely linked to the penurious thinking behind getting a design 'guru intern.'

I don't know the author's work, but I do know that this vision is nothing new, and it's often why a startup, or many other well-meaning businesses think all they really need is a design intern. It also points toward the old trope of 'I'm a television expert, because I watch a lot of tv.' (Mr. Olivera, I don't think you hold this position, however, it is on the same spectrum, imo)

Again, it does work, but design is relegated to being 'adequate' rather than being a potential source of innovation and differentiation. It plays to this crowd, but that doesn't mean it's right – kind of like going into a design forum and saying that your developers don't need a CS degree, because everything is about frameworks these days.

It reinforces the old trope that designers just make graphics, wireframes, flows, etc. while the programmers do the 'real work' of making it live. A company or startup can get away with a 'functional' designer as described in the post, but it removes design as a differentiator or potential source of innovation. It's true that almost anybody can mock up a landing page and mini-site, but that is a supremely limited conception of a designer.

Good list, but where's ffmpeg?

Though I come from the design world, I realized how much speed and power advantage there is in the command line, and spent the time – over several years – learning how to use it. The speed advantage is so apparent in comparison to GUIs, and now Web Apps, but I guess that's the geek appeal;)

Having hacked my way through Joomla, I think the answer to your question would be a wrapper that hides the CMS.

It's the right idea, just waaay too simplistic. Twitter is very useful for finding people who may fit your target audience, but it's not a spam and split deal – you need to build up value in your own Twitter acct. to get people interested. Spam is spam, even on Twitter.

I grew up with this as well. My 'solution' was to chart my own course. While i've never (yet) achieved huge success in the traditional manner, I continue to learn, grow and push myself.

The problem, as I see it, comes from the expectations of parents, teachers, etc. While they may mean well, their guidance tends to be too conventional. They want to fit you into the System, just in a slightly different role.

I did our home lighting, using Insteon w. a few random x10s still around, using Indigo on a Mini, which is connected to our home ent. system. Hacking is at another level when you need to make sure you don't electrocute yourself or burn the house down!

The best hack, imo, is a simple one - running a HD projector and 72" screen. It's only for movies and sporting events, b/c it's too weird to watch anything non-cinematic on a big screen.

Finally, it's not a hack, but i'll throw in a plug for the Logitech Harmony remote - it's the best we've found for set up and control of our HT system. I can't really comment on it directly, though, because my wife is in charge of setting it up;)

I'm running Safari 5 on an older Macbook, and the Flash side is noticeably faster/smoother. That must be the 'known issue...?'

Crashed Safari/Snow Leopard 3x, after zooming the processor like Flash on steroids. NRFPT.

You mischaracterized the situation; the baseline for a colorblind audience is legibility, not quality. In other words, you make it so they can see the difference, but not the beauty, which would actually be impossible. Also, there are many different forms of colorblindness which in toto add up to 10%, however, there is not, iirc, one case which the entire colorblind audience would see as one.

Actually, once this was put out in the open, and discussed, I was allowed to sign off on the artwork, and the project was completed successfully.

I had a color blind client once. He kept rejecting my duotone artwork because it didn't 'look right.' When he finally admitted he was color blind, I asked him 'why are you trying to make color decisions when you have this condition?' and he said, 'because i'm in charge here.'

I just found this out when I had an occasion to use PM on a small project. I found Huddle, which I think is a nice alternative, with a much better price point.

No question here, just a thanks for putting up this handy and concise list of proto fab resources - good stuff!

Ummm, sorry but that's not correct; it is Hue, Saturation and Lightness. You are confusing luminosity with lightness:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HSL_and_HSV http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luminosity