I am not out to start any we-love-apple flame wars. But I was struck today by the number of negative Apple mentions in the daily newsfeeds. A partial list of quotes are below. Is this the start of some gradual popular uprising fueled by the closed, protectionist, controlling, secretive Apple policies? Or just people picking on the popular guy?
Keep Your Graphic Designer on a Short Leash in this month’s Website Magazine suggests that elements such as wild background colors, garish text, visual embellishments (eye candy) and animation/video distract website visitors from important content. In a case study of a redesign of the CREDO website they found an 84% improvement with a simplified design. The case study used a new service called AttentionWizard.com which uses computer algorithms to approximate eye tracking studies of a web site. The idea is these will reveal what point on the page the visitor’s eye should land on. If it is what you want them to see — like a buy now button — bingo, you are doing well. If their eyes don’t land anywhere, or on the wrong things it is time to make some adjustments. I thought it would be fun to compare the Yale and Harvard main websites using the service.
I attended an Apple sponsored presentation yesterday on using the Xcode IDE to build iPhone and iTouch apps. It was a very well done presentation, and had me almost ready to rush out and buy a Macbook and iTouch to get started building cool apps — certainly easy to see why Apple App building has become such a popular past time (and big money maker for Apple).
I caught a video from WordCamp Portland, where Duane Storey was talking about the “Mobile Frontier.” He mentions some interesting statistics, such as most people using a mobile phone to web browse prefer a mobile-friendly web site, while at the same time the majority of web sites don’t offer a mobile-friendly theme. Seems like a bit of a disconnect. And completely unnecessary, as getting a mobile design for your site couldn’t be easier — especially if you use WordPress. But the resources offered below also have options for Drupal and others. I use the MobilePress plug-in on my site — it is really easy to use, allows multiple versions for various browsers, and I like the way it displays on my blackberry.
Who doesn’t love an Apple rumor about their next genre-changing device? The latest floating around on Apple’s new tablet basically what sounds like a 10″ version of the iPod touch. With access to the iTunes apps store, and a version with 3G (basically a 10″ iPhone) this would have serious implications in the burgeoning mobile reader market. When compared to the Kindle there is no way the new device will be able to match in a battery-life contest — and the Kindle’s no trouble wireless connection is pretty good. But as long as Apple can offer decent battery life, the color touch screen plus Apps-store is going to significantly shake up the marketplace.
Take a look at this hack-fest example and tell me it doesn’t sound really cool. I have tried to sell the hack-fest idea to a couple of people, in a couple of different settings, with no success so far. Pick a problem, either outward facing — like environmental waste – or inward facing — like student mobile apps. Get some smart people together for a fixed period of time and turn ‘em loose. Let’s do it! What needs fixing around here?
Randall Rode's online home for thoughts, notes, and experiments with a wide range of technology topics. Visit the about page for info on my recent projects and professional background. I welcome your comments!
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