Error: redo from start

August 5, 2008 | Filed Under Blah blah blah | Leave a Comment 

Well. Blog crashed. Lost a couple of posts. Too bad. Will try to reconstruct. Bear with me. Chronology will be broken. End of post.

SPAM: RE-REVISITED

August 5, 2008 | Filed Under Ramblings | Leave a Comment 

I’ve been rambling about spam before, so just a quick update: The first 6 months of 2008 resulted in 6065 spam mails. I’m not calculating the monthly average for you. You do the math.

That’s roughly a 100% increase over last year. Wonderful.

I want my id back!

August 5, 2008 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment 

I’m getting tired of supplying the same information over and over, every time I log on to a new social network online. Why can’t I just present a global ID, containing a number of basic details about me?

I know that global digital identity projects have failed and failed in the previous years. But the reason is simple: we (the users) didn’t really have a need for it.

That’s changed. With the emergence of a multitude of social networks all over the web the single virtual ID gains relevance. At the same time we see people leaving the big networks to join a host of smaller more dedicated networks and the virtual ID could be the means of linking people together across networks.

Because a Virtual ID doesn’t need to be just my name, email and phone number. I could contain my age, my interests etc. - and link to other ID’s - my friends.

An extension of OpenID could be the key to this. I’m looking forward to see how they fare.

I want to update my basic information in a single location and I want to keep my social connections regardless of which social networks I join.

Give me my ID back!

Kill the design guidelines

March 28, 2008 | Filed Under Trends, User Experience, Web development | Leave a Comment 

Adopt a design strategy instead of droning on about logo measurements and specific color codes.

Most of us, working with web, marketing or communications have tried this. The client hands over a design guidelines document with a comment along the lines of “Now we are strictly adhering to this. Don’t even think about straying from the narrow path”.

A quick glance at the document confirms all suspicion: What you are holding in your hands is a document stating how to design (or more likely where to place company logo on…) more of the same static objects: more brochures, more trucks, more web pages like the ones already online etc. What you can’t find is how to approach something new or some basic rationales, describing how we would like our designs to work or impact people. Not to mention the overall user experience design - how we would like to interact with our clients, colleagues, partners, business contacts etc.

We don’t need color codes for anything but printing purposes. On the web people will see them differently anyway because of their different hardware and environments.

I often feel stupefied. They are telling me to place the logo exactly 21 pixels from the top of the web browser area, while completely ignoring the interaction design or the notion that, on a dynamic (and social) media, time and progression is of consequence for the user experience.

Now, I’m not saying that the design guidelines are unimportant. But they are often in the way of more important decisions, and one way of moving forward is to create a design strategy document and put the guidelines into the document as an appendix to the important stuff about how you handle the way your users should interact with, and perceive you in a dynamic environment.

Testing Windows Live writer

February 27, 2008 | Filed Under Technology | Leave a Comment 

This post was made using Windows Live Writer, a Microsoft application for blogging. Installation was easy. In fact so easy, I was certain it wouldn’t work.

I gave the URL to my blog (just the main URL) and my username and password. Then it "scanned" my blog and set everything up by itself. Next thing I was writing this post. It even downloaded the CSS styles and customized the editor to look like my blog.

I’m very impressed. I found it very useable and surprisingly versatile. The built plug-in system is open and I immediately installed a slew of 3rd party plug-ins. Microsoft might not be able to come up with the next generation OS (I still insist on running XP), but this tool is awesome.

Back online

February 25, 2008 | Filed Under Blah blah blah | Leave a Comment 

I’m sorry for the downtime. I accidentally deleted some VIF’s (Very Important Files). Then I found out that my backup was outdated. Then I couldn’t upgrade. Now it seems to work again.

Lesson learned? To keep my backups up-to-date? Naah…? ;-)

I won’t switch to Mac

December 5, 2007 | Filed Under Ramblings | Leave a Comment 

Thought that headline would wake you up. But in a sense, I mean it.

As a happy Windows-user I regularly find myself in a situation, where I’m expected to explain to people (read: Mac-users) why on earth I use Windows and how I feel about being a miserable victim of Bill Gates’ evil world domination army, when I could join cool Steve Jobs’ never-ending party.

The truth is that I feel quite at home with Windows XP. It never lets me down (last crash was almost a year ago). I can do everything I want to with it. And more.

I think Macs are cool. But I don’t see that as a reason to switch. I would own at least 10 cars, if I had to buy things just because I liked them.

And this is my point: The reason I’m staying with Windows is not because I think it’s better than Mac OS. I won’t switch because my Windows XP is rock-solid, fast, versatile and completely free of virus.

But I have the feeling that maybe Vista will change all that…?

Been a while…

December 4, 2007 | Filed Under Blah blah blah | Leave a Comment 

I apologize for the somewhat extensive blogging-pause. I’ve been busy doing other things and/or nothing for a while.

And why do I feel like apologizing? Maybe I just shouldn’t call this a “blog”…

KISBNOSS

August 23, 2007 | Filed Under User Experience | Leave a Comment 

Keep It Simple But Not Over-Simple Stupid

A complex system of many functions can be simplified by carefully grouping related functions. But you can easily go too far. In my experience, brilliant user interfaces balances right on this edge of simplicity and over-simplicity. The designer started with a complex system and grouped (reduced) to just the right point. And then he stopped. This is the fine art of creating simplicity: knowing when to stop.

Make it too complex and the users will probably suffer. Make it over-simple and they will surely suffer.

Apple’s one-button mouse is a clear example of over-simplifying. Two buttons are not too complex and the advantages of the extra button is huge. One is just too simple and requires you to combine keyboard-strokes with mouse-clicks to accomplish even basic tasks.

An example of hitting the spot is the iPod scroll wheel. I don’t even have to explain that one. Just pure brilliance in my opinion.

The risk of online apps or ASP-solutions

August 21, 2007 | Filed Under Technology | 2 Comments 

John C. Dvorak rants about Google closing down their online movie shop/rental service (I didn’t even know it existed). His point is this: In a letter, Google informs it’s existing clients that, sadly, they will no longer be able to access videos they have bought from the service. To complete the insult, Google offers it’s customers a US $2 bonus if they buy something from it’s Google Checkout partners.

As he points out:

The scary part is that we are not talking about some flaky, small underfunded company. We’re talking about Google, a behemoth. This tells me that if Google can throw in the towel and abandon one of its online-related services, then anyone can do it—and they will. And then they’ll all point to Google. “Well, if Google can do it after it made promises, then we can do it.”

It can happen anywhere. You have all your family photos online? Good luck with that. Your blogging software and blog are all online? Have a nice day. Your business is completely reliant on online systems? How does your insurance policy look?

You can read the rest of his rant here.

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