While the task of designing Web applications and sites for multiple devices can be daunting, two techniques can make the process more manageable: classifying device experiences and designing/building responsively. Here’s how these two approaches can work together to optimize interface designs across a wide range of connected devices. Read More...
The Nest Learning Thermostat has a collection of six sensors inside which measure and track temperature, ambient light, humidity, near-field & far-field motion. Nest's motions sensors have a 150° wide-angle view so it knows when people are not at home. Three temperature sensors make sure reading are highly accurate. It has WiFi connectivity that allows you to control the device using a Web site or an iOS application. Nest uses its Wi-Fi connection to keep an eye on current weather conditions and forecasts so it can understand how the outside temperature affects your energy use. Not coincidentally, the Nest also has enough CPU to power a smartphone.
The Nike+ Fuelband is a personal activity tracker with a built-in 3 axis accelerometer that measures motion all day long, an ambient light sensor that detects environmental light levels, and Bluetooth connectivity for wireless connections to the Nike+ mobile application and Web site.
As this trend continues, more digital product design will consist of designing for sensors.
I spent the last four weeks learning to write code for Node.js and MongoDB. For the unfamiliar, Node.js is an application platform built on a JavaScript runtime and MongoDB is a high performance database that stores "documents" using JavaScript Object Notation (JSON). So with Node.js, you can use JavaScript to set up a server and build network apps on it. With MongoDB you can use JavaScript to store and retrieve data.
Of course, JavaScript already runs user interface interactions in every modern Web browser and is getting faster all the time. Rounding out the story, an increasing number of Web applications and sites provide access to their data and operations through application programming interfaces (APIs) that support JSON.
Taken together this means, JavaScript can be used to develop a network application and server, store and retreive data from databases, interface with third party data and services, and build a software user interface. When you consider how many Web developers are already familiar with JavaScript, the story gets even more interesting...
Baby steps.
The phrase gets bandied about so much these days that we often lose sight of its significance.
A baby’s first steps aren’t just a few simple motions that get them started. They’re a profound transformation from seeing the world move around us to taking part. Baby steps change our entire perspective and open up countless new opportunities to not only walk but run, skip, and dance. They’re our entry into a whole new way of living.
The book in your hands (or on your screen) is also an entry into something new. Something so transformational it’s fundamentally changing how we interact with our knowledge, our places, and with each other. That something is how we experience the Internet on mobile devices.
Always with us, always connected, fast and powerful mobile devices are taking over and redefining how we find answers, make purchases, share with others, and get things done. In 2009, 50% of all new Internet connections worldwide came from mobiles. By 2013, mobiles will overtake PCs as the most common Web access devices worldwide.
If you’ve got an existing Web site, chances are you’re already noticing the transition and seeing your mobile traffic rising fast. But if you do have an existing Web site, do you need to start over to be relevant in the mobile age? How can you and your site adapt to such rapid change?
Baby steps.
Kris’s book is filled with them— little but powerful things you can do today to adapt your current site to the changing Web and the growing importance of mobile devices. These techniques will get you started without having to completely rebuild and redesign your current Web site. But like real baby steps, they’ll also open your eyes to new opportunities and ways of seeing the Web. From there, who knows how far you’ll go.
So what are you waiting for? Take those first steps now.
Luke Wroblewski
November 11, 2011
By 2015 40% of the World's population will have access to the Internet. But a surprising number of people will be mobile first or mobile only users.
It's no secret, we're moving to a mobile computing World. But what might be surprising is how much of the future is here already. To illustrate, here's a few data points on the shift from PCs, laptops, and notebooks to the real personal computer: the mobile.
Not all smart phones are created equal. With a new iPhone announcement coming this week, it's a good time to revisit just how much mobile usage Apple's smartphone drives.
While most reports about mobile operating systems focus on smartphone market share, there's a more interesting story about what platform is "winning" happening behind the scenes.
As the number of native mobile applications keeps growing, it's worth looking at how they get used. To that end, here's a few stats about people downloading apps and what what they do with them afterward.
I had the pleasure of catching the opening night showing of Robert X. Cringely's rediscovered TV interview with Steve Jobs in 1995. In the interview Steve mused about what makes companies and products great so I jotted down a lot of his insights. Here's a few of my favorites.
As mobile devices have continued to evolve and spread, so has the process of designing and developing Web sites and services that work across a diverse range of devices. From responsive Web design to future friendly thinking, here's how I've seen things evolve over the past year and a half.
The Web OS is already here… it’s just not what you thought it would be. Web technologies are currently powering content and interactions across multiple devices effectively turning the most popular native applications into Web browsers. The end result is a widely distributed and used Web-based operating system. Just not the one you imagined.
There's no shortage of debate about the best way to develop Web sites that work well across many networked devices. Some teams favor a client-side approach while others lean towards server-side solutions. But I'm increasingly interested in solutions that try to bring together the best of both worlds. RESS (Responsive Web Design + Server Side Components) is one such proposal.
What happens when you look at use of the same digital content or service on different devices? Quite consistently people's behavior changes significantly. To illustrate here's several examples of the same use case on different devices.
In 2011, I became addicted to speed. No, not that kind of speed. Speed of web development iteration and release. Most of my year was spent in a startup we engineered to be fast from day one. During that time, I learned the value of creating a Command Line Interface (CLI) for everything we did. I became a convert to logic-less templates that fully separate back-end and front-end logic. And I spent hours a day staring at real-time views of what people were doing on our site and iterating quickly based on what I saw. All in the interest of speed.
Why? A web application is a “living” thing and all living things are continually changing from cradle to grave. The faster they can respond, the better they can adapt to change. Changes in technology, in people’s behaviors, and in business. Setting yourself up to be fast up front allows you to move with the web instead of being left behind it and that’s pretty important to me.
Check out insights from others on A List Apart.
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