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Wired.com: 20 years later
11 Oct 2022 Twenty years ago today, Wired launched a seminal redesign of its website that helped catapult forward web technology and what our industry understood as possible for commercial websites. ~1,700 words
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Aspire Dance Company website
Choreographed inspiration Aspire Dance Company is a recreational and award-winning competitive dance studio in San Diego, California. After creating the logo and defining brand elements for Aspire Dance Company, I helped the studio owner with an inspirational and informational website…
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#NewTwitter
A new Twitter The mobile app ecosystem was still in its infancy during Twitter’s early years. Even though Twitter had roots in SMS text messaging, before mobile apps gained widespread adoption, Twitter was typically accessed using a desktop web browser.…
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You cannot copyright a Tweet
Though this may not completely eliminate liability if a publisher or artist rewraps a whole series of your tweets in a different shell, Zeldman makes an interesting point on the limitations of copyright in regards to short phrases (i.e. tweets):…
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Welcome, Wired. We call this land "Internet"
Interesting take on the future of Wired (mag vs. website). Wired is great print, but if the magazine can’t make money and is shuttered, taking the website down with it, I’m going to be livid. Not that making money online…
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Choices
Craig directed me to this piece today after I complimented him on the new version of Twitterrific for the iPhone, stating how much I love seeing different approaches to Twitter client design. I hadn’t seen his post (from December 2008)…
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Time to move beyond 960?
Cameron asks the inevitable question about width on the Web. Probably not time yet for mainstream. But for showcases of design, why not start experimenting with the new real estate? Time to move beyond 960?cameronmoll.com…
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Hello, Twitter
31 Mar 2009 Part 2 of 2 (here’s Part 1) Yesterday was my first day at Twitter. Yes, it’s true. After reading a bit of speculation over the past few weeks, I’ll confirm here that I am, indeed, joining Twitter. I don’t… ~500 words
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Twitter feed of Genevieve Spencer
If Twitter existed in 1937, and farmgirls had web access, this is how we would see one teen girl's account of daily life during the Depression. Fascinating in a strange, time-travel kind of way. Here's the back story and a few answers to FAQs from David Griner, the great nephew, who is maintaining the account. (via Biz) link
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xScope 2
20 Feb 2008 Simply put, xScope is a back-pocket, time-saving utility for designers and developers created by designers who understand the nature of working on screen. I haven’t written much about the software I use. But once in a while I come across something that’s so useful, I’m compelled to spread the word a little further. And the latest update of xScope to v2.0 adds some really nice enhancements worth drawing me out of hibernation. ~500 words
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Webstocking in NZ
26 May 2006 Until the past few days, you might not have imagined how a small, isolated country somewhere in the South Pacific could have such a significant impact on the Web. We’re early on in the second day of Webstock, a web conference, shaking down in Wellington, New Zealand. And what a conference it is. ~600 words
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Mac app: High Priority
27 Jan 2006 Every once in a while, an application/utility comes along that hits a sweet spot. Something for which I’ve been looking, but haven’t been able to find. I’m a list-maker. Especially to-do lists. For more than a year, I’ve been wanting a simple to-do list manager that I can call up from the Mac OS X menu bar. Something simple, light-weight, nicely designed, and above all else, reads and writes to pre-existing data in iCal. ~600 words
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Speaking and wifi at events
10 Aug 2005 Jeff Veen had some interesting thoughts last night on speaking at events where access to wifi might be a potential distraction to the audience and the speaker: Is anyone listening? WiFi and the new ADD. I’ve had similar thoughts at recent conferences. ~900 words
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Still throwing tables
27 Jul 2005 On the one year anniversary of the article: Throwing Tables Out the Window, I thought it appropriate to reveal some behind-the-scenes info regarding the Microsoft example discussed in the article. ~700 words
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Zoom layout
24 Jun 2005 In a presentation for @media entitled, Zoom the Web, Joe Clark revealed and explained several possible options (a new trend, hopefully) for making sites more accessible and readable for low-vision users. In the continuing effort to make our sites accessible as possible, many have assumed accessibility best practices deal primarily with blind people who often use screen readers. ~1,400 words
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Disney signage
8 Jun 2005 A couple weeks ago, my girlfriend and I flew to Orlando, Florida to spend some time with my father. Since he works for Disney, we took a day and hopped through a few of the parks for free. My souvenir is a photo gallery of some of the type and signage throughout Magic Kingdom. ~300 words
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CSS organization tip 1: Flags
3 May 2005 Do you write and manage large CSS files? Ever get tired of scrolling up and down in search of a specific rule or set of rules? The CSS files I work with for client projects are often quite long, requiring constant scrolling up and down several screen’s worth of text to alter rules or add new ones. While working on a current project, I just made a tiny little addition that makes finding what I want almost immediate. ~700 words
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Feedburning
20 Apr 2005 I’ve grown tired of the need to choose which syndication formats I support (between Atom and multiple versions of RSS). I’m not about to join the debate over which format is better. I simply don’t care. I acknowledge that RSS/Atom syndication is an important technology that has changed the way we distribute and access information. But my decision to publish a feed shouldn’t be complicated by which format or how many of them I publish just to ensure I cover all possible bases. ~900 words
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Jet-lagged
14 Apr 2005 Once again, I find myself in Hong Kong on business. Out of the fourteen hours of our flight last night, I slept for about seven of them. Never very solidly, as we kept hitting patches of mild turbulence every half hour or so. I drank plenty of water during the flight, and am continuing to do so. Nevertheless, jet lag is already punishing me in full force. ~400 words
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Staying organized
4 Mar 2005 Joshua Heyer wrote me today with a question which I’ve never given much thought. Writing out my answer surprised me in how much I could articulate that which I do almost subconsciously. Joshua wrote: “I have a simple question for you. How do you stay organized? I’m struggling with keeping things on point and I’m wondering what you use. […] Any thoughts on how to improve my organization with software, practices, etc… are much appreciated.” ~1,100 words
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Secure wireless email on Mac OS X
7 Feb 2005 After more than a year of implementing my own measures, I think it’s time to help raise awareness of email security. And in doing so, document the way I use SSH to secure email when I’m on a wireless network. If you’re concerned about strangers having open access to your usernames and passwords, and all the email you send and receive while connected to a public wireless network — whether you use a Mac or not — you’ll want to read this. ~3,000 words
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New photo galleries
17 Jan 2005 A byproduct of doing so much traveling lately is the overabundance of photos I’ve taken. I promised the many people I met from far and away that I’d make them available when I returned. Problem is, I’ve never been satisfied with the photo gallery services currently available, especially for mass quantities of photos. So I looked into alternatives. I’ve been using iPhoto to manage photos and galleries locally on my PowerBook, and I have lots of familiarity with Movable Type. All I needed was a bridge between the two. Update: The templates are now available. ~3,000 words
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Targeting small screens
16 Dec 2004 Early last week, I spoke to packed crowds at Web Design World in Boston. Clearly the conference scene is heating back up, as budgets for events and off-site training seem to be reappearing. The two sessions I presented (“Beautiful Interfaces with CSS” and “Throwing Tables out the Window“) were lots of fun. I had to bolt to the airport to catch a flight after my last talk. So I didn’t get to stick around to see the rest of the conference or talk to more of the attendees over the next two days. ~1,700 words
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3 days in Wellington
23 Oct 2004 The last three days I spent in Wellington couldn’t have been better. The weather was ideal: clear skies with a few clouds, mild temps, and a low breeze blowing off the harbor — apparently kind of a rare environment for Wellington. The days were relaxed, nothing was planned, and I got to meet quite a few local webbers. ~900 words
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To the Reef with Paddy
12 Oct 2004 For those of you loosely following along on the OZ/NZ adventure, I just wrapped up five very relaxing days at Airlee Beach. It was a perfect spot to use as a base for exploring the nearby islands, and ended up being a great spot from which to head out to the Great Barrier Reef. ~900 words
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Flavor saver
13 Sep 2004 With the return of the full-color, fixed-width design to this site over the weekend, Stopdesign received numerous messages and even a few comments regarding the switch back. Some of the messages and comments are in favor, heralding the welcome return. Others cry foul as their Bleach is stolen away. ~500 words
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Liquid Bleach
3 Sep 2004 Promised one week ago today, this is the next phase in a temporary exploration of page design and CSS layout for Stopdesign.
Bleached turns liquid, making this Liquid Bleach. Liquid layouts are easy to create in theory, but can be difficult to implement effectively. Doubling margins, subtractive padding, nested percentages, and differing box models, oh my! ~1,100 words -
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Microsoft advances
25 Aug 2004 Seen the Microsoft home page recently? Some remnants of the previous design are still visible, but a large portion of the design changed significantly. The most pleasing thing to see is actually what’s under the hood though. ~700 words
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Throwing tables out the window
27 Jul 2004 With the CSS waters thoroughly tested by many sites that have taken the plunge, it’s time for us to start cheering from the water below, coaxing and encouraging those who haven’t yet jumped in, to make that jump. There’s no longer any reason to use tables for layout, nor is there reason to maintain multiple versions of a site solely for different desktop browsers. Throw the tables out first. Trust us, they’re not needed anymore. ~2,200 words
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A CSS mosaic
22 Jul 2004 I just returned from Seattle, where I gave two well-received presentations covering design and CSS. One of my screens from the first presentation used a mosaic I assembled (which I share here) of 144 sites that have been added to the CSS Vault within the last four months. My, how quickly the use of CSS is expanding. ~600 words
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Stopdesign, reloaded
8 Jun 2004 Welcome to Phase II of the new Stopdesign. Baby’s got new shoes. As if I weren’t busy enough as it is with current projects. For some reason, two weeks ago, I decided to start a full-blown redesign by yanking my own style sheets, encouraging me to do something sooner, rather than wait for a lighter workload. For those that count, this would be design version 3 (not counting the short-lived lightly styled version this one replaces). The most obvious change is the much more confident use of photography in the header, followed by a significant re-org of the home page. ~600 words
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The cost of Page Rank
28 May 2004 The subject is covered frequently in the blogosphere. It’s nothing new for many of you. I’ve been bitten by Stopdesign’s Google page rank for specific search queries several times. I just noticed the most recent instance. What happens when Google gives a particular page too high a page rank? ~1,300 words
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Starting over
25 May 2004 Ever wanted to ditch what you’ve got and start over? I sure have. I’ve been wanting to completely wipe the style sheets clean for this site and start over with a blank slate. Finally jumped off the cliff. Wonder if anyone saw me do it. And if they did, will they understand why? ~1,400 words
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Underline text in Adobe Illustrator
19 May 2004 When creating web comps, it’s not uncommon to underline some of the links on the page. Despite the fact that users have been asking how to underline text in Illustrator for several versions now, Adobe somehow manages to exclude this feature in each new release of the software. Here’s how to work around that limitation. ~1,400 words
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The new mp3.com
10 May 2004 This must be the week — if not the day — to launch new designs of products and services under new ownership. Good friend, and former colleague at Wired, Stephen Blake played a large role in today’s launch of the new CNET-owned mp3.com redesign. XHTML, CSS, Sliding Doors, and rounded corners… oh my. ~200 words
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The new Blogger
9 May 2004 For those of us involved in the project, we’ve been waiting months for this day to come. At long last, I’m proud to announce the launch of a project representing the latest collaboration between Stopdesign and Adaptive Path: the redesign of Blogger.com. Congratulations to the entire Blogger team on completing hundreds of hours, and expending tremendous effort to fit so much into this launch. This is Blogger’s first major overhaul since getting acquired by Google in February 2003, and it’s a biggie. ~1,900 words
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Blogger redesign
Defining a blog and Blogger’s easy registration process Immediately after getting acquired by Google, Blogger was flooded with an influx of people discovering this new service, but confused by what a blog was, why Google was linking to it, and…
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Old email
15 Apr 2004 After a bit of drilling down through numerous folders of mailboxes, selecting all, then marking as unread, my unread message count is back to normal levels. For the record, there were 280 .mbox files in ~/Library/Mail/Mailboxes, totaling 211MB in size (without attachments). Since that’s 8 years of email for me, at this rate, Gmail’s current size limitations of 1GB could maintain me for about 32 years. ~300 words
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The return
2 Apr 2004 I’m sure Dave will write from his own perspective, but I thought I’d offer up some answers, information, and details about yesterday’s mischief. ~1,500 words
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SxSW CSS presentations
19 Mar 2004 I’ve received a few requests for public links to the presentations I used for the CSS panels at SxSW. In the spirit of sharing information–and since they’ve already been linked from other locations–I’ll point to them here. If you weren’t there, you won’t get all the commentary that went along with them, but you’ll get an idea of what I covered for each panel. If you were there, I hope we covered topics on both panels that were interesting and relevant to you. ~900 words
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Ripple effect
29 Jan 2004 Any person, group, or business which creates or manufactures a product for mass consumption — or offers a wide-spread service (such as a utility company) — is potential target for public scrutiny and criticism. Any noticeable flaws quickly rise to the top, providing fuel for the most outspoken critics. ~600 words
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On fixed vs. liquid design
15 Dec 2003 Apparently, there’s been some huff and commotion out there about SimpleBits and Stopdesign dropping liquid layouts in favor of fixed-width designs. This probably wouldn’t have been as big an issue if we both hadn’t changed (by chance) the very same week. ~800 words
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No limits
13 Nov 2003 When I was designing Wired News last year, I was limited by what I knew I could implement. It’s obvious to me whenever I look at Wired now: there are things I would have designed differently had I known how — and been able — to pull them off. ~400 words
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SwitchBack
31 Oct 2003 Remember that confession I wrote a while ago? A sobering story of a designer who grew up on Apples and Macs, but gave into the dark side, jumped ship, and began using Windows. Well, it’s coming up on a year since I wrote that piece. Some of my friends were beginning to wonder if I was serious about shaking the Windows addiction. ~800 words
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Sliding Doors of CSS, part II
30 Oct 2003 A follow-up to the popular “Sliding Doors of CSS” (Part I, published at A List Apart) which fills in a few gaps of missing information, and covers additions and variations on the technique introduced in the original article. (Translated into: French I, French II, Italian, Russian) ~200 words
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Selected reading
23 Oct 2003 In one of the main Exhibition Halls, the AIGA has a temporary bookstore set up with hundreds of books available about design, typography, color, surface, theory… enough to make any designer drool and wish they had the entire collection in their library. ~100 words
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Version troubles
29 Sep 2003 Todd Dominey beats me to the punch, and says everything (and more) about software version naming schemes I was thinking of writing. Inspired by Adobe’s drop of the numerical versions in favor of a letter-based system (“CS”) for their new “Creative Suite”, the move seems to be a short-sighted marketing ploy in attempt to follow a trend set by Apple, Microsoft, and Macromedia. ~300 words
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VeriBadSign
16 Sep 2003 Yesterday, VeriSign resorted to more anti-competitive, monopolistic tactics. With so many people, companies, and organizations upset at VeriSign for such an unethical move, we’ll see how long this scam lasts. ~400 words
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Making the absolute, relative
3 Sep 2003 A reader wrote to question the use of positioning for the Adaptive Path navigation. Certain positioning requirements can be met by wrapping one positioned element with another. ~900 words
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The Big Apple
27 Aug 2003 No, I’m not moving to New York. Not anytime soon. Though I have considered such a move, and may likely end up there at some point in the future. However… ~100 words
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