homer gaines » Articles of Intrest

Apple’s HTML 5 Demo Fail

homer — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 16:19:02 +0000

First let me say i’m somewhat tired of the HTML 5 vs. Flash debate. I am a fan of BOTH and plan on using them both in my projects as needed. And i’m even more tired of Steve Jobs saying the same thing over and over. We get it, he doesn’t like flash. He want’s everyone to buy the iPad, and he want’s everyone to use HTML 5 instead of Flash because it’s, in his opinion, better and open.

But when I see things like the HTML 5 Demo on Apples site that only works in the Safari browser I am reminded of one thing, Internet Explorer. Now granted, it’s not a 100% direct translation of the problems IE caused but when something is labeled as a “standard” that DOES NOT WORK IN ALL BROWSERS ON ALL PLATFORMS then it’s not STANDARD!

Just for clarification, I have a PC (Win 7) and a Mac (Snow Leopard). Currently i’m on my PC and my browser of choice is Chrome which is a web-kit based browser that supports HTML 5 and CSS 3 .

Visiting the site and trying to view the HTML 5 demos in any other browser that supports HTML 5 gets you this nice little message.

After you have switched to Safari, the demos work and perform just fine until you get to the VR demo which gives you this alert..

“ This demo requires a browser that supports CSS 3D transforms.

To view this demo, you’ll need Safari on Mac OS X Snow Leopard, Safari on iPhone OS, or the latest WebKit Nightly Build.”

So now I need to be on a Mac Running Leopard. This demo is platform dependent and this is standard? Really? Standard only applies to Apple products at this point.

Fail.

Apple “Bans” Use of Adobe Flash CS5 to Build iPhone Apps

homer — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 07:20:05 +0000

“When the elephants fight, the grass suffers!”

I often say that when referencing political, self serving, chest pounding, pissing contests that get in the way of good ideas or people doing good work. I, as were many others, was looking forward to the updates in adobe’s new CS5, especially the ability to develop an app using flash and export it as an iPhone app. But after reading this, it’s clear that myself and anyone else with those same ambitions will have to focus our attention on other mobile platforms such as android.

http://www.adobe.com/devnet/devices/demos/

Not happy with Apple right now for such a schoolyard stunt days before CS5 is launched this Monday.

Death to Lorum Ipsum?

homer — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:46:35 +0000

I was just reading a post on lukew.com about issues with using Lorum Ipsum in graphic and application development. The post points out how the use of Lorum Ipsum gives a misleading impression as to what the final product will be.

Using dummy content or fake information in the Web design process can result in products with unrealistic assumptions and potentially serious design flaws.

Personally I don’t think using Lorum Ipsum is a bad thing. I don’t think the problem is the use of Lorum Ipsum but more an issue with requirements and understanding what the outcome should be. The above mentioned “issue” would be the case if the requirements were incomplete or loosely written and ambiguous. In that event, the use of Lorum is the least of the problems.

I do agree with the fact it gives “unrealistic assumptions” of what the final will look like, but it’s not meant to be the final. In my experience as a designer, Lorum is often used in the prototype phase of a project where ever that is in the overall business process. The idea at this point is being hashed out and tweaked to meet the initial vision of the requester. Most of which should be fairly close, provided the requirements are good.

I feel the post assumes there is data or copy to begin with, when in some cases content hasn’t been created. However, if the necessary data and or copy exists, it would only make sense to design and build the prototype with it in place. This would provide a closer “real world” picture of what the final will be. Another assumption made is that the data is dynamic which also is not always the case. Again,this is the type of information that should be in the requirements. Yet, if a project does require a level of flexibility in the way it’s presented, it’s the responsibility of the designer to understand how to design the layout to be flexible. All which should be reviewed and approved while still a prototype.

Useful Links About Using Twitter for Business

homer — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 15:50:25 +0000

Updated : I have compiled a list of several sites that I feel have some good information for those thinking about using twitter for marketing your business.

IMO: Required Form Fields: Where Should the Asterisk Go?

homer — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:19:58 +0000

I was reading a post about where the asterisk should go when developing / designing a form. While there are a ton of opinions about this I prefer to place the asterisk to the right of the label and also make sure that when I write add the “required” label, I place the asterisk in the same place to keep everything consistent. In addition to this, I will color code the label as well. That way when the user scans the content, it is easy to identify what is required and what’s optional. I don’t think it’s a good idea to just have the color variation only in the event the user has some form of color blindness and is unable to determine which fields are required.

Required *

Name *
Address *
Address
Phone
Email *

HP Logo Redesign

homer — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:10:45 +0000

HP has redesigned their logo and I have to say, in my opinion, it’s not an improvement. The original logo with it’s solid face and rounded corners was not the best either but it was simple. The new one reminds me of something Captain America would have on his shield or some spin off of a failed DC logo.

Or maybe it was design was inspired by this logo.

Other logo resources:

ActionScript 3 Can Be A Pain

homer — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 05:29:08 +0000

From the first time I picked up a book on ActionScript 3 I have had some level of anxiety. It’s that usual song and dance when dealing with a new version of Flash. With a new release come the task of learning the new and improved way of writing ActionScript. Now grantted, the evolution of ActioScript has been a good thing thus far but AS3 is a bit on the rough side. Code was easier to write in AS2. I could write simple functions using less code unlike in AS3. However AS3 is not all bad. The improved handling of XML data is great. By far, much better than before and that’s one of the main reasons I use AS3.

Anyway the purpose of this post is to point out an article I came across today the Colin Mook had written about issues with AS3 and what Adobe should do to fix them. It’s a good read and realy hits the nail on the head.

The Charges Against ActionScript 3.0

Google Getting Better At Indexing Flash Sites

homer — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:53:33 +0000

For as long as I can remember, I have had to explain to clients the pros and cons for building a site in flash vs HTML and what they should expect in the form of search engines. For many, they were/are concerned about search engines not being able to “see” the content of there sites and for others, all that matters is the user experience and the presentation. The nice folks over at Google in a June 30th post have made this statement …

“we’ve greatly improved our ability to index Flash.”

Which is great news. There are still some issues that need to be worked out as you will see but for the most part it’s very good news.

Think About Paths Instead of Hierarchies

homer — Tue, 20 May 2008 22:49:13 +0000

I know we all go through this at some point in our careers when we are face with planning the navigational structure of a site. Helps to shine some light on a different approach to Information Architecture.

Continue to 37Signals to read the article.

Why Did You Hire Me?

homer — Tue, 20 May 2008 22:43:55 +0000

A good read to get us thinking about why we are where we are in our careers and to help keep us focused on what we are doing.

Remembering why you were hired—and identifying whether or not you belong—is just as important as getting the gig. To sustain career and mental health, you must work within your means and know how to navigate ambiguous workplace situations. Using client and project management techniques is one part of the solution. Using your talent is the other.

Continue to A List Apart