Tag: software

Pomodoro Timer. I found this app a while ago and recently began using it more frequently. It’s a simple, menu bar app that runs in the background. The goal is to help you deliberately break your work day up in to focused chunks. There are, of course, tons of variations on the theme. This one’s the nicest mix of function and design.

Status

My Labor Day weekend project was moving this site to Linode. It’s all up and running now, along with a new Twenty Thirteen child theme I put together. Overall the process was pretty simple. Linode’s default script for a LAMP stack worked well. From there I set up a multisite network, adjusted some virtual host records, and was on my way. The upside is that the site’s now way, way faster than it used to be. Huzzah for SSDs.

What Is Public? Essay by Anil Dash that examines how both technology and media companies have a vested interest in us defining “public” as broadly as possible. The common misconception being that there’s no singular definition of public; life is much more about the interplay of many publics.

Open (Source) for Business:

With the exception of WordPress and VLC I can’t think of a single, mainstream product that people just choose to use because it is better than the competition.

Change is bad unless it’s great:

App developers need to be honest with themselves about whether a redesign is about solving a customer problem in a better way or is part of a corporate strategy.

Four Million to One. How Brian Cervino handles support for Trello. What stood out most to me was that 4 million users generate just 300 support threads a week.

Apple’s cloud

Around 11:30 today I dropped my iPhone from about six inches off the floor. It somehow landed in the one spot of the corner where the screen doesn’t crack or shatter but also isn’t quite whole. It looked as if the adhesive bonding screen and glass loosened.

By 12:10 I had a Genius Bar appointment. After talking with a wonderfully helpful employee I had a new phone in my hand for free. 40 minutes later it was as if I never dropped my phone in the first place.

iCloud made restoring that easy. Every application, every photo, every setting was right where I left it. I had to re-enter my password in a handful of apps and that was it.

Apple may have weaknesses in their web services, but the safety net iCloud provides feels truly magical.

Designer Duds:

In order to avoid losing its place atop organizations, design must deliver results. Designers must also accept that if they don’t, they’re not actually designing well.

Handling Freemium Customer Support. How Justin Williams approaches support for Glassboard.

I’m 22 years old and what is this.

The future open web must be easier to use than the current social web, and knowing what to do with your own data cannot be a prerequisite. We will have passive users of the web, and the web needs them. If we exclude them, we risk creating a walled garden that lacks the perspectives and experiences of different types of people.