Category Archives: General

BuildMobile: The Future of WebOS

Not very long ago when we were planning the launch of our humble magazine BuildMobile, which you are reading right now, the content strategy included coverage of the nebulous WebOS mobile operating system. Come launch time, there wasn’t enough traction to include it in our platform categories, but we were hopeful for the future. WebOS in 60 Seconds WebOS is a mobile operating system based on the Linux Kernal Initially developed by Palm and first released in January 2009 Acquired by Hewlett-Packard in April 2010 for US$1.2b WebOS uses a “card” UI with a left-to-right flick for app swithcing, flick up for “off” The WebOS broswer, called simply “Web” is based on the WebKit layout engine WebOS “Synergy” feature integrates information from many cloud services into a single list Devices include the Pre , the Pixi and the Veer phones, then the HP TouchPad HP announced in March 2011 that WebOS would run within Windows by the end of 2011 On 18th August 2011 HP announced it would discontinue operations for WebOS devices Potentially even more HP TouchPads will be made and sold at a loss Web Standards based Native Apps A feature that was full of promise, and partly responsible for the underdog adoration WebOS attracted from developers worldwide, is that web technologies like HTML, CSS and Javascript are first class tools for developing native apps for the platform, with full access to hardware APIs like the camera. Continue reading

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DesignFestival: The Fold Exists but Does it Matter?

Digging around the web will unearth a heavy bias against the fold. “A rule of thumb that kills innovation.” “Used by people who don’t know what they’re talking about.” “A concept introduced by someone who is a moron.” “The fold is bogus.” “The fold is a myth.” “The fold is a silly thing that clients like to focus on.” “There is no fold.” There is even a web site called thereisnofold.com . This is not an issue that lacks for opinion. What is the fold and what do we know about it? Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Cicada Principle — Winter Candy

You may have noticed the updated background on DesignFestival, currently, it is Winter Candy by Alex Walker. As mentioned earlier , we’ll be cycling through some of the backgrounds entered into the competition. Didn’t catch the contest? The Cicada Principle Explained Gallery of Entries Contribute to the Gallery Thanks again to all of the entrants for their great work, and we look forward to seeing more entries into the Gallery Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Balance in Design

In a figurative sense, the concept of visual balance is similar to that of physical balance illustrated by a seesaw. Just as physical objects have weight, so do the elements of a layout. If the elements on either side of a layout are of equal weight, they balance one another. There are two main forms of visual balance: symmetrical and asymmetrical Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Design for Mobile — Putting it Into Practice

We’ve looked at some of the broader considerations when designing for mobile, so now let’s address the business of our application. First, we need a plan. Our client has given us some high-level user scenarios, which we will need to examine in more detail to figure out what each means for our application. It’s crucial to decide precisely which features we intend to deliver, and to whom Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Celebrating The Cicada Principle

You may have noticed the updated background on DesignFestival, currently, it is Blind Date Prep by Alan Dowling . Over the next number of weeks we’ll be rotating the background through the most popular entries to further show off the hard work people applied in this contest. Didn’t catch the contest? The Cicada Principle Explained Gallery of Entries Contribute to the Gallery Thanks again to all of the entrants for their great work, and we look forward to seeing more entries into the Gallery Continue reading

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Browser Trends, July 2011: 1 in 5 People Now Use Chrome

522-browser-trendsCraig takes another look at the increasingly confused browser market to discover that Chrome now accounts for 20% of total usage. Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Celebrating The Cicada Principle

You may have noticed the updated background on DesignFestival, currently, it is Blind Date Prep by Alan Dowling . Over the next number of weeks we’ll be rotating the background through the most popular entries to further show off the hard work people applied in this contest. Didn’t catch the contest? The Cicada Principle Explained Gallery of Entries Contribute to the Gallery Thanks again to all of the entrants for their great work, and we look forward to seeing more entries into the Gallery. Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Grid Theory

Thumbnail When most people think about grids, they think about engineering and architecture. However, the grid is an essential tool for graphic design as well, and the use of grids in website design have exploded in popularity in the last few years. Using a grid is more than just about making elements on the page be square and line up: it’s about proportion as well. That’s where the theory comes into grid theory Continue reading

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DesignFestival: Web Page Anatomy

Thumbnail Even from a nondesigner’s standpoint, defining a design that satisfies all the requirements I outlined previously is a simple task. It’s similar to making a phrase on your refrigerator with magnetic poetry words. Although there are millions of ways to arrange the words, only a few arrangements make any sense. The magnetic words are like the components, or blocks, of the web page Continue reading

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