willdonovan on Blogger

Your ideas on the CIGlobal 4 big questions

2011-11-15T22:02:00.001-08:00

The Creative Innovation conference is running a Brain-Wave project created by the fivefootfour.com.au crew.

What it does is allow people to create ideas and others to vote on them?

Comment below what ideas for the following big questions:

What should Australian organisations and the government do to drive greater innovation?

What initiatives are needed to ensure that creativity is a part of every child’s education to develop adaptive lifelong learners?

What are your most innovative ideas for building healthy communities in our super-connected world?

In today’s super-connected world where we are plugged in 24/7, what do you believe is our greatest challenge and how will we solve it?

Add your ideas in the comments below.

UI and Wireframe Interaction Design Patters

2011-10-13T16:29:00.000-07:00

UI and Interaction Design Patters for the UI’ers / Wireframers

If you’re looking for best practice tobuild your UIs and Wireframes faster or needing some inspiration on dashboards,profile pages or carousels for mobile and web here is a list of sites Iregularly use.

Appleuse them, IBMuse them and even your deskphone used them

For the Web:

YUI Design Pattern Library

http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatterns/

UI-Patterns

http://ui-patterns.com/

Patternry

http://patternry.com/patterns/

Mobile:

Mobile UI Patterns

http://mobile-patterns.com/

pattrns

http://pttrns.com/

UX Movement – Bestcollection of Mobile User Interface Patterns

http://uxmovement.com/resources/best-collection-of-mobile-user-interface-patterns/

lovelyui

http://www.lovelyui.com/

Mobile Web?

It seems that this is a missing source around the web so watch out for some snapshots of my own.

If you have some great mobile websites, take a snapshot and send me the link.

Why would you use it?

Interaction design patterns are normallyconsidered before the requirements and help build the use cases for aproduct. The target outcome is understandingthe human behaviours being used and designing for behaviour leads to betteroutcomes for conversions.

If can make an interface instantly easierto use and a lot less time working out how to use, meaning more time engagedwith the main reason the person is using the product.

When someone is interacting with a digitalobject (any object for that matter) every gesture, touch and slide represents aparticular meaning. Much like ‘text with that is underlines and blue I canCLICK and it will LOAD A NEW PAGE’.

When someone SEEs AN IMAGE they knowSWIPING IT VERTICALLY provides access for them to SEE MORE IMAGES.

New Models for business - CISCO CTO on Lateline

2011-10-13T16:20:00.000-07:00

We all listen for the experts, but what are they really saying?

One of my passions is helping businesses 'design' their business, and 'design' their business model. It extends from the vast desert of opportunities arising in today's world.

A little while ago I watched an episode of ABC's Lateline whereby CISCO's CTO, a well respected business leader exploring the conversation of the changing business landscape and the new business models that can be viable and very profitable. In the end it is about standing out from the crowd and making it very difficult for your competitors to appear on the same level as you.

Below are some of the notes I took from that interview

"CTO of cisco says video will change business models in Australia on ABC's Lateline Business last week."

Then she was asked about the power of video as : "we all saw what the power of YouTube and a broken guitar did for united, and tablets"

Chris Anderson has an amazing TED talk on his own discover on the power of video to transcend expectations

Back to the Lateline interview:
"The CTO's response was "Video will be foundational, it is just the beginning, it is great for businesses to communicate in an immersive way to connect in real time"

The Tony on Lateline asked the tough question (spell it out will ya... lets get real...)
"How that will change health care, travel..."

Then the host asked the short-term thinking question:
"What about making money, we have firewalls and the dark art of optimizing, how will social networking be optimized?"

The response:
"Advertising is an avenue, twitter is playing with paid participation. There will be many ways to monetize and I think it will he a trial and error process."

No spilling of secrets. However what is still try today is we are still exploring, and everyone is trying to position themselves as an expert, or has experience.

I believe the real art will be those who know how to watch out for risks and build a team for success. The models, the opportunies and the successes will sort themselves out, just don't be stuck with only one to choose from.

What do you think?
Leave comments below.

I Declare: We've hit the UI limit curve!

2011-09-27T20:23:00.000-07:00

Today I declare we have hit the UI (User Interface) design curve's limits!
Especially when the only way to TELL people there is a new addition is to use pop-up notification boxes, EVERYWHERE!

Well I declared yesterday, no, last night at UXBookClub Melbourne. And I mean others, not myself.

But don't we the successes of others to see what is the best way to create exciting user interfaces for the web and mobile?

I remember a No.1 principle of multimedia interface designs at university, "if you have to use a help menu, you've failed!"

I'm not saying help manuals are bad, however my 20mth old daughter isn't reading one when she plays with an Apple device.....

WHY?
Well here the story goes, I woke up in the morning and FINALLY got my iPhone 4 to sync again with iTunes. This means all my apps were updated and I should have all the new beaut features that comes with an app upgrade (you would hope).

What followed was a barrage of Facebook, Foursquare, Path, Forecast and numerous others. After I closed the fifth notification pop-up, I realised they maybe telling me something cool, doh.

In user experience design (any design really) there is a thing called 'discoverability'. Meaning if someone is needing or looking for an object they should be able to find it and not get in the way of important everyday tasks that someone performs.

The Question:
What is REALLY important to your users / customers / audience. Align that with (what should be) your value proposition or service offering and provide the best expereience possible.

Then ask them about the rest..... No really, you'll be surprised.

Innovation symposium and Gathering ‘11

2011-09-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

Where stealing ideas can create aconference like never before, everyone participates….

In his opening address Mark not onlyacknowledged the traditional owners of the land but also the partners increating Gathering ’11 which provided a lot of ideas in creating an active andparticipatory experience at a conference.

It is amazing how often people still wantto re-create the wheel so that the event of service can feel like somethinginnovative, new and never done before.

The unfortunate scenario is 2 things.People get confused and don’t know how to engage, more so because what comesnext and how much I contribute now is unknown. The second scenario is this is nothing new, just seem new tothat type of audience, or even yourself.

These were definite challenges for bothevents, however the difference here is, there was no assumption that this was new.The combination and order of activities was specifically tailored andco-created with professionals in their field. And participation was the key.

New knowledge would come from peoplesharing, learning’s and activities of engagement like never before. Learnthrough doing, Experience through doing and connect through doing where thecommunity and participants guide the process and outcomes.

There is another term that can connect thisto products and services, user-generated and user focused. I’ll include inthere tactile cognition where you hands teach your mind something, as this ishow we learnt during the transition from apes to humans.

Letting people be creative with solutions.

2011-09-09T20:50:00.000-07:00

I am always amazed atthe level of creativity people express when challenging organisation andcultural norms. All while participating in innovative approaches to createtransformational leaps in achieving greater outcomes and supporting newengagements with volunteers.

This happened whilefacilitating a workshop the Innovate Symposium in Brisbane. This was aninnovation circuit breaker for a community of people committed to doing goodaround social (and challenging) issues within Australia and New Zealand.

This 2-day eventexplored new ways to look at challenges in the NGO and non-for profit sectors.While also looking to empower a growing trend of volunteers who are entering tokick off a career working on meaningful project for change.

I was invited to facilitateand rapid prototyping workshop that demonstrated design thinking methods andexplored new ways to address big challenges for the sector and the community ofpeople with in it.

The event was a blast.

It reminds me ofsomething very important, that a solid understanding of your problem and thegenerosity to participate in a journey (in a design process: to explore ideas,define concepts, develop prototypes and deliver a human-centred service orproduct) can open new possibilities of capability to make real change.

And anyone canparticipate. Diversity can bring to the table new thinking, past experiencesand knowledge in a space where a contribution can make a difference.

Thank you to everyoneat the Innovation Symposium. And I walk away with the social courage tocontinue to connect and share the amazing experiences I will continue to havewith all of you.

Oops, how time flies

2011-08-28T06:14:00.000-07:00

A quick update on how time flies when you are running around creating amazing new projects with people.

Now that UX Australia has launched and been a great success, the rest of the year will be quite a different pace. I have so much to write and share and will do so over the coming month.

I will promise to back post events that have been happening.
A shortlist of events and workshops can be found below:

UX Australia 2011
BJ Fogg Persuasion Boot Camp (Behaviour Design)
Innovate Symposium
Victoria-India Service Design Jam
Ideas for Melbourne
Humanity +
Gathering '11
OpenIDEO Queensland Local Food challenge
Service Design Conference
Designing for Social Impact
Global Service Jam

OpenIDEO in Brisbane – Day 2

2011-05-19T18:05:00.000-07:00

Connections that launch the 'Window into the Farm'

Today was a breeze. I got to do the stuff that I’m passionate about.

It was a day of commitments, decisions and transitions. We reviewed the previous days work on the ‘Window in the Farm’ mobile app concept. Tom Hulme prepared with the goal we wanted to leave the project in. And with the power of the people in the room we were able to drop a bundle of names that we can connect with to get a prototype in just a few weeks.

It just happened that some of those names were in the room, including Robert Pekin who has already spent the time and energy to connect with a lot of the Queensland Farmers for a local food initiative called Food Connect.

To our delight he loved the original pitch and today is going forward with the idea to launch a prototype in the next 24 hrs and test for the next few weeks to see who explores this.

Our biggest barrier in the idea is the content. We had a farmer in the room today who expressed how busy and time poor they are. However after showing the potential on how this would fit with his connection with consumers her say “the legs” the idea had.

So thank Robert and the many other connections made during the event that made it all sound so simple to implement ‘An Idea for the Future of Food’.

OpenIDEO in Brisbane – Day 1

2011-05-18T20:25:00.000-07:00

What’s your business model

It just after lunch and I was wondering that we still have a lot to do if the aim is to get the concepts to an actionable level for someone to pick up and run with.

Then after lunch Tom Hulme from IDEO London, and the creator of the OpenIDEO concept gave a short and sharp presentation on the 101 of business models. I loved the simplicity of this mapping, whereby you could just brainstorm in a framework on A3 paper. With postit’s and sharpies.

My experience with brainstorming business models tells me this is a good conversation starter, however I wonder if it pigeonholes potential ‘innovative’ conversations that would get missed in new product development.

So continue to to a business model conversation a target of complete clarity around the customer needs and how the business model meets them, not just the service, and find the people and processes to deliver the business model that far exceeds customer expectations and delivers a unique business offering.

OpenIDEO Brisbane – Day 1

2011-05-18T20:19:00.000-07:00

Working with Tom Hulme from Open IDEO

I had the pleasure of partnering with Tom Hulme’s group ‘Rocket’ to explore ways to create and deliver two concepts that use mobile technology to better connect food production with consumption.

We had a table of very intelligent and experienced individuals that had deep knowledge about the food industry, particularly in Queesnland. This included and expert food lawyer, industry business development and representatives form government and private industry sectors.

It took a while for us to kick off with the sharpies and the post-it notes, however the conversations were broad and deep. The advantage here was great early conversations about the needs, complex challenges and the complex relationships and regulatory requirements that would hinder or add no benefit to any of our identified audiences, particularly the growers and manufactures where the food production cycle begins.

Then what happened in a flash was a solid delivery of the combined concept with three core use-cases, potential user interfaces, apps and technology we would use for early prototyping within a few weeks.

My key takeaways that made this successful were the deep body of knowledge required to have state and nation wide impact to scale effectively and a very collaborative and open group of people where ego’s were left at the door and we were all committed to do something good for the people who would use the service and get the most benefit out of it.

Go team Rocket!!

How I measured strategy

2011-02-01T03:58:00.000-08:00

In a recent blog post (a very short one, one reason why I love them) Seth makes the statement that unless your strategy statements are not inciting questions such as "Are you saying that we have to cancel this product line?" then the 'abstract strategy discussions are useless'.

This got me thinking about what I measure myself against when working on large projects: "If I can reduce the project scope by 75%, then I'm doing my job."

It can be tough to mentioned that 'for the project to be successful, it should stop now and head in another direction. But stick to what you believe in. I found myself identifying the 75% reducer last week, and I too received a similar reception. However if you are thinking of the customer / user experience first you may just completely dodge the hard truth when it is too late to turn back.

I discovered this while burying myself in the world of immersive interaction design 3 day workshop by Nelson Norman Group's Usability Week in Melbourne Australia. With the pleasure of being taught by a leading mentor Bruce Tognazzini.

By focusing on what the customer / user really is after, you just find out that the list of 20 things you wanted to carry out and build do not really make any measurable difference. And the earlier you begin focusing on the end customer / user and building their voice into the product, the greater chance success the product has in launch.

What ever you do, measure it

2011-01-28T17:20:00.000-08:00

I'm about to venture on to an adventure that wants to venture into the unknown.

Sound familiar?
I'm sure it does, and you could conclude this is not the first time they have said it.

So where is it going?
This can be the uncomfortable question for anyone sharing an idea, as it could be anywhere in the start-up phase but unless it is turning over revenue or getting a profile, you are still running on your inspiration that it will work, somewhere.

These days it is easier now to try anything, prototype and measure it. Network with some friends find people who can help you launch. Teamwork and partnership seems to be the best way to go.

When designing for great customer experiences, testing and measuring what you are doing is a core principle and it can be cheaper to do at the beginning.

So launch your idea as simple as you can to test it. People want to know what it will do. And combine your promotion analytics with your service analytics with tools such as Google Analytics, ShareThis or AddThis.

Connect with audiences via the social networks and find out what they think. You may just find the missing piece to the puzzle.

Did Someone Watch the West Wing, Victoria Election

2010-11-26T05:00:00.000-08:00

Who ever is on the communication’s team of Clem for Prahran is totally awesome.
Is this fast paced, media filled busy world that we now live in, it was magic.

Was it, receiving 6 items of election material on the Friday, election eve, all Liberal. And besides the 2 letters, one more personally addressed than the other each item had something different.

Right now I’m basking in the glow of President Bartlet’s communications team finesse. And the wonders of Josh Lyman’s work to use simple strategy techniques to run the battlers underdog campaign to win the following Presidency.

And that was the West Wing TV series. Now who has learnt from the best writers in the world, what it takes to win when defeat seems inevitable.

The Victorian Liberal party?

The Victorian Election, It’s all about the communication

2010-11-26T04:54:00.000-08:00

Victorian Liberal Party Brochures
for Clem in Prahran

Pre election,
I just received a bunch of mail (6 items) ranging from 2 letters, 2 postcards and 2 fold out brochures, each with their own unique design and message. None of them are alike and the only consistent message is differentiation and vote liberal. Simply right? Sure, but that has to cost a lot. Dumping it all on the last day? Not a bad effort.

Did I receive something from Labor....?
Oh yeah, about 2-3 weeks ago. Do I remember what was on it? No. maybe it was negative and that is why I don’t remember. Well that’s what they’ve been talking about on the radio.

Maybe reading through 6 items of Liberal material has helped forget what the Labor message was. Smart? Totally!

Are commercial brands doing this? In my opinion some are, but I’m definitely taking this strategy with me to my next clients who need a communication strategy with a time based deadline to beat the opposition.

I must admit, up until 1 week ago I was feeling disappointed by the effort of the electoral parties of Victoria, there wasn’t much noise going on. Clem in Prahran was the only one I saw, making a big effort and started campaign activities prior to the Melbourne cup. I don’t even think the State Liberal party had made any moves yet. But then all of a sudden it seemed everyone is learning from the federal election, grass roots campaigning, real issues, traditional community values. Nothing that is tipping the boat, a consistent polished campaign from all parties.

Maybe we’re blind sighted by the aftermath of the federal election. And the continual eruption of media press releases and political activity at the federal level still continues. But I’m still unsure who to vote for.

So I’ll rock up and find my way to a school out there, push through the gauntlet of electoral pamphlet volunteers (which we give a shout out to, for believing in something and participating in it) and make my vote. then watch like made on ABC News 24 (fingers crossed) on the Internet, with iPhone as the stats reporter and the radio or TV doing the commentary. Because I find election reporting fascinating. It’s the only time everyone is so candid and you find out the real relationships and insight into the strategic workings of political parties and policies as commentators pick it all to pieces.

Getting a ubiquitous new look

2010-11-24T03:47:00.000-08:00

Hi gang,

I know, it's been a while so here is my pledge and it starts with a ubiquitous look.

Am I looking for professional? No. With so many profiles, social networks, an image (or picture) that is recognisable is important, and it's not your face. Sure the face helps when people are connecting after a an event, so have your face available somewhere because everyone else is using the 'face' so what is your identity.

So we'll see how long this takes but we have a start!

Product launches - The iPhone4 Update

2010-07-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, time for an update.

There has been a flurry of press releases, email marketing campaigns and sign-up for alerts campaigns by all telco companies in Australia. Reported by Delimiter, iPhone 4 pricing detailes were released by Optus and Telstra.

Everyone seems to be getting on board and the focus for the telco's didn't seem to be about the Apple hype. Is was the things customers all ask about next, what is the plan that will work for me.

After reading these I felt humbled again as a transitioning Apple customer that would like the new iPhone. However the plans are expensive so scrutinizing over them is necessary.

C'mon Telstra, I was batting for you...
Now I was holding out as I am also a recovering (returning) Telstra customer. My home phone is back with them, my extremely fast internet is back with them (previously with Optus, they were just too late in the game to update packages).

And when it comes to thinking about where I travel and wish to use data services, Telstra's Next G seemed quite reasonable, even for a little premium. However in a follow up article by Delimiter 'iPhone 4: Is a Telstra plan worth the money?' highlighted to me the complicated maze that navigates the minefield of mobile phone plans. And I almost fell off my seat when I saw the 12 month packages by Optus, I'm almost sold on that alone.

Well the iPhone 4 has launched in Australia and amongst all the saga's about the antena issue and the like, getting a case with a great plan looks the way to do.

EWB wants you to know more

2010-07-29T21:30:00.000-07:00

Courtesy Google Images

Engineers Without Borders, a great organisation that supports communities to achieve their infrastructure projects and enhance a communities future.

Sound like a great cause right?

So how many of people actually know their social cause. EWB is a globally success organisation but they are not the only volunteer organisation trying to make a difference.

This weekend we begin the first step of a larger project that got sparked from an Indigenous water use and water policy seminar at Melbourne University presented by the Royal Basin Management Society.

What is the Postcards Project
Eight EWB volunteers from the Dialogues on Country team are travelling through the Murray Darling Basin to talk to Aboriginal people about water and land management.
Find out more here

As tweeted by @elizagregory here we are taking the first step with Lizzy from EWB and her Indigenous Program team that are setting out in the Australian outback and one aspect of their journey is sending back poastcards on their learning and connections with the Indigenous peoples to learn more about their communities. The program is called Dialogues on Country

And join in sponsoring the field trip here

Postcards? Yes, sent via the technical term 'snail mail'.

This is an exercise to leverage social media and increase the awareness of the Indigenous Program at EWB.

The connections the group will make out on their trip are vital to creating lasting relationships with the communities EWB works with.

So watch out for the the various blogpost, videos, tweets and more.

Good luck to the team travelling out the Australian outback over the next few weeks.

Don't gorget the Low-Fi - momomelb September '09

2010-07-29T06:05:00.000-07:00

This is a post I've been witting on for a while now and finally chose to just publish it.

The general idea, which I have pitched as a viable principle for soft launches of testing business models has worked and I'll hopefully expand on it in the future.

"This is a post inspired by Mark from Locatrix at Mobile Monday Melbourne".

The questions was asked about advertising and tracking of the user similar to the data being collected Google via the google map application 'Latitude'.

It got me thinking about short term, opt-in research on customers.

This is a spin-off idea from a bigger project, however with similar principles: Use the lowest, easiest point of entry to gather research (ethnographic study) on users.

The core idea:
Uses meet and greet in a guerrilla network marketing exercise where by the user opt's in to allow their very cool smart phone device with gps. The opt-in is to allow for gps tracking of their movements and diary updates (with date and times to back-track with the gps feed)

Why Low-Fi?

Well when you first meet people and you pull out you iPhone and say "That's great that you want to participate for the next 2 weeks. Let me send you this...".

Our phones are very intimate devices, and the thought of some person that we have met for 5 minutes; wanting to implant a memory of themselves if far beyond most of us.

However handing over a business card that doubles as an info-card can prove to be much more palatable. It can also provide more than one call to action that is convenient for the other person.

Product launches a comedy of errors

2010-07-29T05:18:00.000-07:00

12 months ago the devices that were trying to keep us connected to our friends and family were in quite a different place than today.

6 months ago I definitely couldn’t have predicted what my life would be like with a happy daughter as an addition to our family.

This story is about the comedy of errors that many hailed may not seem like much to the success that many new devices such as e-readers, mobile phones like the iPhone 3G. But I wonder just how much of the market these products are missing because of poor or prolonged product launches.

Just to clarify, this is an account of my own experience in juggling to choices of great new devices there are available. The comedy of errors occurs as a result of the systems that are currently in place for no good reason other than ‘that is the way is was done before’. If a products launch does not factor in these challenges

Record to date:

e-readers

wanted to get a Kindle but the information on it’s flexibility was not providing any confidence. The cost more felt like an investment in something - thereby lays some issues on internationalisation strategies and easy access for customers to find what they are looking for. Engagement was a big key here that the kindle lacked. Flashy videos and exciting product pictures inspired me to the point where frustration just kicked in with the lack of being able to get anything. Rumors of poor freedom around downloading books that were blocked with no indication of when they were being released just screamed the ‘what not to do’ from the mp3 sagas.

Audio books are crazily expensive, no demos to find out what you are getting and a real lack of bundles with either printed / digital sample chapters along with the audio.

Audio book summaries were fantastic however a really poor purchasing experience made me realise that 99% of the potential audience would give up if the $USD pricing and poor 70/s looking credit card details form didn’t scare you away any faster.

Digital e-readers:

Apps, apps everywhere, for the iPhone, Android coming soon, give us your email and we’ll update you when we get there. HELLO! Atleast show us your production plan, keeps us int he look on all the fun details of producing it, bring us along for the journey. 50 other people / orgs are doing digital e-readers. Again Engagement here was a huge opportunity to future proof and mitigate the whole ‘first to market’. promotional videos will keep someone interested for 30 seconds while watching the video and maybe a week after that.

Purchasing books via a digital e-reader app or through a mobile browser was a little to be desired. The Kobo experience was exciting to begin with till filling out forms where you couldn’t read what you were typing, jerky form validation and only to find out I entered all my credit card details and I can’t get the book, GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

Mobile Devices:
Here we go. The iPhone is announced, WOW, what a device. Then,,,,, rumors of it coming to Australia, YAY!!!. The Australian Telco report card to date, large corporates, ologopolistic, very poor is appearing to be producing services and plans / contracts in the interests of the customers. The company moto: how many cateates can we find to squeeze out as much money as possible.

I was out of a plan but knowing that the iPhone only worked in inner city areas well. Then stories of Optus over-subscribing set me back on the sidelines observing. Then iPhone 3GS rumored to come. Apple staying true to it’s 12 month product cycles has me holding out but I really hate how degraded the performance of my Nokia N73 I’m getting toey like a fidgety customer waiting 10minutes before boxing day sales begin. Can I hold it in....

Many Apple events pass and still no iPhone4 for Australia let alone a US release. So Google here we go. The niggling concern that Google will own every piece of my data is no longer a factor considering the usage freedom it exposes me to, HTC Dream, with great customer service by Optus at Elizabeth Street, Melbourne and 12mth contract with contract fees that the Optus call centre couldn’t comptete with is gold.

Now I’m out of mobile contract, iPhone4 is on it’s way, the iPad is taking off with a ridiculous price point in Australia!! And Google Android phones reproducing like rabits grabing a larger share of the mobile market, overtaking the Apple iPhone, and boy these new Androids phones have some power.

So i still want an e-reader, a new mobile phone and interested in an iPad but the price points still pinch.

March - out of contract with google phone, looking now to iPhone.
the need for particular iPhone apps are out weighing whatever purchasing barriers were there before. And the thing just operates so sweet!

iPad launched - this comes with everything, however it’s launch leaves everyone guessing, so what do you use this for. Everyone suggests and conceeds that it will be a great device, for something, whatever that will be in the future. It has iBooks, and importing of other books, kindle apps, kobo apps, great news reading. Aust. customers get the hints they we be held to the mercy of the ‘great plans’ that no one knows what they will be.

I almost have the entire Sitepoint catalogue. Half of the catalogue I have as pdf’s as well, purchased through one of the many special promotions they do. Sitepoint announce that you can now purchase ePub and mobi versions and for all future books these will be part of a digital package on offer and not just the pdf. WHAT, re-buy books I have already bought, WHY?

Thank god for social networks and spreding messages around everywhere. I’ll promote just about any book or promotion that Sitepoint put together, but that one stuck. In the end they realised that it’s not just about making money, you’ll make enough is the launch invites the customer in and not just slap a price infront of you.

("this part is where the memory get a little hazy, so I'll do my best")
May

Back on digital e-readers, Android app Alkido is shaping up to be a real best of bread e-reader for the mobile. Unfortunately (and I speak not for myself, but for the mass user audiences out there) you have to get ‘geeky’ to get this to work. What I mean is you have to connect the phone to your computer and select the ‘mount’ usb option. Now, 90% of the mobile users out there are unlikely to do this unless there are other motives than just to use the app (like dying to read to book and the convienece of the new Jodie Picoult book via this small phone.)

Kobo digital e-reader jumps into the mid-level range with an amazing price point. The launch in Australia is amazing. Both Borders and Kobo don’t seem to have that veneer or wanting to steel your money like all the others, both device manufacturers and book retailers. Kobo wants to sell the device, get your books from anywhere, even use bluetooth to transfer books from other devices and pdfs. Borders just want you to buy books, for an extra cheap price you can get the electronic version when purchasing the paper version. And bring / use any e-reader you like.

However, such a good launch meant not properly plannign for demand and it takes weeks for the next stock, that keeps me thinking about the new devices coming out. Like the iPad where a few friends have invited the privledge of testing out their new toy, it does feel sweet.

June
So I dive in and get the Alkido reader going. It’s quite good once you get past the chore of shifting files around, something I know my wife would never do, and she is the target book / reading audience.

iPhone 4 stories are coming out, and they just keep getting worse. Incentive for dying to buy it is decreasing. Delays in launch in australia with reports of rediculous plans / contracts feels like the telcos just want to play the ‘dis-incentivise usage to protect network’ and make our money other ways. The iPhone 3GS plans and devices are looking very appealing if an iPhone is the path I wish to take.

Kobo reader still not in and my productivity meter is pointing more and more to the iPad. The stabbing feeling on the price point is coming down fast. And getting a powerful new Google Android phone makes me feel like I still have freedom around not being stuck in a poor user experience which brings back stinging Nokia phone memories.

Kindle app for the Android phone is launched. It doesn’t have all the features, but now I can read those Amazon books I bought 6 months ago but couldn’t read.

Freedom and choice is what makes me feel like I’m in control of my purchases and makes me feel comfortable and complete when walking away with a small or virtual product.

The saga continues...

How to: Start your business from today's benchmark

2010-03-17T00:21:00.000-07:00

I went through a few headings for this post:

Who are the leaders,
who should you operate like,
How to: find your benchmark
etc

An idea popped into my head when I found this infographic of the day from the FastCompany web site 'Comparing the 100 Largest Sites on the Internet'.

When thinking of that new idea for a startup or trying to find that winning edge with your web site, you need to carry out a thorough competitive analysis. There are a number of ways to do this depending on your outcome, however try this infographic to find discover who the leaders are.

Why look at the leaders?
In the Internet world the leading players are generally ahead, not because of any type of market dominance, but because they have the most subscribers, active daily usage and most visits by internet users voting with the click of that web link, advert or bookmark.

Try on for size the Retail / Online Shopping segment. If you're going to compete and carve out your own market, compare what makes each of these businesses leaders and their market size. Find some inspiration on what lessons can you learn from what works and doesn't work across these web sites as internet uses have voted: "We don't mind buying things from here".

How can you do it better?

#ibmci and 360 degrees of information

2010-03-03T04:08:00.000-08:00

Today was the launch of the IBM Collective Intelligence seminar. and from the twitter feed, it sounded like there were some great presentations. However I did hear some new terms that were *attempting* to be coined.

The first one was 'outcomes based computing'. I must admit I wasn't there but it does sound strange and without context. Gerry McGovern once said in a lecture he's hoping that the next 50 years of I.T. (Information Technology) starts focusing on the 'I' (Information) as the previous 50 years have been on the 'T' (Technology).

For me 'outcomes based computing' is the technologist way of acknowledging what is User Centred Design or better said these days as designing for the users' experience.

Another presentation that had me dazzled was this twitter comment from @tweetkas "BSphere stream GE Money addressing the approach to get there (design, people, technology & process)".

I'm perplexed on a number of levels but here's the bridge:
Design is a process, so that cancels out two of the statements. Every thing is wrapped in a process. It is naive to think that design and any process isn't an automatic business methodology.

Also, to conclude, the Gov 2.0 group has been talking heavily about how to measure the 'guru status' or ability for someone or organisation to call themselves a 'social media expert' to consult to government. Nathaniel B. pointed out a forrester post regarding the ACTUAL approach of POST (People,Objectives , Strategy and Technology).

I do digress with an hypothesis of pointing out that inside an organisation that doesn't fully understand or is attempting to address the missing role of 'design' in their own processes (and GE Money is not the only ones stuck here, most of us are) that the need to point out 'design' and 'process' are critical 'wake up calls' for the corporate and large organisational world.

To finish on a positive, I hope that IBM is successful in promoting Collective Intelligence as it highlights a catch phase that has been around since the early 1860's, 'Wisdom of the Crowds' - where the important factors are human / people ones and together REAL problems can be solved and facilitated through the social sharing or our own knowledge.

Service Delivery Design - Remember you're one organisation

2010-03-02T20:20:00.000-08:00

UPDATE (3rd March 2010): Total credit to @Telstra on Twitter. Scott (of the helpful staff) is always quick to reply and happy to be a sounding board and give some rounding insight. They may not be able to repair the problem for you, however the active communication 'REALLY' goes a long way

Today I got off the phone today from Telstra's telephone call-centre customer service. I was inquiring into why the bill we received had extra cost above the phone plan cost, shouldn't that cost already be apart of the phone plan? Doesn't everyone have a phone plan that provides more in the cost of the phone calls than the actual bill (they call this a 'cap plan')?

To add insult we were told that even though I was calling 'Telstra', the stores were under a different association to the stores. Surely this doesn't work for the brand. a service is a service and to find out the hard way what you can and cannot do in a store or on the phone should not have to be the customers problem.

Then we were told on the phone that we could pay '$$$$' to cancel and Telstra would be happy to sign me up to a new plan. Why should I pay for your mistake for signing up to a plan that we took faith in the sales representative to do their job for us.

We quickly found ourselves being thrown around the roller-coaster ride of plan justification strongly defended by telecommunication companies as 'this is the way it is' [and bad luck, you're stuck with it!].

Well I say no, it never has to be this way. And why should I as a customer have to understand all the different nuances to navigate my way around all the different plans.

You would then expect a sales representative to 'represent' your best interests and guide you through the mine field. However I feel that with all the incentive based schemes and budget goals that sales people have these days to keep their job the customer gets lost somewhere in between.

Barry Schwartz has a great lecture on 'our loss of wisdom' where our society has gone mad with bureaucracy and incentives have backfired as the loss of practical everyday wisdom can help us to design and define better services.

It doesn't have to be this way!

Twitter Should Get Sound

2010-02-09T04:09:00.000-08:00

Twitter Creates It's features by Watching those that use it.

Twitter has become a phenomenal success even though it's definition of what it can do (or make money) is still a paradox for many. They have had there ups and down but what keeps people around.

Well the easy stuff is that it is information is 'real-time' and it is full of testimonials, 'validation' link shares and you can easily find 2000 people that live close by (at least connected in some way).

My description: It is the tool that has found a way to motivate its many users to capture those comments that are normally spoken everyday, at any moment. It has a basic principle and facilitate the simplistic facet of the communication message model - Sender | Message | Receiver.

Instead the Receiver can be an entire group, community or anyone watching.

Another significant leap with Twitter is it's amazing ability to improve its message features by watching how it's users use it. RT (Re-Tweet) and @ (public reply) evolved from how people were already use it. And I have one more!

How Twitter can integrate smilies, animations and audio sound effects.
for years I have seen the use of *sigh* or *shhhh* being used. And tonight I discovered it. This has the ability to utilise the character recognition tools in Twitter span through a list of keywords. Better yet, going down the path of user generation, people could record their own voice, much like the way people record their friends images and voices into mobile ringtones for extra personalisation.

Food for thought here. Could be fun so let me know your comments and what online or offline personalisation do you use.

Designing for the Social Web - UX Book Club Feb, 2010

2010-02-08T03:24:00.000-08:00

Horray, a new year begins and without even getting out of the holiday period hangover, there are new device releases everywhere and a flurry of excitement of what the year holds for Android, Kindles and iPads.

Rest assured a new year revival of the Melbourne UX Book Club holding it's inaugural 2010 event on Feb 16 with the special book Designing for the Social Web.

I'm excited to get into this book (not knowing how much I'll get through with a 4 week old newborn) as I'm wanting to see if anyone has picked what the cornerstones are for the juncture of some favourite top;topics: Sociology, Human Interaction and the layers of Communication.

So far I'm finding nothing new, however I do like the clearly articulated descriptions that describe the activities that effect the user's experience in social networks.

Right before writing this is had encountered an amazing display of simple technology to provide an augmented experience with inanimate objects on Johnny Holland magazine.
Augmented Reality: Gimmick or Game Changer?

What struck me is the LoFi technology use, it's simplistic use of paper (and not some fancy dongle that whistles...) and a web cam integrated with a simple application on the computer.

What is the Social design here: include mobility and where on the path.

What I am touched by is the philosophy of my Multimedia lecturers at university that pushed us to think about design not how people interact with technology in a box (desktop) but how technology (and our ideas) can interact with us in open spaces.

Now back to sketching all the crazy ideas...

Google Dashboard

2009-11-05T04:39:00.000-08:00

I just checked out my Google Dashboard. This is a new feature from Google where (in do no evil fashion) allow you to see what information they have on you.

Google has a range of services that a lot of us use everyday, however we have to start to wonder what online interaction details is Google tracking. This is only at a high level right now.

Google have been know to create some nice looking dashboards that utilise their Visualisation API's, which is a suit of tools that you can use in your own web site or applications. These are use in the service Google Analytics.

There is not that much to see here however I did discover a few things:

I had started setting up my own custom search engine,
one of my calendars is public,
I should use my alerts more
and it looks like I'm not that exciting!

At the bottom of the Google Dashboard is a list of the next round of services to be included in the dashboard. I wonder if they'll improve the design as well by then.

UX Book Club October - Designing for the Digital Age, Kim Goodwin

2009-09-09T23:15:00.000-07:00

"So far this book is a very academic choice by the Melbourne UX-Book-Club team (including myself of course). However the book covers sooooo much" (quote from my Amazon notes in my LinkedIn profile)

At the moment: I'm loving the Chapter descriptions and how, at the end of each chapter / section, there is a special description on how to handle the project management processes and approach to items such as 'Modelling' (research data) and 'Developing the Design Language'.

Considering this is quite a large book to read (even with a 2 month reading period!), we put to the UX-Book-Club GoogleGroup for people to nominate chapters or sections that inspired their interest to read. That way we all don't feel the pressure to attempt to read just over 700 pages of content.

To date, this is most of the attending members' concerns. Sometimes there is just too much to read. The other concern is "I didn't read the book!"

My view: If you haven't read the book, even more reason to show and find out what was in it without reading. Too easy! So read the next one, no need to feel guilty, we understand. User Experience practitioners already have a lot of reading, drawing, writting, developing, implementing... and of course reviewing. : )

(link to where I got the book: comment on the cheapness compared to buying it in australia for double the price)

Taking design to a new paradigm. The Open Office Layout

2009-09-09T22:15:00.000-07:00

[this is a blog post about the conversation on the ux openoffice google group talking about whether to change the interface to a ribbon like microsoft or create a sidepanel or sidebar like with design packages]

I recently stepped into the stream of commentary regarding the UI (User Interface) for the OpenOffice quit of products. The basis of this conversation being more about the feedback received from the community on implementing a sidebar or side-panel for features and functions which breaks the typical normalised conventions of existing desktop business products.

This got me thinking.
What if we were to think about designing products by removing the past?

Can we innovate by forgetting the rules that exist around the product we are designing for?

The conversation in questions, is now going down the path of recognising the radical concept that was presented, and wondering if they have gone too far. And after (and still in progress) reviewing all the feedback, the group began taking a satellite view that Microsoft has distilled deep interface conventions.

The question is then raised, what is the future of an open source project like OpenOffice and it's brand and user-base scale?

It got me thinking, what if we began thinking about a concept with now boundaries. That this product has never existed. And if it was furniture, how does it fit around the space that assists a person with their core activity.

To continue the furniture analogy:

You will buy a chair for a number of reasons and criteria. However when you finally choose the chair that will suit the space you are placing it in, it's role is to facilitate a different purpose. That may be for relaxation and / or entertainment.

So as for the UI of a piece of software that has been grown in the hubs of businesses in tall buildings, what if there was no building, no desk and just use for the larger outcome.

How would this look now?
Would we consider touch gestures?
Would we just forget the screen altogether?

What's next?

To put my money (opinion) where my pencil is, I'll put my own ideas into play and wait for the comments.

Links:

Innovative Furniture (and other well designed objects)
... more industrial designed furniture
the Open Office UI Renaissance project.

Personally I'm always up for looking into stretching our conventions and use of existing digital products. What I propose is to also re-think why we design and imagine ourselves as someone else in a different profession.

UX Book Club - The Back of the Napkin

2009-09-09T21:57:00.000-07:00

This book was part of the Melbourne UX-Book-Club reading list.

(I'm playing a bit of catch-up with the UX-Book-Club topics. So many great books, so much gripping conversation on the evening. If you're from Melbourne and interested in this evolving world of user experience and it's ever growing related fields, COME ALONG! And join the google group, we're not crazy updaters', we're still active though. And a great bunch of people.)

First impressions - this is a great book and a great insight in to tried methods of communicating information and research findings to others, especially stakeholders of a project. Dan builds detail into his communication-with-pictures framework (Dan is the master of the Visual Thinking Codex) to clearly point out (in a snapshot) the answers to particular problems / questions that you are trying to get across.

What I would like to see with this book is some more examples. The book has some fantastic case study stories however I would've liked to have more 'digital / online' materials which this book seems to scream out for after you have read it. Particularly the 'Visual Thinking' matrix, I wanted one as a chart. So far I have scanned and printed it out in A3 size.

UX Australia 2009

2009-08-28T21:27:00.001-07:00

So, it has begun. The world of the customers can now be assured that those commited to great customer experiences are raising there hand and taking note of your feedback.

The UX Australia 2009 Conference was held in Canberra. And what a conference it was.

Great conferences motivate and inspire endless thought provocation that you leave with your head so full of informaiton and follow up reading and research that you just don't know where to begin. And this was nothing short filling your head with the lot.

So for me it is going through all my notes and the list of further reading and research. Also including those completed by my colleges that joined me there as well.

For those wanting some now: complete a search on twitter for #uxaustralia and discover the list of amazing commentary, insights and links from the immense concentration of knowledge that I'm sure will not stop anytime soon.

So for now, thank you to Donna Spencer (@maadonna) and the whole team from UX Australia.

Catch up time

2009-08-28T21:23:00.000-07:00

There has been some time since the last post, so lets get back into the routine.

I realise I may have to take a different approach to this blog till I work out how to use a blog.

All the advice points to follow a topic that is a passion of your own. So far I have many.

So is it about choosing one?
No, I don't think so, I'd say find a way to describe all your blogging interests as a single topic.

I'll update another time with my progress , but for now there are other, more fun topics to talk about.

Cheers

We land for UX Australia Canberra

2009-08-25T22:58:00.000-07:00

The team is psyched and there is a very good feeling in the air for the next 3 days.

The trip here was interesting (100km wind storms hitting Melbourne as we left) and I couldn't believe the array of amazing buildings in Canberra.
This is my first time in Canberra. However the program for UX Australia program is so full I fear that I will have to miss visiting some of the must-see location recommendations.

The first event, which as I found was joined in conjunction with the Canberra Port 80 group. So needless to say there were some other people who were not here for the UX Australia conference. And great people they were, it meant that there were conversations happening other than those about usability.

We hadn't booked via the Facebook events page, which we found out about 3 hours prior to the dinner. Instead we were given a fantastic seat at the couches. With an element of hesitation to not rain on the parade, I put on my brave socks and ventured over the the tables were everyone else was from, waved politely and in an instant introduction began and everyone was very pleased that we traveled up from Melbourne to enjoy the evening and the conference with them all.

Amongst the conversation that followed when some space opened up in the restaurant, I heard about a company called Informatica that gave me an insight into the potential for user focused design to databases and utilising new advanced algorithms to get information from it. One example was the large amount of over designing that is done to databases leaving the unexpected items to be shoe-horned into the existing structure. Instead just capture, say the users address and let the system can deal with the rest.

Tomorrow is gearing up for the three of us here to solidify uniform base of knowledge in the Usability Kit workshop. This will also uniform the language that each of us use in meetings that can assist with keeping a consistent message of user-centered design and the activities that can help greatly with any new or upgrade of a product or service.

Twitter connecting Swine Flu

2009-05-27T04:38:00.000-07:00

I learnt something early about where the world of twitter fitted in to the evolution of the internet and the connectedness of us humans.

The Swine Flu is over taking the world in much the way that a lot of us thought that that Bird Flu would. For me most of the recent explosion of swine flu has come out of no-where. I do know of reports, medical and disease control journal papers have been written many times about the impending risk of pandemic outbreaks and the leap of diseases from animal to human.

Nathan Wolfe's jungle search for viruses (13:04):

Then out of the blue, any piece of information that you would like, want or need to answer any question about Swine flu is on the Internet. How do you find it, Google? Really, just watch twitter, form your networks. In the non-digital world, would you consider a newspaper apart of your network?

No, however with the addition of twitter, you can directly interact with your newspaper, because we know that there has to be someone that is behind the service and 140 characters makes responding very accessible. So does the newspaper need redesigning?

See Jacek Utko's TED talk on how designing can save newspapers (6:05):

The difference between twitter and the real news, is that in just a few seconds or minutes (well a minute) you can be informed on breaking news, or someone in your network will alert you to it.

In the case of the traditional newspaper it is the next day. Even the digital version will take an hour to forward you an alert email. To give the traditional newspaper the credit that they deserve, after the twitter burst has occurred, we will be awaiting the more official, thorough news item by the professional that we can then, again share with the twitter world to continue to share the knowledge.

Branding gone mad, could that be bad

2009-05-27T03:28:00.001-07:00

I was recently on a Jetstar flight and, as you do, you visit the lavatory. Nothing exciting, I needed to blow my nose (moving on...).

I realised that as I glanced at the soap dispenser there was this glaring branding back at me.
If you haven't seen one (this was my first Jetstar flight so I hadn't)it looks lust like the liquid soap that you would purchase at a supermarket. However the label is the Jetstar brand.

Then remember that I'm flying with a discount airline. What type of soap or quality control to alergies would their business processes check for.

Initially, I'm thinking none. It is not a core business product to focus attention on. They are competing in a very tight market and their tag-line has to suit their value proposition to the customer.

If an adverse event was to happen, who would be responsible in a civil case? Jetstart?

Jetstar may not be directly responsible, however is placing your branding on it claiming your assurance that this product meets the 'expected' needs of the person using it and it fulfils the task that it should in Jetstar fashion.

usable world

2008-02-13T02:20:00.000-08:00

Hi There,

have you ever noticed how some things just seem harder than they should be.

What happened to all the telephone boxes?