Many, many years ago, at my childhood house in the Santa Cruz mountains, I grabbed a shovel and started to dig a hole. Why? Unclear. I was six or seven. I’d seen what my Dad could do with a shovel, so one afternoon…. I started digging, and by the time evening approached, my Dad walked… more
I have a superpower, and like most superpowers, it’s not actually a superpower, but only a habit that I do 10% better than most humans. I chisel. Let’s say there’s this big project I want to complete. It’s not a big project; it’s immense. I’ve never done it before, and I’ve no actual idea how… more
In the hallway, late on Thursday, someone tells a bit of information about your product that is 100% provably not true. You laugh, wink at the person, and say, “That’s goofy. What reasonable human would believe that?” And that conversation moves on. Two hours later, different locations, different humans, and different contexts. Same exact piece… more
As a Henry Cavill super fan, I was extra crushed when I read that reports of his return to the role of Superman were no longer true. After much consideration, I am here to tell you why this is good news. But let’s start with the bad news. The DC Movie Universe is Garbage Fire… more
For this piece, I am going to simplify management a bit. Let us assume there are three different hats you wear as a manager. They are: the Leader, the Fixer, and the Coach. I will briefly explain each role and then explain how I’ve screwed up each. I’m going in reverse order because I’m building… more
First start-up. We’re between Layoff #2 and Layoff #3. There’s a new VP of Engineering running the show and while he’s been hired with the guidance to “turn the ship around,” the tech economy is a wreck and his first official act is throwing passengers overboard so we don’t sink. Now this will be the… more
I love my Cave. Earlier this week, I finished the book. This is the third book I’ve mostly written in the Cave. There’s been lots of outside writing spots, coffee shops, vacations, and airplanes, but the bulk of the work has been completed right here. Sitting in a hoodie, coffee to the left, Bear fired… more
There’s a rumor wandering through your team right now. I’m sorry to report; it’s toxic. It’s the kind of rumor that contains so much interest and emotional energy that the humans can’t help repeat the rumor to each other. It’s about you, and it’s completely untrue. When you hear the rumor, the content will give… more
Design firm Ideo has cultivated an image of being the creative minds behind the idea. As a consultancy, their job is to not take credit for the ideas, but rather design such ideas for other companies. This makes their iPhone video application a beautiful mystery.
Spark is a gorgeous and well-defined video iOS application that fulfills the first rule of great design: get the hell out of the way so I can get to the task at hand. Spark eschews the current fad of making all images and videos insta-square and embraces the 16:9 aspect ratio. On top of this, Spark provides the best real-time filter selection I’ve seen. With a flip of your finger, you slide the different Spark filters on top of your video while it loops.
I’m not doing a lot with video other than occasional experiments, but I keep firing up Spark because it’s one of the rare applications where the designers gave themselves room to experiment. Yes, they are clearly influenced by current flat design and thin typography trends, but the application’s attention to the details is novel.
In what is a first in my gaming experience, after years of not playing World of Warcraft, I fired the game up several months ago and have been actively playing – leveling several toons including a panda. This that while I shouldn’t care about Worlds of Draenor at all, I actually care more than I should.
