From http://adminstaff.vassar.edu/tibrown/thesis/screenfaces.html
This fantastic article gets into the weeds (details) about typefaces made for the screen. Bottom line: use Verdana or Georgia. Read the article for the details (weeds).
Ten Weaknesses of the Agile Methodology – PM Hut.
I know the backlash against top (insert number here) lists mounts. However, this particular list is thoughtful and valid. I appreciate no. 5:
Agile is weak on architectural planning. While software architecture is not entirely like building/construction architecture, they do share some qualities, including the need for a well-defined architecture up-front.
This is particularly true or troublesome on the interactive side, when in addition to architecture, visual design and concept need to be established and integrated into the project. That said, awareness is half the battle, and making room for solutions like Sprint 0 before the development sprints kick off can help in some cases.
On the other hand, I thought it was amusing that one of the listed “weaknesses” is “Heavy customer interaction is essential.” I would think of this trait as a strength. Granted, customer interaction is ideal and might not always work out—indeed, a lot of Agile / Scrum “rules” may not execute perfectly—but that goes back to the essence of the methodology: it’s a framework. Use the overarching principles, and adjust as you go. It is not a hard and fast set of stringent rules. Like I tell my kids as they learn to drive, “just because the light turns green, doesn’t mean you should go. It means you should look and decide if it’s safe to go. Lights don’t stop cars; people stop cars.” You need to think, be aware, and adapt to drive the principle of remaining alive out there on the road, or in software or interactive development.
from http://www.flickr.com/photos/caseorganic/4793456173/
Cooper–one of my favorite design firms of all time–redesigned their website recently. Check it out.
Found this old link in my drafts. This guy’s rad. He’s on twitter, too (@thesambarnes). Check him out for yourself; start with this article:
Remember the old AOL? The one that would send you CD after CD with free hour offers? The AOL that people would use instead of the Internet and the Web–to get, er, social? That’s how I see Facebook now–increasing isolated and controlled, and soon to be a fading star.
[Update: Damn it. A Google search of "Facebook AOL" shows me I'm not the first one to think Facebook is the new AOL; Jason Kottke had chimed in on it (back in 2007!). O! well, chalk it up to one of those great-minds moments.]