“I Can’t Say I Deeply Appreciate Tapestry.”

An interview with Wes Anderson -Via Bobulate

I really like Wes Anderson films for all sort of reasons I can’t quite describe. But scenes like this go a long way towards explaining it.

What Else Does Apple Have to Do?

Kristin 03/03/10
Ear to the ground

I find it absolutely amazing that even after Apple has proven itself over and over and OVER again at being fantastic at what they do, there is doubt about this company being the ideal catalyst for “people being in love with their content.” I just don’t get it.

“Apple would prefer not to do this,” McQuivey continued. “But it just doesn’t have the leverage it once did. Apple can’t dictate terms or position itself as a digital savior.”

Read the entire Media Maverick story here.

If you manage to make it to the bottom of the article, you’ll be rewarded with this gem: “By pioneering (the apps), Apple is stuck doing what’s right for consumers.”

(head explodes…)

Simple isn’t the Only Thing.

Joe 03/01/10
Ear to the ground

“Old-school Usability espouses the idea that user activities are onerous tasks that they want to get out of the way as soon as possible. While this is true in some cases, usability is now widely understood to be more of a hygiene factor – something that can cause dissatisfaction if missing, but its presence cannot take you beyond lack of dissatisfaction.” - 90percentofeverything.com

The story about how Betty Crocker made their product more complicated in order to make it more interactive, and emotional. Really great stuff.

The New Deal.

“Thankfully, you’re still small, and this leaves you with a huge advantage when it comes down to getting personal. Plus, in recent years, the tools have changed drastically. As a result, your size becomes a little like a superpower you didn’t even know you had. “ Eric Karjaluoto -From the ever growing ebook Speak Human.

via Swis Miss

Jef Raskin on Shoes

Kristin 02/25/10
Paste

“Imagine if every Thursday your shoes exploded if you tied them the usual way.
This happens to us all the time with computers, and nobody
thinks of complaining.”

-Jef Raskin

Obesity (and Death?) at the Arms of Your Chair.

“A new study shows that every hour per day spent in front of that monitor raises your risk of early death from heart disease by a whopping 18%—even if you’re not obese and you exercise. It also raises the risk of dying from cancer 8%, and all causes 11%.”

Well how are we supposed to do our jobs if we’re not at the flippin’ monitor? If your work day is anything like mine- everything takes place at the computer, leaving you few options. On that same note, our team works remote a lot of the time, so in order to communicate effectively, we need to be available… via e-mail, chat or Skype. That doesn’t leave much time for me to escape to the gym.

Turns out you don’t have to do that much exercise to tip the scale in your favor, according to this other Newser.com article. Keep Reading

Jumpchart Snippets Go Global.

admin 02/23/10
Jumpchart, Paste

You already know you can create Snippets- words or phrases you use repeatedly- throughout a Jumpchart project, but we’re introducing a Global Snippets- an upgrade we hope you find really useful.

Now you can create Snippets for use account-wide, improving your workflow by allowing you to access constant bits of information across multiple projects.

In a nutshell:

  • When you share a project containing a Regular Snippet, the Snippet is then available to view, use and edit by whomever you share the project with.
  • When you share a project containing a Global Snippet, the Snippet is then available to view and use by whomever you share the project with- but not editable by that person. It is only editable by you… and it’s available for you to use across each of your projects.
  • You cannot see someone else’s Snippets unless they share their project with you.

For more info on how they work, check out the new support article we’ve added.

A Generalist Mentality.



Mike Kus recently published this article about why designers should be able to code.

We might suggest the opposite article be written as well: Why Developers Should Understand Design. Expanding your knowledge of the industry certainly can’t hurt the quality of the work you output… yet there’s a time and a place for specialists in the mix, too.

From our small (yet global) studio perspective, it’s in our best interest to be generalists. Generalists are big picture people. They get the connections between things, and they understand the world view.

Specialsts have their place, and in a big company they absolutely fit in. But in small business like ours, we thrive off diversely talented people who are good at understanding many things.



Quote of the Day- on Flexibility.

admin 02/18/10
Uncategorized


“If it bends, it’s funny; if it breaks, it’s not funny.”

– Kate O’Brien

NY Times. Too Bad, Maybe.

I semi-religiously read the NY Times online. it’s sometimes frustrating inside of a browser, but the writing is amazingly worth the effort. Even on the iPhone, it’s worth all the pinching to get at that great content.

I have never in a decade of post-college adulthood subscribed to a physical newspaper. I have subscribed to a few printed magazines (mostly as received gifts) but for more than a year have subscribed to none.

However I’m what I would consider a voracious consumer of content. I read blogs, books (both virtual and digital) listen to podcasts, and lots of audiobooks. So it’s not that I lack the wherewithal, or the desire to read a daily newspaper. Keep Reading

Paste Interactive is a small app studio that makes cool, smart tools to help next generation workers work better, simpler, and faster.
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