Following on from an extensive redesign of this site in July, the last few weeks have seen me revisit its design and implementation. In light of today’s Responsive Summit, and with a few people asking about the changes on Twitter, I thought I’d provide a little more detail.
I went to the new Olympic velodrome at the weekend to watch the UCI Track Cycling World Cup. This was part of London Prepares, a programme of events being held to test various venues before the summer games. It was a thrill to witness great athletes up close as they also prepare for London 2012. You can see my photos from the event here.
As to the building, it’s quite simply, stunning. Unlike the Aquatics centre, it’s not been spoilt by any temporary appendages, although as Ben Terrett points out a few design oversights remain.
They call this place Ocean Beach, perhaps because both take up most of the view. The sky is hard to truly make out, with only a faint line separating two sweeping blue canvases, each in many ways a reflection of the other.
Nelson Minar:
I refuse to give in to a cynical view of Google’s “Don’t be evil” motto; that ethos was very real, a sincere and important guiding principle. And if a big company like Google can’t avoid being evil, then what world-changing enterprise can? But I think Google as an organization has moved on; they’re focussed now on market position, not making the world better. Which makes me sad.
Google is too powerful, too arrogant, too entrenched to be worth our love. Let them defend themselves, I’d rather devote my emotional energy to the upstarts and startups. They deserve our passion.
Sound familiar? As much as I despise Facebook, Google isn’t any better behaved. In fact, its crimes are often far worse.
I still have a Google account, although the only services I rely on are search and Reader. DuckDuckGo is looking like a promising replacement for search, but nearly every decent RSS reader still syncs with Google Reader (even if through unofficial and undocumented APIs). As soon as that changes, my Google account will be deleted.
Over the past few years, I’ve often meant to write about the location-based social network Gowalla. Recently acquired by Facebook and with closure imminent, now is my last opportunity to do so.
.net Magazine asked a group of experts what they find most delightful and most despicable about the social networking giant Facebook. This was my response.
After enough subtle hints, I was happy to unwrap a copy of the Steve Jobs biography at Christmas. I don’t read many books, and those I do, I rarely finish, but I couldn’t put this one down. When I intended to read half an hour before bed, I’d usually end up reading for two.
A truly stunning timelapse of Yosemite National Park, a collaboration between Sheldon Neill and Colin Delehanty. More information about the project can be found at http://projectyose.com/.
I’ve always wanted to run a marathon, but shorter races were beset by poor training. Since taken running more seriously, I’ve become lighter, leaner and possibly even a bit faster. If I’m ever to achieve my dream of running a marathon, then this is the year to do it. An Olympic year too.
Back in October, Ethan Marcotte asked me some questions about the design of my site. He was writing a round up of his twenty favourite responsive websites for .net Magazine and wanted quotes from each creator. In the spirit of blogging more I thought I’d share my answers here.
As 2012 gets into full swing, it’s time to enact the yearly tradition of setting some goals for the year ahead. By no means an exhaustive list, here are a few that have caught my imagination in the last few days.
For the final leg of my North American tour I transcended the West Coast on Amtrak’s Coast Starlight. Getting to San Francisco wouldn’t be much fun, boarding a coach in Vancouver at a ridiculous hour in the morning and dealing with an offensive US border guard before arriving at a closed King Street station in Seattle sounding its fire alarm.
Sat in the front seat of another float plane, I enjoyed a breathtaking view of Vancouver as I descended into its harbour. For such a densely populated city, I felt I’d arrived somewhere small and friendly.
After eight days exploring North America, it was time to visit some of its more westerly extremities. Flying out from Toronto, my first stop was Saltspring Island, via Vancouver Airport and a float plane.
Some cities are best arrived at by air; only by flying over Sydney, London or New York do you get a sense of their scale and majesty. San Francisco is best approached by car, with some of the best views of that city seen as you cross the Bay Bridge. Others are best suited to arrival by train. Toronto is one such city.
After four days in Washington, it was on to another North American capital, Ottawa. I encountered a city that was cold yet plentiful in ATMs that would refuse to accept my debit card.
For anyone coming to Brasilia for its modernist architecture, no visit would be complete without a stay at this hotel. Designed by Oscar Niemeyer and opened in 1958, it hosted dignitaries such as Queen Elizabeth and Che Guevara before being devastated by fire in 1978. After facing decades of abandonment and neglect, it was modernised and reopened in 2006.
This years SXSW Interactive saw 1,041 sessions presented by 1,648 speakers, growing to such extent that its size now rivals that of the more popular music festival. Yet bigger doesn’t necessarily mean better.
Clearly communicating the fundamental aspects of your design at the different stages of a project can help you better communicate with clients, developers and your peers, ensuring your vision doesn’t get lost in the transformation from static comp to dynamic ever changing website.
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