SxSW Part II

RSS for the Rest of uSS

Filed under: web2.0, rss — Ian @ 6:51 pm

For consumers of information

Current uses:

Keeping project teams on the same page by encouraging team members to subscribe to the RSS feed of the wiki page for that project. (The example provided utilized socialtext wiki. I’m not sure whether this is supported in TikiWiki core.) This is slightly different than the way we are currently using RSS on our wiki project pages, where we agree on a project tag in advance and then using that tag in other sites (i.e. flickr and del.icio.us) are able to feed content into our project page from other tools.
Tracking buzz by subscribing to search or technorati feeds (a la “NDI in the blogosphere”)
Package Tracking
Subscribing to calanders and reminders
Shopping, by subscribing to rss seach of eBay, classifieds, restaurant reviews, etc
Audio/video content - currently something like 20% of feedburner RSS content

Look out for:

Tools that better filler and search feeds. For intance, I just came across a service called feedrinse.
Bloglines improvments
MS integration of RSS into Vista

For producers of information

Current uses:

Repurposing and redistributing content
Services that add value to content by sorting, collecting and editorializing
Distributing attachments in a pull rather than push format. An attachment in an email accompanies the message and requires the user to download the attachment when the email is downloaded. With RSS, the attachment resides on the server and can be downloaded at a later date. This is advantageous to NDI in low resource environments, and also opens up the opportunity for “dynamic” attachments.
Peer produced content

Limitations:

Lose formatting control
No Java
Tracking can be more difficult
Content control and theft issues

Look for:

New services that add functionality to RSS feeds. Feedflare from feedburner allows content providers to add links directly to a feed to email this, email the author, post to del.icio.us, view the number of comments on a post , etc.

RSS: Not Just for Blogs Anymore (agenda | notes | podcast | bookmarks)

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Location is dead. Long live location.

Filed under: citizen participation, web2.0, mapping — Ian @ 5:04 pm

If tagging was the new black at SxSW 2005, location-based technologies are the new, new black. The past year has seen the launch of Google Earth, Google Local (MS and Yahoo versions). The opening of the API for these has lead to a number of map mashups such as like wayfaring, community walk, mehere, and platial. Geotagging has been introduced as a way to include gps information in tags.

Beyond maps, services such as socialight and dodgeball, and jambo leverage handheld devices to connect people to those around them, and provide them with locationally relevant information.

While the Internet has had a role in creating a global community that transcends time and place, it has simultaneously reinforced the need for community. The interplay between global and local was looked at explicitly in the panels on “Cyberplace: Online in Offline Spaces” and “Designing for Global and Local Social Play.” However this interplay also cropped up in unexpected places. The panel on the future of radio discussed the role of tradional radio as a community and locality-based technology in a world of online global media. The panel on online politics stressed uses of the web that organize people at the local level—to get people talking to their neighbors—within the context of a national campaign.

Related Panels:

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I’d date your site, but I have standards.

Filed under: governance, citizen participation, design — Ian @ 11:12 am

What should NDI’s role be in creating websites (and encouraging partners to create websites) that are usable, accessible and adhere to standards?

Usability
We care about usability because it is a good desing practice. In the case of government institutions, usability takes on a greater role. On a government website usability isn’t merely a user experience, but directly relates to a citizens ability to access government information, services and communication channels.

Accessibility
Website accessibility is core to NDI’s mission. When dealing with any organization, particularly a government institution, making information available to disabled citizens is central to principles of equality and basic civil rights.

Standards
Adherence to standards is good design practice as it reduces code, can make the site more sustainable and adaptable to new technologies. Further this is related to accessibility, as standards compliance is key for ensuring that software and hardware such as screen readers are able to work with the site.

Demands of accessibility must not prevent transparency projects from moving forward, but neither can the issue be paid lip service only. There are capacity issues, but we must make every effort to address this in programming. NDI should identify strategic partners to help with accessibility (knowbility), usability (former NDIer Kate Head and usability.gov) and standards compliance (Kevin Lawver at AOL, W3C).

There were many panels related to these topics. I attended “How to Convince Your Company to Embrace Standards” (agenda | slides | notes)

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CSS Groupies / Problem Solving

Filed under: Uncategorized — Jenny @ 11:16 am

One of the panelists wasthe author of my favorite book Stylin’ with Stylesheets (bad name, great book). I actually met him the night before in the elevator of the hotel. I made a fool of myself when I saw his name tage. “Oh my God! I have your book. I read it all the time. It’s always right on my desk.” CSS groupie. Go figure.

Resources/slides:

www.mezzoblue.com/presentations/2006/sxsw/css
www.tiffanybrown.com/sxsw06/
Three important factors to remember:

Inheritance (child elements inherit properties of parent)
Specificity (specificity overrides the cascade)
Cascade (bottom up)

Use multiple linked stylesheets. Make a special stylesheet just for hacks and put it last. That way it overrides the others.

Start by marking up your content and then take css and style it. Make good clean markup of your content.

Name divs by what goes in them not by where they are.

If you want to use maxwidth and make it work in IE than use a short javascript.

The new version of IE 7 will be great for stylesheets. Renders advanced css perfectly.

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Podcasting your event

Filed under: web2.0, podcast — Ian @ 12:14 pm

1) how do you podcast
- always have a backup
- think about who you are working with - good audio engineers to test sound levels
- audio hijack pro only tool that hasn’t blown up at any opportunity ($30)
- itconversations
- file size and sound quality - what is good enough? record at the highest bitrate possible as close to source possible, downgrade in post possessing - organizations on a budget need to be careful to make files smaller or consider an unlimited bandwidth plan

Speakers POV
- dealing with speakers intellectual property aspects
- raising the bar for speakers - boring speakers will be boring to the world
- visual presentations (i.e. powerpoint) cannot be captured unless accompanied by screen/video cast or slide sync
- S5 slideshow tool from eric meyers

Legal issues
- speakers content may included copyrighted material, podcasting may not fit into fair use the way that it would for a live event
- Stanford fair use folks to produce document on legal issues of podcasting
- creative commons music

2) why should(n’t) you podcast
should
- demonstrating the value of the content available
- ability to create an asynchronous event - allowing tools to add value to existing podcast - comments etc to create an ongoing discussion.

shouldn’t
- highly visual presentation
- adds technical issues
- tradeoff between possibility for podcast depress event registration vs. benefit of buzz (buzz in tech circles instead)
- web essentials podcasting of events - you’re challenge is to make the event worth much more than content

3) Making the most of it
- don’t try to put everything up all at once from an event

program | notes | podcast

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Tagging 2.0

Filed under: Uncategorized — Jenny @ 11:21 am

Uses of Tags:
Refinding information
Crating personal metadata on the desktop or web.
The new commenad line
Gateway to the next PIM
Tags as verbs (buy, sell, print)

Tags are a good start in the direction of the semantic web.

How does tagging help you?
A focus on the user’s view, not a system;s (people-centric view of sata)
Good for keeping track of things you already know about
Learn about things you’re interested in but may not have a sophisticatred vocab about just yest

Tag Issues
Spamming
Splicit
Tags are text and ca be analyzed
TagFraud

Tags are going mainstream. Washington Post has Del.icio.us link on it.

It’s easier to find things now than it was but refinding is harder. Tagging helps with that.

There are more sites doing social bookmarking.

Ordinary people don’t get tagging
It’s the UX, stupid (user experience)
When tagging systems work, it’s because a lot of attention went into the user interface.

Tagging systems don’t play well with others.

Different tagging systems use different delimiters (spaces /commas)

Inoperation amplifies imprecision (cat vs cats / mouse vs mouse)

Flock.com lets you move your bookmarks
Nobody wants real tags-no hierarchy. What people want is tagginess (simple variations of tags)

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Holistic Web Design

Filed under: Uncategorized — Jenny @ 11:20 am

How to achieve better results as a team.

Involve everyone. But know when you’re hindering instead of helping.
Share, communicate and educate. Within reason.
Respect everyone. It’s corny but true. Respect everyone’s talents and abilities.
Compromise. But stand up for your ideas.
Remember the big picture. But don’t forget the details.

The team redeveloped www.plazes.com

Communication is key.
3rd party integration (in this case google maps)—it’s never as simple as you want. You’re stuck with what they give you. Think about that early.

Wireframe: The wireframe shouldn’t dictate design. Don’t deal with layout at all—just the information hierarcy and architecture. It will hinder the design process.

Design: Get input from everyone.

Markup: When building the markup and CSS, stay modular. Deal with chunks of space at a time. Comment the closing divs.

Scripting: Minimize touch points. Maximize flexibility.

Everyone should understand what everyone else is doing.

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Design and Social Responsibility

Filed under: Uncategorized — Jenny @ 10:21 am

What are our design responsibilities?
How do we get our clients to care?

Social responsibility means anything relate to being accountable for using tech to meet basic human needs

What is cool? People. Humane principles. Designing for people in ways that are humane. Accommodate human frailty and exploit strengths.

What do we need to do to get this started?

Change the way you look at things and things change. Grassroots activism—tell people about the problem. We’re all complicit with what we’re creating.

More usable = more accessible. But not vice versa.

Good design is accessible design is good business. Think like your user. Step away from the visuals. Think about the concepts first and then go visual.

Remember that Google is deaf and blind.

Technology should make your life easier. Technology should be a utility. It should be than just useful it should be something people need to get thru their lives.
Technology should be simple (thinking of Neil’s tire swing cartoon). There are too many features in most applications.
Technology should be ubiquitous. It should be available when people want it and it should be contextual. There should be filters based on why you’re using it (as boos, as dad, as citizen)
Technology should integrate into our lives. Basic human need. Think of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Make sure it works before you worry about how it looks.

Given enough technology all human problems should become superficial.

Rich media can be accessible. Accessible design does not have to be boring. Flash gets a bad rap because it didn’t used to be accessible. Flash is a great tool for learning disabled children.

To vision impaired users technology levels the playing field.

Resources Websites:
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibilities
The Next Brainiacs
Social Factors in Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case
Web Accessibility vs. Web Usability (www.usabilitynews.com/news/article551.asp)

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The secret to success? Do less.

Filed under: development — Ian @ 4:28 pm

I only caught the end of the first keynote. Jim Coudal and Jason Fried were the co-speakers, but Jason did most of the talking in final portion. Fried’s rather controversial software development framework is targeted at small “bootstrapping” development teams and is well documented on the Signal v. Noise blog and in the “Getting Real: The Book.”

The basic thesis is that you’ll be more successful if you do less. Build less software (read: more simple), have less people and less money, embrace constraints rather than trying to change them. This will allow you to develop faster, be more responsive to change and build apps that are better at doing what they do for lack of letting other things in the way.

WRT functional specs, Fried believes that there is nothing functional about a functional spec. Rather, functional specs are CYA documents that offer the illusion of agreement. Teams should make development decisions when you have the most information about the decision to be made, which isn’t necessarily before you’ve done any coding.

Listen to the podcast.

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A million monkeys on an million keyboards

Filed under: tagging, web2.0 — Ian @ 12:11 pm

Last year’s hot new thing, tagging and folksonomy got a more nuanced look this year. On one hand there is growing belief in “the wisdom of crowds” or the ability of large groups of people to under the right conditions to demonstrate a collective intelligence that is much greater than any individual member.

On the other hand, many presenters raised practical issues with tagging and folksonomy. Tagging is currently being utilized by a very small proportion of internet users; it needs to be better integrated into existing tools to achieve wider acceptance. There are potential issues with tag spamming. Further the wisdom of crowds may not be the best filter for all sets of information, some may be better addressed by a smaller group of trusted experts.

One interesting note was the potentially democratizing effect of tagging. The use of bottom-up rather than top-down organization of information allows communities to exercise great influence over how information is organized.

Related Panels:

The Wisdom of Crowds program | notes | podcast

Beyond Folksonomies program | notes

Tagging 2.0 program | notes

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SxSW Part II

March 14, 2006

RSS for the Rest of uSS

Location is dead. Long live location.

I’d date your site, but I have standards.

March 13, 2006

CSS Groupies / Problem Solving

March 12, 2006

Podcasting your event

Tagging 2.0

Holistic Web Design

Design and Social Responsibility

March 11, 2006

The secret to success? Do less.

A million monkeys on an million keyboards

del.icio.us links