45 of 365 - minimalism design principle by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
45 of 365 – minimalism design principle by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
One of the most lovely things that I have enjoyed as a part of my design and consulting practice is the ability to stay fairly stress free in the effort. Because of the flexibility afforded by consulting, I am able to step back, look at the entire spectrum of the work, and let it flow. There is a certain kind of joy in doing work that you are good at, enjoy doing, and are compensated well for. I have been lucky enough to have a few jobs like this, mostly longer term positions, and the reasons that I left had more to do with leadership, staff, or situational variables. Never the work. The work is joy. The work is the light of the day. The work is the thing.
In this illustration of the idea, I wanted to focus on a minimalism approach, one in which there is just what is called for and nothing else. I illustrated a quote from the Tao te Ching (the book of the way): Act without doing; Work without effort. It speaks to me as an ideal of work: work that is not work at all.
Amazon/iTMS links in Google Maps Placemark (Photo credit: earthhopper)
Geofencing
In the last week or so, I was contacted by a team leader about developing marketing tools and social media to support a new mobile app. The startup (we’re still working on the name and brand) focuses on Geofencing. Geofencing is a technology that uses the sensors on your phone (cellular, wi-fi, and GPS) to decide if you are in a certain specific area, and then do something with that information, often automatically. Some great apps exist that make use of GeoFencing. Two that come to mind are Smart Places Checkin for Android and Tasker for Android.
Existing solutions
Smart Places Checkin for Android allows me to set up geofencing zones and then automatically check in to those places on Facebook, along with stats. It’s beautiful, and I have several zones set up. However, it’s difficult in my opinion to set up those zones, and the UI could use some work. What’s more, it only does that one singular thing: share my location with Facebook. I want that functionality, but I want flexibility to do other things too.
Geofencing example (Photo credit: James Cridland)
Tasker for Android is a superb application that allows you to do everything you could imagine with the sensors on your phone, and as a result, you can set actions to be performed with your phone based on your location. Tasker is brilliant, but especially difficult to use for the uninitiated. The UI, in particular, could use an overhaul, or a “light” mode.
Our idea
What we are proposing started as simply a geofencing coupon app. It was like super-local groupons that pop up when you are near a deal. But after seeing what the app is capable of, we are looking to be able to do that and a lot more.
If we incorporate gamification features, a social layer that allows tie in to Facebook, Twitter or G+, sharing IFTTT style recipes between users, and other features related to Geofencing, we could really have something. People can choose to create scenarios like those below and share them for customization by others. Consider the following examples:
Use the app to create geozone based easter eggs, and create a reward (for businesses, it might be a discount, for others it might be a badge) for collecting all the ‘eggs’.
Use the app to create awareness of location between you and your significant other or children so that you always know where each other are.
Use the app to design a tour of a campus, lab, city, or route, with messaging related to placemarks.
Use the app to create one-off or repeating reminders to yourself or others that while you are near the Post Office, drop off the mail; While near the grocery store, pick up eggs.
Use the app to track your movement along your path for later review.
Use the app to give yourself points or a badge when you visit a friend’s house or some other task that you want to encourage yourself to do more often, and share the recipe with your friends to encourage them to do the same. Automatically share your points or visit with Facebook.
I could list another 10 examples, but I imagine that you have your own examples that you are thinking about. When this was just a geofencing coupon app, I have to admit, I was not as excited. But with the potential flexibility and extensibility of this, I could not be more so. Stay tuned for more on this as it develops!
Related articles
Creating smarter apps with geofencing
Frencer: A Free Android Geofencing App
Self-Taught Developer David Richard Harnesses the Power of Geofencing to Create a New Type of Local Network with His New Mobile App JaVu
Ampersand Greater Than Font Study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
Today, I decided to use Inkscape to play with type. When you type less than three (<3), you are expressing an emoticon for love, symbolized by a heart. It’s a straightforward, easy-to-use symbol. Two close friends or sweethearts might use it in SMS to express a little love.
Ampersand Greater Than (&>)
Melissa Brisbin and I have used an alternative to less than three to express not only that we are good friends, but that we exchange and share value in technology, libraries, and related interests. Â Ampersand greater than (&>) resembles a heart too, but indicates a togetherness, a bond. When we type it to each other, it’s a little reminder of our history. In honor of her birthday yesterday, I decided to work on the ampersand greater than as a typography muse.
I started by going through my font catalog and pulling out all the fonts that had interesting ampersand and greater than symbols.
40 of 365: Ampersand Greater Than Font Study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
Then I began pulling out the best combinations, angling the symbols, pulling them together into a single flowing shape.
40 of 365: Ampersand Greater Than Font Study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
Finally, I went back in and tweaked the finest points of the combinations. This was my result: nearly the final set.
40 of 365: Ampersand Greater Than Font Study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
And today, I decided to add some color, along with final tweaks to the pieces.
Ampersand Greater Than Font Study by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
39 of 365 – face-ism ratio design principle by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
Consider face-ism ratio when presenting a photo of a human. The theory says that a face that takes up a larger portion of the photo emphasizes the intelligence and persona of the person in the photo, where a photo that shows less of the face, and more of the body, emphasizes the bodily and aesthetic features of the person.
In this illustration, I decided to show myself with a higher and lower face-ism ratio.
38 of 365 - exposure effect by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
38 of 365 – exposure effect by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
Exposure effect says that a repeated exposure to an image or concept with an initially neutral response will have a more favorable response over time and with repetition. For example, part of the positive effect on viewers of propaganda or advertising is that people see the same messages repeated over and over. When there is a neutral or positive response at first exposure, the repeated viewings or exposures will have a positive likability effect on the exposed. Eventually, the exposure effect weakens because of boredom or normalcy. Exposure effect is commonly noted with meaningful quotes, jingles, photos, songs, art, people, and ads.
In this illustration, I decided to illustrate a favorite zen quote:
In walking, just walk.
In sitting, just sit. Above
all, don’t wobble.
Creating smarter apps with geofencing
Frencer: A Free Android Geofencing App
Self-Taught Developer David Richard Harnesses the Power of Geofencing to Create a New Type of Local Network with His New Mobile App JaVu
Keep a watchful eye on your kid with the Trax wearable sensor
A crash course in typography
Using Financial Ratios for Your Small Business
365 Days of Savings: 10 ways to lower your cost of living [INFOGRAPHIC]
