(We’re two web software geeks who decided to make a move to mobile. Our first app– built mostly on a part-time basis while we were wrapping up other commitments– is TouchBase Calendar, an iPhone Calendar app (iTunes link). It’s #5 or so in Paid Productivity as I write this. This…
Why You’re Going to Hire the Wrong Designer
“We are not UI experts but do know when we see a good design.” I saw this on a mailing list I occasionally read, in a post where a company was looking to hire their first design employee/contractor. I think it’s a big part of why hiring designers is a…
A Designer in Support of Design Contests
15 years ago, you couldn’t even BEGIN to look for a house without a real estate agent (who takes 6-7% of the purchase price from the buyer). Today, the internet has changed that. 10 years ago, someone starting a small business had to eat a cost of thousands of dollars…
Design your Blog like You’d Design a Product
When I decided to take a weekend and focus on my blog I realized one big thing: Most blogs are crappy products. And most of my favorite bloggers (the ones that espouse taking design, marketing, testing, and iteration have largely blown off the designs of their blogs To be clear,…
Software and Making Money (Presentation Slides Included)
(note: this is modified from a talk I gave at Seattle Tech Startups on Wednesday) The more I think about it, the more I’m impressed with software businesses that are great businesses (not just great software). There’s a class of entrepreneur that is product focused (like the folks at Twitter),…
