We are all generating a lot of data, and are attempting to serve it up in meaningful charts. This post addresses four ways charts can focus less on their appearance, and more on delivering relevant answers and insights. “Beautiful, terrible, and addictive” Twitter has turned nine. Today, it’s a critical source for breaking news with one billion tweets sent every …
Friday 5 — 3.20.2015
Facebook introduced new friend-to-friend payments on Facebook Messenger. Now friends can split a lunch check, or settle a wager right in a chat. And, for now, zero fees. Google Code shut down and moved nearly a thousand of its open source projects to GitHub. Here are a few important ways GitHub got it right where others failed. Should news media drop costly native apps …
Friday 5 — 3.13.2015
Google Maps is an app many use daily — after all, not everyone can live in a CityMapper zone — but have barely scratched the surface in terms of functionality. Here are some useful tips, including offline access and one-handed use. New digital projects often start with an existential crisis of organizational identity. Land the …
Friday 5 — 3.6.2015
Meerkat is a new livestreaming video app that launched and skyrocketed this week. Tightly integrated with Twitter, the app allows you to livestream video direct to your Twitter feed. It’s ephemeral content — viewers cannot replay it, but creators can save the original video to their phones. Despite the mass adoption of Gmail, Google has …
In defense of screen time
“Screen time” ranks among the phrases, along with “trans fats” and “big box retailer,” that elicit mournful nods among the chattering classes. People regret the loss of unmediated presence: museums free from selfie sticks, dinners uninterrupted by stealthy smartphone checks and weekends free from the tyranny of email. And I get that, I do. But …
Friday 5 — 2.20.2015
Consumer feedback is crucial in building a successful product. Understanding how and when to solicit it can make all the difference. Read and learn from these 5 mistakes we all make with product feedback. Marketing is now in the experience business. In a digital era, marketers need to invest in user experience as a critical competency, and embrace …
Friday 5 — 1.30.2015
Snapchat aims to become a force in mobile news with this week’s launch of Snapchat Discover. Here are some tips on how to use it. If you’re like 82% of people, you have forgotten a password for a website. Luke Wroblewski has a thoughtful piece on password masking, security, and our one-touch future. Because we’re …
Friday 5 — 1.16.2015
Pew released a new report on social media usage. 53% of U.S. online adults aged 18-29 are now on Instagram, and 56% of adults 65+ are on Facebook. Also interesting: Facebook growth may be flattening, but engagement continues to grow. Which factors impact how teens use social media? danah boyd reminds us, “Teens’ use of social media is …
Friday 5 — 12.12.2014
Facebook is surging ahead on mobile revenue as well as mobile market share. Facebook now accounts for about one-fifth of all data used on mobile phones, and owns four out of the top ten apps in the Apple iOS store and Google Play. More over at Quartz. Dark social is a term introduced by Alexis Madrigal two …
Friday 5 — 12.5.2014
We’re all producing more video, but who’s watching? Unlike written content, where a strong open may draw a reader in, there is a divide between those who press play on a video, and those who don’t. This post suggests that video consumption may not be evenly distributed across your audience — and you may have a very specific segment that forms …