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August 20, 1980
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New Braunfels Herald Zeitung (Newspaper) - August 20, 1980, New Braunfels, Texas Wednesday * I «v»of C omrrtumea tton* Inc 25 cents August 20, 1980 HuaM-fritan Vol. 89 - No. 44 28 Pages — 3 Sections (USPS 377 880) New Braunfels, TexasTrustees approve gifted, talented plan Three teachers will be chosen to "lead" the New Braunfels Independent School District's gifted and talented program. The NBISD board of education adopted a plan Tuesday calling for the principals of the district's three elementary schools to select a teacher to head the program. The gifted and talented program will become the teachers' "priority," but the plan also calls for them to help with administrative work in the principals' offices as a curriculum assistant. "I've spoken with the principals and we're all in agreement that the primary focus, the top priority, should be on the gifted and talented program," Assistant Supt. Oscar Smith told the board. Board member Garland Lloyd asked if a minimum amount of time spent on the program would be required, and Smith said the gifted and talented portion of the teacher's time should take up "at least 50 percent." "It will probably be more than that if you count preparation time. The first month or two will be spent getting materials purchased, identifying the kids," Smith said. "We need to allow as much time as possible to get this thing off the ground," Trustee Bill I,ee agreed. "The only thing we can do is monitor the program very closely," Supt. O.E. Hendricks told the board. "Well, we'd want to keep this '50-50' thing flexible. If a teacher needs to spend all day on the program, for whatever reason, that would bt' okay with me." trustee Margy Waldrtp remarked. After the vote. Mary Padilla, a spokesman for a group of about IO parents in attendance, thanked the board for their concern. "We're very interested in both the gifted and talented program and the bilingual education program, and we'd like to thank you for your help and cooperation." she said. Board adopts budget Comal Independent School District trustees last night adopted an $8,538,003 operating budget for the 1980-81 school year at their regular meeting at Frazier Elementary School. The new operating budget is a $717,509 increase from the 1979-80 amended budget, which also was approved at last night's meeting. The operating budget reflects expenses incurred by the increase of 163 students in the district during the 1979-80 school year, Hugo Nowotny, CISD business manager, said. The district anticipates an increase of approximately 200 students during the 1980-81 school year, he added. The new budget also was amended to reflect a $1,600 cut in the music director's travel budget and a $3 raise for substitute teachers. Afer cutting the music director's travel budget from $1,800 per year to $200 per year, the board trustees unanimously voted to raise substitute teachers' pay from $27 to $30 per day. The pay raise accounts for $12,000 of the new operating budget, Nowotny said. Because CISD is in a competetive market with surrounding school districts even as far as San Antonio, for substitute teachers, it was necessary to for the trustees to consider and approve a pay raise for substitute teachers, James Richardson, CISD superintendent of schools, said. Another budget item which was discussed at the meeting was the $6,000 allotment for educationa 1-development consultants. "This is one of the areas which I feel that we've been more than extravagant," trustee Carey McWilliams said, in a motion which failed to amend that portion of the budget. He said the board should approve of educational consultants before allowing them to conduct workshops on CISD campuses. "I can't see how it would be detrimental to the school not to know who those people (consultants) are," he said. Doyle Krueger makes a point, while Jack Rollin, Tom Purdum listen Planners, industries study annexation By ROBERT JOHNSON News editor Here's an easy recipe for annexation soup. Take one city master plan, add a dash of industry', toss in a gentleman's agreement or two, season lightly with Chamber of Commerce, sprinkle liberally with utilities and City Council and add some limestone dust for spice. The mixture comes out both spicy and cloudy, as Planning and Zoning Commission members will attest after Tuesday's annexation workshop. The workshop was designed to field input from parties interested in annexation, and it served its purpose. Four City Council members, Chamber of Commerce officials and representatives from industries which might be affected by annexation fueled the discussion, which covered a wide variety of topics. No action was taken, as commission members will have two weeks to ponder the input before taking up the subject again at their Sept. 2 meeting. Recapping previous meetings, chairman Bob Reeh explained commission members seemed to agree the Solms area south of town and a tract stretching from the existing city limits to FM 306 north of the city were the highest annexation priorities. But then the commission was asked in June to also consider annexing the quarries adjacent to the Solms area. That suggestion, although it received some support, "muddled the issue somewhat to where I think we're back to square one," Reeh said. The quarries are not listed as potential annexations on the city master plan, which was revised in 1976. Three large industries are included in this area— U.S. Gypsum. Parker Brothers and Co. and General Portland Inc.'s brand new cement plant. Although commission members seemed to reach a consensus at earlier meetings that the FM 306 area should be annexed, it also presents a problem in the form of the Coleman Company's new See ANNEXATION Page 12A NBISD transfers reserves to balance $7 million budget The New Braunfels Independent School District Board of Education approved a $7,717,766 budget for 1980-1981 Tuesday, and followed it up with an athletic budget of $92,294 The regular budget's expenditures are 13 percent higher than last year's, Supt. O.E. Hendricks told the board, while anticipated revenue increased 8.5 percent. The increase in expenditures over last year comes to $900,290, and is caused mainly by a state-inandated pay raise, plus an extra pay raise voted by the board at its July 29 meeting. Additional personnel, the cost of health insurance for all district full-time employees, and a $58,000 obligation to the newly created Comal County Central Appraisal Office also takes up much of the increase, Hendricks said. "There is very little increase in item-by-item expenditures," he told the board. The budget included a transfer of $292,258 from the local maintenance reserve fund to the "anticipated revenue" column. "The revenue we have is not as great as the expenditures. The law doesn't allow us to show excess revenue, but we can have excess expenditures if we have a reserve fund to back us up," Hendricks said. State sources will pick up 64.5 percent of the tab, or $4,975,415, while local funds will amount to $2,697,831 or 35 percent. Federal monies will pay for the remaining $44,520. The athletic budget shows an increase of $9,270 over last year's, up 11.16 percent. "A great deal of that is for transportation costs," Hendricks said. Again, the maintenance reserve fund came to the rescue, with $34,494, more than a third of the total athletic budget, in the anticipated revenues column. Revenue from football home games will generate an estimated $29,000, according to the budget. The largest single expenditure category is "Equipment, All Sports," costing $27,896. The "bond improvements" section of the regular budget showed a column of zeroes. "Our bond money is out. We're using reserve funds on Carl Schurz Elementary's expansion, so there's no money rn function No. 52," Ixmnie Curtis,said. Camping Overnight tents in residential areas opposed Overnight tent camping should not be allowed in residential zones, Planning and Zoning Commission members decided Tuesday. That restriction, which commission members approved unanimously, was one of several changes suggested for a draft tent camping ordinance, which would allow camping in zones other than residential only if a special permit is granted by City Council. The comiiussion has yet to vote on the final ordinance, which should come up again at the Sept. 2 meeting. Once approved, the ordinance will go to City Council. City Council referred the camping matter to the commission after receiving complaints about camping inside the city limits. The city zoning ordinance neither allows nor prohibits camping inside the city. Inside / COMICS........... . . 1 5C OPINIONS............ . 4A COUNTY AGENT____ ____6B PUBLIC RECORDS...... 12A CROSSWORD...... . . . . 6C SOIL CONSERVATIONIST . 6B DEATHS .......... . . . 12A SPORTS ............. V4B GERONIMO CREEK . . . . , . 7C SPRING BRANCH . 7C HOROSCOPE....... . . . 6C TAKING STOCK........ 12A KALEIDOSCOPE..... . . 1 5C WEATHER............ 12A John Anderson qualifies as independent on Texas ballot AUSTIN (AP) - Rep. John B. Anderson's name will appear on Texas' November ballot as an independent candidate for president, says Secretary of State George Strake. However, Texas Democrats continued to check today to see if there was a way to keep Anderson off the ballot. Anderson is expected to take away Texas votes from President Jimmy Carter, the Democratic nominee, if he appears as an independent. Strake told a news conference Tuesday that a sample of the 80,000 signatures submitted by Anderson's supporters had been checked and 73 percent of them proved to be legitimate, which would give him the 40,719 needed to get on the ballot. Strake also said similar checks of petitions gave the libertarian Party a place on the ballot but denied a ballot spot to the Socialist Workers Party and the Citizens Party. The proposed ordinance sets out permit procedures, lists required sanitary facilities, provides for notification of violations and stipulates semi-annual inspections Conuiussion members asked that a density guideline of a maximum of 20 campsites per acre be included, and also suggested a requirement for a screening fence six to eight feet high around the campground be changed to require a diam link fence six feet high. The commission also wanted to have existing campgrounds, which may not require a permit since they would be in existence before the ordinance is passed, to have to conform to health and safety regulations After reviewing the ordinance, commission member Mike Dieted wondered if a tent camping facility would be econoimcally feasible in the city. "Maybe we ought to reword the ordinance to say, We don't want camping in town,' " he said. Member Paul Bosenbury wanted to be sure the ordinance applied only to commercial facilities. Using commission colleague S.D. David as an example, he said, "What I'm worried about is this ordinance preventing S D. David's grandads from pitching a tent in his backyard." David later pointed out he didn't have any grandchildren. Ststffthulu* City Planner Debra Goodwin briefs the audience on annexation proposals ;
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New Braunfels Herald Zeitung Newspaper Archives
December 27, 1994
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New Braunfels Herald Zeitung (Newspaper) - December 27, 1994, New Braunfels, Texas TUESDAY ever, See Godley, P. 5 50 CENTS COUNTDOWN! 79 DAYS New Braunfels Sesquicentennial March 21,1845 New Braunfels Herald ??:UE8TMn£*0'ZZ/99 B pages in one section ■ Tuesday, Dec. 27,1994 Serving Comal County for more than 143 years ■ Home of DORALINE SCHULTZE ■ wm- JIW #■ *Inside Obituaries.......................................2 Comics*..........................................3 Opinion...........................................4 dday in history..............................4 Sports Day......................................5 he Marketplace.........................6-8StammlischBirthday wishes from the Herald-Zeitung! The New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung extends the following )irthday wishes to; Doraline Schultze, Barbara Welsh, Natal-e Oakes (6 years!), Mary Ann Van Horn, LaRue Christoph, Si). David, Jr., Stephanie Correia, Sarah Wetz, Frances Opsahl, Pat Randall, Bill Simmons, Jeanne Vaughn. Happy Anniversary to Tabitha & Mark Lyon (4 years).Donations to H-Z Cheer Fund continue Aiea citizens continue to submit donations to the Herald-Zeitung's annual Cheer Fund campaign, which provides food to needy local families for the Christmas holidays. Anyone wishing to donate can do so in person by coming by the Herald-Zeitung office at 707 Landa St. or call Cheer Fund Director Carol Ann Avery at 625-9144. Delivery will take plaice Thursday afternoon. Today's donations include: B Richard & Dona Caldwell -$100 B Judene, Leroy, Kyi a and Colby Goodson - $25 B Automotive Audio - $100 B Archie & Nancy Ladshaw -$100City's Christmas tree recycling underway The city of New Braunfels and New Braunfels Utilities began their annual Christmas tree recycling program in Landa Park, yesterday. An area in the swimming pool parking lot has been designated as the site to receive the trees. Approximately 1,491 trees were converted to mulch last Christmas. Approximately 7,448 trees have been mulched during the last seven years. Nails and other metal fasteners should be removed from the trees, officials said. The mulch is available free to residents,Bridal Showcase sat for Jan. 4 On Wednesday, Jan. 4, the New Braunfels Bridal Association will host its 14th annual Bridal Showcase at the New Braunfels Civic Center, 380 S. Seguin Ave. Admission is $3. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Anyone planning a wedding or are helping someone else who is, this will provide an excellent opportunity to gather information and guidance.New Year's Ive party planned Texas Nights will perform at the New Braunfels Civic Center on Dec. 31 from 9 pm to I am during a dance benefitting United Cerebral Palsy. CaU 1-800-798-1492 for ticket information. TN» ntwapap* la printed on recycled fWMprini Vehicle flips on 1-35 igaaiifyE Herald-Zeitung photo by MICHAEL DARNALL A Jeep Cherokee driven by Anthony Newsome of Austin flipped over on 1-35 (northbound lens) near the Solms Rd. bridge last night at approximately 11:40 p.m. Police reports state that Newsome tried to avoid an animal and lost control of the vehicle. However, Newsome suffered only minor Injuries. Deregulation of power industry has pros, cons Local officials point out advantages, disadvantages for open markets By TECLO J. GARCIA Staff Writer Local man dies while house goes up in flames By TECLO J. GARCIA Staff Writer New Braunfels Fire Department officials said Christmas lights may be the blame for an early Christmas morning fire that killed a man who had enough time to make two phone calls before being overtaken by fire. George Michael Martinez, 26, of New Braunfels died when he was overcome by the house fire on Washington St. Officials said Martinez may have attempted to re-enter the home to retrieve belongings. The home, at 338 N. Washington, was totaled by the flames. Fire Marshal Elroy Fricscnhahn said as fire personnel crossed the river from downtown to the north New Braunfels area, they could see the orange glow of the burning home. He said personnel received notice there was someone trapped in the home as they made their way to the scene. "Obviously when they arrived it was impossible for them to make a rescue attempt because the heat was so intense," Fricscnhahn said. Apparently Martinez called 911 to report the blaze and may have made another call, officials said. The front half of the house was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived. The origin of the fire was the front porch, where lights were placed around a window. Although the investigation into the fire has been completed, officials were still filing the reports and could not confirm whether the lights started the fire. They did say no foul play was involved. Martinez, a resident of New Braunfels, was employed at Casco New Braunfels. A rosary will be resighted at Zoeller funeral home tonight at 7:30 p m. and a funeral will be held tomorrow at 2 p.m. at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church. Those interested in donating to the family can contact the local Red Cross chapter as it is organizing an effort to help the family. Local unemployment drops to 3.8 percent By TECLO J. GARCIA Staff Writer The unemployment rate in Comal County dropped to 3.8 percent in November—-the lowest level in nearly IO years—the Texas Employment Commission announced Thursday. The rate has plummeted from 6.4 percent one year ago, a sign that the local economy continues to forge along in the county and statewide. In May of 1985, the unemployment rate dipped to 3.7 percent, and peaked out at 7.3 percent in Feb. 1988. The San Antonio Metropolitan area's, which Comal is included in by the TEC when compiling statistics, unemployment rate dropped to its lowest rate in IO years when it reached a 4.3 percent joblessness. In Comal County the unemployment rate decreased by two tenths of a percentage point from October. The number of jobless in Comal County decreased by 45, bringing the total unemployment to 1,145. Total employment increased by 282 over the month, and stood at 28,810 in mid-November. The New Braunfels office of the Texas Employment Commission has seen drop in regular customers, however, Office head Richard Bluhm said the commission is still doing business despite the lower rate. "Our activity has been high despite the drop because of unemployment insurance claims during the holiday period," he said. Bluhm said certain businesses shut down during the holidays and laborers seek compensation for the few idle weeks they have. The employees are not laid off, but the stoppage in work is expected, he said. For Guadalupe County the unemployment rate decreased by one tenth of a percentage point from October to November in the Guadalupe County area and stood at 2.7 percent. The number of jobless in that county decreased by 40, bringing total unemployment to 961. Total employment increased by 344 over the month, and it stood at 35,094 in mid-November. The Austin-San Marcos metropolitan area shared the honor of having the lowest unemployment rates and area with perennial champ Bryan-Col-lege Station with 3 J percent joblessness. Amarillo, Lubbock and San Angelo rounded out the top five. The McAUen-Edinburg-Mission area in the valley had the highest in the state with a 15 percent jobless rate with the Brownsville-Hartingen area a distant second at IO percent. Sesquicentennial displays Seven downtown businesses are featuring Sesquicentennial window displays through Jan. 1 in commemoration of the New Braunfels Sesquicentennial celebration of 1995. The Herald-Zeitung will begin featuring these displays in tomorrow's edition through Dec. 30. While wholesale buyers of electricity are licking their chops at the imminent deregulation of the power industry, it could be the regular citizen who benefits the least. Many power industry executives say deregulation of the power industry for wholesalers will give smaller power companies, which don't produce their own power like New- Braunfels Utilities, the opportunity to buy power at lower rates for their customers. However, if large retail customers such as factories leave the local utility, companies will be forced to raise rates to compensate for the lost revenue. "If all they do is cherry pick customers, what compensation would we get if they take our largest customers from us after we built all this service to them," said Jeff Thompson, NBU assistant general manager. Therein lies the heart of the problem with deregulation, experts say. The Texas Legislature will discuss the possibility of deregulating the power industry during the upcoming 1995 session. An interim legislative committee released a report last week asking that changes soon be made in the ■ industry. Deregulation will allow NBU, for example, to buy power from anyone in the country. It will give the Lower Colorado River Authority a chance to buy power at a lower price and pass it on to the customer for a lower price. Yet the original intent of the deregulation was to give the resident or retail buyer the opportunity to buy from1 whoever they wanted. They would not be limited to buying from the local power company. Local power entities say they favor open markets and competition, but if a family on Walnut St. wants to buy power from an Oklahoma power source, who will service the home when its lines go down during a storm, or when power goes out? Will the out of town company provide service or will it pay the local company to do so, industry experts ask. And who will the local company respond to first in an emergency, its loyal customers, or the ones who left its fold? "It will be a nightmare for retail customers if deregulation comes through," said Bennie Fuelberg, general manager of the Pedemales Electrical Cooperative. "It will make it more competitive, but there arc going to some people that will get burned." Thompson added: "Much like phone companies, people go with the cheapest one and the get what they pay for." The predictions of instability might be warranted as recent history shows us that deregulation of industry does not always go as planned in Texas, i.e. savings and loans. Industry officials believe that the industry will be opened up during the legislative session. Most utility officials contacted by the Herald-Zeitung said they favor deregulation, and believe it will happen soon but would like to limit it to wholesale only. They said if every power customer would be able to choose their own power company, it would cause too much confusion. Some national reports of "retail wheeling" said residents would soon be able to choose their electrical companies like they do their long distance carriers. In the South-Central area of Texas, that does not seem very likely in the near future. The LORA, which sells power to 800,000 customers in 33 cities and 11 cooperatives, said deregulation is nothing new because NBU did not have to buy power from the LCRA. NBU, however, does have a contract to buy power from the LCRA through the year 2016. "That's the kind of competition that all of our customers have had for years," said Robert Cullick, LCRA director of communications. 'It would not be much of a change to how we do business around here. We just want to be in the same competitive position after deregulation as before." Fuelberg said although residents will not be able to make their own deals with power companies, but said if local companies can negotiate deals for the lowest power, they will pass the savings along to the customer. "When all this pans out, I don't think much of this will happen," he said. "But what its going to do is make us and New Braunfels more competitive and make sure we provide good service to customers and the big plants.'' Independent power producers like DESTEC of Houston, have a vested interest in the deregulation of the industry. It would give them license to bargain with wholesalers statewide. The company even took a two page ad in Texas Monthly to advocate the new openness. "We feel the changes will provide for free and open competition in the state," said spokesman Marvin Brown. "We would like to compete." Harvest from the Heart Jreon Moi— carri— and aarvaa f'cd to Stavan and Trinidad VlHnrr—I at Harvaat from tha Heart Friday night at tha Haw Braunite Civic Cantar. Harvaat from tha Heart, a fr— holiday dinner for local needy and elderly people, waa sponsored by Molly Joe s Catering of New Braunfels. Herald-Z&4 tuna oho to bv MICHAEL DARNALL days a week! L ;
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History on the Edge: Excalibur and the Borders of Britain, 1100-1300
€ 42,49
Besorgung - Lieferbarkeit unbestimmt
April 2000
BeschreibungThe Arthurian legends are history written on the edge -- stories whose changing shape reflects the contested borders of medieval Britain. This is the argument Michelle R. Warren makes in this investigation of medieval history through the lens of postcolonial theory.Warren shows how Geoffrey of Monmouth's foundational Historia regum Britanniae engages in an ambivalent cultural struggle with the past. She traces this history's travels through Wales, where translators and editors recast it as a narrative of resistance to colonialism, and into southern England, where, in English, it becomes a retaking of British history from Norman domination.As the Arthurian texts cross the Channel, Warren shifts her focus to Continental narratives. Here we see how, in Normandy, Wace's Roman de Brut shares the aggressive vision of the Welsh, but from the perspective of the colonizers. In Champagne, resistance to the French monarchy engenders the monumental Arthurian prose cycle; and finally, in Brittany, Arthurian history becomes a moralized fable of acquisitive greed in the Gesta regum Britanniae. In conclusion, Warren turns to an exemplary scene of colonial contact -- Amerigo Vespucci's naming of America -- to demonstrate how medieval histories open new readings of modern colonial discourse.
Untertitel: 'Medieval Cultures (Hardcover)'. New. Sprache: Englisch.
Verlag: UNIV OF MINNESOTA PR
Erscheinungsdatum: April 2000
Seitenanzahl: 320 Seiten
Format: gebunden


text:
ZURB Blog
Posts About Sparks
Posts About Sparks
Make a Flipbook with Pure CSS
Just admit it, we've all done it. As designers working on responsive websites, we all grab the edge of our browser window and shrink it down to see how designs change and collapse. We thought it would be cool to add a bit of whimsy to this common interaction, or at least a little surprise and delight. We call it the CSS Flipbook!
Using some Sass and a tiny bit of HTML we recreate the feel of a flipbook. Grab the edge of your browser window and pull it back and forth for a nifty little animation, no JS necessary!
Check out the example in the Playground, download the code and start having some fun. There's all kinds of fun uses for this snippet and we'd love to see how creative you can get, so feel free to share yours with us in the comments! Who knows, we just might send you a special gift from the team!
How The Next Web Redesign Puts Content First
It's always thrilling to find others who share our passion for design and aren't afraid to take risks. We've worked relentlessly since 1998 to establish ourselves as leaders in the industry and are constantly looking for new ways to improve and take design further. Our Foundation family of open source frameworks has helped push the web forward, University has trained thousands of designers around the globe, 300 of the most innovative companies in the world have partnered with us to build better websites, products and services through our Studios business, and our design platform Notable has helped our team and others create better products. In order to maintain this level of quality and innovation, we're always on the lookout for new inspiration which is why we were so eager to dive into The Next Web's bold new redesign.
Through several conversations and a Notable annotated set of screens, we asked Co-Founder and CEO Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten and Lead Designer Alexander Griffioen some tough questions about why they made specific decisions, what kind of data was influencing their design and how the new design was helping them achieve their goals.
Bringing the Homepage Back from the Dead
Ironically, the thing that makes sites like The Next Web so much fun to read, constantly fresh content, is also one of their biggest problems. With new content coming in on a regular basis, sometimes by the hour, great articles were getting pushed off the front page and away from the eyes of readers.
We wanted to show more posts on the front page and have the option to move things around a bit and keep posts promoted for hours or even days. - Boris
For many publishers, the homepage is dead as most traffic goes directly to articles from social sharing and other sources. The team at TNW viewed this problem as an opportunity, the perfect place to try some new ideas and address some longstanding issues.
We feel having a single news stream with all content pouring in chronologically no longer makes sense. Tech has become too ubiquitous for a single stream to be relevant to everyone, so we split our front page news stream up into categories. - Alex
One of the first parts of the redesign that Boris and Alex started sketching out was the cover, an area that is so dynamic in traditional print but ironically stagnant on the web.
We found it striking that somehow newspaper publishers can completely overhaul their front pages every single day, yet us tech-savvy new media guys seem to be stuck with a single template. When Facebook acquired WhatsApp for $ 19 billion, didn't that merit a full-page announcement for at least a couple of hours? We wanted that freedom. - Alex
Boris, an ideas man, dreamed out loud of 'a Minority Report-esque interface that the editor-in-chief would resize and rearrange stories as they develop.' This novel idea inspired Alex and an elegant and versatile solution was born, the cover editor. Consisting of 6 pre-designed layouts, the cover editor gives editors the freedom to pick a layout that works best for the current news offering and fill the slots by dropping posts from the editor right into the cover.
The cover/hero section doesn't necessarily display our latest content. It could be stuff that we feel deserves more 'frontpage time' than it would otherwise get. - Alex
The New Navigation Situation
The Next Web is more than just a tech blog, they've got a wide range of other offerings that need to be easily accessible yet clearly differentiated to the user. The solution? A well labeled dropdown under the TNW logo.
In addition to that main navigation component, all of The Next Web's articles are now divided into 9 categories, the naming of which are guided by two simple criteria:
- The name has to be short, yet leave no doubt as to what type of content to expect there.
- Each section should have no or minimal overlap with the other sections
Nav is always a contentious subject, and this was no different for the The Next Web team.
This selection was actually months in the making and is probably the most updated Google Spreadsheet in the project. - Alex
Content is King
Ditching the content stream synonymous with the blog format, The Next Web divides their articles by subject and places them in neat rows they call 'shelves.'
Boris came up with the bookshelf metaphor; a horizontal list of latest stories. The irregular heights of the cards, akin to actual books on bookshelf, make for a 'pleasantly messy' UI. - Alex
Changes have also been made to the content in posts themselves. Instead of purely longform articles with the conventional title, image and body of text, posts can now consist of videos, galleries, columns, deals, quotes, etc., all represented with a distinct design that helps identify their nature.
Other design changes include a slick new sharing feature that automatically reduces the URL length and improved related article suggestions, but Alex is especially proud of of the updates in typography.
A typeface, to me, is like a voice narrating your content. The typeface determines whether the same words sound deep and masculine like George Clooney, or witty and quirky like Michael Cera. - Alex
Alex looked high and low for the perfect typeface, but the inspiration came from the strangest place. While riding past a Dutch employment agency, Alex spotted this window and fell in love. He snapped this pic and sent it to Boris immediately.
Serendipitously, the typeface is ARS Maquette by ARS Type, a one-man foundry situated a few streets away from TNW HQ.
I'm pleased to say our content now sounds like Bill Murray; witty, charming, and not without a sense of humor. - Alex
This passion for typography is shared among the team. Boris told us this hilarious story about a disagreement he had with the team about font size.
I remember I pushed hard for bigger font size on one part of the site, and after much heated debate I decided a certain font size really had to be 18pt and not 16pt. Alex hated it so much he talked to Laura and they made the changes as I wanted them but then every day from that moment on decreased that font size with 0.1pt. It was so subtle I didn't notice, but after 20 days it was at 16pt and we ended up launching the new site with that. They only recently told me about that and I thought it was hilarious and also very cool they really fought for what they thought was the better solution. - Boris
Ads That Can Be Confused With Art
A major challenge for any site collecting ad revenue are the size, location and behavior of ads. It's no secret that click through rates are dropping as people develop 'ad blindness' and use of adblockers rises every year. But more prominent or flashy ads take away from the user experience and can irritate users. There needed to be a way to increase the effectiveness of ads without being obnoxious. Boris was determined to figure out a solution that benefited everyone.
I challenged the team to think about an ad solution that was so cool that some readers would forget about the article they wanted to read because they were distracted by the beauty and interaction with the ad. If they would go so far as to even tweet about the ad we would've reached that goal. - Boris
With that challenge issued and the goals coming clearly into focus, Alex and his team jumped into action. The solution is one of the coolest parts of the the redesign, a bold concept they call 'Canvas Ads.' These gorgeous images typically incorporate bold photography and occupy the whole background of the article. Many slide the article to the right to give the ad full attention. Each canvas ad has 4 triggers that bring back the content for users, giving it an interactive feel. An interesting detail are the social sharing buttons directly on the ad itself. We know what you're probably thinking, 'Share buttons on an ad!?!' But according to Boris and Alex, it's working. The trick is the ingenious way the ads are selected. The ads don't always display commercial ads; about half contain art and portfolios from artists The Next Web team chooses. There are a few reasons behind this:
This has three advantages: the first advantage is for those artists we promote. They see their traffic grow and suddenly reach millions of readers around the world. The second advantage is for our readers. They see beautiful art works instead of ads. The third advantage is that it encourages our advertisers to produce really good looking ads. They compete with artwork so their ads better be works of art as well. - Boris
So the ads look nice and all, but are they performing? We pressed Alex for some numbers.
The results of the first series of canvas ads are well beyond everyone's expectations. Whereas the industry average CTR for display ads (i.e. rectangles, leaderboards) is around 0.2%, our canvas ads are doing between 4% and 8%. Our best performing ad so far had a 15% CTR. - Alex
Shaping the Future
All said and done, the redesign took about 8 months. No change was made lightly, as the team debated over even the smallest details like the number of milliseconds for the transition of canvas ads. The redesign is bold and in many ways bucks conventions, forging a new path for online media. This thinking, to leave no stone unturned and not be limited by status quo was intentional.
Once you decide you are free to do what you want you can challenge everything and things like 'but that's just how it's done' provoke only laughter. We constantly challenge ourselves and our industry to forget the old rules and really think about the best solution for everyone. It can be daunting and scary to not being able to rely on the past, but it also means you get to shape the future. - Boris
A bold design backed by solid data, The Next Web redesign does a great job of balancing business needs with a solid user experience and puts content front and center. We want to thank Boris and Alex for taking the time to chat with us about their redesign and all of the insights they provided.
Holy Changes, Batman! Surviving Negative Feedback
The Batman comic series has one of the most passionate fandoms in history, and never was this more apparent than in the summer of 2006 when it was officially announced that Heath Ledger had been cast as the film's iconic villain, the Joker.
The internet exploded as fanboys and fangirls largely panned the decision. Vitriol spewed from forums all over the web.
This guy couldn't act his way out of a paper bag.
I am NOT seeing this movie if he's in it.
Probably the worst casting of all time.
Believe it or not, there are a few lessons designers can learn from this story that can help us stay on track and focused as we develop new products.
Big Changes Can Spark Big Reactions
Director Christopher Nolan was tasked with completely revitalizing a damaged brand, and almost every part had to be refreshed to bring it back on track. As designers we are sometimes asked to completely refresh a product, fix a broken interface or improve an interaction. Our changes may be exceptional and undeniably better solutions than what existed previously, but we have something working against us. Science has proven that people don't like change. Whether we're aware of it or not, we all have a bias for the familiar. When we see something really different or unexpected like, say, the star of "10 Things I Hate About You" being cast as one of the greatest villains of all time, we tend to be negative.
Recently we had two members of the Rdio design team, Geoff Koops and Mike Towber, over for one of our Soapbox events. In the Fall of last year, Rdio underwent a drastic redesign that included bold use of album art, typography and image blur. It caught many people by surprise. Some users expressed frustration over some of the interface changes and were quick to voice their criticism on social networks.
Strong Opinions = Users Who Care
Nolan's unexpected casting decision prompted such a strong reaction because fans have an incredibly personal connection to the Batman mythos. In the same vein, Rdio's passionate users have a deep connection with music and the way they consume it.
"We are blessed with passionate users," Geoff said half-jokingly. While we all chuckled a bit, Mike was quick to expand on Geoff's thought, "It always feels great to have people care enough to say something." They touched on something that everyone who has created anything should understand: If people have strong opinions, even negative ones, it means they care. They care enough to voice their opinion. They're engaged with your product. These are the kind of users you want to have!
Keep Calm and Carry On
After launching our product or redesign, negative feedback can make us feel threatened, causing us to panic. There's a biological reason for this, our fight or flight response kicking in.
Recent neuroscience research has shown that our brains and bodies can respond to certain interpersonal situations the same way we react to literal threats to our physical safety.— Harvard Business Review
In the face of less-than-flattering feedback, our brains tell us we're in danger. We make hasty decisions as if our lives depend on it. These knee-jerk reactions can harm us in the long run. The solution? Stay calm and try to delay your response if possible.
Be Prepared to Fight for Your Ideas
At ZURB, we're not afraid to explore crazy or outlandish ideas. When we first dive into a project, we try to explore all kinds of things, because even bad ideas can lead to great ones. Riskier ideas require more support through the process, but that risk can often pay off in big ways.
Sometimes we need to step up to the plate and defend an idea to prevent others from trampling over it. Nolan's risky decision was based off of data he had gathered and long conversations with Heath about the direction he wanted to take the character and the story in general. He defended his choice to the media and had the data to back up his decision. The Rdio team did data gathering as well, through a custom tool built to test new ideas amongst different customer categories based on their behavior.
"It was ugly," joked Mike Towber, "but we tested tons of users. It helped us." The data this tool yielded influenced and validated their designs, making it possible for them to be confident in their choices.
In the End, Good Will Prevail
"The Dark Knight" was released in North America on July 18, 2008 to nearly unanimous acclaim. Nolan's epic crime drama captivated critics and audiences alike. Much of the buzz revolved around Heath's mesmerizing performance, which immediately spurred Oscar talk. Forums everywhere espoused Nolan's 'genius' casting choice, vindicating the director.
Rdio too, is enjoying an uptick in traffic due to their innovative redesign. Music is now exactly where it should be, front and center. Users are finding it easier than ever to discover and listen to music on their own terms, the main goal of the redesign.
There's much we can learn from both Christopher Nolan and the Rdio design team:
Stay calm: Don't take things personally. Passionate users are users who care. They're connected with our product on a deep level. Stay calm during that first wave of criticism and try not make any rash decisions. We should welcome feedback of all kinds and look for ways to improve, but hasty changes will hurt more than help us in the long run.
Make decisions with data: Nolan had several deep conversations and knew he had found someone with the talent and understanding to execute his vision. The Rdio team went to great lengths to understand their wide spectrum of users, analyzing listening styles and behaviors to find out what people value most.
Be prepared to defend your choices: If we've done our homework and feel strongly about our choices, be prepared to explain them to others. Truly great ideas need advocates, especially if they're a little crazy. Some of the biggest advancements in history came because people were willing to take risks, and design is no different.
We want to thank Geoff Koops and Mike Towber of Rdio for coming down and sharing their insights at our last Soapbox event. We're incredibly excited to sit down with our next guest, Tim Van Damme of Dropbox at noon PST April 24!
Your Brand is Like a Television Show
"The ZURB sitcom," proclaimed our Chief Instigator about a year or so ago. A sitcom? What did he mean by that? At the time, we were considering how exactly we were communicating our story on the blog and our approach to content creation. But our Chief Instigator sparked an idea in us. There's a reason people love sitcoms ... well, television in general. There's something familiar in it, something that keeps the audience coming back again and again.
Now, he wasn't suggesting that we abandon design and start filming our own weekly show. But television is the perfect model for writing a brand story. A lot of television shows are brands in themselves. With that, we took a hard long look at what made certain shows successful — "Star Trek," "Friends," "I Love Lucy" and a few others.
Shows have an addictive quality to their premises, worlds and characters. These three crucial ingredients make up any episode in any show. Take your pick: "Star Trek" or "Mad Men" or "Breaking Bad." And these elements are something that any brand or piece of content can ape. When talking about brand, most start with voice and tone. And for good reason, because what you stand for as a company is very important to creating that tone and voice. But to create that voice and to understand that tone, we can look to the magical ingredients television has to offer. Which is precisely what we did.
The World, the Situation and the Characters
Let's break it down a bit more. Any television show has these three elements:
- There are characters who get into adventures and misadventures.
- There's a world that they inhabit, where they interact and where those escapades take place.
- There's a situation — a premise — in each episode.
And every show has a pitch line. For instance:
- "I Love Lucy": Lucy Ricardo is a New York housewife who always tries to get one over on her husband, nightclub singer Ricky Ricardo.
- "Friends": Six friends living in New York navigate the turbulent single scene.
- "Star Trek": A group of intrepid explorers venture into the depths of space on a five-year mission to seek out new life and civilizations.
The pitch is very important when it comes to television. Survive the pitch and you get to make a pilot (think of it of a prototype of what the show will be). When it comes to brand, you'll want to survive at least past the pilot to become something that airs from week to week for a long run.
Brand as a Television Show Pitch
A'right, time to put on those showrunner hats. We're going to show you how to walk into a pitch meeting and sell your "show" (read: product) so you can get the green light to make your pilot. First, let's take a look at a huge successful brand story — Coca-Cola. This is a brand that's got its story down. The story has evolved over the decades yet stayed so familiar. Coca-Cola is still about a shared experience.
If you were to pitch the show that is Coke to a room full of studio execs, you would say:
People around the world who share their time with each other over a Coke.
And that's the story they've worked hard to tell for more than 100 years. Coke is about sharing happiness with another person. As Bill Backer, creative director of the "I'd like to buy the world a Coke" ad, once said:
I began to see the familiar words, 'Let's have a Coke,' as a subtle way of saying, 'Let's keep each other company for a little while.
So let's go back a second to the world of Coke. It's the entire world, sure. But there's a mission in there as well: "sharing and togetherness." It informs their characters and the situation of their brand. And it gives them a unique voice that enables storytelling.
Through storytelling, Coke is able to create an emotional connection. They've evolved to be about happiness — but the mission remains the same, as do the characters and the situation. And with that, Coke has created a unique voice and brand that resonates.
Crafting a Better Brand Pitch
OK, Coke was easy. What about something with more opportunity craft a better story ' the Internal Revenue Service, or the good ol' IRS. Yes, folks, it's tax season for those of us in the States. And if there's a bigger brand than Coke, it has to be the IRS because only two things are certain in life: death and taxes. The IRS actually predates Coke by a mere 24 years, but the IRS has a bad rep, one that it's been unable to shake. The IRS has a reputation of poor customer service, where folks wait hours on end in lines or get the so-called courtesy disconnect (read: they hang up on you on purpose). And that's sent taxpayers on a flame war against the governmental agency.
But as John Oliver points out on his Late Night show, is it really their fault? After all, the IRS budget and workforce has been slashed amid scandals of overspending and wasted efforts, like a "Star Trek" parody that boldly went nowhere. But the most cardinal sin of all is that the IRS just comes across as plain boring, which John Oliver is also quick to point out. As a governmental body, they're all facts and no personality. Just check out this tweet:
#IRSYouTube: 'When will I get my #tax refund?'#IRS http://t.co/wHumgAX5Mh— IRS (@IRSnews) April 12, 2015
Money and parting with it can spur strong emotions. But there's no emotional connection from the IRS. Where's the soul? There doesn't seem to be an understanding of the world they live in, or who their characters are in their story. They don't seem to be aware of the emotions that money can stir. What they need is a better brand pitch.
How would you pitch the IRS? First, lets define the world. It's certainly not the cold government buildings the IRS occupies. It's a bit broader than that. It's all 50 states, from sea to shining sea. The characters are the taxpayers, of course. Now the situation. Well, that's tricky because we've vilified the agency with a nefarious purpose. But our taxes pay for things that keep the country ticking. Yet is that a situation that speaks to people? Not really. A situation that relates more to their investment. You've got to speak more on a dollar to dollar basis, like:
Say what? $1 of tax enforcement yields $6! Now that's a pitch. You mean to say that the money that goes into the system has a return? Now let's pitch the heck out of this to our Studio execs. Here we go:
The safest investment for your money that yields $6 for every dollar spent on tax enforcement.
Get to Make Your Pilot
A pitch can help your brand create a stronger story that is consistent, and tells a compelling yarn that customers will want to be part of. And by figuring out what your world is, what is the situation in that world, and who your characters are, you can create your unique voice. And tell your story. More importantly, you'll survive the pilot season and get to make your show ... um, product.
Don't Hoard Those Boxes of Old, Rusty Skills
Congratulations, you've arrived. Maybe you're a clean slate, tabula rasa, and this is your first job. Or not. After all, the dynamic is changing among the new generation of workers, where it's more common to leave one job for another. Whichever it is, you've done the work to get your new job. You've impressed people. You've hobnobbed with the hiring folks, the company's leadership and its team. Let's face it, you basically assembled the shrine of the silver monkey and got that new job. But now what?
Because you'll come to see that the job is not exactly like your last gig. We've learned over the years at ZURB that a degree of unlearning has to happen. Why? Because the educational system shoves us through memory and rote learning, thereby possibility killing our ability to be creative. And that's something we carry into the workforce where we strive for the "A," wanting everything laid out in front of us so we can pass. But in design and knowledge work, that's rarely the case. There is no clear point-by-point path or crib notes.
Unpacking Your Previous Knowledge
The "A" mentality of education can be detrimental to a learning organization, where answers aren't always apparent and can't be gleaned from a textbook. We've worked hard to create a learning environment that encourages not only learning new skills, but also encourages unlearning stagnant ways of doing things.
Why? Because what's needed these days isn't someone who's skilled in just one thing, but someone that has a deep knowledge and is able to work across many disciplines. Google calls this polymath a full-stack employee. We call it T-shaped. Regardless of what it's called, he or she is simply a person who's willing to unlearn one way of doing things and not be confined solely by past experiences.
It's important to be open to letting go of the previous way you've done things. Think of it as moving into a new, tiny apartment — an empty studio at first, and it's up to you to transform it into a swank place to live. You'll have to unpack what you need and box the rest.
Storing Your Past Experience … Until You Need It
Now, we aren't saying your past experiences don't matter or that you should denounce what got you here. They are still important because they got you hired make you valuable to your new team and show the potential of what you can do next. It's just that your new team does things a little differently is all.
The value of your past comes from applying previous situations to new ones. For example, if you learned how to solve problems a particular way at your last company, and the solutions still work, then keep using them. But be prepared to learn other ways to solve the same problem that might be even better or help you out even more.
And this is where systems thinking comes into play, where you're thinking less about how solving problems affect you and more how they impact the whole of an organization. As Peter Senge, writer of "The Fifth Discipline" puts it:
We learn best from our experience, but we never directly experience the consequences of many of our most important decisions.
At ZURB, we're a learning organization that helps foster learning. But learning for the sake of learning isn't enough. Personal mastery doesn't always equate to organizational learning. So while your experience is important, when you're part of a new organization you'll have to figure out how that fits into the larger whole.
Don't Sell Off Those Old Skills Just Yet
Let's get one thing straight, however. We're not saying to garage sale your past experiences. You'll want to hold on to those experiences even if you're not practicing them now — you'll never know when the need will pop up. For example, I've had a total of five different roles through my career from face-to-face customer service to training to HR. I have all those skills, some I proudly display for all to see. Others I only bring out during special occasions like ZURBmas.
Inevitably, you will have ways of doing things that you'll have to put into a storage closet for later. Or you'll have to work a different way than you're used to. For some of our newer designers, it can be quite a shock at first doing visuals they way we do them at ZURB. We don't just make a solitary designer create visuals for a project. We have two other designers also come up with visuals. We're don't just pit designer against designer here. We're actually passing along knowledge. A designer who might not be as strong in visuals can learn from someone who is. Of course, the skills that the new designer has in visual design still comes into play, but now she or he can reframe how they actually work.
Don't worry too much if you can't figure out which past skills are relevant. It'll take a while to figure out how they apply to the new ones you'll gain. It'll take you some time to sort out what you'll keep and what you'll store in your brain attic. You won't have all the answers on your first day. There will be a moment when you might feel like you're trapped in limbo between old job and new job. Stop. Breathe. It'll pass.
Learn All That is Learnable
Be a sponge in the first few weeks. That'll help you get over any apprehension. Learn all that is learnable at your new organization. And that takes a certain amount of unlearning, while you're adapting and moving away from the past toward tomorrow.
Wherever you go in life, you'll need to keep learning. Your job will change and your skills will need to evolve too. There is always more you can learn. After all, it's not like after 8th grade you say, "this is all the science I need," and stop learning new things about science. Even if a new skill is similar to something you've done already — learn what's different about it.
One thing that occasionally challenges our new designers is the art of writing an email that drives action. Here's where unlearning becomes crucial because we've all picked up nasty email habits over the years, where their emails have no clear objectives, tend to ramble and have no clear call to action. New designers have to purge themselves of those habits in order to write client and internal emails that are clear and directive. This is where they have to unlearn something in order to learn it anew.
You can't be opposed to acquiring new knowledge. It might take a lot of upfront effort on your part. It's hard to admit that you don't know something. But saying something as simple as "I don't know, but I'll find out" shows you're human and committed to finding the answer.
Learning is also symbiotic within an organization. There's institutional knowledge — like writing emails — that can be passed down or learned through osmosis. And there is an obligation to coach newbies in an organization. But there's also an obligation for someone to better themselves and pass some of those skills on to others.
In order to be really good at your job or what you're working on, you have to work on learning how. Think about your new, tiny studio apartment again. If you were told to decorate it, you could just tape up some posters of your favorite band. Or you could go the extra mile and learn how to create art of your own to put up. And the latter will certainly be more fulfilling than just sticking a few posters on the wall.
Stories Not Screens
It's no secret that web design has its roots in print. In the early days of the web, the influence of print on web design was pretty inescapable. Websites were essentially virtual brochures, static pages with little or no interactivity. Designers were still learning the potential of this new medium and the technology had to mature. Slowly but surely, the differences between print design and web design became evident. But many designers are still thinking of their designs in terms of screens and images.
At one of our recent Soapbox events, Braden Kowitz, Design Partner at Google Ventures summed it up perfectly:
When you look at how people use products, they don't look at the screen, they don't look at the feature. They take this pathway through all your screens and features' So what you really need to design is that experience and that story.
Thinking of themselves as storytellers might be a new concept for many designers, but it's a fitting analogy. Unlike print designs, which serve a singular purpose and are meant to be viewed, design work on the web is entirely interactive. Users take various pathways through websites and apps as they try to accomplish a variety of things. Designers gently guide their users around obstacles, shepherding them to desired outcomes.
Put Yourself in Your User's Shoes
In order to become a successful storyteller, designers need to develop empathy. Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of others, to put yourself in their shoes. Designers need to know their users. They need to understand exactly what the user is trying to accomplish and care about their experience through the entire process. Even with the best planning, there will always be problems you didn't think of, interactions you didn't anticipate or things you didn't take into consideration. The only way to discover these issues is by trying a design yourself.
Braden and his team do this through sketches, a process he calls "story-centered design." He describes these mockups and their purpose like this:
Designers present every sentence the customer reads, every action they take, and every screen that system generates in response. The designs follow a customer from an initial trigger all the way through completing a goal, and they show how the design supports every step in that flow.
Like any good author, designers need to know exactly how their stories end so they can guide their users most effectively, knowing exactly which routes are available and designing the most pleasant experience.
Storytelling is in Our Blood
At ZURB, we've always thought of product design as storytelling, and we've been using Progressive Design to sharpen our storytelling skills and create amazing experiences. Our process has many steps that ensure we keep the user in mind at all times, because we design for people.
As with most anything at ZURB, it all starts with sketching. Like Braden and his team, we sketch out each screen and map out every workflow. Even at this very lo-fi level, we begin to define the paths users will take to achieve their goals. The next step is scanning these sketch sheets into clickable prototypes using Solidify. This tool in the Notable Platform helps us to interact with our designs as close to how the end user will as possible, exposing anything we left out and helping us refine our work.
The Progressive Design process involves constant iteration and feedback. We share our work with the rest of the team, inviting them to respond with any questions or concerns. If we're working with a client for our Studios business, we walk them through each workflow, using user personas to explain how different customers will interact with the product or website. If anything isn't working along the way, we step back, ideate more solutions, and test again. At times we use surveys to gather information about how real people interact with our work. This data helps us improve our stories.
Only when the workflows and paths within our products are complete do we focus on on polishing our visuals and refining our interactions. This user-centered approach helps us to eliminate problems early, prioritize the workflows and help our users accomplish their goals.
A Shared Story
It was great to hear how Braden and his team agree that designers need to be storytellers, a sentiment that many of our Soapbox guests have touched on as well. We'd like to thank Braden for taking time out and sharing his insights with us and our audience.
We're looking forward to our next event with Geoff Koops and Mike Towber of Rdio, amazing designers who have been telling some engaging stories with their users. We hope you can join us at the next Soapbox!
Shoppers Don't Want Your M-Dot Site
Imagine for a sec that you're an ecommerce retailer. It's Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the United States and the cornerstone sales day of brick-and-mortar stores. But you get a huge spike of traffic and someone snags a $25,000 clutch from a mobile device. Which is exactly what happened one Black Friday for One King's Lane.
That one incident pushed One King's Lane to focus on perfecting their mobile shopping experience. As Doug Mack, then-CEO of One King's Lane, said:
Your business model either leans on mobile or it doesn't.
At the time, 30% of One King's Lane traffic came from a mobile device, most of that from a tablet. Sales from mobile make up one-third of One King's Lane sales. So the retailer worked furiously on releasing a universal iOS app, but haven't done a responsive site. Instead, they have a server-side adaptive site. A lot of brick-and-mortar retailers have followed similar paths, jumping on mobile but not going responsive.
87% of Retailers Aren't Responsive ... Say What?
Traffic for online shopping is huge, many retailers split their traffic roughly 50/50 between mobile and desktop, such as Amazon and Target. Yet, surprisingly, 87% of the top 100 retailers aren't responsive, shuffling shoppers to an m-dot site which can be a nightmare for shoppers.
Why's that? Show me the numbers, Mrs. Landingham.
Not everything is available on an m-dot site and the shopping experience is, well ' less. M-dots take longer to load — more than 4.8 seconds and 40% of shoppers will bolt or throw their phones in frustration if it takes more than three seconds to load. And nearly six times as many mobile shoppers would rather ditch the m-dot site for the full-blown site even if it's a horrid mobile experience.
When it comes to performance, responsive web sites are in a dead heat with m-dots and, in some cases, can slightly edge out their m-dot cousins.
Too Many Codes to Maintain When a Single Codebase Will Do
M-dots have another disadvantage. It means having an entire other codebase to maintain. Twice the work and twice the team to manage those separate code bases or using a server-side solution — one that takes your existing site and serves up another, entirely separate mobile site for the shoppers on the go.
Responsive sites allow retailers to have a single codebase that can be maintained by a single team. It also helps retailers find life beyond the app store. With more and more tools, such as Foundation for Apps, there isn't any real reason for ecommerce to turn to m-dots rather than a responsive site. And there are certainly code blocks — such as responsive pricing tables, masonry grids and product listings — to help retailers make the leap easier.
M-Dots Are the Way of the Dinosaur
If most mobile shopper prefer the full site, then they obviously want parity when it comes to the buying things from their phones or tablets. And they bounce right out of an m-dot, so why are retailers still clinging to it? Having one codebase, one site can allow them more parity and give their shoppers everything they're looking for.
Mesmerize Users With Something Unexpected
You're out on the town with friends and you decide to find a place to eat. Whipping out your cell phone, you launch the Yelp app and scroll through nearby restaurants. Suddenly, you see it peeking at you from behind the menu — a hamster. You begin pulling the menu down to set it free only to watch the hamster jump into a rocket and blast off!
Did this funny easter egg help you accomplish your task? No. But did it bring a little joy or excitement to the experience? Definitely.
This kind of unexpected detail is an example of "Surprise and Delight," a design trigger that can make any experience more exciting and keep users engaged. Two talented designers recently came through ZURB HQ to get on their Soapboxes with different perspectives about surprise and delight and the role it plays in their designs.
Marissa Louie, of Yahoo, brought up the word "enchantment" again and again when describing her designs. Her goal as a designer is not just to provide a solid, usable interface, but to create an experience that connects with users emotionally. To accomplish this, she employs surprise and delight to create "sticky experiences" that keep users engaged and coming back for more.
On the other hand, Wesley Yun of Lytro was hesitant about devoting too much attention to unnecessary visual details. For Wesley, a designer's main focus should be making sure the product accomplishes its purpose. He warned that too much attention on extra details can actually harm the design, rendering it less effective.
So when should designers use this trigger, and how can they use it effectively?
Surprise and Delight Right
Surprise and delight increases satisfaction and makes experiences more exciting, but as with any tool, it needs to be used properly to be effective. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
Visuals Will Only Take You So Far
No amount of visual appeal can make up for a product that doesn't work right. That's why sketching is so important to us here at ZURB. Before we even write one line of code or draw one graphic, we focus on creating solid, useable and useful designs with Sharpies and paper. If something isn't working or doesn't feel right, we scrap the idea and move on.
If something is really working at that lo-fi level, we know it will be amazing once we add all the visual polish. It's only at that point where we start thinking of embellishing the designs with some surprise and delight.
Keep in Mind the Context
Meaningful surprises can make user experiences more engaging, fostering brand loyalty and encouraging customers to dig deeper into a site. But if you're not careful, surprises can disrupt the normal flow of activity, irritating users rather than delighting them.
Mint, a personal finance website and app, does a good job of employing surprise and delight at just the right moments. It's typically a disheartening experience stumbling across a 404 page, but Mint softens the blow with this unique and humorous image:
Introducing some surprising element while a user was connecting their bank account or entering some important financial information would probably not be a welcome addition and have undesirable consequences.
The product itself may determine if it's appropriate to include surprise and delight, and to what degree. The customers that Wesley is designing for are in many cases using the Lytro cameras for work and have an expectation of reliability. For photographers, nothing can get in the way of capturing the perfect moment. Wesley called this the "can't fail" moment. In this application, a user would definitely not want any surprises. Distractions would be detrimental to the product accomplishing its purpose.
Marissa uses surprise and delight in Yahoo News Digest, an app designed to inform and entertain users. In this context, there is greater freedom to surprise users with unexpected details that turn an otherwise predictable experience into an exciting one.
Find the Right Frequency
Surprises by their definition do not occur at regular or predictable intervals. If the unexpected is expected, it loses its meaning and effectiveness. Experiment with the amount of surprises you include to determine what the right balance is. Sometimes less is more.
One site that breaks this rule is Flickr. Every time you log in you'll be greeted in a different language. While the greeting is expected, it's always delightful seeing it in a new language. Bonjour, Flickr!
It's Not All Visual
The amount of appropriate surprise and delight will vary according to the product and so will the format. Sometimes something as small as some playful copy or unexpected interaction element can come as a surprise.
Normally, website footers are straightforward and stale, but Campaign Monitor catches us off guard with a bit of humor in their heading:
Surprise and delight doesn't have to be aggressive or blatant to be effective, subtle touches can be just as compelling.
As Always, Go With Your Gut
Ultimately, there are no hard and fast rules and it's up to designers to use their good judgement. The amount and kind of surprise and delight that will be effective largely depends on the product, the user and the goals of the project.
We want to extend a special thank you to Marissa Louie and Wesley Yun for sharing their insights with us at their Soapboxes. We're looking forward to our next guest, Braden Kowitz, Design Partner at Google Ventures, tomorrow at noon. We hope you can join us for what is sure to be another exciting Soapbox!
Design Collaboration is Lonely
When it comes to collaboration, you need two or more to tango. You can't collaborate all by your lonesome. Well, you could, but then you'd be Edward Norton in "Fight Club" conspiring with Tyler Durden. But to get the most out of a collaboration you have to do design work upfront. And that can be a lonely effort, even in an open-office environment that encourages collaboration.
Let's define design collaboration first. It's Design Thinking in action. When you have a creative team with fantastic ideas, sometimes things can get a bit fuzzy. After doing work, you need a second opinion because you're too close to your ideas. Collaboration allows you to get feedback on those ideas. You might find new sparks in that collaboration, or you might find that your ideas aren't quite cooked. It's easier to collaborate when you don't have a physical barrier between you and another designer.
Check out any startup and you'll find an open floor plan. A German team conceived of an office not shackled with walls and room in the 1950s. (An aside: Frank Lloyd Wright considered an enclosed office to be fascist.) Offices without walls have been around for quite some time as newsrooms everywhere before they were all the rage in Silicon Valley. Steelcase, the office furniture company that once bought design firm IDEO, is a big proponent of an open office. Why the appeal? Because an open-floor plan removes the barriers, literally, and encourages collaboration. Which is why our office at ZURB HQ is open.
The Cost of an Open Office?
The startup world assumes that open floors are great for ideas, and they are. Sparks fly quickly around ZURB. But there's also a cost associated with having an open office space. There is a barrage of distractions that could increase your blood-pressure and stress. Not everyone is a fan of them. 37 Signals imposes "library rules" to keep things pretty quiet in their open office.
Jason Fried, 37 Signals co-founder, is big into remote working, saying the office is the worst place to get work done. However, presence is crucial in collaboration. You can't balance collecting feedback and presenting those ideas if you're not in the office. Working remotely, you're siloed. Collaboration can't happen in a vacuum.
Doing Your Homework
Design is collaborative by nature. And working jointly is a handshake with your team, customers and potential customers that you're out for the best answer, not just an answer. And it gets you through the Design Feedback Loop, where you do work, present it, get feedback and iterate on it.
But the vast majority of the time is spent doing work, and that's what designers think is more valuable. Why does it take a long time? Design work takes long periods of time executing by yourself. Because if you're going to seek feedback, you have to be iterative and think through problems on your own first — from hypothesis to sketching to wireframing to layout. And it's hard to collaborate when you're doing work because the tools are often solitary. You have to commit to your ideas with homework before you collaborate. That's where most companies go wrong, wanting to get consensus before committing to any work. It's a one to 10 ratio when it comes to collaboration to doing work alone. The valuable part often is the collaboration, where you can get feedback.
Let's look at how many hours one of our designer logged on a recent client project. He worked 148 hours out of the 180 total project hours. That roughly breaks down to 21 hour per week. Out of those 21 hours, two hours were on calls with the client. An even smaller amount of time, another hour or so, was spent getting feedback from the project's lead. Doing rough math, the designer worked 17 hours on his own before collaborating. When there was collaboration, either with the lead and copywriter (me) on the project, the designer was able to get feedback so he could iterate. What was really valuable, however, was spending that time with his other teammates after a client call. The lead was able to help decipher their clients feedback, which gave the designer the confidence to push forward. The smaller amount of time ended up creating greater impact on his work.
But you can't just get feedback without putting in the work. And that sort of collaboration can't happen if you're miles away from the office.
What's Ahead in 2014 for Responsive Web Design?
2013 was a big year for responsive design. In fact, if you read around the Web a bit you might hear that 2013 was the "Year of Responsive Design". That might be true — around the turn of last year, there were major sites coming out with responsive designs, like Time Magazine or Mashable (and frankly, thousands of others). If nothing else, 2013 was the year of responsive design going mainstream, even becoming something designers and consumers just expect to see. That's pretty hot.
2013 was also a big year for responsive tools: Foundation 4 came out in February, Bootstrap 3 came out in August and Foundation 5 came out just a few weeks ago. Yahoo! got in the game in May with the release of Pure, and the team at Thoughtbot has continued to push Bourbon Neat. There were new plugins, polyfills and practices that became popular in 2013. In general, building responsive sites has never been easier or had more powerful tools.
So let's prognosticate a bit: what should we expect to see in 2014 in responsive Web design?
Smarter Responsive Design
2014 will be a year full of a much better and deeper understanding about how we build and optimize sites for any device. Responsive sites have always suffered from varying degrees of optimization issues, but we're getting a bit better about the tools now, and best practices are starting to emerge and standardize. Things like the now ubiquitous "hamburger" nav icon and off-canvas panels are becoming relatively common and genuinely work well responsively.
Device capability detection, selective loading of assets and media, better optimization for device speed and hardware. These are all going to be better explained and much easier to implement with new tools and plugins.
Greater Device Agnosticism
Device classes have always been hard to pin down, but the stereotypical mobile-tablet-desktop paradigm is going to completely fall apart in 2014. We already have devices that fall neatly between what we commonly consider to be a phone and a tablet, or tablet and desktop. But now we also have wearable computing (watches, heads up displays ... who knows, maybe we'll see the long-rumored Apple watch). There's also smart TVs and other home media appliances that are Web-enabled.
We'll see responsive design move even further into truly device-agnostic design. That means we can plan for devices that don't exist yet more cleanly, as well as take better advantage of specific capabilities and constraints.
Fancier Frameworks
It would hardly be us if we didn't talk about what's to come for frameworks, like Foundation. The area we see with lots of opportunity in 2014 are complex tools with many components and means of input, as well as trickier data models to display. So far responsive design has been used in large part for marketing or content sites, not complex apps. To get the ball rolling, we're rebuilding all of our Product Design Apps to be responsive and built on Foundation. Our plans include placing a number of Web-app centric components and plugins in Foundation. That will make building a complex app as straight-forward as creating a marketing site or simple content page.
2014 is going to be a big year in responsive design. So with that, we want to welcome you to the New Year!
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Knight earns new deal
By Peter ORourke
Last Updated: 01/01/70 1:00am
Zat Knight has signed a new two-year deal at Fulham.Zat Knight has signed a new two-year deal at Fulham.
The giant defender has ended speculation over his future by inking a two-year contract extension to keep him at Craven Cottage until the summer of 2010.
Fulham boss Lawrie Sanchez is a big fan of Knight's and believes he has a key role to play in his side.
"Since I arrived at the club I've been impressed with Zat's commitment and attitude both on and off the pitch," Sanchez told the club's official website.
"He has a good understanding of the game which is reflected in his positional play.
"It's no secret that we conceded too many goals last season and that's something I'm determined to change.
"With the right back four, that will happen, and I'm sure that Zat will have a big part to play in my plans, so I'm delighted that he has committed his future to Fulham."


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The controversial free school programme has attracted some unexpected founders. But Will Kennard of Chase and Status could be the most surprising yet.
Kennard, whose band is best known for its – and this is not a technical description – big-stadium take on dubstep and drum'n'bass, will launch his specialist music school for 16- to 19-year-olds in September 2014. The application process for a place at East London Arts and Music (ELAM), in Tower Hamlets, opens at the end of the week.
This seems an odd move for a dance chart star, but Kennard has educational experience. After dropping out of university, he took jobs as a bell boy, waiter and shoe-shop assistant before seeing an advert in the local paper for part-time music teachers. He went along to the North Trafford College open day, and was signed up. He hadn't wanted to teach. "Truth be told, I was trying to make it myself as a musician. I didn't have any money. I got into [teaching] as a way to feed myself while I was trying to fund my own career development." But, he says, he "very quickly fell in love with it" and, from that, "the idea started brewing".
Kennard won't be teaching at the free school. He says he has worked daily for the past two years to submit the application. Sitting on the governing body will take up enough time, he thinks. (Chase and Status have just released their third album, Brand New Machine, and are about to go on tour).
He claims he is not worried by recent coverage of the Al-Madinah free school in Derby and others. "I hope the public's perception doesn't become more negative because of a few bad examples. I want ELAM to serve some of the poorest, most vulnerable young people in the country and give them the kind of access that only the privileged can have." He sees his role as "making sure that the school engages with the music industry". Universal, Sony and Warner have signed up as backers.
What sort of education did he have? "A very privileged education," he says, at St Paul's in London. After that came a brief stint at Manchester University, where he got to know Saul Milton, Chase to Kennard's Status.
So what do his fellow musicians make of his new move? Milton is "supportive". Plan B, who has his own educational initiative, "said he'd wished something like this had existed when he was young", says Kennard. "He lived in Forest Gate and had to go to a community centre in Camden just to play a guitar for free."
Kennard and Milton also work as producers – for X Factor winner Alexandra Burke, among others. Will ELAM be an X Factor-style school? "Success certainly isn't based on our graduates becoming pop stars," he says. "Our target is that 60% move into higher education, 40% into employment or paid vocational work. We are not trying to promote some fame academy here. It's about broadening people's horizons, giving them confidence in what they want to do." The school's administrator says this week's taster sessions have been oversubscribed. More will run in November. More than 200 prospective students have already registered their interest. Perhaps Kennard is on to something.


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Yes, the much anticipated Steam Summer Sale has finally arrived! Come for the insanely cheap publisher bundles, but stick around for the new deals they'll be posting every single day …Continue reading →
Might and Magic: Heroes VI
- RATING: T - Teen
- DEVELOPER(S): Black Hole Entertainment
- PUBLISHER: Ubisoft
- RELEASE DATE: Oct 13, 2011
Might and Magic Heroes VI is multiplayer Turn-based Strategy game for the PC platform. The sixth game in the fantasy based Might & Magic series, Might and Magic Heroes VI is a prequel to the previous game in the series. Set in the realm of Ashan, it revolves around the resurrection of a long-dead Archangel, needed in a current time of war, but who may also have his own ideas and ambitions in a brave new world. Game features include: an extensive list of building possibilities, RPG elements, a deep list of possible artifacts and relics to discover, a reputation system, a sizable selection of factions and more.
PC gamers hoping to spend next week with their favorite Ubisoft titles might want to make other plans. In a stated attempt to "deliver better uptime and greatly improved services" …Continue reading →
For the second weekend in a row, the authentication servers governing access to Ubisoft-published PC games are offline, denying legitimate customers access to important game play features and, in some …Continue reading →
Strategy gamers hoping to kick off the new year by exploring Thallan woke up disappointed today, unable to connect to the authentication servers for Ubisoft's Might and Magic Heroes VI …Continue reading →
Ring in the new year Rapture-style with today's new Steam Holiday Sales! It's a day for shooting zombies in the head, friends in the back, suspects in the leg, and …Continue reading →


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Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
Been there, plundered that.
Been there, plundered that.
A full feature with a storyline that an enterprising six-year-old might have thought was a little too rudimentary.
Roger Ebert on James Ivory's "Howards End".
"The Ballad of Narayama" is a Japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice, telling a story of startling cruelty. What a space it opens…
A look at three films from Cannes from our very own critic, Simon Abrams.
Three reviews from Cannes, including the latest from Francois Ozon and the Safdie brothers, along with a special out of competition screening.
An article about the reissue of "Two Weeks in the Midday Sun."
Pure metal.
PBS' American Masters has a special four-hours for foodies, with docs on James Beard, Jacques Pepin, Alice Waters and Julia Child.
A report on the L.A. Riots and the many documentaries looking back on it 25 years later.
A writer and his BB-8 watch all eight of the "Star Wars" films in numerical order.
The latest on Blu-ray and streaming, including "Get Out," "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter," "The Great Wall," "Dheepan," and "XXX: The Return of Xander Cage."
I am afraid of heights. Now you know. That is one reason I was helplessly engrossed in "Man on Wire," the story of how Philippe Petit crossed eight times on a tight-wire between the two towers of the World Trade Center on Aug. 7, 1974. Another reason is that the documentary, a hybrid of actual and restaged footage, is constructed like a first-rate thriller.
Early in the film, we see what we think is sadly familiar footage: Construction workers and huge trucks and cranes, at work in the footprint of one of the WTC towers. At first I thought this was film of the clean-up after 9/11. As the scene develops, I realized I was watching an early stage in the construction of the towers. The film shows the towers growing, huge steel beams being lifted, the puzzle being put together. As it happens, 9/11 is not even mentioned in the film, which is the right decision, I think. "Man on Wire" is about the vanquishing of the towers by bravery and joy, not by terrorism.
We meet Philippe Petit, a French wire-walker, magician, unicyclist and street performer, who tells us he was sitting in a dentist's office when he saw a drawing of the proposed towers and knew he was destined to conquer them. He drew a pencil line between them. His wire. The film will follow his campaign, as he enlists an unlikely cadre of helpers, draws inspiration from his girlfriend Annie and becomes obsessed with those two magnets acting on his personality.
"Man on Wire," directed by James Marsh ("Wisconsin Death Trip"), has access to all of Petit's film, video and photographs of the assault on the towers. But there is more than that. Ingeniously using actors and restaging events, Marsh fleshes out the story with scenes that could never have been filmed, such as the episode when Petit and a partner crouched motionless under tarps on a beam near the top floor as a security guard nosed around. Petit has gathered a motley crew, including a pot-addled musician and an executive who actually works in an office in one tower. He trains these amateurs on how to rig a high wire. Properly, he hopes.
This new footage is integrated seamlessly into the old; I gave up trying to decide which was which by the look of the picture, although a few sequences (shadows climbing a staircase) are obviously CGI. Marsh is dealing with an event almost 30 years old, and when he shows the same people at two stages of their lives, I assume either the younger or the older one is the actor, but I couldn't always be sure which. Philippe Petit is himself, both now and then, speaking fluent English, excited, passionate, voluble.
Even as a child, he liked to climb things. No telling why. He taught himself to walk on a wire, practiced endlessly, dreamed of conquering the clouds. He rehearsed on wire strung up in country fields. His first great feat was to walk on a wire between the two bell towers of Notre Dame. Then he walked between the towers of the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia. As the World Trade Center was growing, so were his ambitions.
He never just "walked" on a wire. He lay down, knelt, juggled, ran. Every wire presented its own problems, and in rehearsing for the WTC, he built a wire the same distance in France. To simulate the winds, the movements of the buildings and the torsion of the wire, he had friends jiggle his wire, trying to toss him off. His balance was flawless. He explains how a wire can move: Up and down, sideways, laterally, and it also can sometimes twist.
The installation of a wire between the two towers was as complicated as a bank heist. He and his friends scouted the terrain, obtained false ID cards, talked their way into a freight elevator reaching to the top -- above the level of the finished floors. Incredibly, they had to haul nearly a ton of equipment up there. You may have heard how they got the wire across, and how they guy-wired it, but if you don't know, I won't tell you.
They did it, anyway. Their plan worked. And on the morning of that Aug. 7, Petit took the first crucial step that shifted his weight from the building to the wire, and stood above a drop of 1,350 feet. Many people know he crossed successfully. I had no idea he went back and forth eight times, the police waiting on both sides. His friends shed tears as they remember it happening. It was dangerous, foolhardy, glorious. His assistants feared they could be arrested for trespassing, manslaughter or assisting a suicide. Philippe Petit was arrested and eventually found guilty. The charge: Disturbing the peace.
"Man on Wire" won the Audience Award and was named best documentary at Sundance 2008.
This message came to me from a reader named Peter Svensland. He and a fr...
A look at the entire "Alien" franchise, and a reappraisal of its unloved installments.
A report from Cannes on the latest from Sofia Coppola, along with reviews of two films from Russia.
A tribute to the late Roger Moore.


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This article is part of the GI Army Funnies series.
"My Dance of Healing will mend your wounds. It takes two days, though."
It is standard procedure for the White House to have a synthetic. But it sometimes malfunctions...
A Romanian village full of velociraptors vs. a bunch of marines...in space.
It's time to shrink some heads!
The Something Awful front page news tackles anything both off and on the Internet. Mostly "on" though, as we're all incredible nerds.
Copyright ©2017 Rich "Lowtax" Kyanka & Something Awful LLC.


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Lancaster will step up from his current dual role of England Saxons coach and the RFU's head of player development to take charge until a permanent replacement for Martin Johnson is appointed.
Rowntree is the only member of England's senior World Cup management team to be retained, while Farrell, the former dual international, has been seconded from Aviva Premiership champions Saracens.
Johnson and attack coach Brian Smith stood down after England's World Cup quarter-final exit. Defence coach Mike Ford and forwards coach John Wells, who were both part of the England coaching team at the 2007 and 2011 World Cups, also appear to have departed.
Lancaster admitted his first job will be to "get the culture right" in the wake of the World Cup fiasco.
Lancaster, who had a watching brief with England during the World Cup, said: "With Graham Rowntree's experience of being out in New Zealand and my experience of being out in New Zealand and everything that has been said subsequently, we hope to learn those lessons.
"We want to get the culture right, we want to ensure we have a talented group of young players who are hungry for success, who are ambitious, who want to win things and it's our job as a coaching team to put that in place and to make sure that going forward we've got a foundation to build upon toward 2015."
RFU acting chief executive Stephen Brown said: "It was important that, following the recommendations of the Professional Game Board and the commitment we made as an RFU Board last week to implement them, an interim head coach was appointed as soon as possible.
"Stuart is not only an experienced coach but his role as head of elite player development puts him at the forefront of producing international players.
"He will be well supported by Graham, with all his experience with England and the British Lions, and Andy, who has helped Saracens become one of the leading clubs in the country. We believe this coaching team is the right one to collectively take England forward in the short term."Reuse content


text:
ARSENE WENGER has attempted to beef up his Arsenal squad — by getting them to
train with American football stars!
The Gunners were humbled by Norwich at the weekend with the team again accused
of being brittle and lightweight.
So it appears that boss Wenger has tried to toughen up his players by inviting
the St Louis Rams to their London Colney training ground.
The American outfit are in the capital preparing for their game against the
New England Patriots at Wembley on Sunday.
And they took time out of their schedule to show Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and
Bacary Sagna a whole new ball game.
Wenger's men face Schalke tonight as the Bundesliga side touch down at the
Emirates for the crunch Champions League clash.
And despite the Gunners' Premier League struggles, it will be the Germans who
require a Hail Mary performance to end the North Londoners' 100 per cent
record in Europe this campaign.


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DeSoto Custom for Sale
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1946 DeSoto Custom
Maple Lake, MN
Very nice "1946" DeSoto Custom, has a 236 cu in (3.9L) 6cyl with Fluid Drive transmission, the car has suicide doors and is a... More
Offered By: Private Seller
1939 DeSoto Custom S6 Coupe
New Richmond, WI
Rare, solid, 1939 S6 Custom 2/4 passenger Coupe. Only 287 produced. Original engine and drivetrain. Flathead 6 with manual overdrive. Runs good, doesn't burn... More
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1952 DeSoto Custom Coupe
unknown, Germany
1952 Desoto Custom Kustom lowrider NL KentekenTake-Away Price!!(We do not offer German TUV for an additional price on this car.) This car is located... More
Offered By: RD Classics B.V.