Mobile development: finger-sized targets for better usability
A colleague found this interesting article about sizing targets for mobile applications:
http://uxdesign.smashingmagazine.com/2012/02/21/finger-friendly-design-ideal-mobile-touchscreen-target-sizes/
Playbook OS 2.0
I just installed and started using the Playbook OS 2.0. No problems during the installation and the use so far.
The main advantage is the native e-mail app, that allows reading e-mails from external accounts (e-mail, facebook, twitter), something that was missing on the previous version. Entering the accounts took some time and some tries (I could not complete the setup for one specific e-mail account), but apparently the problem was on the e-mail server. After the setup, however, everything seems to be working fine on the reading panel.
Word, Excel and PowerPoint are now under a single app (Docs To Go).
My previous folder organization is gone, but it’s now possible to create multiple tabs and also to create folders.
The app world is redesigned.
I am happy on the first 20 minutes. Let’s see what the future brings.
Playbook review
Buying the playbook was against at least three of my recent considerations:
- tablets are not necessary at all;
- as a general rule for computing, I want to use open/widespread platforms, as Android or Windows;
- I don’t want to use devices with backlight as e-readers;
Yet I wanted to put my convictions to the test. Just because the device was available at $199, of course. I would not pay $499 to give it at try. I still believe no tablet in the market should cost above $300. They’re just a convenience. You can buy a good laptop, with much more functionality, under $500. I know, I know, a laptop is not that convenient…
Another main big step would be giving up my PSP. Moving to a new device, I would not want to carry both. But I was concerned about the quality of the games on a tablet.
The result of my test was a pleasant surprise. I am in love with the playbook already. It does everything I want.
The OS operates in a very smooth way (no waiting, no crashes, no bugs so far), the visual quality of the games is better than I expected (and I feel like in Minority Report while playing them), the browser works well and plays Flash and I can even open Word and Excel documents. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are there and work well. Some key apps, like e-mail client, Skype and MSN, are missing, but I am sure it’s just a matter of time.
Summing up, I strongly recommend it.
Tablets
I am trying to enter the tablet world. I bought a Kobo Vox 2 days ago and returned it today. The main problem was that several times it would not come back from sleep mode and you would have to hard-reset the whole machine, and then most of the time the wireless would not reconnect automatically after that. Aside that, the initial installation crashed twice before finally going through. A final downside is that you can’t buy from the Android Market.
Today, I got a BB playbook 16GB (for the same price). So far, things are going well. No problems on the initial setup. Let’s see how it goes in the next few days.
Windows7 screen capture
I finally learned how to capture a specific part of the screen in Windows7. Look for an application called Snipping Tool.
Dreamweaver
Dreamweaver is my favorite code editor. I use it since around 2000. But it’s funny how it still generates passionate opinions among developers.
Some hardcore developers still associate Dreamweaver with WYSIWYG and, therefore, probably consider people using it to be less skilled.
But the fact is: Dreamweaver is only a WYSIWYG tool if you want to make it so. Otherwise, it is the best tool that I know for editing code. It has the best set of code completion features I’ve ever found. Some other editors have cool features, but Dreamweaver automates my work (with auto-complete, colors, correct syntax, automatic recognition of image sizes etc.) in a way no other software does. It’s also W3C standards compliant.
I admit: In the past, using the WYSIWYG screen and preset JS functions (kind of thing you are happy to do when you are a beginner) would give a lot of unnecessary code. But if you are a W3C standards-compliant developer and don’t rely on automated code generation, Dreamweaver can only make your life easy.
My second favorite would be Microsoft Expression Web, which is very similar to DW in several ways. And I am currently using Eclipse with the Aptana plug in at work.
