Ezra^3 - let's make things happen. » Write Once, Access Anywhere

resistorMISTER V2

ezraezra — Thu, 19 May 2011 03:42:24 +0000

Find a resistor’s value in a jiffy.

Name: resistorMISTER
Platform: smartphone & web
Author: Ezra Velazquez
Release: May 4th, 2011
Technology: HTML, HTML5, CSS, CSS3, JavaScript, jQuery
Version: 2.0

Web App: “Click Here” to launch resistorMister. Best viewed via smartphone (Android, iPhone, etc)

About Version 2:The new version takes advantage of HTML5′s canvas feature. It allows the user to type in the resistor’s value and get the resistor’s color representation, or they can choose the color representation and get the resistance value back. Best part? It acts like a smartphone app. Go ahead, try it!

Snapshots:

Web Medium

ezraezra — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 01:06:36 +0000

Notes on “The Web Is a Customer Service Medium”, by Paul Ford.

Writers want to feel superior since they work in publishing. They want to feel as they are pushing culture forward.
Every medium has a niche.
The web is great at emulating other mediums.
When its on the web, everyone wants to be consulted on your work.
People seem to take ownership of things online, they want their opinions to be heard.
Wikipedia – Let humans be consulted.
YouTube – show videos, comment, opinion changes rank
Ask MetaFileter & Reddit bread & butter is the WWIC problem.
StackOverflow is only when other folks are involved.
The web is not for publishing, its for customer service.
Moderation in customer service = editing in publishing
People enjoy niche experiences so much they will pay for them.
Other mediums are finding ways to keep the wall up, but the web will always be open for complain.

I Can Guess

ezraezra — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 21:21:11 +0000

Assignment: Build an assignment using AJAX.

About a week or so ago a group of ITP students visited the the headquarters of Hunch. They showed us and their API, and thought it would integrate nicely with the assignment assigned this week.

After some tinkering, I came up with What Would X Read?

resistorMISTER!

ezraezra — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 22:39:41 +0000

Find a resistor’s value in a jiffy.

Name: resistorMISTER!
Platform: web app
Author: Ezra Velazquez
Release: Mar 6th, 2011
Technology: HTML, HTML5, CSS, CSS3, JavaScript, jQuery
Version: 1.2

Web App: “Click Here” to launch resistorMister. Best viewed via smartphone.

Snapshots:

About: resistorMISTER! is a web app which allows the user to quickly look up the value of a resistor. Just click on the color band, choose the appropriate color, and the web app calculates the resistor value for him/her. The web app also features local storage, so it will remember the last resistor’s value the user was looking up.

Overall, a good challenge to practice. Given the nature of the web app, the code is heavily focused on making the program easy and intuitive for the user to figure out. Code has been commented, for good practice, and also organized. This is not only best practice, but also allows for me (or someone else) to go in at a later time and modify code, if needed.

Know Your Tables?

ezraezra — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 02:27:54 +0000

Assignment 5: Using Javascript, create a mobile web app that that uses form values.

Response: TABLES

About the Assignment:

In a nutshell, I developed an educational mobile web app. It allows users to practice his/her multiplication table skills. The app keeps tab of the user’s score: total correct and total incorrect.

Visually, I decided to focus the attention on the math problem and the enter button. The score is intentionally kept small since the user should be more focused on answering the problem.

Technically, I used HTML, CSS, CSS3, JavaScript, and jQuery. Since I have experience using JavaScript, I decided to focus this assignment on learning jQuery, a JavaScript library.

Midterm Idea

ezraezra — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 16:09:17 +0000

As midterm deadlines loom in the horizon, its time to put on my thinking cap.

For “Write Once, Access Anywhere”, I will be developing a resistor color code web app.

I’m under the assumption that if most people are given resistor, they will have to look up its value either using laptop or looking at a chart. If the resistor is commonly used by a user, he/she will know its value. If the user is given one they have not use commonly, they have to look it up, or run the risk of having their project short-circuit.

The web app will be divided into two section. In the first section, the user will be able to select in the resistor value and the web app will display the image of the corresponding resistor. For the second section, the user “constructs” the resistor and the web app will display the corresponding value.

Technical Overview

The web app will be developed using HTML, CSS, and Javascript (jQuery). The first section (text-t0-image) the user will only have two input choices, a text field and a submit button. Once submit is pressed, an algorithm will run and display the proper “image” of the resistor. I use quotation marks since the image itself will be a composite of a sole image and a great deal of css. The second section (image-to-text) will have four drop down selectors and a submit button. Again, once submit is pressed, an algorithm will run and display the proper resistor value in text form.

Reality Check

ezraezra — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 15:38:24 +0000

Reading notes on Oliver Reichenstein’s “Designing for iPad: Reality Check”

iPad screen is sharp, but using typography is a tricky issue.
Have to worry about the typography looking pixelated due to the screen having a higher resolution than an iMac, but lower than an iPhone
“If web design is Lego, iPad design must be Duplo”.
Good to use noise backgrounds to make the text-to-background contrast less harsh.
Lots of rules to follow for designing for iPad.
If using 3D to imitate objects, use sparingly, otherwise its overkill.
Kitsch is just “tacky” (making the product look too much like the real thing).
“If you use favor style over function to make something look like something it is not, you are not a product designer, you are an illusion artist.”
Use special effects sparingly.
Use metaphors sparingly. Do no use weak metaphors or bad UI metaphors, they get old and annoying quickly.
The market might be bigger, but it has a shorter life span.
“Minimize input, maximize output”. Make it as easy as possible.
“Don’t waste screen estate and user attention on processing secondary functions”. The smallest point area has to be bigger than the tip of a male user’s index finger.
“If it works on the iPad, with a few tweaks, it will work on a laptop.”
Scrolling is much better than swiping.
“In order to make the user feel in control of an iPad app you either need a strong and simple structured overall content model that is consistent with the mental model of most users”.

Mobile Web App

ezraezra — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 20:55:26 +0000

Assignment 1: Find an example of a well designed or intriguing mobile web app

- ESPN

Good use of gradient red buttons
Cascading info is wonderful; keeps clutter out by only showing information when requested
Menu button and menu display is great, feels like a native app

Reading #1 Notes:

- Mobile web apps Increase the size of their audiences

- Easier to access web-based content

- Cost of production is lower for mobile web content

- Can be accessed via search engines and social networks

- Web apps have native app capabilities

- Makes content more widely accessible

- Even Google isn’t rich enough to create apps for every smartphone platform

- Only have to follow governmental regulation instead of other company’s policies

- More engaged users.

Reading #2 Notes:

- Web application cannot have a proprietary container that locks data from being hyperlinked within it.

- The open web stack does not include H.264 video codec or flash, those are proprietary software.

- According to Ben Ward, software engineers have a short attention span.

- People, including high-profile ones, are using terms incorrectly.