Open Source

I was somewhat to disappointed to go on SnagIt's download page and find out the application was not supported for Mac OS X. However, I didn't have to go far to find Jing, created by the same company that brought you SnagIt, Techsmith.

And even better, Jing is free.

Techsmith launched Jing as a project back in July 2007, and it's no secret they might come out with a premium version. Currently, Jing uses screencast.com to host files and provides the user with 2GB of storage and 2GB of transfer sound. After capturing an image or video, the user can:

1) add text, arrows, or highlighted selected areas
2) instantly grab html code and imbed the image or video to their site
3) upload the file to screencast.com, flickr, ftp, or the user hard drive

Jing doesn't offer the same user functionality as SnagIt, and they explain this reason in the QA section on their website:

"...the key difference is about workflow. Jing is designed to be fast-visual communication shared with others in a variety of locations. Capture. Annotate. Share."

In the 2008 CMS satisfaction report by NTEN, a Non-Profit Technology group, Drupal received very high marks. This is great news for us since we recently decided to make the shift to Drupal rather than building our own CMS. Apparently, we’re not the only ones who have embraced Drupal. NTEN evaluated hundreds of nonprofit groups using a wide array of CMSes like Plone, Joomla, Convio, Blackbaud, and Antharia. Drupal had the highest number of responses and the highest number of respondents using Drupal as their primary CMS.

Firefox is an open source web browser maintained by the Mozilla corporation. It is the second most popular web browser today with millions of users. It is developed by a core team with contributions from hundreds of volunteer developers. Firefox is built to allow custom user configuration, and users can author extensions that can be integrated into the browser interface as seamlessly as the normal toolbar.

My first cordless telephone was a NOKIA 5190, black and green screen, with no user functionality. The key most often used on my phone was 2 for Mom. It was actually a pretty good function - it usually got me a ride somewhere. Now that I'm older, I no longer have to depend on mom to get me to or fro. I have GPS for that.

Today, the basic user functionality extends beyond what the average user even needs. Nokia is leading in the cell phone market, selling around 435 million phones worldwide last year. Sales for Nokia are trailing in the US due to the competition (Apple). There is, however, speculation of a turnaround for Nokia. Earlier this year, Verizon (US Nokia provider) released its spec requirements in order to allow open-access for developers. The goal is for developers to create applications (must meet Verizon tech standards) to be used as third-party apps for Verizon users.

Google is calling Verizon out, warning the FCC that Verizon is not staying on clear path with open-access rules. According to PC World, "the FCC's open-access rules required the winner of the C block to allow customers to connect wireless devices of their choosing and run any applications on the network using the C block." Verizon beat out Google in this year's auction of the "C block" licenses, with its $4.7billion dollar bid. Since then, Verizon has been on the chopping block. Verizon has taken the position (before and after winning its bid) that the network "wants to be able to sell "locked" devices that are subsidized by the carrier and limited to applications and services approved by the carrier" (Information Week).

As a designer, I rely on my vision to impart a hierarchy of data within web pages. It takes a jarring reminder from the smart folks at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival to remind me that not everyone can see the colors I painstakingly deliberate over, the varied and specific shades that I cross-browser test for universal appeal. Even color contrast can be lost to a slight case of color-blindness.

Months before a movie opens the Internet is flooded with marketing, bloggers talking about the marketing (I realize the irony), stills of on-set action, trailers, etc. Of course this is all to create hype to in turn bolster the box office opening weekend numbers.

Google, Inc. officially announced Monday plans of next year's release of the highly anticipated open-source mobile platform after months of Google Phone rumors and mania. Taylor gives more detail on her post earlier today. Below is the brief version as well as another exciting Google announcement.