iPad Usability: Year One Jakob Nielsens Alertbox

A year after our first usability study of iPad apps, it’s nice to see that iPad user interfaces have become decidedly less wacky. It’s even better to see good uptake of several of our recommendations from last year, including apps with: back buttons, broader use of search, homepages, and direct access to articles by touching…

Its Not the Technology, Stupid! Response to NYT “Twitter Trap” | HASTAC

The industrial age worked hard to separate “work” from “home.”  Everything about the common or public schools started in the mid-nineteenth century reinforced that division:  from the school bell ringing for each child at the same time of day, of each child entering school at age 6 whether they were ready or not, about sitting…

WordPress duplicate images driving me crazy

I’m using the Atahualpa Theme with WPTouch Pro. When I view pages with my iPad, I get a strange double image. Similar:Picture Books Languish as Parents Push ‘Big-Kid Books’Picture books are so unpopular these day…BooksCode is not literatureA literate programmer describes his atte…CyberculturePick Up Your Smartphone Less Often. You Might Think BetterResearch suggests we neeed…

Teaching with iPads: Motivation, Inspiration and Alienation in the Appleverse

Here are the slides for the half-day workshop I presented with my colleagues, Laura Patterson and Christine Cusick. Similar:Industriousness. Self-improvement. Thrift. And orange slime. The girl amusing herself on our 70m …AestheticsRevisiting a Website I Created in 1996: Engineering Writing Centre (University of Toronto)During the Christmas break of 1996, when…AestheticsBureaucrats Put the Squeeze on College…

Making Writing Socially Engaging: Asking Why New Media Draws Us In

[View the story “Making Writing Socially Engaging: Asking Why New Media Draws Us In” on Storify] Similar:DOJ Enters Into Landmark Web and Mobile App Consent DecreeUnder the consent decree cite to http://…Current_EventsMystery Science Theater 3000: The Definitive Oral History of a TV Masterpiece The show was awash in quick, smart wis…HistoryAmong today’s major professional accomplishments:…

Seussical: Stage Right Homeschool Production

My 13yo was Horton the Elephant and my 9yo was the Sour Kangaroo (with attitude). Similar:Scrooge Is My BrotherMy daughter delivered the opening “Marle…CultureCat-sitting. Hello, Blue.PersonalMy meeting was cancelled, so I spent the morning assembling a cabinet for a Little Free Li…AcademiaHeart of Glory (TNG Rewatch, Season 1 Episode 20)Rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generatio…MediaThis…

“Scary Things”: An Address to the Class of 2011 — The Goreletter — Michael Arnzen

Mike Arnzen posted his weird and wonderful address to graduation seniors. “Scary Things”: An Address to the Class of 2011 — The Goreletter — Michael Arnzen. Similar:First Evidence That Social Bots Play a Major Role in Spreading Fake News Shad and co say bots play a part…AcademiaMonsters are People Too Study used D & D…

Another Nerdy Lord of the Rings Post

I just got an email from Amazon saying that typos and omissions in my Kindle edition of The Lord of the Rings have been corrected, and I can opt to receive the updated edition for free. However, like a certain similarly magical gift that I’m sure we’re all thinking of right now, this boon comes…

Bacon Starry Night Meme

I’ve no idea where the “Bacon Starry Night” meme comes from. Other than Vincent Van Gogh, and bacon, of course. My wife asked whether there is a bacon “The Scream.”  Not yet, apparently. Similar:Report to the bridge so the captain can assess your virtual upholstery skills. #blender3d …AestheticsStephen Coles’ The Anatomy of Type, reviewed.Talk nerdy…

The New York Times Makes The Nerdiest Correction Ever – Featured on BuzzFeed

The New York Times Makes The Nerdiest Correction Ever – Featured on BuzzFeed. Similar:‘Tentacles squelching wetly’: the human subtitle writers under threat from AIArtificial intelligence is making steady…ArtFacebook Axes “Trending” SidebarFacebook is discontinuing the “trending”…BusinessHow Russia’s Disinformation Apparatus Ran Aground in UkraineSkillful propagandists always leverage p…CultureFurious Trump orders officials to boycott correspondents' dinnerTrump spent the…