This marks the second installment of our continuing series on the presentations made during our weekly Lifeblue University sessions. LB University gives the members of Lifeblue the opportunity to practice their presentation skills by sharing their expert knowledge on a topic of their choice. Providing each other with knowledge and insight on different subjects expands our breadth of knowledge as professionals and people and builds us to be more T-shaped thinkers. Through creating an environment of continuous learning and enrichment, LB University is one of the ways we support our ideology of combining creative and technology. With these blog entries, we want to pass what we learn in these intriguing presentations on to you.

Recently LB’s Jonathan Pacheco gave a presentation on the “Auteur Theory” and how this idea can be applied to the world of web development and design. According to Jonathan, the Auteur Theory originates in film criticism, stating the belief that a film reflects the director’s personal creative vision, as if they were the primary “auteur” (French for “author”).

Opposition of this theory holds that a film isn’t just the realization of a single person’s vision, but rather a collaborative effort, stemming from the collective roles of the cast, crew and all of those who have a hand in the film’s creation. However, as Jonathan points out, most people subscribe to the Auteur Theory without even realizing it. This point is illustrated through people describing a film as “Hichcockian,” or claiming that they prefer Spielberg-type films. This kind of talk reflects creative credit bestowed solely to the director.

Despite the circumstances—cast, crew, genre, plot—the director still leaves a recognizable imprint. Scorsese is visible in both Goodfellas and Hugo. Kubrick’s touch is noticeable in 2001 and Dr. Strangelove. Spielberg may use his usual crew of Williams and Kaminzki, or he may not, but you always know when it’s a Spielberg.

The directors described by the Auteur Theory share certain characteristics, some of these being vision for the present and future, leadership and confidence. A distinctive feature of the films from auteuristic directors is the appearance of stylistic tendencies. An example of this is French New Wave; it became a style of storytelling. Another characteristic is arising themes. This can be seen in Woody Allen’s cynicism or the social realism of the Dardenne brothers. Auteuristic directors also reflect growth and life changes in their film work. Spike Lee started out making films like Do the Right Thing and now makes films like When the Levees Broke; this illustrates his personal progression as a director and a person.

The Auteur Theory can apply to more than just film directors. For example, Facebook exudes Mark Zuckerberg’s personal style the same way that the creative vision of Steve Jobs is present in all that Apple does as a company. The style of Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto can be seen in every Zelda and Super Mario Bros. game. These “auteurs” all leave their creative print in a very recognizable manner.

Jonathan subscribes to the theory of the “Group Auteur,” which is the idea that a group, company or entity can work together as one to achieve auteuristic results. While this may just seem like it describes performing as a good company should, it depends on how you view it. Certain companies like Pixar have created a company culture and standard that transcends their day-to-day operations and can be seen in every product it delivers. While employees come and go, the spirit and style of Pixar remains consistent. We can see this same group auteurism in Apple, which continues to function in the same fashion even after losing its influential CEO Steve Jobs last year.

For any auteur, every film or product continues the story. This progression tells the story of who the company is and how it evolves. As web developers, it is important to act as auteurs. The impression we make on the web scene should tell a story about our company. We should continue to strive to put out work that conveys a high standard of quality and a unique way of doing things. Every company and individual should brand their work in a recognizable and desirable way to build value, because if you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything.

Photo courtesy of Flickriver.

Who could have possibly foreseen the changes the online scene has undergone over the last few years? The Internet has become a sort of unpredictable force that is constantly changing and improving the user experience and the capabilities of online features. The new year will undoubtedly usher in a new landscape for the world of web, and we here at Lifeblue have put forth our hopes and expectations for the next chapter of the online evolution.

LB’s Digital Alchemist, Cristal Givens, believes that 2012 holds an increased use of augmented reality features. This means more apps incorporating socially populated data to create more relevant and useful mobile and web experiences for users. We’ve already seen the beginning stages of this phenomenon, so Cristal just may be right.

Piggybacking off another budding aspect of the Internet, LB’s Marketing MacGyver, Cindy Jones, expects to see continuing growth in web experiences like those created by the site Pinterest. “I think they are just on the beginning of an amazing journey to engage consumers in a way that will demand the attention of brands. The Pinterest model delivers a great way for brands to better understand the behaviors and motivations of their consumers, and I think it is just a matter of time before this social media engagement platform explodes.” Cindy could be on the right track, especially considering recent statistics on this site’s popularity and growth.

Cindy has also taken note of other trends that have yet to really take off, but hold great potential in further connecting people globally and making lives easier—features like mobile payments and an increase in mobile web strategy to complement the ever-changing capabilities of our smartphones. These kinds of advancements will demand an evolution in the usability and interface of smartphones as well as online.

Increased connection will also further affect our idea of globalization. No longer does time or distance serve as barriers in our ability to communicate. “The web, along with social and digital technology, will have infinite possibilities in the way we build engagement platforms on a global stage and connect brands to consumers on a larger landscape,” Cindy says.

LB’s Backboard, Russel Dubree, doesn’t foresee any huge advances in technology over the next year, as he believes that we have already seen a plateau in mobile and gaming enhancements. He does, however, predict an even more seamless integration of the web into our entertainment lives in 2012.

“Basically combining TV, Internet/web, gaming, movie streaming and mobile into one cloud-like platform that can be accessed from anywhere. I know it exists with a significant investment or technology installation, but essentially I’d like to see the advancements that would make this capability more accessible to the masses.”

LB’s Codebase Wrangler, Derek Odell, also focuses on entertainment trends and predicts that 2012 will be the year of 3D web, as this technology has swept to televisions after making a big comeback on movie screens. Jonathan Pacheco, LB’s own Front-end Auteur, views the web from the aspect of censorship, predicting that 2012 will bring in an increased level of censorship and protection; however, he also believes that by 2013, we will all be accepting of this fact.

Ben Tautfest, as LB’s Design Savant, focuses his thoughts of the future more on the visual presentation of the web. “From a visual design perspective, I think we will continue to see the use of lots of subtle textures, minimalist design will rule the school, and I also see a big movement towards modern vintage aesthetics as well.”

Ben also foresees typography design to continue to improve and take cues from traditional print, with more varied and sophisticated typeface choices, better use of space and cleaner blocks of copy. He also predicts the use of space in general layouts to become increasingly important in directing attention as the need to call attention quickly and clearly will expand. Ben believes animation will also play a bigger role in interactive design as well. “One more thing as a “wish” for what I’d like to see possible on the web is layer blending modes via CSS. It’s not going to happen in 2012… but a guy can wish.”

Amongst all of our expectations, predictions and wishes, it will be interesting to see what of our proposed advancements will actually be realized during the next year. What will be even more exciting to see will be those that we haven’t even fathomed? But regardless of our guesses about the future, one thing is for sure—the web will continue to evolve and enhance its capabilities. We intend on being ready. Are you?

Written by LB Wordsmith, Savannah Harper

Photo courtesy of WST WebSuccessTeam

This article marks the beginning of a new series on the weekly presentations made by Lifeblue’s team members as a part of our LB University program. LB University gives the members of Lifeblue the opportunity to practice their presentation skills by sharing their expert knowledge on a topic of their choice.

LB’s newest team member, Derek Odell, recently took us through the world of geolocation in a presentation he called “Geolocation and You.” As someone who uses geolocation features often via iPhone applications like Facebook Places, Google Maps and Runmeter, I realized that I knew very little about this program that has become a part of my daily life. But Derek’s lecture provided a thorough explanation of how this extremely useful feature operates to power apps like the ones I and many others use to make our lives simpler.

Geolocation is defined by Derek to be a device that provides “the identification of a real-world geographic location of an object” and determines “where it is in the world.” As of right now, only the United States and Russia have launched satellites that support fully operational geolocation systems, but China does have an operational system that’s very antiquated. The Chinese are currently launching their updated satellites and were recently in the news for getting their first new generation satellite into orbit and online. Other countries like India and those of the European Union are working to embark on their own systems for the near future.

Microchips that work under these systems can be found in everything from cell phones to automobiles to missiles. Essentially, geolocation technology is becoming extremely omnipresent in all we do. Optional equipment used to support geolocation includes assisted GPS and local positioning systems.

Assisted GPS uses a network to ask a server to interpret limited location information, so that it doesn’t have to process the info itself, while local positioning systems use known, fixed positions such as cell towers, radio towers or wifi hotspots to determine location.

Google is responsible for the first popular geolocation system, which it placed under the name Google Gears. While Google Gears achieved the objectives, it was feared that this would cause software makers to create separate and incompatible geolocation systems for their products, thus what had already been created for Google Gears went towards the development of the W3C’s Geolocation API, the version that is used today. The W3C’s Geolocation API is device agnostic and compatible with everything. Now the de facto standard, the Geolocation API can operate with a very small, single line of code, or complex multi-file algorithms.

The common person uses geolocation often via applications like Yelp, Urbanspoon and Foursquare. With its unique ability to pinpoint the user’s location, this feature creates new opportunities to connect with users on a whole other level, whether it is through providing navigation and information on locations and events nearby or by helping users meet up and connect with each other. Geolocation is an undoubtedly useful feature when it comes to enhancing the value of user’s online experience.

It also provides an interesting view into the future of how brands will market to and reach new and existing consumers. Predictive analytics that could be used as a result of geolocation based information and other data could make things like “Siri” even more powerful. Imagine the idea of your phone and it’s “personality” being able to take historical geolocation based information and develop algorithms based on past information and calculations and then cross-reference with something like weather data (as an example).

Imagine if you will…you live in Manhattan in a high rise, every day as you leave the building for work you “check-in” to the lobby at around 8:15AM and again at the subway entrance at 8:30AM, except on the days it is raining…on those days you ring XYZ cab company. With predictive analytics and geolocation based information and technology, your friend “Siri” could have that cab waiting for you at 8:16AM without any interaction from you, keep track of the awards program that the cab company offers and allow you to pay via your mobile wallet as you exit the cab. Too invasive? Or super cool? Either way, this technology has the power to change the way we all do business.

Next time you pull out your phone to fine directions to the nearest Chinese restaurant or look for deals online in your area, give geolocation some credit for making searches like these possible and keep in mind how cool the future of these services could become.

Where in the world is Derek?

Photo courtesy of ars technica.

As we approach the much-anticipated countdown, the exchanges of good cheer at midnight and the traditional caroling of “Auld Lang Syne” to make the transformation complete, we wake up the next day expecting change to accompany the calendar’s new date. The number of gym memberships will skyrocket as cigarette sales slump, but we propose a resolution of a different sort: to improve the web experience. This is a broad goal that can be achieved through adopting a few simple resolutions. Change doesn’t occur overnight; instead it takes initiative and action to happen. The world’s eyes are upon the online scene, anxious to see where it will go next. Let’s give ‘em something to talk about. Let’s be the change we all wish to see and resolve to create better, more engaging online experiences. Here’s a few resolutions to consider:

1. Resolve to know your audience.

If you’ve been slacking on this critical step, there’s no better time than now to improve your focus. “User experience” literally starts with just that—the user. First, identify who this person is and why. Who uses your brand and your site? Who do you want to use it? Get to know these people better than you know yourself. Understand how they use, why they use and what they want out of the experience, and apply this information to create a site that delivers and keeps them coming back.

2. Resolve to keep it simple.

Simplicity is a beautiful thing and an aspect that is extremely attractive to users. Don’t overcomplicate things. Make navigation easy and the next step obvious. Use design elements to enhance this process and create an atmosphere that makes the user feel confident in their use. It’s that simple.

3. Resolve to learn from others.

It’s always good to look around and check out what others are doing. There’s a lot that can be learned from examining a good website and determining what makes it so great. It’s okay to adopt practices you admire and integrate these successful elements into your own design. As much as one can take away from a good site, almost more can be learned from a bad one. Understand why it fails and what could be done to avoid the problems if your site is suffering similar pitfalls. Make sure that your site isn’t making the same mistakes that others have. Learn from these sites and use your acquired knowledge to take yours to the next level.

4. Resolve to generate better content.

In 2012, content is still king. If you haven’t been giving it the appropriate amount of attention, make this your New Year’s resolution. Whatever it is you are putting out to the world, make it interesting and engaging. It’s a wonderful time we live in; online interface gives us the opportunity to have real-time two-way conversations with our users, but it is often up to the administrator to start the process. So get ‘em talking, and make it good.

5. Resolve to be engaging.

Again, we are all in the interactive business now. To get users to interact with you, you must engage them. This goes back to knowing your audience—provide them with what they need and want. Appeal to them in a way that attracts them to your brand and makes them want to get involved.

6. Resolve to thoroughly test.

Many of a website’s issues can be caught and correctly early on testing—if you give the right amount of attention to this step of the process. A website abound with errors, broken links and malfunctioning features is a huge turnoff to users and can give a negative connotation to your brand. Unlike much in business, this is something that you can control. Dominate in testing your site so it’s in top form when it’s presented to the world.

7. Resolve to listen.

Everyone has a voice now, and it would be foolish not to listen to what’s being said. Monitor the conversation going on about your brand—it’s right in front of you—and respond to the feedback. Address problems, make improvements where needed and build strong relationships with your users. You can learn a lot from their comments, so be mindful of your brand’s response.

8. Resolve to update regularly.

The beauty of an online presence is that it’s current—so keep it that way. Maintaining an up-to-date website fosters a positive perception of your brand as being modern. Establish a web presence that is responsive and timely, both to the changes of the business world and the commentary of users. Create an atmosphere in which you appear to actively participate.

9. Resolve to cover new platforms.

The Digital Age has provided us with multiple platforms from which brands can present information and interact with consumers. Not all will be relevant to your brand, but it’s wise to make use of the ones that can expand your brand’s presence and touch consumers in new and different ways. Always be on the look out for new programs and networks that allow you to reach your users and connect with them.

10. Resolve to be media-friendly.

Continuing on with the point made in Resolution #9, for a brand to reach heightened success in today’s day and age, it must take advantage of the media available and those that will be developed over the coming year. Ensure that your brand is not left out of this growing phenomenon and cover all appropriate bases. Have your brand be there in the way its users need and want it to be. Update your brand’s profile on these forums frequently and use them to gain further insight into your business and your consumers. Being media-friendly builds better relationships within the industry and with users. Come on, everyone else is doing it. You should be, too.

2012 is sure to hold even more changes for the business landscape, which makes it imperative to resolve to be ready. If you feel that you are already exercising these practices, do it even better than before. There is always room for improvement, and if you need the start of a new year to motivate you, now is the time.

Let’s all resolve to grow and create a bigger and better online scene than the world has yet to see.

Here is to a Happy New Year.

This week, we asked everyone at LB to share the website they visit to learn, get motivated and be inspired. These included everything from sites that showcase innovative graphic design to those that provide top-notch news from the world of the web.
Check them out—you might just make some new bookmarks.

Behance

Creative professionals from across industries use Behance to create multi-media portfolios that showcase their work within the Network. Millions of visitors — including top creative companies, recruiters, editors, and more — come to the Network to see the incredible work and find talent to hire.

Through instant and efficient promotion of work, ready access to a global pool of top talent, and a constant stream of the best creative work from around the world — the Behance Network is revolutionizing the way creative professionals manage their careers and companies find talent.

The 99 Percent

The 99% is Behance’s research arm and think tank. Taking its name from Thomas Edison’s famous quote that “genius is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration,” the 99% includes a daily web magazine, an annual conference, and the best-selling book “Making Ideas Happen.” Through articles, tips, videos, and events, we share best practices that help creative professionals move beyond idea generation into idea execution.

Dribble

Dribbble is show and tell for creatives. Designers, developers and other creatives share shots—small screenshots of the designs and applications they are working on. Once uploaded, content can be found, followed and shared by viewers of the site.

Mashable

Mashable is the largest independent news source dedicated to covering digital culture, social media and technology. Mashable reports on the importance of digital innovation and how it empowers and inspires people around the world.

Mashable’s 20 million monthly unique visitors and 4 million social media followers have become one of the most engaged online news communities. Numerous studies and leading publications have declared Mashable the most influential online news outlet and a must-read site.

Gestalten TV

Gestalten specializes in developing content for aficionados of cutting-edge visual culture worldwide. The company is best known for the more than three hundred and fifty books they have published that document and forecast vital design movements.

Especially created for an international audience and to offer even more inspiration to satisfy your creative hunger, Gestalten.tv serves up Vanguards, Rogues, Legends, Performers, and Players. Since 2007, they have produced and delivered beautifully-shot, biweekly film portraits on innovators and leaders who dare to change today’s creative landscape with a bold vision.

Smashing Magazine

Founded in September 2006, Smashing Magazine delivers useful and innovative information to Web designers and developers. Their aim is to inform readers about the latest trends and techniques in Web development. They believe that the most remarkable yet overlooked aspect of the design community is its friendly, enthusiastic spirit.

A List Apart

As the site that boasts to be made “for people who create websites,” A List Apart Magazine explores the design, development, and meaning of web content, with a special focus on web standards and best practices.

Fast Co. Design

Fast Co. Design believes that a company’s most important employees aren’t its bankers or management gurus, but rather the graphic, industrial, and interface designers who design the things a company actually makes.

Thus, they cover breaking news about new products, business ventures, and wild ideas, as well as controversial ideas and publish essays from some of today’s leading designers. All of these are intended to start new conversations, and inspire new ideas.

Do you have a really good website you visit? Share it with us!

Books have existed for ages with the ability to teach trades, stimulate thought, influence behavior and provide an escape from our reality. This week, we asked everyone here at Lifeblue about the books that have stuck with them most and have helped to perfect their practice by changing perspective and thought.

  Phillip and Savannah recommend The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell.

Phillip claims that this book “is one of the single reasons I entered the agency world and eventually started this company. It intrigued me in the understanding of how people and things influence change in the world.  It made me want to see how I could help influence or change consumers’ behavior.”

Savannah likes this book because “it takes the phenomenon of the epidemic and analyzes the key components that facilitate in the spread of thought and behavior in a way I had never before considered. Gladwell’s conversational writing style and gripping content make for a quick read, and Gladwell is one of those authors who succeeds in altering the perspective of any reader.”

  Russel recommends Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh.

“It’s probably more because I just read it, but it is a light-hearted, easy read. Its practical application of focusing on building and providing for everyone around you from your customers, vendors, and team members that you can create an amazing culture. In a nutshell, everyone wants to be a good person and provide for others, so facilitate that in every way possible.” 

   Shyam recommends Getting Real by 37Signals. 

“Seth Godin said it best: ‘Every once in a while, a book comes out of left field that changes just about everything. This is one of those books. Ignore it at your peril.’” 

  Cindy recommends The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. 

“I haven’t read the entire book recently, but I refer to it frequently and it has stayed as a foundation in my mind for many years. I remember taking a leadership class while at SBC in the early nineties based on this philosophy and book. I got my golden egg and it was a pivotal moment in my career and has stayed with me as fundamentals for the past 20 years.  While the book is now 20 years old, the paradigms and principals are extremely relevant. I often have to remind myself of the habits and revive the lessons it teaches in balancing personal, professional and the best ways to navigate your life. The foundation is an important lesson in paradigms and how we can choose to view our world.”

  Cristal recommends Visual Meetings: How Graphics, Sticky Notes & Idea Mapping Can Transform Group Productivity by David Sibbet. 

“I was attracted to this book for its many illustrations of flow charts, mind maps and thought sketching. This is not a book I chose to read cover-to-cover, but rather I keep it handy for quick reference when in need of quick inspiration when preparing a presentation, collaborating a meeting or mapping ideas for a project.” 

  Justin recommends Designing with Type, 5th Edition: The Essential Guide to Typography by James Craig.

“This book really changed my perspective on typography. It’s a great book for any designer, whether they are a beginner looking to understand typography or a pro seeking self-improvement.”

  Jonathan recommends Hardboiled Web Design by Andy Clarke.

“Andy Clarke’s book doesn’t go over a terrible amount of HTML5 and CSS3 material that you can’t find elsewhere, but that’s not the point.  He seeks to empower developers and designers, encouraging them to ditch the old, passive way of approaching web design in favor of a bold and uncompromising style of thinking.  We have some wonderful tools now at our disposal, so let’s allow ourselves to use them.” 

  Chad recommends Pro PHP: Patterns, Frameworks, Testing and More by Kevin McArthur. 

“A well-written book on (mostly) advanced PHP concepts that doesn’t waste much time on the basics. For me it was a nice overview for things like the Zend Framework, PHPUnit and Phing that I hadn’t really dug into yet. The author Kevin McArthur presents the subject matter very clearly and the ‘just the facts’ section at the end of every chapter is great.” 

Have any books you recommend for us? Let us know!

HTML5, the ambitious successor to HTML4.01/XHTML 1.0, was created with the intentions of improving the way the code is used by developers and understood by computers. New technology dawned new challenges for the code, and this latest version has been designed to deal with added applications while also attempting to further perfect the manner in which it handles previously existing issues.

This week, we talked to LB’s own front-end auteur Jonathan Pacheco to see what he found useful about the newest version of HTML versus its predecessors.

Semantic tags

While this feature isn’t necessarily anything new, HTML5 does differ in that it puts more focus than ever before on the use of semantic tags.  While a <i> and <b> may still display text in italics and bold respectively, tags like <em> (short for emphasis) and <strong> continue to grow in popular preference due to their more descriptive characteristics of their function.

According to Jonathan, this evolution is due in part to a shift from an internal focus of understanding among developers to an external focus of computers’ ability to comprehend the coding embedded in web pages. HTML5 further encourages this transformation with the addition of semantic tags like <section>, <nav> and <article>.

Forms Made Easier

HTML5 has made the coding of forms much easier for developers like Jonathan by recognizing some of the useful functions of form data entry and making them standard. This includes features like disappearing/reappearing instructional placeholder text (i.e. “Enter you e-mail address here”) and the ability to recognize the format (e-mail address) and accept only the correct format (name@server.com). When using some devices (i.e. certain touchscreen smartphones and tablets), HTML5’s ability to convey this information also simplifies the data entry process by automatically providing the user with needed keys to complete the information, like the “@” or “.com” key for e-mail addresses or URLs.

Geolocation

Okay, we lied: the Geolocation Application Program Interface (API) isn’t part of HTML5, but we think it belongs in every HTML5 conversation. The standardization, emergence and increasing usage of the API, especially in the mobile world, perfectly coincides with HTML5’s push to empower developers to provide users with a more convenient, customized experience.

IP addresses have had the ability to determine location on a city level, but with the users’ permission, HTML5’s Geolocation feature has the ability to more accurately identify where users are and tailor their web experience accordingly. This includes informing users of nearby businesses that match their search and using general demographic and psychographic information to suggest services that are more likely to be of interest to users.

Canvas 

HTML5’s canvas element simplifies the dynamic rendering of 2D graphics such as graphs, games and animation. The <canvas> tag and API simplifies the process of programming images that will change in response to the user’s commands or information.

For example, Jonathan says, a user could input information that is then dynamically rendered as a graph that displays the information given. If the user alters the information, the graph will change accordingly — thanks to HTML5’s canvas function — otherwise, each potential graph would have to be designed in advance in order to be available for display. The canvas element can be used as an alternative to Flash, which has proven to be difficult for some online devices to read.

Video

HTML5’s video capabilities make it even more of a match for Flash. With the ability to display in 3D and work with CSS3 and JavaScript to create customized controls and special transformations, HTML5 video is changing the way video is delivered online.

Overall, Jonathan had this to say about HTML5:

“The new technologies, techniques and APIs under the HTML5 banner aren’t just shiny new toys for geeks to tinker with. They’re helping evolve the web, making the creation process easier and more flexible for developers, allowing them to focus even more on crafting convenient and fun user experiences.”

It seems that Jonathan, like thousands of other developers, is excited about the latest developments made possible with HTML5. It just may be the best thing to happen to the web… that is until HTML6 is created.

Post brought to you by: Savannah Harper, LB Wordsmith and Jonathan Pacheco, LB Front-End Auteur