The biggest IFTTT Channel yet - Maker

I love IFTTT and use it a lot. I also love to tinker with some web projects, and now I can combine both.

Integrating API's of services like Google Drive, Dropbox is somehow a pain. The maker channel from IFTTT is now the bridge to those and 193 more channels. This opens a lot of possibilities, from sending email, storing files, collecting data, opening garage doors etc.

I especially like that you can use the DO companion apps on your mobile phone to trigger events or even collect data for your own service.

Maker Channel

The Maker Channel allows you to connect IFTTT to your personal DIY projects. With Maker, you can connect a Recipe to any device or service that can make or receive a web request.

Extract Assets Feature - Deprecated

If you want to use Photoshop to generate automatically your assets for iOS or Android Development rejoice. The feature is gone in the new version of Photoshop.

It was flawed but just resigning is not really a good choice IMO.

There was a great discussion on how to improve the feature in the Adobe Forums, and it seems like that the resolution is to just kill the feature and announce it in the thread:

"FYI folks, this feature is now deprecated, we have released Export Options which tackles a smaller scope of problems of exporting. More info is available here: https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/export-artboards-layers.html"

And no - the new feature is not really an enhancement.

Photoshop CC: Extract Assets Feature Is a Disaster (2014.2 update)

The new Extract Assets feature in Photoshop CC 2014 is a disaster. Take a look at Sketch for the proper way to do this that designers will actually want to use. Problems & Suggestions: 1) Come up with a solution that doesn't mess with my layer or layer group names - let me name the asset in the Extract Assets window and then remember it.

2) Allow me to add padding around an asset when I export - with the flexibility to provide different pa...

Bigger Text is better - for legibility

Very good article that explains why larger text sizes on the web is better for both users and content providers.

You can clearly see the trend in the big content websites - the font sizes are getting bigger - and that's good. Even on mobile. Designers and readers are finally arrived at the point where they understand that using more space might just make the text easier to read and even faster to go through the content even though you have to scroll.

Sizing Up Readability & Legibility « Fonts.com Blog

Print designers who were accustomed to setting type at small sizes—or who still set type at small sizes—should know that when it comes to type on digital displays, bigger is better. Although “big type” on the web has become its own style and even a trend, finding the right type size boils down ...

New collection feature for Google+ finally here

The collections (as many others have said) is the feature we waited for. It might not bring Google+ to the masses, but it will enhance the experience to all of us "afficionados". I created a couple of Collections based on what I share most and if you are just interested in these kind of posts feel free to follow only those collections. I also created 2 foodie related collections which

https://plus.google.com/+FrankNeulichedl/collections

none of you regulars are subscribed to - so if you still want to see those go and get them.

Frank Neulichedl - Beiträge - Google+

Arbeitet als Art Director, Graphic Designer, Mobile Technologies discoverer Wohnt in Berlin Surprise yourself

Pexels Videos - Free for Commercial Use | Web Resources | WebAppers

I have to give webappers credit for this one ... but these videos are quite useful for anyone creating some intro video for an app - or to show of your app. Ifind the green screen smartphone videos interesting and it might need some advanced video chops to pull them off - but if you have time and no money that's an option.

Pexels Videos - Free for Commercial Use
Pexels is a huge platform for free stock photos. Many designers and bloggers use it every day to find photos for their personal and commerical projects. No

Blackmagic Design: Blackmagic Micro Cinema Camera - The first real GoPro contender?

This new small camera is actually really the first contender to the GoPro in my opinion. If you don't need the "action" readiness to be uber-tough and want better quality - this is a great option.

Blackmagic Design: Blackmagic Micro Cinema Camera
Introducing the Blackmagic Micro Cinema Camera, a miniaturized Super 16mm, professional digital film camera that is designed to be operated remotely and capture action anywhere! A revolutionary built in expansion port has PWM and S.Bus inputs so you can use a model airplane remote control to ...

Google Cloud Platform Blog: Introducing Google Cloud Storage Nearline: (near)online data at an offline price

Very interesting - it might bring me to switch from glacier to Google Cloud storage ... and a reason to reorganize my Foto Archive.

Introducing Google Cloud Storage Nearline: (near)online data at an offline price

Sync 2.0: Skip The Cloud, Share Direct

I make it short. Go get it.

Sync 2.0: Skip The Cloud, Share Direct

When Sync was first conceived in a Palooza, it was a simple idea: create a tool for people to move files directly between devices. It was a little piece of magic that leveraged great technology. Th...

Drunk User Testing - Test Your Site

Everybody should test their design in "drunk" mode ;)

Drunk User Testing - Test Your Site
About D.U.T.. So you think you're ready to launch? You've put hours into designing, testing, and implementing your new website. You've done focus groups, A/B testing, and random user sampling to see how your brainchild is going to perform out in the wild. Every scenario has been imagined and ...

Translate your Squarespace site with Localize.js | Localize.js documentation

This is a godsend for not-english Squarespace sites ... and it actually works.

Translate your website | Localize.js
Website translation is easy with Localize.js. Launch a localized version of your web application in just a few minutes.

Jeff Bridges Sleeping Tapes - Squarespace

The dude is on .... great squarespace site, great ad campaign, great tapes.

Jeff Bridges Sleeping Tapes - Squarespace
Jeff Bridges' new album is on his new Squarespace site. Give the tracks a listen on DreamingWithJeff.com and you’ll sleep better tonight.

The Pixelapse Blog • Pixelapse + Dropbox

The race to provide the best features has begun ... after Photo upload (now matched by other sync services) Dropbox is reaching again towards the creative users by buying the collaboration platform Pixelapse. I've tried it, and found it interesting but not ready for my workflow. Design review is hard - but if you can do it with a tool you already use it might get a better adoption than other tools.

It will up the "stickiness" of the dropbox service for sure - I am phasing dropbox out right now, but maybe it will be more attractive in one year time.

Pixelapse + Dropbox
Today, we’re proud to announce that we’re joining Dropbox!

We started Pixelapse with the mission of building the definitive version control and collaboration platform for creatives. Since then, we’ve been fortunate to become a part of the daily workflow of tens of thousands of freelance designers and creative teams. The prospect of developing products at Dropbox that expand this vision to millions of users is tremendously exciting.

Our new ...

CSS Level 4 Selectors to Watch Out For

Sounds esoteric but this article has a nice collection of properties which will make designers think differently about their designs.

http://webdesign.tutsplus.com/articles/css-level-4-selectors-to-watch-out-for--cms-23117

CSS Level 4 Selectors to Watch Out For - Tuts+ Web Design Article
The CSS Selectors Level 4 draft from the 15th of January outlines a major jump in features for CSS. Let’s examine some of them! | Tags: CSS

Funny Message when you inspect this website

I love good humor and if developers have this kind of easter eggs. You know when you snoop around code of a website to see how they done some of the things. Why not advertise your design company like The Bold Italic does. Nice

BTW: Website is http://www.thebolditalic.com/

 

Pocket Casts Web Player launched (?)

I'm a fan of the Pocket Casts podcast player, but I missed a web player - so I could just play and manage my podcasts nicely at the pc.

And this way I might just change my download rules and subscribe more video podcasts.

https://play.pocketcasts.com/

 

Alle Android-Apps & Android-Spiele aus dem Google Play Store – AndroidPIT

The final "old" part of AndroidPIT is gone - here comes the new responsive app section.
I will have a write up of the newest design developments on AndroidPIT ready in coming weeks.

Alle Android-Apps & Android-Spiele aus dem Google Play Store – AndroidPIT
Nur das Beste aus der Welt der Android-Apps: Egal ob Spiele, Office oder Tools: Hier findest Du die besten Android-Apps für Dein Smartphone oder Tablet.

Elastic SVG Elements | Codrops

Now that's animation that make sometimes sense - but give that subtle extra that simple css cannot do. Love it.

Elastic SVG Elements | Codrops
Some inspiration for elastic components with SVG shape animations for enhanced UI interactions.

Keeping CSS short with currentColor — Osvaldas Valutis

Love this little trick - essential for SVG, but also the other examples are interesting

Keeping CSS short with currentColor
Turns out currentColor has been here for quite some time now, but I heard about it only a few months...

Towards a more perfect link underline | acusti.ca

Interesting CSS Trick to simulate real Underlines - while we still should consider not using underlines at all, since they where just introduced to be used in case there is no bold font option.

Towards a more perfect link underline |
Towards a more perfect link underline. 28 Nov 2014. progress in underline text-decoration in Safari and iOS. I became interested in trying to create the ideal text underline in CSS after reading an excellent post about it on (and about) Medium. In that post, Marcin Wichary offers a list of goals ...

Fix Pen Pressure Problems in Photoshop CC for older Tablets

It looks like there has been a change in Photoshop that makes it not recognize pen pressure anymore. After trying out various tips and tricks I came around http://forum.wacom.eu/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=19462. To make it short - you have to create a custom config file and restart Photoshop.

* Photoshop CC 2014 changes stylus use to use Microsoft system API's, with these API's you need to have Windows Ink enabled. These API's give better stroke results and improve the out of the box experience for users using Windows tablet/convertible devices. If you want to go back to the old WinTab implementation of previous versions do the following:

Create a file that contains instructions to revert to the WinTab functionality.

Create a text file in a text editor such as Notepad. Type in the following lines:

#Use WinTab UseSystemStylus 0

Save the file as a plain text file named PSUserConfig.txt, and save the file into the Photoshop settings folder: 

C:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2014\Adobe Photoshop CC 2014 Settings

*

Wacom Forum - Wacom Europe GmbH • View topic - Pen pressure not working in mouse mode with PhotoshopCC 2014 I've updated to Photoshop CC 2014 (Windows 8.1 Professional, x64) and found that pen pressure is not working. I use mouse mode - I switched to pen mode and it was working again, but I can't make it work in mouse mode. I've tried reinstalling the drivers, deleting the preferences... everything I ...