Still recovering from over a week of sleep-deprived days this month, but it was worth it. Attendance was up this year for Interactive, rumors have been flying that perhaps it was up around 30% over last year. There were so many events and panels this year that some even spilled out of the traditional convention center to neighboring hotels, as far as 6+blocks past to the Sheraton. Which as it has also been stated is where the “real” technology panels and talks happened, away from the fray of wild crowds and parties that surrounded the convention center.

Making a broad statement off of all the panels I attended this year. I have to say most were definitely either a hit or miss…none of which fell in-between, often dependent on the quality of the moderator or ability of the moderator to draw out insights and guide the panel, and since SXSW deploys the scalable way of voting up panels to determine who will speak this leads to panels that have popular speakers (but that doesn’t guarantee the best speakers) or topics, perhaps just ones that are deemed mainstream.

One primary example, well based off my experience, that stands out in my mind is the “SXSW panel: Fan to Fanatic: True Blood’s Marketing Hook” I will admit, I am a fan…Why else would I go, right? In short all I have to say is, Alan Ball was missed/needed. I found that for a show with such vision and impact, that has become so well known, and has such a brilliant marketing team behind it, that they couldn’t carry the attention of well… ironically, their audience. Fortunately, given the vast assortment of panels, the opportunity to find certain topics is available, providing you can easily get to the physical location. I did find the SXSWi app with schedule updater so very handy in planning my day-to-day activities and was able to jump topics on certain panels that ended up not capturing my interests for very long.

I found the importance of networking during SXSW and understanding various social networks very useful and almost bordering as a complete necessity. I attended SXSW when Twitter* first launched, yet this year there were no clear rivals or new-kids-on-the-block/breakout technologies. In my opinion it is because there is an over saturation of products, currently–while innovation certainly isn’t stifled the number similar or ‘like’ products is hard to fathom let allow encourage novices to sift through. (*however that being said Twitter is in it’s fifth year, and coined at hitting over 140 million tweets a day, that’s one hell of a network. Happy Birthday Twitter!)

Among some of the coolest tools I found was SMS/app chat, GroupMe (enables intimate discussions with your most immediate circle) and to which admittedly I have been using for over half of a year now and am pleased to note that it keeps my monthly texting costs at bay within my social circle, but it is NOT new to me. However, during SX it was definitly being heavily used and promoted by this so to speak “early adopter crowd”, even the press picked up on this new trend. * Check out Group-Me Panel highlight reel for info

What about mass broadcasting panels and topics to networks like Twitter, Facebook? Well again, I congratulate the developers behind the SXSWi app, as it was not only a fantastic tool for scheduling, but also went a step further to integrate Gowalla’s location check-in and direct topic post to feed through both Twitter and Facebook. I was impressed almost more-so than with the panels I attended.

This brings me to another point. I found my off-line networking experience to be more prominent in providing me with new resources and contacts then I had experienced in quite a while. While I feel that at times some clients express that online networking can seem like a bizarre and mysterious world to traditional ‘offline’ professionals.  That world is moving at such a rapid pace, but my response is you know more than you think. All social networking leads back to you, me and our interrelation. Many social networking users are loosing site of that including myself at times. It very easy to hide behind the screen.

Upon doing a little discovery on this progression, after one of my many social networking events this SXSW I came across a neat study that boils down off-line to on-line networking to a few base principles.  Here are five ways to translate your existing networking skills onto the Internet environment and vise-versa from Pundit’s entrepreneurs a guide for social media.

*Side note, being a member I have to state my excitement, that the AIGA Launched Design for Good this SXSWi, Asking Members to Donate 5% of Their Time to Social and Civic Causes. NOTE: A positive way to promote your company through social networking is to engage your followers!

1.  Never Sell at Networking Meetings (over saturation)
On the web, forums, comments, and social media sites are your ‘networking meetings’.  Leaving shallow comments at every tangentially relevant site and only recommending your own stuff is the online equivalent to that guy working the room with a thousand business cards.  It’s better to make just a few quality contacts who don’t think you’re a jerk.

2.  Perfect Your Pitch
Offline we learn to craft our speech, a 30 second commercial so to speak to get across who we are and what we do.  On this point, the Internet is definitely your friend.  The profile is your online counterpart to this high-speed sales pitch.  The wonderful thing is you have the opportunity to get these first impressions just right and to adjust them over time.

3.  Give Before You Get
The surest way to foster goodwill both online and off is by being generous with your support.  Want more traffic?  Post lots of links.  Need help with your site design?  Give away what you’re good at.  The key is to offer without expectation of reciprocation.  When you make a habit of giving, the help you need seems to show up automatically just when you need it.

4.  Make Appointments to Network
The Internet is 24/7.  There may be some live chats or forums where people agree to attend during the same real time, but for the most part your networking is not going to be done concurrently.  In other words, you’re likely to have conversations over a staggered period of time.  In order to carve out the necessary time to catch up with online contacts, schedule networking on your calendar just as you would the business building breakfast organized by your traditional professional association.

5.  Patience is THE Virtue
It takes time to build up a network, any network.  It can be difficult at first to observe the effects of your diligent networking when you don’t see your new contacts out for drinks or in line at Starbucks.  How will you know you’re making progress?  The truth is networking is an art, not a science.  It’s difficult to measure – online or off – how your efforts are paying off.  But ask anyone who makes networking a regular part of their professional life and you’ll get a handful of anecdotes about the power of schmooze.

The highlight of my Interactive experience would have to be Bruce Lawson’s presentation on Mobile Optimization with HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript.

Bruce quickly dismisses the idea of separate webs. He presented the idea that there is no mobile web, there is just one web. Just like there is no desktop web or tablet web. He supports this with reasons why we should think of a more unified web. He says that rather than creating different desktop and mobile sites (which ultimately confusers the end user) why not create responsive web development using CSS. We are able to use CSS to detect properties such as width, height, device-width, device-height, orientation, resolution and color to name a few using CSS3 Media Queries. Using these properties, we enable our browsers to detect the device settings and offer up proper css styles and rules for a better user experience on the web.

Bruce also presented various tips and tricks for a better mobile web experience, which I will run through below:

1. No browser sniffing for the simple reason that over 100 new browsing solutions appear every day and there is no possible way to cover all those solutions.

2. Don’t use tables for layouts. Tables are heavy on CPU and battery usage on mobile devices.

3. Give width and height dimensions in HTML in your image tags 
( i.e. <img src=”/source/” alt=”" width=”xx” height=”xx” />).

This will enable your browser to make room for these images when loading, rather than guessing the size of these images.

4. Use the <a href=”tel:xxx-xxxx”></a> tag for phone numbers.

5. Future proof your CSS. You do not have to limit your prefixes to -moz and -webkit. You can also throw in -o for opera and -ms for IE, and once these properties are available on those browsers your site will already be CSS3 enabled in those browsers. So for instance when setting up the CSS3 transition property:

-moz-transition
-ms-transition
-o-transition
-webkit-transition
transition

6. Minimize HTTP requests to save on CPU and battery power by combining JavaScript into one file and combining CSS into one file. CSS sprite images can also be used to minimize HTTP requests.

7. CSS optimization:
- use ems instead of px for fonts (for browser scalability)
- use fluid layouts (for landscape and portrait mode flexibility)
- turn off fancy shadows and transitions to conserve on CPU and battery power

8. JavaScript optimization:
- put JavaScript files at the bottom of the source file and especially after CSS.
- if you don’t have you use a library (i.e. jQuery), use your own script.

We still have one more day of SXSW Interactive, but I figure with the bulk of it behind us, let’s look at some the highlights so far.

Web Anywhere: Mobile Optimization With HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript

Bruce Lawson knows his stuff, and really calls out some philosophical problems many developers (myself including) carry around with us. He quickly dismisses the idea of a “mobile web” or a “tablet web”, and makes a pretty strong case against separate sites for mobile users. Many of the new technologies in HTML5 can be used to progressively enhance the web experience, especially for smarter mobile browsers, without causing problems for older browsers. Javascript libraries, he argues, have become a crutch for many developers who should maybe write their own code if possible to avoid sending heavy JS files across the wire. Most of this stuff I already knew, but Bruce really brought it all together and made me think about the diverse needs of all web users.

Designing iPad Interfaces – New Navigation Schemas

I had no idea what to expect here, but Lynn Teo changed the way I approach iPad design. Before, I think I conceptualized the iPad as really just an iPhone with more screen space. Lynn describes the iPad (and similar tablets) as a new form factor, and as such it has its own set of rules for what works from a design perspective. After going through some theory, she jumped into some real-life iPad design samples that seemed to be pretty powerful. Her presentation sure kicked the pants off of Microsoft’s boring follow-up “The Future of Touch User Interface Design” talk.

Creative JavaScript and HTML(5) Visual Effects

2+ hours of what can be done with HTML5 canvas. Creating Flash-like graphics with javascript is a pretty exciting notion, and Seb Lee-Delisle walked us through how to start doing this. Sadly, though, until IE supports it, canvas will only be able to be used for non-essential bells and whistles. Maybe in a few years time that will change.

CSS3: Beyond the Basics

This panel had a LOT of ground to cover; there is so much to be done with CSS3, and it changes almost on a weekly basis. I learned a couple of new things about gradients, including a way to create a very simple faux column effect. I had no idea about background-size, which is something I’ve always had to with some nasty javascript. I took pages of notes and picked up a couple new css tricks to add to my arsenal. While there are still some holes in terms of browser support of CSS3, many of these techniques can be used in a progressive enhancement fashion, gracefully degrading in IE. And for webkit mobile browsers, these tricks are ready to use.

I have to say that after a semi chaotic and uninspiring day on Friday (Day One), Saturday (Day Two) was MUCH better.

I have come to the conclusion that I prefer the solo sessions as opposed to the panels because the material is much more focused, providing quality information and demonstrating tactical action items as opposed to debating opinions and/or talking about projects & clients that very few attendees will ever have the opportunity or budget to work on.

Here is a recap of my day and the “golden nuggets” I walked away with.

What Comic Books Can Teach Mobile App Designers

As a comic book fan and designer, this was setup for a perfect session. It started with a tribute to and history of Will Eisner’s contribution to the comic book industry and how comic book screen panel layout translates very easily into mobile screens. Though it was a nice intro to Eisner’s contribution (which I honestly was not aware of), I didn’t really see too much similarity between the two mediums outside of the similarity of panel based design/organization and semi standard 3 x 3 icon layout on some popular apps like Facebook.  Overall a good presentation by Simmons — REALLY liked that you could actually hear him (which was a prevalent issue for most of the speakers), an interesting presentation to watch, and that enjoyed that he surprised the front row of the session with comic books taped under their chairs to prove a point.

Golden Nuggets:

1. Number of Approved Apps By Device
   1. Apple = ~400,000
   2. Android = ~ 200,00
   3. Other = ~40K
2. Number of Mobile Device Users = 62  Million
3. Number of apps used more than once = 26%

Ordering Disorder: Grid Design for the New World

I enjoyed this session.  Vinh did a great job of explaining the relevance of the grid in not only the world of design, but also the history of it and it’s amazing significance in the world that many of us take for granted.  I was happy that he broke everything down in a step-by-step approach as to how to best use grids in today’s world of varying user displays and experiences.  It was also nice that he came at the discussion from both angles — primarily discussing the standard web browser — but also touching on how mobile and fluid layouts apply (or don’t).

Golden Nuggets:

1. Grids in multiples of four (4) work best for high level grid layout
2. Elements in groups of three (3) are the most usable and accessible for the user
3. At the standard 1024×768 layout, it is best to utilize a 960px grid
4. From a readability standpoint, typography should be kept to 60-80 characters.
5. When it comes to Fluid Grid Systems, there are some truths:
   1. Users crave landmarks — some elements should remain in the same place on the page no matter the width/height.
   2. Devices should behave consistently — don’t have the fluidity vary so drastically that users have to relearn how to use the site
   3. Fluid designs may not be worth it — all about execution and providing the approach to the right customer

Behind the Curtains: Secrets of Mobile App Wizardy

Like many of the sessions at SXSWi, the title of the session can be misleading.  I expected, maybe naively, that this session was going to show some real tactical information about how to simplify the “magic” of mobile apps.  Why put “Wizardy” in the title of your session if you don’t really give the audience information on specifically “how” things were done… not “what” the finished product was? It seemed very much like more of a “we do cool thinks at Razorfish and here is what they look like” as opposed to “here are some things we have done to design and build mobile apps that really worked for our clients and/or had to overcome to break past standard issues in application production”… will somebody please do that?  Oh yeah, there was one this morning, but the line was 3 miles long to get in 15 minutes before it started.  Sucks to be, well… all of us waiting in line who missed the “iPad Design Headaches” session at 9:30.

Despite the fact that the audience could hardly hear the speaker through most of the session because Gelb had his mic clipped to the left side of his shirt and his head was facing to the right as he looked at this slides, there were some interesting nuggets (that put things in perspective) and it was nice to take a peak into the internal process of how a major agency handles mobile projects.

Golden Nuggets:

1. More people have mobile phones than the number of people who have access to drinking water.
2. More people have mobile phones that the number of people who have a toothbrush.
3. Mobile application development is a continuous process.
4. There really are no best practices when it comes to design/development.  The best approach is to make apps different from others, but not SO different that users can’t adopt.

Metrics-Driven Design

In full disclosure, this was not my first choice, but was on my short list, so it was nice to be able to have an strong alternative to fall back on.  What I liked about this session, was it was very related to how we do things at Monkee-Boy — measuring our client’s sites to show ROI and successful conversion rates — but also that it took web measurement into a new direction (for me) of incrementally measuring design decisions in an ongoing process of tracking site success.  Porter was very engaging, very easy easy to hear and provided great examples to help explain all of this points, some of which were very complicated.

The most interesting part for me was hearing the story of how the head designer for Google left, in a not so friendly way, to go to Twitter.  The reason behind the whole move was based on the Google’s engineering powerhouse and philosophy of measuring every little thing and not making any changes until each design decision is over analyzed to a level that would drive any designer to suicidal tendencies.

Golden Nuggets:

1. Metrics (gracefully summed up) are numbers that measure the effectiveness of your business.
2. Google ran a test of 41 different shades of blue to find the best shade of blue to use on their link colors (http://www.zeldman.com/2009/03/20/41-shades-of-blue/)
3. Google and Bing use different shades of blue and Bing values their shade of blue at $80 million dollars.
4. Designers follow an intuitive design philosophy and Engineers follow a data driven design model.
5. It is important to remember that the “best current model” is completely different from the “best possible model” — the best possible model is only possible by releasing all current design decisions/directions and letting the data driven visual modifications direct the strategy.
6. What to measure for a company is as unique as each company itself.
7. Metrics move people along the usability life cycle.
8. Email marketing is still the best and most effective way to market (as opposed to social marketing).
9. Designers love metrics because:
   1. Metrics reduce arguments based on opinions.
   2. Metrics provide answers about what works.
   3. Metrics show your weaknesses/strengths as a designer.
   4. Metrics allow you to test anything you want.
   5. Clients love the fact that we can measure to justify their dollars spent.

Here’s hoping that tomorrow brings as many golden nuggets as today — it almost makes you forget about the cost of tickets, crowds at every turn, and all of the free beer we drank.

Between getting you badge, thumbing through your swag, and remembering how to get around the Convention Center, Day 1 of SXSW Interactive is always pretty chaotic. There were fewer heavy-duty talks today, but that made more time to check out all the cool goings-on (the Tron Legacy Lounge was kinda fun).

I did get a chance to check out John Battelle’s interview with WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg. Not a lot of technical talk, but it was fun to hear how WordPress came to be, and where it’s going. Apparently 12% of the web is powered by WordPress – a pretty staggering statistic. I loved Matt’s philosophy on ads – keep out of site, and only serve them up to non-Firefox users – #Mullenweg.

Caught the end of Google VP of Consumer Products Marissa Mayer’s presentation. Apparently Google was actually making plans to provide maps and Streetview for public indoor spaces as well – neat! – #MarissaGoogle.

South by Southwest Interactive starts tomorrow! Are you ready for a unique convergence of emerging technologies, original music, and independent films?! Well let us not forget to mention the amazing SXSW parties…

Here are a few helpful SXSW 2011 tidbits from our very own Social Monkee:

You want to attend the SXSW Interactive parties because they are the perfect place to grab a nibble of some tasty local treat, cold drink, hobnob/network, see old friends and listen to some sweet music. Here are some parties that are hosted by some of the leading heavyweights in the tech industry, so the odds are definitely in your favor to  make new friends and solid connections while enjoying endless free treats. There are an endless amount of parties to attend, here are the top five must attend tech parties.

Kickoff Party at SXSW 2011 – Hosted by TechSet

Every year, Techset opens SXSW Interactive with the must-attend party of the year. You walk into the venue and instantly everyone says you’re a rock star, so bring it! This year’s theme is “Living Rock Stardom” so you arrive dressed for the part and show the peep how it’s done. It’s highly recommend that you sign up early as the event sells out every year.

Time: Friday, March 11 8:00PM | Venue: Enzo

SXSW Interactive ‘Appy Hour’ Party Presented by BestBuzz

Guest list is limited and there will be a DJ and plenty of fun surprises at the event. You can get ‘appy’ and mix and mingle with the industry’s peeps while enjoying appetizers, an open bar, party favors, and our signature Appy Hour ‘BuzzBrew’ cocktails. www.bestbuzz.bz/sxsw

Time: Friday, March 11 @ 5:00PM | Venue: The Belmont @305 6th St

You can RSVP via iPhone or Android only right now. The oompa-loompas are working overtime on the Blackberry, Windows Mobile, and OVI versions.

NING Presents the Official Interactive Opening Night After Party

The SXSW opening night after party, featuring Washed Out, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears The Limousines and DJ Premier. Also, RAC (Remix Artist Collective)and DJ Aaron Axelsen of Popscene.

Be sure to RSVP: http://go.ning.com/sxsw

Time: Saturday, March 12 8:00 PM | Venue: The Mohawk, 912 Red River Street

Groupon Presents: SXSW Hangover Brunch for the Freely Hungover

Eat the hair of the dog after a weekend of mandatory industry parties and non-stop beeper radiation exposure at a free meal of brunch on Groupon. Enjoy a complimentary brunch buffet to fill your empty stomach and an open bar, stocked with beer, Bloody Marys, mimosas, and well drinks, to fill your empty liver. Give your ears the wake-up call they need with a performance from Slim Richey and the Jitterbug Vipers, featuring the Most Dangerous Guitar Player in Texas. Groupon tells me that their free brunch will expand your stomach with food, your lungs with appreciation, and your mind with knowledge. RSVP is required but does not guarantee entry (first come, first served basis). http://sxswhangoverbrunch.eventbrite.com/

Time: Monday, March 14, 10:00AM | Venue: Iron Cactus, 606 Trinity St

GSD&M + Google Present: The Industry Party

Google and GSD&M says join us for a night of listening, learning, drinking & networking. That includes live music from the Mother Truckers, J. Roddy Walston and the Business plus other special guests.

And you can even browse through an art gallery featuring works from Daniel Johnston, Magda Sayeg, Hugh MacLeod, Ian McLagan, Dave Mead and many more. Show your SXSW badge for entry or RSVP to sxswparty@gsdm.com.

Time: Monday March 14, 7:00PM | Venue: GSD&M, 828 W 6th St

SXSW Trade Show BLOCK PARTY

Mix, mingle and have a drink courtesy of participating SXSW Trade Show exhibitors. The Block Party is the perfect opportunity to watch that new technology demo, find out more about the coolest new startup, or simply network with some of the most plugged-in people in the industry. Be sure to get there early and bring your friends, because the SXSW Block Party is one of the hottest events of the show.

Okay…let’s make it six:
Pinpoint Music’s Party @ SXSW 2011
Pinpoint Music is headed to South by Southwest 2011 to host the very first Pinpoint Music party in Austin, Texas. This inaugural event will be held on Thursday, March 17th (St.Patrick’s day) at the Lanai Rooftop Lounge in downtown Austin and will showcase 8 very talented bands from across the country. The lineup will span our diverse interest in music genres with the bands Family of the Year, Pepper Rabbit, Inspired Flight, Slang Chickens, Pujol, Sundelles, Hi Ho Silver OH, and Solace and Fury.

The show is FREE but is by RSVP ONLY, so do that here.

Also be sure to check our Monkee-Boy SXSW 2011 Page for details on how you can win VIP passes to The Texas Music Magazine Party on the 18th! + added extras like links to daily parties and panel tips.

We will see you out there!

Someone I met with recently, asked me what the essential differences were between designing for print, and for the web. Having done a fair amount of both, I began to really think about this question deeply – and these were my resulting conclusions.

As a designer, it is important to wear multiple hats in order to be able to adapt to a number of clients from different backgrounds, and also to be able to approach each project with a fresh perspective. I am inclined to think that designers are somewhat like actors in that they create an identity for a product, and put it in context – much like an actor does with any role.

Now, web and print are merely media through which a designer can express his or her ideas and aesthetic point of view. Most designers have some trademark features in their work, which is what makes their touch unique or recognizable – regardless of the medium of expression. I think that designing for print is somewhat like acting in a live theater production, and web design is similar to being part of a TV series. My analogy might seem a bit out there, but let me explain.

With a print design project, you are given a timeline during which you can make all the modifications you want, and exploit the design brief to its maximum potential. You have a certain space within whose dimensions you have to confine your work, and once you decide to send to print, there is absolutely no way to make changes (without spending a lot of money of course, because nothing is really impossible!). Think of a theatre performance – the production can undergo any amount of evolution and changes within the practice and preparation timeframe, and there is a stage within whose set dimensions the production has to function. Once those curtains go up, you get only one chance that day to put your best forward, there is no way to go back and correct or change anything while the performance is in progress. A print piece is tactile, and so are the performers in a theater presentation – you can meet and speak with them if you so choose, after the curtains go down.

In the case of a series for television, there are a few characters whose circumstances change dynamically with each episode, and the series is constantly evolving to include new characters and situations. Should a member of the cast drop out, the script can be tweaked to alter the course of the series. To me, this is very much like building and maintaining a website – we start out with a sitemap that has sections whose content evolves over a period of time, new sections are added and design modifications can be made ongoing. In a way, there is more flexibility with what you can do with a website as opposed to a print piece. Sure, web design is somewhat limited by constraints on the development end, but technology is evolving so rapidly that these constraints are diminishing a bit more with each passing day.

Basic principles for effective design are applicable in both situations – it just depends on what the designer finds more exciting – the thrill of live applause, or bringing screens alive with their magic!