Cullmann Design Blog

Microsoft unveiled a preview release of their upcoming Windows 8 during their BUILD developer conference this week.Among updates the usual performance and security updates that usually accompany a new Windows release, Microsoft presented their new Metro user interface. METRO is a new way to interface with your windows computer that is optimized for touch-screens. This new interface is Microsoft’s response to the popularity of the iPad and tablet-style devices.The new METRO interface will be amended to the new Windows 8 which is a bit similar to what most people are used to seeing. It resembles Windows 7 in look and feel. Users, can then decide if they prefer to use the METRO solution or the more familiar Windows experience.

The new touch interface is a drastic departure from the Windows desktop environment we are all used to. Where we had previously relied on desktop icons, the METRO user interface provides tiles that contain information for each application. This information can be dynamic or pull content from your computer’s user profile. Weather tiles for instance, will pull real-time data from the web and show you a dashboard summery without having to open the application at all.

Applications themselves are written in HTML5 and JavaScript. This makes the creation of applications a much more simple and less intimidating process. Developers will no longer need to program and compile applications in larger, more complicated languages like .NET or SilverLight.

In addition to a low barrier-to-entry for programmers and developers, the METRO interface represents a unique shift in the way that Microsoft believes we will interface with our computers moving forward. Much like the convenience of an iPad, the new desktop model is more about managing the user’s life and curiously than treating the environment like a workstation. Easily customizable, the interface has the potential to change the way most people interact with their computers.

The concept of the dashboard is nothing new. Windows Vista introduced widgets, a simple, single focus application that ran on the desktop or taskbar for easy reference. The METRO interface begins with a single focus of providing flash information and moving the user into a task. Each tile represents an chance to optimize the user’s time and eliminate the need to open an application for a quick-glance.

These tiles also represent a tremendous new channel for market’s to move their brand to a user’s desktop experience. An allergy brand that can present real-time allergen data to users. Emails should be designed to take advantage of inbox previews which will make their way to the display tiles.

Windows 8 is far from release, with an expected release to the consumer market in early 2012. It’s not so far off that developers and marketers should not begin planning what the new user experience will be on this platform and how it will shape the user’s habits online.

What do compression libraries have to do with web development? If you’re Google and pushing massive amounts of data for websites over your networks, shaving a few kilobytes from every query will add up very quickly. snappy is a project aimed at making those compressed libraries and data sets more efficient.

Taking a new look at file compression for improvement, Google is hosting a project that provides a faster compression solution. The resulting files are no smaller than previous generations of compression libraries, but much more efficient to unpack.

If you run a server or host a project that makes use of shared libraries for web applications, take a look at snappy on the Google Code Server.

StreetFilms has posted a fantastic clip outlining a perspective on open data. The short focuses on how individual developers and start-ups can use data from local government organizations to provide services like traffic updates, accident information, efficiencies and better citizen support.

I thought this piece was as interesting because it hit home, at a very basic level, how important open data architecture is. When you discuss the concepts of open data with a non-geek, it’s difficult to articulate how someone can use US Census data, Center for Disease Control Data or even your local Police Blotter data. There is no reason not to have this data available and when there is so much to be done with it.

Freely available data is also crucial from a governmental transparency perspective. The ability to map and process data real-time will extend the public’s ability to access and monitor occurrences that the government is unable or unwilling to do with their current resources. I’m hoping that this clip and sharing it will inspire and motivate developers, concepters and influencers to build something that is for a greater good and community.

A Case for Open Data in Transit from Streetfilms on Vimeo.