Articles by Smashing Magazine from September 2012

Last week at the fabulous Smashing Conference in Freiburg, I gave a new talk, one Id written just a few hours prior. I chose not to use slides, but instead to speak about three things that Im incredib...

   Last week at the fabulous Smashing Conference in Freiburg, I gave a new talk, one Id written just a few hours prior. I chose not to use slides, but instead to speak about t...

   Unless youre developing completely new products at a startup, you likely work in an organization that has accumulated years of legacy design and development in its products...

Unless youre developing completely new products at a startup, you likely work in an organization that has accumulated years of legacy design and development in its products. Even if the product youre ...

If you have a problem and need a solution for it, chances are high that a JavaScript library or jQuery plugin exists that was created to solve this very problem. Such libraries are always great to hav...

   If you have a problem and need a solution for it, chances are high that a JavaScript library or jQuery plugin exists that was created to solve this very problem. Such libra...

   BuddyPress is social networking in a box, the loveable plugin that has people around the world getting social. But using BuddyPress isnt all about waking up one morning and...

BuddyPress is social networking in a box, the loveable plugin that has people around the world getting social. But using BuddyPress isnt all about waking up one morning and being struck by the amazing...

   In the first television advertisement for the iPad, the narrator intoned, Its crazy powerful. Its magical. You already know how to use it.  This was an astonishing cla...

In the first television advertisement for the iPad, the narrator intoned, Its crazy powerful. Its magical. You already know how to use it. This was an astonishing claim. Here was a new, market-definin...

Disclaimer: This article is published in the Opinion column section in which we provide active members of the community with the opportunity to share their thoughts and ideas publicly. Do you agree wi...

   Managing a personal device lab can be quite hard with an ever expanding number of devices. Its not only expensive, but also bad for our environment. Think of a situation wh...

Managing a personal device lab can be quite hard with an ever expanding number of devices. Its not only expensive, but also bad for our environment. Think of a situation where every Web developer woul...

If you have a problem and need a solution for it, chances are high that a JavaScript library or jQuery plugin exists that was created to solve this very problem. Such libraries are always great to hav...

In this article I’d like to discuss the changes happening on the Web and argue that its future is not as problematic and endangered as a lot of people make it out to be. The article is based on ...

   In this article I’d like to discuss the changes happening on the Web and argue that its future is not as problematic and endangered as a lot of people make it out to ...

Every name here is a tragic story of loss and heartbreak. The Garda Memorial Garden, or Gairdn Cuimhneachin an Gharda Sochna,is located in the heart of Dublin city. This memorial is a contemplative ga...

   Every name here is a tragic story of loss and heartbreak. The Garda Memorial Garden, or Gairdn Cuimhneachin an Gharda Sochna,is located in the heart of Dublin city. This me...

   Today we are happy to release two printable UX sketching and wireframing templates, designed by Pixle for Smashing Magazines readers. This article presents Outline, a set o...

Today we are happy to release two printable UX sketching and wireframing templates, designed by Pixle for Smashing Magazines readers. This article presents Outline, a set of sketching and wireframing ...

   Duringthe two days of the Smashing Conference, we provide you with insights, photos and highlights on Smashing Magazine live from the conference venue. Our team will be po...

   Duringthe two days of the Smashing Conference, we will provide you with insights, photos and highlights on Smashing Magazine live from the conference venue. Our team will ...

   My relationship with the Internet oscillates between waves of euphoria and waves of angst. Some things make me extraordinarily happy: like a client who loves usability test...

My relationship with the Internet oscillates between waves of euphoria and waves of angst. Some things make me extraordinarily happy: like a client who loves usability testing so much when they first ...

   As weve seen, audio is used as a feedback mechanism when users interact with many of their everyday devices, such as mobile phones, cars, toys and robots. There are many su...

As weve seen, audio is used as a feedback mechanism when users interact with many of their everyday devices, such as mobile phones, cars, toys and robots. There are many subtleties to designing with a...

   A well-functioning pattern library is a beautiful thing. It is a powerful resource that you and your entire team can use to efficiently create consistent user experiences f...

A well-functioning pattern library is a beautiful thing. It is a powerful resource that you and your entire team can use to efficiently create consistent user experiences for your website or service. ...

   We all know that WordPress is awesome but being awesome isnt always enough. Does it perform well under pressure? Can it deal with traffic from millions of visitors every m...

We all know that WordPress is awesome but being awesome isnt always enough. Does it perform well under pressure? Can it deal with traffic from millions of visitors every month? Theres no question tha...

   Most designers would agree that navigation is one of the most critical components of a website. Despite this, it is not always easy to use or access. Traditionally, users m...

Most designers would agree that navigation is one of the most critical components of a website. Despite this, it is not always easy to use or access. Traditionally, users must scroll back to the top o...

   As a designer looking to broaden your skill set, youve decided that learning to make native apps for Apples iOS platform is an attractive and potentially lucrative prospect...

As a designer looking to broaden your skill set, youve decided that learning how to make native apps for Apple’s iOS platform is an attractive and potentially lucrative prospect. With a frisson ...

   If you deal with images, sooner or later you will want to automate the repeating process of saving different sizes from one source image. If you own Adobe Photoshop and do ...

If you deal with images, sooner or later you will want to automate the repeating process of saving different sizes from one source image. If you own Adobe Photoshop and do not save too many output siz...

As with most designers, being sure that we explore and select the most successful, memorable and stimulating designs is a vital aspect that underpins every project we undertake. For us, the beginning ...

   As with most designers, being sure that we explore and select the most successful, memorable and stimulating designs is a vital aspect that underpins every project we under...

   You’ve probably already heard: we’ve turned six years old! One thing is for sure: the past six years have been special " we’ve learned a lot! Much of this...

   Yesterday we described who we are, and today its your turn to tell us your story. Looking back at where weve come from and where we are today, we see that one principle has...

   Yesterday we described who we are, and today its your turn to tell us your story. Looking back at where weve come from and where we are today, we see that one principle has...

Today is the day when it all started the day when this little website launched back in 2006. We are celebrating our six-year anniversary party, and you, being the ones who made the website possible a...

   Today is the day when it all started — the day when this little website launched back in 2006. We are celebrating our six-year anniversary party, and you, being the o...

   A year ago we published an article on 11 fundamental guidelines for e-commerce checkout design here at Smashing Magazine. The guidelines presented were based on the 63 find...

A year ago we published an article on 11 fundamental guidelines for e-commerce checkout design here at Smashing Magazine. The guidelines presented were based on the 63 findings of a larger E-Commerce ...

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Albert Einstein There is an old story of blind men and an elephant. The blind men all meet and are asked to describ...

   Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.– Albert EinsteinThere is an old story of blind men and an elephant. The blind men ...

   Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.– Albert EinsteinThere is an old story of blind men and an elephant. The blind men ...

We always try our best to challenge your artistic abilities and produce some interesting, beautiful and creative artwork. And as designers we usually turn to different sources of inspiration. As a mat...

   We always try our best to challenge your artistic abilities and produce some interesting, beautiful and creative artwork. And as designers we usually turn to different sour...