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Let me first state that I am a die hard fan of the iPad (and most things Apple). While I’m not usually what techies call an “early adopter,” I was the proud owner of an original iPad within a month of its release. We’ve been in love ever since. Lots of people asked me (and still do) what I actually did with it, insinuating I had purchased a glorified toy. But it really did change things for me. As a creative, it’s the perfect portfolio-sharing device. I can’t imagine ever having a printed portfolio again. On business trips where I won’t need the firepower of my MacBook Pro, it’s the perfect traveling computer. With a stellar battery life, it made my recent flight from Atlanta to San Francisco a breeze. And for leisurely computer use at home, sitting on the couch with my iPad is the way to go.

On March 2, Apple announced the iPad 2. So now my dilemma. Do I go out and plunk down another $500 (minimum) to upgrade? To be honest, after a bit of research, I don’t think it’s worth it. Sure, there have been a handful of upgrades to size and processor and even some slick new cases but I don’t see enough to justify me crafting an argument to my wife about why I need “another” iPad.

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Annotating wireframes doesn’t have to be a painful job with this simple script I’ve developed to add annotations to a single canvas. You can easily adjust the script to add the annotations to all your canvases in your document, but I don’t recommend it as a workflow!

Check out my demo video for some simple instructions on how to use and tips!

DOWNLOAD SCRIPT HERE: Add annotation markers to a single canvas

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It seems like forever ago, but I clearly remember when computer mice became popular. I remember avoiding them like the plague at first – thinking how inefficient they were compared to a keyboard. I also remember a friend’s naive younger sister grabbing at the mouse as soon as she turned the computer on and thinking “this thing is going to dumb down computer users so much”. Fifteen years later and my opinions couldn’t be more different.

The mouse is to the PC, just as the game controller is to the XBox, just as the remote is to the TV – they are forms of interaction which are workhorses to millions. All of these controllers are pretty simple in nature: you push a button, it travels some wires (or wirelessly), and it tells a computer something to do. All of these forms of control were built back when computing power was at a premium, and before computer sensors are what they are today. What is becoming clear is that the biggest device innovations today are not just measured by computing power, storage, or screen size – the biggest innovations today are measured in how you interact with them, and how they interact with you.

A camera making use of face and smile detection

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Last Saturday I made my way to the Eyebeam Art & Technology center in New York City for their holiday mixer and X-Lab event (an open lab environment for researchers and fellows to demonstrate their projects). One of the coolest projects I checked out was Windowfarms, an Eyebeam project from a couple years ago. An example of high-tech/low-tech, Windowfarms meets my techy needs… and my environmentally conscious side… and my DIY side! Check out their site to purchase a home kit or to discover how you can create your own. Check out my shaky hand and interview while your at it!

Cutting the Cord will be a multi-part series of posts discussing the numerous facets that are involved in getting rid of your cable television subscription. We will take a dive into the following topics:

• Equipment & Cost
• Interfaces and Controls
• Content Content Content (delivery models etc.)

Currently, cable is a system that works, and aside from the occasional outages and poor interfaces, it works well. Up to now, we as consumers of televised media know what to expect from our cable providers. When there is a storm, we know we may experience an outage. When the cable isn’t working, we call the cable company to have someone look at that mysterious box that sits under our televisions. However that paradigm is beginning to change.

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Earlier this year, we took some time to tinker with with QR codes — specifically Microsoft TAG. As part of a recruiting effort, we designed a pocketbook journal with a TAG code that led to a mobile site targeted to young creatives just entering the field. You can view the mobile site on your phone at http://www.iqagency.com/tag/

These mini books were given away at SCAD career fair, Portfolio Center, Creative Circus and the like.

BTW I still have some left over if anyone wants some free schwag…

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Who says computer supported cooperative work is only for business purposes? Here at IQ we party in costume and remotely! Check out Experience Architect Patrick Aguilar aka Old Man, Account Supervisor John Nugent, and I (Princess Leia) bridging the time and space gap for our Halloween celebration.

With offices in Atlanta and New York, feeling like a part of the family is just a video chat button away. We use remote collaboration on a daily basis to conduct our work, but it’s also used to strengthen our friendships and personal ties. Ain’t no party like an IQ party!

As of today Windows Phone 7 devices have begun being sold across the pond in the UK. We are very happy to see the launch of Microsoft’s reinvention of their mobile platform, and are equally as happy to have been involved in the development of launch titles.

Above are screenshots from the Tesco Real Food Application, one of a number of applications we have developed for the platform launch. We were lucky enough to work on this project in conjunction with our partners at Microsoft, and believe the application does a great job at connecting the Tesco Real Foods brand with their customers. Now users can browse and search the same recipes on their Windows Phone device as they can find on Tesco.com/food – but in a Metro centric style and mobile friendly way.

IQ is committed to excelling in the Windows Phone 7 application space, and we hope to share more about other WP7 related projects soon.