Business Calendar started out as a side project, a one-man show, and is now run by a team of eight in Berlin. The app was very successful right from the time Android entered the mainstream market, and it now has an active user base of 2 million. But instead of modernizing the design and usability regularly, the developers focused on implementing user requests and customization options. Outdated design and new features stuffed in had made the app heavy and complex — full of features, hard to maintain for the team, hardly accessible for new users.

Knowing they needed a redesign but having few resources themselves, the team approached Opoloo to get design and interaction on the same level as the development. For the task, we delineated goals to attract new users and keep the existing user base satisfied:

• Improve user experience
  Strip down and reorganize the user interface to revive the simple, fast, efficient work process of a productivity tool.
• Improve accessibility
  Keep old users happy, lower the barriers for new ones.
• Incorporate task management
  Integrate tools that users need every day to create more value.
• Apply modern design standards
  Address the main criticism: “Could be prettier.”
• Extensive tablet support
  Improve the tablet experience as a first step to ubiquity.

The hardest part of any mobile calendar’s interface is the density of information, with each little piece fighting for attention: grids, events, time indicators, text labels, colors and other elements to interact with, manipulate and customize. Finding the right balance is what makes for an accessible calendar UI. Below are a few tricks we pulled with the presentation of data (i.e. how pieces of information are consumed, searched for and compared).

Although an iconic and heavily used feature of Business Calendar, the favorite bar was barely accessible: It became too small and too crowded to use as the number of calendars grew. Our solution was to use Android’s black system bar as an optical trick: The favorite bar now feels much taller and easier to tap, due to the black-in-black design. Additionally, we improved touch targets, made visible and invisible states clearer, and implemented a scrolling pattern to house more calendars.

Let’s be honest: We designers can be difficult to work with. We might come from a controversial company culture, work an unconventional schedule or get impatient whenever our Internet connection is slower than the speed of light. Would you be at ease with a service provider who matches this description?

When talking to potential clients, be aware that many will have never solicited a professional design service and likely have little understanding of the design process itself. Keep in mind, too, that some clients have had a poor experience in the past. For many clients, it can be an anxious jump into the deep unknown, a big financial investment steeped in risk.

But why should any of this matter to us? After all, it’s not our money. Being rewarded for our time and effort should be all that matters, right? This is true to an extent; our knowledge and experience shouldn’t be seen as a free commodity. However, at times, a little patience and empathy are required on our part.

The post Fancy Buffet Design appeared first on Maryam Eivazi.

We used Basecamp as the communication management app. By “we” I mean Vitaly, the Smashing team, and everyone else who worked on the book. It was my first time using Basecamp and I quite liked it — it helped keep everything organized and in perspective. Knowing where everyone was in the process of writing was also quite helpful.

When I told Vitaly I wanted to write this article to introduce the SVG chapter to you, he asked me to be as critical of the entire writing process as I wanted, and mention anything I did not like about it, or even about him! But I couldn’t come up with anything, really.

The one and only criticism I have is the delay in the release date. I’m a very punctual person and when we started working on the book it was scheduled to be released in March and to start shipping in April, but it took a few months more to do that. That said, everyone who worked on the book also had a ton of other commitments and stuff to do besides writing it, so delays like this are only natural, I guess.

Just like all of our Smashing Books, the book isn’t concerned with trends or short-lived workarounds. It’s focused on actual techniques used today in real-life projects. We’ve designed the book to be as practical and hands-on as possible. No fluff, just the techniques that have actually worked or failed, and why.

Every chapter stands for itself. It delivers the value you expect, but it should exceed your expectations by far, too. We designed it to stand the test of time, too; to be more than just a manual or a guide. It’s really about the bigger picture you need to make smart decisions, faster. Hardcover, 584 pages. eBook contains 2 bonus chapters. Free worldwide shipping — obviously.

Now, a standalone release post would be boring and predictable, so how about bringing another perspective to the magazine instead? Below you’ll find some insights about the writing process by one of the authors of the book, Sara Soueidan, who has contributed an 80-page long compendium of useful techniques, tricks and strategies for dealing with SVG.— Ed.

The one and only criticism I have is the delay in the release date. I’m a very punctual person and when we started working on the book it was scheduled to be released in March and to start shipping in April, but it took a few months more to do that. That said, everyone who worked on the book also had a ton of other commitments and stuff to do besides writing it, so delays like this are only natural, I guess.

Just like all of our Smashing Books, the book isn’t concerned with trends or short-lived workarounds. It’s focused on actual techniques used today in real-life projects. We’ve designed the book to be as practical and hands-on as possible. No fluff, just the techniques that have actually worked or failed, and why.

Every chapter stands for itself. It delivers the value you expect, but it should exceed your expectations by far, too. We designed it to stand the test of time, too; to be more than just a manual or a guide. It’s really about the bigger picture you need to make smart decisions, faster. Hardcover, 584 pages. eBook contains 2 bonus chapters. Free worldwide shipping — obviously.

Now, a standalone release post would be boring and predictable, so how about bringing another perspective to the magazine instead? Below you’ll find some insights about the writing process by one of the authors of the book, Sara Soueidan, who has contributed an 80-page long compendium of useful techniques, tricks and strategies for dealing with SVG.— Ed.

The post The Adventure of Life in 4K appeared first on Maryam Eivazi.