It’s a subtle change, but Apple has changed the system font for the iPhone 4, from Helvetica to Helvetica Neue. The change is specific to the iPhone 4 hardware (or more specifically, the Retina Display), not iOS 4. On older iPhone hardware, iOS 4 still uses Helvetica as the system font.

I’ve had a hard time aliasing this typeface at small sizes with any real quality. While it looks great in large sizes or in print, both on my Macbook Pro and 3G iPhone, the type is fuzzy at 14 point or smaller. (I suspect this is due to font hinting) Not surprisingly, it renders very cleanly on the retina display.

This kind of attention to detail is just one example of what separates Apple from the other manufacturers who clearly couldn’t care less about this stuff.

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This move seems like it’s less about the product and more about pimping their software development opinions. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. For the record, I don’t have a problem with the $9.99 price tag either.

(Aside: A lot of people are complaining that it’s too expensive. They also just broke into the Top 100. So, you decide if it’s too expensive.)

I’ve always agreed with their minimalist approach. It’s like YAGNI on steroids. Sharpie markers, bold strokes, forget the nitty-gritty details… all great advice.

But, it feels like they’ve intentionally taken this to the extreme. Basecamp is great because they left out features that would get in the way. In Draft, it’s as if they did this because it’s cool to leave out features, rather than useful.

On another note, the attitude in Jason’s comment irks me:

We might add yellow to version 2.0 in 2012.

Kinda witty and funny, in a blunt and rude way. It was a rather condescending response to a comment left by someone praising the app they just publicly purchased.

Just bought the app. Love the simplicity, and posting to Campfire makes it valuable. If the goal isn’t to add features… is version 1 the final version?

We run our business on Basecamp and Highrise, and wouldn’t change that for the world. I never thought I’d see the day where Adobe creates a better user interface than 37signals.

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I’ve been rather vocal about my love for the Kindle since the day it came out. It’s one of the best gadgets I’ve ever owned.

The iPad version looks like it contains all of the major features of the Kindle hardware.

Books are purchased through the Safari browser and then are downloaded into the application, which seems pretty straightforward. It also might provide the loophole they need to compete with Apple in this space.

While this looks pretty slick, it still doesn’t compete with the Kindle hardware as a book reader, in my opinion. The e-ink display on the Kindle hardware is fantastic in both bright sunlight, and dim rooms. It’s ideal for reading on the go. I haven’t seen the iPad in person, but I speculate the backlit display will suffer the same as the Macbook Pro does in direct sunlight.

I certainly wouldn’t turn down a color e-ink display, but I think color is overrated for most everyday reading. I haven’t missed it yet.

What do you think?

Do you think this is a competitor to Apple’s service?
Does the lack of e-ink put you off?
Is the color screen more appealing to you?

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ReadMore, the new iPhone application from Navel-Labs helps you get through those books you need to read, but your mind refuses to concentrate on.

The premise is simple. Track your reading and gauge your progress. The application estimates the number of sessions it will take you to finish reading and about how much time that will take.

When my friend Jonathan first asked me to beta test it, I was skeptical. I understood the purpose. In fact, it was an application that I needed. But, I didn’t want to fiddle with my phone each time I sat down to read. To be useful to me, I told him, it would have to be unobtrusive. He delivered big time.

The application is gorgeous, thanks to the design skills of Brad Colbow. I can start reading in 2 clicks, and stop reading with a single click.

My favorite feature is the pause button. (ok, I’m biased since I championed the feature) While you’re reading, distractions happen. Perhaps your spouse needs help with the groceries, the phone rings, or maybe the kid just threw up. Just hit “pause,” deal with the recycled chicken parm seeping into your new white carpet, and “resume reading” when you are ready.

The app is $1.99 in the iTunes App Store. I can’t recommend it enough.

Do you like this app? Check out Jonathan’s Pomodoro Timer as well.

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The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method that can be used for any kind of task. For many people, time is an enemy. The anxiety triggered by “the ticking clock”, especially when a deadline is involved, leads to ineffective work and study habits which in turn lead to procrastination.

The aim of the Pomodoro Technique is to use time as a valuable ally in accomplishing what we want to do in the way we want to do it, and to enable us to continually improve the way we work or study.

Read more about the technique, and download the book for free.

My Favorite Pomodoro Timers

• The Real McCoy – The timer that inspired it all, a physical wind-up kitchen timer that you sit on your desk. A bit too primitive for my geek personality, but works very well.
• The Dashboard Widget – If you are on OSX, there’s a decent dashboard widget that sends growl notifications when time is up.
• The iPhone App – This is the only iPhone timer I’ve used that understands the essence of the technique. A simple, tactile motion is used to wind-up the timer, just like the real thing. It also let’s you leave a tiny note about the task you are currently focusing on.

In the end, I use the iPhone Pomodoro Timer by Navel Labs for my everyday work. It’s the most elegant and most convenient for me.

What have you used?

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Paper Prototyping with Paper and Marker

My design tools are primitive. They include a stack of paper, a Sharpie marker, and a wastebasket. Sketching wireframes on paper is very fast. It takes only a few seconds, and the result is always disposable. Drawing and trashing concepts is the interaction designers way of brainstorming for ideas.

Often I throw away a few dozen iterations before creating something I think is worthy of showing to my client. Granted, the process is not very “green,” but it works phenomenally well for me.

Any time you can encourage change by making that change cheap, your offering will improve. Since paper sketches are easily crumpled up and thrown away, the only thing we have to lose is a minute of our time.

The Sharpie marker is important. Using pencils/pens encourages you to get into nitty gritty details which will distract from the overall design.  Bold strokes encourage you to think about broad ideas.

Paper Prototyping with Balsamiq Mockups

Balsamiq Mockups is a good tool for helping you create digital mockups. It is a simple to use application which makes wireframing a quick process. However, it’s still nowhere near as fast or as easy as paper.

Designing with Balsamiq is fast because they have put time into preparing reusable interface widgets and design patterns which you can drag and drop into your design. I have found the included elements to be insufficient in my design process. Balsamiq does offer a plugin structure to design your own elements, but switching to paper is easier.

Another thing I like about Balsamiq is that the finished mockup looks terrible. Clients are often hesitant to suggest changes to mockups when they are pretty. Or, they may get hung up on fonts, colors and spacing when they shouldn’t. Your client should feel good about making design suggestions. You should encourage them to make changes. With Balsamiq, your clients can’t drive. They have to dictate changes for you to make. With paper, you can just give them the marker and let them go at it.

You can’t always be face to face with clients during the design process, although I highly recommend it whenever possible. If this is the case, Balsamiq makes a great alternative to paper prototypes. They can be shared, emailed or posted to Basecamp, without compromising too much of the process.

In the end, I still prefer paper. What about you?

Disclaimer: We were given a license to Balsamiq in exchange for publicizing our opinion.

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His new book doesn’t disappoint.  It’s an easy read and has easy to follow examples.  At around 300 pages, it’s easily digested.

The book is a great introduction to the Zend Framework and walks you through building simple database applications, Facebook applications, applications which integrate with web services such as Amazon Web Services, Google Maps and others.

You can buy the book from his website, or Amazon.com.

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