Lightbox scripts are everywhere. The problem is finding one that’s easy to setup, looks great, and works with multiple types of content. I just came across a jQuery plugin that accomplishes all 3 of those. Check out TopUp.
Archive for the ‘Web App’ Category
Plan your website content with Jumpchart
Monday, November 30th, 2009
File sharing with Box.net
Thursday, July 30th, 2009
If you’re looking for an easy way to share files with colleagues, clients, co-workers, family, or friends, then check out Box.net. It’s a great web app that allows you to upload and share files. It has all the usual features like users, sharing, mobile access, etc. Check it out if you’re in need of an easy way to share large files.
Easier Browser Testing: Litmus
Wednesday, July 29th, 2009
If you haven’t heard of Litmus before, you’re definitely missing out. Litmus is a browser testing service. It works like this – you login, enter a url, and then Litmus snaps screenshots of your site in multiple browsers across multiple operating systems.
Screenshot of Litmus browser test results
With Litmus, you can test in IE 5/6/7/8, Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Opera, and a few more browsers. Plus, most browsers have multiple versions available for testing.
You can really tell that the functionality and design of Litmus has been given a lot of thought. Some of the features I really like are:
1) Publishing screenshots – You can make screenshots public to show a client/colleague. Check out an example here.
2) Validation – Litmus will automatically validate your html and css code.
3) Notifications – You can be notified via GTalk, AIM, or Twitter when your screenshots have finished.
4) Compatibility tracking – You can mark browsers as compatible/not compatible for each screenshot so you know what’s left to fix.
Litmus also offers email client testing and it looks like they’ll soon be offering mobile device (iPhone, Blackberry, Android) testing as well!
Let your clients edit images without Photoshop
Thursday, July 23rd, 2009
We’ve all been there. Just after you’ve launched your client’s brand new site, complete with a content management system, they ask you “So, how do I upload these files that are 3500 pixels wide?” Well you think to yourself, they just need to resize them a bit. Easy, right? Just buy a copy of Photoshop for … oh wait they barely went for the website price, I don’t think they’ll go for Photoshop too.
Ok, how about finding a cheaper alternative? There are lots of image editing programs out there, but if you’re looking for a quick, easy, and free solution (or cheap, depending on which version you select), you might give Aviary’s image editor called Phoenix a try. It’s a browser based image editor that looks and works kind of like a very slimmed down Photoshop. You can see a sample of what’s possible here.
The thing I like about Phoenix is that you can tell a client “Go to this website and edit your images.” There’s nothing to install, no licenses to buy, it’s an easy way to get your clients editing images quickly.
Oh, be sure to check out the other Aviary image tools too. They’re quite impressive for web-based apps.
Super easy E-commerce with Shopify
Wednesday, July 15th, 2009
If you haven’t heard of Shopify, then get over to shopify.com now and check it out. Go ahead, I’ll wait….
Ok, welcome back. Shopify, as you’ve seen, is a hosted e-commerce application. It provides all the tools you need to setup e-commerce sites for your clients. We use it for Gooey Templates. I think it’s the best solution out there for running a store.
Screenshot of the Shopify Admin
Some of my favorite features:
Easy Custom Designs
Liquid is the template system that runs Shopify. It’s a really easy, but powerful templating system that allows you to do pretty much anything you want with the display of your site. It uses simple tags to insert content and you can also use these tags to do more complex programming type stuff, such as if/else statements, loops, etc.
The other really killer feature of the design process is “Vision.” Vision is an app that you download to your computer. It sets up a demo Shopify site on your computer so you can edit all the layout files, add images and css, and browser test everything, right on your computer. When you’re done, just export the design and import it into Shopify. It’s super easy and saves a ton of time.
Great Interface
Yeah, it may sound vain to some, but I know that properly designed interfaces will improve the usability of an app. I also think that the easier an app is to use, the more likely it will be they’ll keep using it. Shopify is both beautiful and easy to use.
Integration with Services
Shopify is integrated with all the usual payment, shipping, and fulfillment services, making it easy to set things up for your client. They also have an API and you can export your data.
Shopify App Store
App stores seem to be popping up everywhere lately, but Shopify’s app store is really useful. Basically Shopify allows developers to setup an app that works with their API. We use Fetch for delivering digital files to our customers. You can also install other apps for things like printing invoices, detailed stats on your store, and more.
Security and Maintenance
You don’t have to do a thing to secure or maintain a store for your clients. Set it and forget it. Need I say more?
What I don’t like
Transaction fees on orders. On all but the most expensive plan, Shopify charges a transaction fee of 1/2 to 2%. Now I understand why they have to do this, they have bills to pay too. However, it can be a hard sell to clients, especially if they have thin margins. On the Shopify site, they do mention that you can contact them for custom plans, so maybe you can work out something if a client won’t go for the transaction fees?
Would I recommend it?
Yes, absolutely! If you need to setup an e-commerce site for a client (or yourself), definitely check out Shopify.
The MailChimp/Google Analytics Plugin for WordPress
Friday, July 10th, 2009
If you happen to be a user of MailChimp, Google Analytics, and WordPress, then this plugin might be something to check out: the Analytics360 Plugin for WordPress. The plugin pulls MailChimp and Google Analytics data right into WordPress, so all your stats are front and center when you login to WordPress.
Very interesting color picker app
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009
There’s a new app called Pictaculous that analyzes a photo and spits out a color palette. Looks like it could provide a great source of design inspiration for web layouts.
Here’s a palette I created in just a few seconds:
You can check it out here. You can even email pictures to the app, directly from your iPhone!