Great Data Sources to Breathe Life Into Prototypes

May 13th, 2020 - Written by Mark Land

Prototypes are meant to be interactive. But what about the content? It's typically pretty static. Taking into consideration our recent article, we have collected a few data sources that you can use to breathe life...
Prototypes are meant to be interactive. For the least part they are, one can click and tap around. The actual content is pretty static in almost all cases. However, we have collected a few data sources that you can use to breath life...

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Designing with Live Data

Apr 7th, 2020 - Written by Mark Land

The web is so interconnected these days. We have APIs, fancy UI design tools but still cannot design with live data dynamically. However, there a ways that allow a designer to pull live data from any web service during her design process.
The web is so interconnected these days. We have APIs, fancy UI design tools but still cannot design with live data dynamically. However, there a ways that allow a designer to pull live data from any web service during her design process.

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How Apple Loses Customers (Me Included)

Aug 15th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

As Apple's revenue does not grow anymore as much as in the past, Apple introduces UX dark patterns that make people their devices.
As Apple's revenue does not grow anymore as much as in the past, Apple introduces UX dark patterns that make people their devices. Binding two devices together make these patterns even more deceptive.

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The Problem With Cross-Platform Experiences on the Blockchain

Jun 25th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

Designers love to craft holistic experiences. A strong part of such holistic experiences is the fact that customers or users shall be able to move fluidly across and between touch-points, platforms or devices. Conventional, go-to services like Spotify, YouTube...
Designers love to craft holistic experiences. A strong part of such holistic experiences is the fact that customers or users shall be able to move fluidly across and between touch-points, platforms or devices. Conventional, go-to services like Spotify, YouTube...

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The Business Side of Design Sprints

May 27th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

A design sprint is not just this creative endeavour that takes 5 days of hard work. No, it must provide a return on investment. In order to calculate the return, we must figure the, firstly, the cost and, secondly, the value provided or generated.
A design sprint is not just this creative endeavour that takes 5 days of hard work. No, it must provide a return on investment. In order to calculate the return, we must figure the, firstly, the cost and, secondly, the value provided or generated.

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Design Sprint Done, Now What?

May 07th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

“As with every product/feature vision that is built as a prototype you always have to rethink what (parts) to build first afterwards. This implies that the delivered product is nearly never 100% close to the prototype” says Oliver Pitsch, Head of..."
“As with every product/feature vision that is built as a prototype you always have to rethink what (parts) to build first afterwards. This implies that the delivered product is nearly never 100% close to the prototype” says Oliver Pitsch, Head of..."

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Codemotion Rome: How to Close The Gap Between Web 2.0 and 3.0

Apr 17th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

This piece is a write-up of a talk I gave at Codemotion’s Rome tech conference in late March. I talk about the fundamental UX issues of blockchain services and how to minimize these issues as best as possible, e.g. through the right use of mental models and great interaction design.
The story goes as follows: We did a party in late November. A neighbour called the police twice (that person calls the police 20x/year, literally). The police closed the party. I received an accusation from the city a few weeks later. My immediate reaction was to brush it off and reply with a short sentence.

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Fixing Web3.0 Usability Issues

Apr 11th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

David Sneider wrote an interesting piece that relates strongly to what we have stressed over the last few months...
David Sneider wrote an interesting piece that relates strongly to what we have stressed over the last few months...

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Current UX Bottlenecks of Blockchain Technologies

Apr 08th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

Alec wrote an article about the current issues of the technology. He makes a few good points but generally neglects to put them into context.
Alec wrote an article about the current issues of the technology. He makes a few good points but generally neglects to put them into context.

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The Convergence of Code and Design Tools

Feb 27th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

In 1980 Steve Jobs once said, “More and more, software is getting integrated into the hardware. Yesterday’s software is today’s hardware. Those two things are merging. And the line between hardware and software is going to...
In 1980 Steve Jobs once said, “More and more, software is getting integrated into the hardware. Yesterday’s software is today’s hardware. Those two things are merging. And the line between hardware and software is going to...

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Not Even Apple Fully Considers End-To-End Experiences

Feb 12th, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

As you will see, not even Apple does not fully consider this problem: Invoices from all sorts of parties have to managed, paid and stored one way or another. As it turns out, Apple's invoices are named...
As you will see, not even Apple does not fully consider this problem: Invoices from all sorts of parties have to managed, paid and stored one way or another. As it turns out, Apple's invoices are named...

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Blockchain Platforms: To Break or Not To Break With Mental Models

Jan 31st, 2019 - Written by Andree Huk

Product and Usability Challenges of Decentralized Services - Part II

Dec 13th, 2018 - Written by Andree Huk

UX across blockchain services is not great. Why? Entrepreneurs in the space still build for nerds and themselves. This fact in turn is due to the current technical fundamentals that make it very hard to actually design and build on-par decentralized...
UX across blockchain services is not great. Why? Entrepreneurs in the space still build for nerds and themselves. This fact in turn is due to the current technical fundamentals that make it very hard to actually design and build on-par decentralized...

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Product and Usability Challenges of Decentralized Services - Part I

Dec 1st, 2018 - Written by Andree Huk

Part of the reason for this malaise is such that entrepreneurs in the space still mainly build for nerds and themselves. This fact in turn is due to the current technical fundamentals...
Part of the reason for this malaise is such that entrepreneurs in the space still mainly build for nerds and themselves. This fact in turn is due to the current technical fundamentals...

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Why Altruism Is The Ace To Get Your Dream Design Job

Aug 13th, 2018 - Written by Andree Huk

This article was written for Smashing Magazine. Getting your dream job is not too complicated but it will take effort. This article may be the last obstacle...
Good to know: This article was written for Smashing Mag. Getting your dream job is not too complicated but it will take effort. This article may be the last...

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Wallapop: How A Subpar Mobile Experience Can Hurt Your Brand

Feb 13th, 2018 - Written by Sara

We usually do not write about applications in detail but in this case, it is worth the effort as our Experience Director can share a personal experience - but let him explain in detail...
We usually do not write about applications in detail but in this case, it is worth the effort as our Experience Director can share a personal experience - but let him explain in detail...

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How To Get A Great Job By Solving Their Problem First

Jan 15th, 2018 - Written by Andree Huk

Being lucky is great but would you not want to increase your odds tremendously to get this one job? Of course. Allow me to ask you this...
Being lucky is great but would you not want to increase your odds tremendously to get this one job? Of course. Allow me to ask you this...

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UI Libraries: 5 Hands-On Tips For A More Efficient Workflow

Dec 5th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Libraries based on Nested Symbols are now the bread and butter for designers. Using such libraries in more efficient ways will give a designer an edge...
Libraries based on Nested Symbols are now the bread and butter for designers. Using such libraries in more efficient ways will give a designer an edge...

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Automate: Export Sketch Artboards without Sketch

Oct 17th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

I will show you today how to automate mundane tasks like frequent artboard export with a little tool that comes with Sketch...
Once you have build up your layouts and visual designs in Sketch, you probably have more than 1 dozen artboards. All steps involved, ie. minimising the layer tree, selecting artboards, exporting 1x, 2x and 3x separately takes too much time, especially if you keep redoing this procedure frequently.

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A Short Love-Letter For The Real Nerds

Oct 17th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

For the designers, developers and digital marketers... We are different.
For the designers, developers and digital marketers. I really wonder frequently: Why do companies have breakfast, lunch and dinner prepared by supermarket directors and not by real...

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Automating Sketch: A Quick Guide For Designers & Developers

Oct 2nd, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Why should I automate Sketch. The simple answer is to save time. Automation is like working on steroids. In fact, tasks or a collection thereof can get done in the blink of an eye. Of course, not everything can get automated but simple and mundane tasks certainly can. And since one can automate, why not automate!?
I wrote a piece which mainly talked about automating image export on our blog on blended.io a little while ago. In this post here I would like to go into more detail.

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The Future of Design & Code Collaboration

Sep 27th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

The creators of Sketch did not make it a big thing when Sketch 43 launched with an open file format. However, it is actually BIG news...
The creators of Sketch did not make it a big thing when Sketch 43 launched with an open file format. However, it is actually BIG news...

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The Design Professions' Digital Transformation

Sep 20th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Designers have worked in digital with digital tools for decades. Indeed, but that was only the first chapter. Digital transformation circumscribes the move from value...
Designers have worked in digital with digital tools for decades. Indeed, but that was only the first chapter. Digital transformation circumscribes the move from value...

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Why Visual Designers Are Now Frontend Developers

Aug 16th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

A better title might actually be "Design  Developers" but let's find out (and comment below). A frontend developer might now think "Oh my god, there is so much...
A better title might actually be "Design Developers" but let's find out (and comment below). A frontend developer might now think "Oh my god, there is so much...

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Real Design Version Control & Collaboration For Sketch Is Finally Here

Jun 15th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

The day just before Sketch 43 launched, I published the article Design Is Code and Code Is Design. The article covers what the open...
The day just before Sketch 43 launched, I published the article Design Is Code and Code Is Design. The article covers what the open...

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Dear Team Member, Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone

May 22nd, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

You can replace team member with "designer", "developer" or even "marketer" or "sales manager" if you so prefer but the former ones will fit better. Your fellow designer or developer **will whole-heartedly appreciate your effort**. But first, get out of your comfort...
You can replace team member with "designer", "developer" or even "marketer" or "sales manager" if you so prefer but the former ones will fit better. Your fellow designer or developer **will whole-heartedly appreciate your effort**. But first, get out of your comfort...

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Learn How We Helped Sparhandy.de To Make 400.000.000 EUR

May 11th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Our client Sparhandy.de crossed the 400.000.000 EUR mark in 2016. The previous year, blended.io has helped to move their ecommerce shop from a desktop-only experience to a...
Our client Sparhandy.de crossed the 400.000.000 EUR mark in 2016. The previous year, blended.io has helped to move their ecommerce shop from a desktop-only experience to a...

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Update Your Sketch Plugins In Seconds

Apr 25th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Updating plugins by hand is a real pain. Many of us have a whole bunch installed. Sketch Toolbox solved the problem for a short period of time. Unfortunately, many designers...
Updating plugins by hand is a real pain. Many of us have a whole bunch installed. Sketch Toolbox solved the problem for a short period of time. Unfortunately, many designers...

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With Sketch 43, Design IS Code & Code IS Design

Apr 05th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Sketch 43 will revolutionise software design work. The next version of Sketch will have an new file format that allows to read and write .sketch files...
Sketch 43 will revolutionise software design work. The next version of Sketch will have an new file format that allows to read and write .sketch files...

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Run Smoother Projects With Sketch And Version Control

Mar 28th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

Design tools are fundamentally changing. You could argue that technology is eating the design world to paraphrase Marc Andreessen who said “Software is eating the world”.
Design tools are fundamentally changing. You could argue that technology is eating the design world to paraphrase Marc Andreessen who said “Software is eating the world”.

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The State of Sign-up Form Design

Jan 13th, 2017 - Written by Andree Huk

It is easy to publish a post, from your personal viewpoint, on what you think is the right design, in our case a sign-up form. Though, it is harder to prove that, what you think is the right way, is actually the right way. General guidelines are obviously a good starting point...
It is easy to publish a post, from your personal viewpoint, on what you think is the right design, in our case a sign-up form. Though, it is harder to prove that, what you think is the right way, is actually the right way. General guidelines are obviously a good starting point...

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Want to come up with a new digital product, expand your existing business, stay competitive? What's your next step?

Get in touch with Andree Huk
at +49 30 5557 7174 or [email protected].

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