Our 25 year love affair with Adobe...

Having used Adobe's software for the best part of 25 years, the technical bods at Idealogy are always interested in any releases they make - be it design or development software. And Adobe certainly haven't disappointed with the comprehensive range of new tools released over the last 12 months.

Here's a brief rundown of our favourite offerings of the last year:

·     Edge Reflow is a 'Responsive web design tool', which simplifies designing for multiple screen sizes and devices. It can be used to gauge how layouts will adapt and to create quick User Experience prototypes and mock-ups

·     Edge Animate is a timeline based animation tool that basically does what Flash used to do, but uses HTML5, CSS and Javascript. It also has the added benefit of working on iOS devices like the iPad and iPhone (unlike Flash)…

·     Edge Code is a new generation code editor, which includes features such as code hinting and coloring for HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. You can quickly edit multiple files without switching between windows and the resulting web page can be previewed instantly

·     Edge Inspect is a neat piece of software that lets multiple devices connected to it display any web page that you are browsing when using Google Chrome on your desktop. The devices are updated immediately so the developer can see how any code change made to a page is reflected in a certain device…in real time.

And last, but by no means least,

·     PhoneGap Build is a tool that lets developers build native apps for multiple devices using HTML5, CSS and Javascript.
      
This cuts down on development time by re-using existing web development skills, frameworks and tools and provides all the benefits of cross-platform development while building apps that target iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry 5/6/7 and webOS all with a single code base.

You then upload to the Adobe PhoneGap Build cloud service where the app is compiled for you

With technology changing and evolving faster than ever at the moment, it’s important for us to keep our finger on the digital pulse to ensure we can offer you the latest products for what you need. But worry not, we’ve got our ears to the ground just to make sure we’re ahead of the game…

All images found on Google. No offense or copyright infringement intended. Images can be removed if requested by originator.

Do you love someone enough to think of them as a Pantone colour?

Valentines Day is nearly upon us and if you are still looking for the perfect present for the designer in your life, then look no further.

Every designer has their favourite Pantone colour so check out our great gift selection - the answer may be right here...we know which ones are on our lists!

All Systems GO! GO! GO!

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It’s been a busy few months here at Idealogy and I’m not talking from a ‘we’ve had loads of work” point of view – although, it would be worth pointing out here that we have had lots of work to do!!

No, I’m talking from a back office point of view; the part of the business that people from the outside rarely get a glimpse of!

As the regular readers amongst you will know, we entered our 25^th year of business last year – an impressive feat for any business in this day and age – and, having used our old Management System for the past 10 years, it was starting to feel rather antiquated! In order to grow and further evolve, we needed key information at our fingertips quicker than roadrunner dodging one of Wile. E. Coyote’s ACME anvils. If we were going to make it another 25 years, there was only one thing for it; we were going to need a new way of doing things!  

Out with the old and in with the new...

So, we set about doing our research, talking to people we knew who used different systems and, in some cases the same system but a different version, to discover what was out there and what would suit our needs. I won’t bore you with the details, but suffice to say, we whittled away until we got what we needed – an enterprise-wide CMS - and have been steadily making the transition over the past two/three months.

Whether you are a client or a supplier, the eagle eyed amongst you may have noticed a change in our quotes, invoices and/or purchase orders – if you haven’t, I lay money on the fact that you’ll have a closer look when you next receive one! – as these are probably the only indicators of change that someone outside of the business would have.

It’s been a hectic period as we’ve learned the new system whilst still working in the old one and slowly (but surely) we’ve started to make the transition over, but all the blood, sweat and tears are starting to pay off and with each   week that passes we’re one step closer to being fully integrated.

With key business information now at our fingertips we can safely, and hopefully surely say ‘Here’s to the next 25 years!”…

OK – it’s time to level with me!

Is it just me or is it mildly diverting (bad pun) that it takes a powerful yet natural disaster to hear about a place that has always been there? A place that then becomes endowed with a new mystical name to, I assume, make us more sympathetic to its plight. 

I’m talking, of course, about the Somerset Levels - that sparsely populated coastal plain and wetland area of central Somerset, in South West England, running south from the Mendip Hills to the Blackdown Hills. Which, of itself, is odd, because, by definition, land squeezed between 2 sets of hills cannot be level. 

I digress! What I love about this is that, in the space of a month, a geographical region has become part of the national psyche, driven on mostly by a location descriptor that is so emotively tuned for the climatically challenged times we live in. 

But here’s where I get a little confused (not difficult, I know!). If this place truly is level, where is all of the water that now rests there going to go? Set aside the geological fact that the water table is unnaturally high due to almost 3 months of continuous rain, the name of the region (clearly beloved of the local population) is a misnomer. It is actually a wetland area, straddled by many coast bound rivers and streams, so it was always a fair bet that, in these conditions, something massively upsetting was going to happen. And so it did. 

The Somerset Levels is now a 160,000-acre lake, stretching in any direction as far as the eye can see, and there seems very little we can do to help the poor local people. Only last evening I watched the News as The Environmental Agency began pumping water away from the region – but to where? It seems as if they are just trying to appease local anger at the fact that it has taken almost a month to put a plan in place. 

So, are the EA just moving it from one village doorstep to another? It’s a sad sight, but the Somerset Levels are now firmly planted in the national consciousness. It strikes me though, that if you live and work in an area called The Levels, maybe it’s time to look to the higher ground – which, on a more positive note, surrounds them. 

Up you go! 

All images found on Google. No offense or copyright infringement intended. Images can be removed if requested by originator.

Is Winter the hardest season to get off the ground?

It’s 11th December 2013. As I write this, which, if we’re splitting hairs, is technically still the end of Autumn, I can foresee nothing but pain ahead for Christmas and New Year travellers trying their very best to get away from the UK over the coming weeks.

Here’s the thing. Just today, my regular mode of commuter travel, a ferry from the Isle of Wight, was severely delayed by a collection of liquid water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. Yep, you guessed it – fog!

Christmas Wonder Windows

Not in the Christmas spirit yet? Head to London’s Oxford Street and you soon will be.
Last weekend I went to London to start my Christmas shopping. Madness you may think but in no time I was swept along (literally) and landed up in the sparkling, perfumed, fairy lit wonderland that is Oxford Street at Christmas.

After a short walk from the tube I found myself staring a little bewitched into the windows of John Lewis.
For 2013 they have created displays to reflect their animal themed Christmas “winter wonderland” TV ad. Over 7,000 products were taken and reconfigured into a series of animals. A huge brown bear created from leather furniture, hampers and baskets. A turkey made from flannels and towels and a series of penguins make from Kenwood kMix kettles to name just a few.
Apparently the entire process took a year and with that in mind, John Lewis is already working on next year’s creation!

Spectacular over-sized gifts surrounded by snowy festive landscapes greeted me at Selfridges. A giant glittery cat slipper, a gold YSL clutch bag, a huge trainer, headphones, play-doh, perfume and champagne. You name it, they had created it and surrounded it with abseiling Santas, skiing penguins and fir trees.

So go on… press your nose against the windows and bring back your child like sense of wonder! And have a very Happy Christmas shopping experience this year.

John Lewis’ animals were designed by creative consultancy Chameleon Visual and brought to life by Setsquare Staging. 




And here:- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/christmas/10399898/Christmas-2013-Creating-the-John-Lewis-Christmas-shop-window.html

To see the making of the Tate & Lyle ‘Lost London’ gingerbread wonderland click here:
http://style.selfridges.com/self-tv/making-bompas-parrs-lost-london-window

All images found on Google. No offense or copyright infringement intended. Images can be removed if requested by originator.

The Gettysburg Address – some speeches are more equal than others!

Occasionally, just occasionally, a moment in history transcends the context of the moment it existed in. 150 years ago today, Abraham Lincoln delivered one of the most important, and most referenced, speeches in history. It wasn’t a long speech. It wasn’t a well-written piece of oratory. But it captured the spirit of the birth of a united nation.