In an age of algorithms and auto-generated playlists, the personal touch of sharing music has been lost. Most music sharing apps emphasize collaboration, but don’t have features to let users express the thoughts and feelings that went into creating a playlist, which is a deeply personal process.
Mixtape, an app concept I created for a Dash Careers design challenge, seeks to put the “social” back in social playlist creation and sharing.
As a general concept, emojis have always fascinated me. In modern times, it seems like they’re everywhere, and it’s no surprise why. In our digital age, where time is our most valuable resource, they help us save time both typing and deciphering messages. They’re quick to use, quick to understand, and can be applied in a variety of contexts and circumstances — and that’s exactly what makes them so fascinating from a cultural and linguistic perspective.
I love podcasts, and I have ever since I first discovered them in the early 2000’s — long before they caught on with the mainstream. I also love Spotify, so when news broke that they were adding podcast support to their app in 2015, I was ecstatic. Unfortunately, the rollout has been rocky from a UX standpoint.
My hearing isn’t as good as it used to be, and I only have myself to blame. After years spent destroying it by attending incredibly loud hardcore rock concerts, I shouldn’t be surprised. Because of that, these days I tend to watch most shows with subtitles enabled, and that’s where Netflix has a big accessibility problem.
Since its announcement in May 2013, Microsoft’s Xbox One video game console was dogged by controversy and doomed to failure — because Microsoft ignored the needs and wants of its users.
What makes a product good rather than great? That’s a question that’s best answered in the details most people never notice. They create a seamless, pleasing experience and add up to a level of polish that makes me rave about a product rather than merely thinking it’s okay.