Category: general

Mac and Me

IanB
So after many MANY years of mocking and undermining them, I am now the proud user of a MacBook Pro, for my sins. As the UX Architect/Engineer for my team I am tasked with a multitude of design related duties. Wireframes, site maps, mockups etc. The weapon of choice for the firm is the MBP with Sketch and Adobe CC. I am really liking Sketch as a tool and the difference in Adobe too. But most of all I love the speed and simplicity of the MacBook itself. Git, npm, bash all run insanely fast. Code seems to compile faster...

Reacting well

IanB
I was recently tasked with building a ‘dashboard’, something else to learn. So I hit my pluralsight tutorials and filled up on coffee. I also decided to take the plunge into the React world, as this is in vogue at the moment. Must say I am pleasantly surprised at how much I was able to achieve. I just need to get some actual data to use, then I can mock the heck out of this sucker. Also managed to spark an idea for a Motherwell FC related side project. Next challenge is to get my head around handling the data...

coming for you 2017

IanB
with all the changes I undertook last year, I’m not going to surprise anyone by saying this year for me is about ticking off a few technical goals, gaining some personal development on the agile plain and generally grabbing some code by the scruff of it’s ‘neck’ and knocking it into shape. I am, as always, incredibly lucky to have the keenest of teams and colleagues around me, not just in my work, but in the network of friends and contacts I have accumulated on my journey to this point.  I am sad to say cheerio to the end of...

Linux Mint baby

IanB
well who says nothing good ever comes from random google searches. I managed to stumble into the world of linux tonight, linux mit to be precise. now this will probably mean just as little to you as it did to me 32mins ago, but take it from me, it’s a very tidy place to be. So much so, that once these updates are finished running on WP here, I’m going to bounce this VM and ramp up the rammage – to make it a whole heap more turbo tastic. Clean and sharp UI and I’ve only used it for some...

API or bust

IanB
Been learning AngularJS for the past wee while. Enjoying it tremendously but in need of a ‘real life project’ to get my teeth sunk into. Had began fleshing out the bones of a Motherwell FC supporters app, which could do all the stato stuff in a nice informative and attractive way. But the prospects of updating countless results, cards and fouls seems a little unappealling. So instead I am going to try and join my AngularJS desires and API thirst into a cosuming of my FITBIT data with a view to maybe getting fitter as well as slightly smarter.  Go...

Scotland CSS Conference

IanB
So by some crazy accident or piece of amazing luck, I managed to land a gig volunteering at the first ever Scotland CSS Conference, in Edinburgh’s amazing Dynamic Earth. To say it’s been informative would be an incredible understatement.  But so far, my main take away from the day, is the wide variety of interests from the attendees. Some are here for both the CSS and JS conference. Interviewing some of the speakers beforehand was a great deal of fun, but to see Umar on the stage was really exciting and encapsulated the whole thing really tidily. We all spend...