mike.mainguy

Bold Prediction Much like the mobile versus web spectrum, VR/XR is having a similar problem. On one side there are "native apps". These are written to be deployed on the device, often belaboured by app store policies and confusion, and are not generally "runnable" without installing them. On the other end are the "mobile web apps". These just use html/js and can be run from a browser on device...in modern days, with things like PWA, they are often indistinquishable from "native apps" and have the added benefit of running without going through an "app store". In the VR/XR world, we face a similar problem...Oculus, being the first platform with any degree of consumer success, has a ton of mind share around "native apps", however, there is a web standard (WebXR) that has been creeping into browsers everywhere called WebXR which is enabling the ability to run "native-like" immersive experience. This is sig...

As a longtime Outlook user, I've had the exciting experience of learning how to use Lotus Notes. When first starting to use it I was shocked at how "clunky" the user interface seemed, but wrote it off as my long familiarity with outlook. Recently, however, I started to realize that I was being too generous. Notes is full of user experience bad enough that I feel I need to point a couple out lest any young engineers try to design user interfaces based on them. These things are actually a combination of how Notes works as well as pretty poor administration of the tool. There are some settings which, when you log out of a tool, your personal preferences are reset, but others where they are saved. As two quick examples, I give you the following: Yes,No,Cancel By default, when sending email, Notes prompts with the following dialog: By itself, it is not a HUGE problem, we're not only giving you the option to save or not save in "sent items", but ...

I've just started deploying the newest Ubuntu release to the various computers in my house (5 right now + a work VM) and one thing I immediately noticed was that out of the box, the window decorations have moved. They are no longer in the ages old upper right hand corner, but now over in the upper left hand corner. At first I was shocked and a little confused, then I started thinking. Why was I shocked or confused? Other than habit and training, I cannot fathom why the upper right hand side is any better than the upper left. In order to better educate myself I first set out to see why the decorations would be on either side as well as try to figure out the logic behind moving them to the left in the first place. First up, I see in the ubuntu forums a vibrant discussion about the decision to move the icons in the first place as well as future plans to reuse the real estate on the right for other purposes. After some more investigation, I find the ubuntu wiki page explaining the...