The Blog

Letter Learner for the iPad

Letter Learner screenshot

Well, I’m happy to say that Matt and I got our first iPad out the other day — Letter Learner, an app to help teach kids how to write their letters and numbers. It’s officially Electric Bolt’s first app!

This app owes it’s origin to an idea Matt had about a year or so ago. It took us a while to formally get started but, once we did, it was too much fun to stop. The interface is very simple — as you would expect with a kids app — but behind the scenes there is a lot of really tricky development work to get the drawing examples working correctly.

There’s been a lot of user testing and refining along the way with the help from both Matt’s and my children. We’ve had some nice reviews already and also got featured in the New and Noteworthy section on iTunes Australian app store, under education.

My New Bike

Bike detail

So, here’s a bit of bike porn for you. I’m a married man, so don’t tell my wife. I got this little custom fixed gear built for a little over $1k. Ok, my wife doesn’t read this blog so all up it actually cost about $1.2k.

It was built with a Viking frameset (53cm) and mainly DIA-COMPE parts. It was lovingly handcrafted by these totally awesome guys at The Little Mule Company (if you are in Melbourne show them some love).

Full view of bike

Come on now, get your right hand off your crutch and back on your mouse. Luckily, Elle McPherson didn’t show up for this photo-shoot or this could get messy.

I’ve tried my best to go for a classic retro look with a modern touch. No fluorescent rims or postcards in the spokes, this baby is going to take me back in time and make me feel like I’m taking a ride through the streets of Rome.

Brookes saddle

They say these Brooks saddles may take a little getting used to. After a 12km ride home last night my butt felt fine but I’ll let you know how it goes on a longer ride — because I know you must be so interested in how my butt feels… Ok, um… back to it then.

This is my favourite part — the flat bar. It may not seem all that functional to you. You’d probably be right. When I saw this in the shop I just had to get it. I don’t know the brand but they really are nicely made. Something Jony Ive would travel to Japan to witness the immaculate and painstaking production of. They really are something to behold in all their polished, shiny glory.

So anyhow, a massive thanks go out to the guys at The Little Mule as they treat every build as a design project. Also, thanks to Joseph from Viking Cycles for the cracking frameset and helping me out with the fork.

Happy riding. Peace.

3 Wallpapers

3WallpapersFeature

I’ve had a few requests on Twitter, Dribbble and Forrst for me to release the Infinite Space poster series as wallpapers. I’ve dropped each one out as 1920 x 1080 so I hope that will work for most of you.

Circle | Triangle | Square

Enjoy!

Designing ANZ goMoney™

goMoneyFeature

This was one of those rare projects. An incredible concoction of innovation, user centric design, proactive and engaged stakeholders, an agile team firing on all cylinders and a drive to break down banking norms and replace them with determined simplicity. The battles were hard fought, but rarely political, and the prize won was not for our glory but for the benefit of our customers. Continue Reading →