An Awesome Drupal Search Experience with ApacheSolr

December 14, 2009 - Katherine Bailey

We recently implemented a complex search solution for a client that wanted content from all of their various web properties (built on a multitude of different technologies) to show up in the search results on their main Drupal site. We chose to use Apache Solr for the search functionality for reasons relating to the Solr search engine technology itself, such as its speed, faceting and spelling suggestion capabilities, but also because of the excellent integration with Drupal, in the form of the ApacheSolr Integration module.

FEED09 Finds That Digital Experiences Create Customers

December 09, 2009 - Jordan Willms

"How do consumers engage with brands in an increasingly digital world?" is the question, that the FEED09 report published by Razorfish, is hoping to answer. If you have the time, the report is well worth a read and is an experience in itself (the art direction on the report is quite comical at times). However, the assumption of this post is that you don't have the time to read it all, and as such we'll boil down what we believe the key takeaways are.

Knowledge.ca launches new interactive experience

November 24, 2009 - Jordan Willms

Burnaby, B.C. (November 24, 2009) – Today Knowledge launched a new, interactive space for British Columbians.

With a fresh look and creative design, Knowledge.ca extends the television experience by streaming full length programs and promos, motivating interaction with programming, and providing new revenue opportunities. For users of all ages, Knowledge.ca offers exceptional functionality, navigation and search capabilities for an intuitive and easy-to-use experience.

FIX CS4 Crash on Launch – Error 150:30

November 08, 2009 - Jesse Korzan

CS4 Crashing on Launch?

Slowly starting to migrate to CS4, started with Flash and then Photoshop ended the party.

Every attempt to fire up a CS4 product after installing Photoshop, I got this dreaded licensing issue... ERROR 150:30

JavaScript in Drupal 7: What developers need to know

November 03, 2009 - Katherine Bailey

An overview of the most important changes affecting the use of JavaScript in Drupal 7.

W@P Asks: The Wireless Web

November 03, 2009 - Jordan Willms

The Iphone has been a great catalyst for surging forward the relevance and importance of mobile devices in North America. Until its release, other phones "could" surf the web, but the quality was very sub-par. In short, they sucked. Now all mobile vendors are packing their devices with rich browsers, making web on mobile an agreeable and almost pleasant experience. And so the dawn of the mobile web is upon us, where consumers nomadically interact with the web, truly experiencing your brand when and where they want.

BIV: Virtual worlds now delivering genuine business opportunities

November 02, 2009 - Andrew Brown

Curt Cherewayko over at Business in Vancouver recently wrote a great article on how virtual worlds and digital goods are now delivering genuine business opportunities.

Summary: 2009 Tribalization of Business Study

October 23, 2009 - Jordan Willms

Beeline Labs, Deloitte's Media & Tech practice, and the Society New Communications Research, recently released their 2009 Tribalization of Business Study which "evaluates the perceived benefits of online communities and identifies how enterprises believe they may better leverage them." In non-corporate speak the study is really all about using online tools for user engagement. Survey respondents included over 400 companies, including Fortune 100 organizations. The underlying tone of the study is that organizations are still under utilizing social media, and not unleashing its full potential.

Brainstorming "Rules" and Best Practices @ Work at Play

October 23, 2009 - Jordan Willms

Work at Play is an amazing place. Rarely do you see such an interdisciplinary blend of strategists, designers and technologists working so well together. Part of what I believe makes us successful is our "Rules" of brainstorming". It goes without saying that before you jump into a brainstorming session, the issue to address in the session needs to be clearly articulated and communicated to all parties.

Double take on user experience

October 23, 2009 - Lorraine Chisholm

A few weeks back I was casually visiting my brother, and we got to talking about email. He'd just finished off his Master's Degree in Leadership, a program he completed about 80% online in a distance learning program. Alex's thesis on leadership in community gardening involved a lot of interchange with his adviser over the internet. He's a very social guy, and reasonably technically savvy. He has a problem. Turns out that with his email completed he was going to need another email account because the university account would eventually expire. He does have email for his day job, but he needs a personal one. I offer a simple solution... why don't you sign up for a gmail account? This is when he says, "I NEVER sign up for anything online".