Andreas' Blog

  Google has made over its Blogger product with a new design and editing system in its first major update to the blogging platform in years. Users can opt in to Blogger’s new user interface via a pop-up announcement starting Wednesday. Blogger users will find a look that more closely resembles Google’s current aesthetic, a simplified and more expansive post editor, and a new “Overview” section for monitoring recent traffic and comments. “We’ve rewritten the entire editing and management experience from scratch so it’s faster and more efficient for you — and easier for us to update and improve over time,” Blogger Product Manager Chang Kim explains . Blogger, initially developed by Evan Williams and Pyra Labs, was sold to Google in 2003. Once avant garde, the product has stagnated as hipper and faster blogging platforms — think WordPress , Tumblr and even Twitter (also by Williams) — have taken off. Mashable previously reported that Blogger would be overhauled in tandem...

  Webapp Codecademy teaches you how to code using an interactive console, motivates your with badges, and walks you through lessons in a straightforward curriculum. Best of all, it's free. More » Codecademy Is a Free, Interactive Webapp That Teaches You How to Code [Programming] Adam Pash Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:00:00 GMT

  If you’ve always wanted to know what was Microsoft’s reasoning behind the implementation of Metro UI in Windows 8, you’re in luck. In the official Windows 8 blog, the company discusses about where it is taking Windows 8 in terms of its user interface, and the story of how Metro came about. Microsoft had started planning Windows 8 in the summer of 2009 – before Windows 7 was even shipped, with the mindset of reimagining Windows which covered everything from the most basic elements of the user model all the way to the operating system’s architecture. Microsoft reveals the story behind Metro UI in Windows 8 , By Ubergizmo . Top Stories : Xperia Play Review , HTC Sensation Review , Microsoft reveals the story behind Metro UI in Windows 8 George Wong Wed, 31 Aug 2011 17:52:20 GMT

  Google is launching a new Gmail web app and updates to Calendar and Docs , in an effort to increase its products’ offline utility. Google users have called bringing Gmail, Calendar and Docs offline an essential step for improving productivity, Group Product Manager Rajen Sheth told Mashable . The problem, he explained, is that when users need offline access to their email or calendar, they really need it. To that end, Google is launching a new Chrome app called Gmail Offline. Separate from Gmail itself, the new app is designed for accessing, managing and sending email while you’re disconnected from the web. “We can build on top of a lot of HTML5 standards, which gives us the capabilities to make it work offline,” Sheth said. The HTML5 app looks and feels a lot like the Gmail app for tablets. That’s because Gmail Offline is based off the tablet version, which was designed to function with or without Internet access. It focuses on the key features users need to access wh...

  For many web designers and developers, Firefox is unsurpassable. For others, Firefox eats Chrome’s dust. For the past two years, since Google Chrome’s release, there’s been a raging debate on which browser is superior. Mozilla’s open source product has stood the test of time and Firefox has quickly become the second most used browser after Microsoft’s Internet Explorer. Don’t feel sorry for Google Chrome, however. Even in its infancy, Chrome has reached third most popular, with a high chance of surpassing both Firefox and, dare I say it, Internet Explorer. Although Firefox is more robust (primarily due to its popularity), Chrome is lightning fast and, with new extensions added daily, an exciting option for the serious web designer. And here you are to find tools that make Chrome useful to you as a designer or a developer. Fortunately, Chrome has a burgeoning collection of extensions that will make the transition from Firefox a lot easier. 1. AppJump App Launcher and Organizer ...