Blog

Claude Skelton Design

2010-04-20T23:50:32+00:00

We recently partnered with Claude on a new site for the Johns Hopkins Brain Science Institute. He and his team provided the beautiful design, while we rendered it into standards compliant HTML. Choosing Expressionengine to manage the site, we focused our development efforts on automation and simplicity while our technical team provided hosting and domain support.

www.brainscienceinstitute.org

ExpressionEngine 2 Release

2009-12-01T00:14:16+00:00

Wow, it seems like it’s taken forever. The ExpressionEngine v2 release is tomorrow. Having tested the beta for some time now I’ll be glad to finally be able to discuss it in detail. I’m also planning to put together some training on using Code Igniter with EE. It’s refreshing that the developers at EllisLab have indicated that release 2.1 will be production-ready along with the acknowledgement that the current 2.0 version is still not quite ready for primetime. It’s a huge jump forward though and one that will make the argument for EE over other CMSs such as Drupal and Joomla much easier to make.

Now we just need Brandon Kelly to fasttrack the Playa Plugin.

Updated Site for PTA

2009-09-02T17:38:51+00:00

Working with our design partners at MediaEnmasse, W+A completed an update to the Administrative side of a PTA website.

Complete with a new Content Management System, Event Calendar, and File Library. Even the school store has a spot on the site. The content is easily updated by a roster of Parent Volunteers who will change each year.

The 3D Movie Makes a Comeback

2009-07-07T14:15:12+00:00

In June, I spoke with Mario Armstrong of WYPR’s Digital Cafe about the new technologies being introduced to bring 3D to the theatre audience. We’ve all see cheesy 3D in the past and left the movie with a headache. But these new technologies along with advances in animation will bring an enhanced experience that will pull viewers off of their sofas and back into the theatre. In part 1 we discuss these new projection technologies and some of the new movies that will use it. Podcast - Part 1

More on 3D Movies

2009-06-15T14:24:38+00:00

After discussing the upcoming 3D movies in Part 1, Mario Armstrong of the Digital Cafe, and I talked a bit more about the technologies behind the creation of the movies. In particular, the wide availability of animation tools such AfterEffects and Cinema 4D / Maya / StudioMax. I also talk about what is needed to use these tools to express your vision. Podcast - Part 2

W+A welcomes TBC

2009-04-04T15:04:33+00:00

Our last official project as Push Productions was our first for the national design powerhouse, Trahan Burden and Charles. All we can tell you is that the project was a Flash application interacting with 3 other servers nationwide. The application included it’s own XML based CMS and supported SOAP and streaming Flash Video. We also provided a substantial amount of AfterEffects animation. Very cool stuff.

New Kiosk for Hall of Fame

2009-04-04T15:01:00+00:00

A new kiosk was developed and installed to commemorate the new McDaniel College Sports Hall of Fame. The finished installation included energy efficient computer and display systems while allowing for easy update of the content from a web based Content Management System.

W+A Completes New Microsites for Johns Hopkins

2009-04-04T14:52:15+00:00

We’ve just delivered three new microsites built on a custom ColdFusion based CMS. The new sites will gather and process information collected that focused towards ongoing research, as well as mapping shifts in demographic and health statistics in Baltimore. The final site will be used to coordinate Needs Assessments requested by community organizations.

Using the Mac Mini in Embedded Systems

2009-03-08T03:25:08+00:00

I’ve used Via mini-ITX computers in several embedded environments, from digital signage applications to kiosks. But recently, I’ve started to deploy the Mac Mini in those situations with terrific results.

The specs of the Mac Mini have continued to improve, and there have been rumblings that the platform will see a shift to the new Intel chips and maybe (please) better graphics support. But even without these new improvements, the Mac Mini has proven to be very capable in enclosed and embedded systems. Having the ability to run any OS on the hardware from Windows XP and XPe to Linux and Mac OS X makes it one of the most flexible platforms on the market today. The most common comment I receive is “What about Cost?” My response is simply, in most situations, when you factor in all the costs, (including time) the Mac Mini is cheaper. It also has the advantage of a single source warranty from a company that I’ve found to be very responsive to repair issues. Heat is also a factor in most enclosed environments, but Mac OS X has excellent tools for reducing power consumption, resulting in a cooler and greener kiosk installation.

The iPod Touch

2008-01-03T15:00:28+00:00

I sat down with Mario Armstrong of the Digital Cafe late 2007 to discuss the new iPod Touch and what an SDK could mean for the platform.
Podcast