Category Archives: Uncategorized

I am done with “simple”. I say that even considering previous posts here about the virtues of simplicity, my enjoyment of books such as The Laws of Simplicity and Simplexity, and my respect for companies such as 37signals and Google (two companies commonly included in case studies on software simplicity). The word “simple” has severalContinue reading “Done with Simple”

Today we announce the launch of PlaybookIQ, offering a unique combination of small business CRM, plus process best practices. Much more powerful than general-purpose contact managers and address books, PlaybookIQ is built from the ground up for sales teams. Simply stated: PlaybookIQ shows you what was last said to a contact and automatically schedules whatContinue reading “Product Launch: PlaybookIQ Small Business CRM”

 Your PlaybookIQ Dashboard shows you all tasks and steps that are due today.  Sometimes you have all the information necessary to complete the step just from the Dashboard.  In these cases, you no longer need to open the contact to mark the step complete.  Simply click the ‘completed’ link found on the dashboard and theContinue reading “New Feature: Complete Todos from Dashboard”

Interested in an excuse to learn Python, and always on the lookout for production environments that are both stable and flexible, and I took a look at Google App Engine. To try it out, I created a simple contact and task manager that is live at http://bizz.appspot.com. I love the speed at which changes areContinue reading “Google App Engine”

Related to my previous post is this classic from Kathy Sierra, Be brave or go home. It’s worth a re-read now and then.

Two years ago I made the switch by buying a MacBook Pro for my primary development machine. Every day it seems I find another small reason to be glad to have switched. A trip to the Apple store Last week my laptop battery suddenly would not hold a charge for longer than 20 minutes. So,Continue reading “Another Reason I Love Apple”

Today we proudly announce the launch of PlaybookIQ, the first software as a service built from the ground up as dedicated Sales Team Collaboration software. With PlaybookIQ, you and your sales team will: 1. Follow Your Sales ProcessAssign a contact to a Playbook, and you’ve automatically ensured it will follow your sales process. Document yourContinue reading “Small Business CRM Launched”

Common application design goals are: Stickiness: To encourage people to stay as long as possible. Personality: To set a mood or personality such as friendly, exciting, young, bold, or reliable. Buzz: To get people to share the site with others. For PlaybookIQ, most of these design goals are important, yet I do not have anyContinue reading “Making a Web App: Part 13 – Designing for Speed”

I have been looking at 30” monitors for some time. I feel constrained on the 19” monitor I use and get easily excited by those that report productivity improvements on 30” monitors (even if the productivity benefits are dubious, it can’t hurt). Black or Silver? In reading reviews of the two monitors, several reviewers pointContinue reading “Apple or Dell 30″ Monitor (subtitled: how the new iMac validates my Dell Decision)”

Most of the Making of a Web App series follows a typical path from idea to implementation. In that path, payment processing and subscription management is one of the last items to be implemented. There is no reason to do it now for PlaybookIQ except that we need subscription (i.e. automatic recurring payment) capability forContinue reading “Making of a Web App: Part 12 – Payment Processing”