CREATExCHANGE

Who doesn’t want to play with this? Totally lickable UI. FourTrack.

A couple weeks ago on Twitter I said: “I still maintain the Drudge Report is one of the best designed sites on the web. Has been for years.” A few people agreed, but most didn’t. Some thought it was a joke. I wasn’t kidding.

To clarify, my definition of design goes beyond aesthetic qualities and into areas of maintenance, cost, profitability, speed, and purpose. However, I still think that the Drudge Report is an aesthetic masterpiece even though I also consider it ugly. Can good design also be ugly? I think Drudge proves it can.

Here are a few reasons, in no particular order, why I think The Drudge Report is one of the best designed sites on the web.

Staying power

People talk about timeless design all the time. But most things people point to that are timeless end up being time stamped. The Drudge Report, on the other hand, has proven timeless. It’s generic list of links, black and white monospaced font, and ALL CAPS headlines have survived every trend, every fad, every movement, every era, every design do or don’t. It doesn’t look old and it doesn’t look new — it looks Drudge. It hasn’t changed since at least 1997, and I believe the design goes back even further. How many sites can survive — and thrive — unchanged for a decade? That’s special.

David asks:

The recent economic downturn has me wondering… Are small ‘Getting Real’ businesses like 37signals more resistant to the declining economy or is it just that any downside is much less dramatic than multi billion dollar failures and job cuts in the thousands? Have you been impacted directly in reduced growth or increased cancellations as far as you can tell?

How do most companies handle economic downturns? They keep a closer eye on spending, they cut back on hiring (or lay people off), they waste less time, they focus on their core competencies, they push to eliminate complexities, they cut back on long tedious projects and instead focus on quicker wins that have a more immediate impact on the bottom line, and they consolidate roles and trim fat.

This is what Getting Real is all about. Staying small, being frugal, focusing on just a few core things at a time, quick wins, eliminating abstractions that lead to miscommunication and complexity, only doing what you need to do instead of everything you could possibly do, etc. We believe companies that live these ideas are better off all the time — but especially when times get rough.

Charging for your product is safer

Another key tenant of Getting Real is charging for your product. You make something and your customers pay for it. Connecting your revenues to your customers helps you stay focused on the things that really matter to the people who pay your bills. It’s a healthy alignment that helps during tough times.

This isn’t the case when advertisers are the ones funding your operation. When the people using your product aren’t the ones paying for your product you’re at a strategic disadvantage. Your improvements can’t just be targeted at users, they also have to be targeted at advertisers. So now some of your energy is split into pleasing two different groups. It’s possible advertisers and users have the same goals, but it’s less likely. You’ll notice I’m calling people users now. That’s what people become when they don’t pay for your product—they are users, not customers. That changes the entire dynamic.

One more point on advertising-funding businesses: They’re at greater risk in economic downturns. Advertising budgets are among the first to get cut when things go bad. If your business is based on someone else’s advertising budget, your in for an especially difficult time in a down market.

Starting in 2006 Peter Schiff goes prescient. He nails the current crisis in detail. The other talking heads can’t get the bull [market] out of their mouths fast enough. They’re even laughing him off. My favorite moment is when Ben Stein says Merrill is a super bargain at $79. “It’s a joke it’s so cheap” he says. MER closed today at 13.80. Here’s the MER chart from August 17, 2007 — the day Ben Stein called it. Bueller…Bueller?

Highrise has been on a roll lately. The new Deals feature has been a huge success. Let’s keep the good news coming. Today we’re excited to roll out two of the most requested features in Highrise: CSV (Excel) import, and exporting of notes/emails from contacts, cases, and deals.

CSV (Excel) import

You’ve always been able to import contacts from vCards, Basecamp, Outlook, and ACT!, but we didn’t provide an option to import data from a CSV file. Many people keep their contacts in Excel, so now you can export those contacts from Excel into a CSV file and import them into Highrise. Here’s how it works (from the Highrise help section). Jamis did a great job putting this feature together.

Export your notes/email

You’ve been able to export your contacts from Highrise in vCard or CSV format for a while now. But starting today you can also export your notes/emails from your contacts, cases, and deals.

Here’s how it works.

Scientists have created the first ‘humanoid’ robot that can mimic the facial expressions and lip movements of a human being. Full article at Mail Online.

My talk at the Business Innovation Factory 4 conference in Providence, RI last month. While you’re at it, be sure to watch Tony from Zappos, Dennis Littky walking the walk on school reform, Matt Cottam rethinking the nursing home experience, and Colonel Dean Esserman (from last year’s conference).

This gets a 10 for creepy and a 10 for clever.

The creepy part

This is a 240 pencil set made from the carbon of a cremated human. Each pencil is foil stamped with the name of the deceased.

The clever part

Only one pencil can be removed at a time. You sharpen the pencil by putting it back in the box. The shavings then occupy the space of the used pencils. Over time the pencil box fills with sharpenings — turning the box into a new urn (it’s filled with the shavings which are made from the cremation).

Designed by Nadine Jarvis. Linked via Marc Ecko.

Steam of consciousness rant:

I’ve been in too many meetings, too many conferences, too many discussions where someone goes “I’m having a hard time explaining this or that…” Then they say “I just really want to say this…” And then they say it and it’s clear, concise, and obvious. But it’s as if they aren’t even listening to themselves because they’re right back to thinking about how to say what they just said. Only now they’re back to trying to make it more complicated than it needs to be. They should just say it like they said it a minute ago.

We’re all told to be good listeners when someone else is talking, but we should work on being better listeners when we’re talking. We might find that we’ve already got the answers.

This week I’m having a new roof put on my house. I did the research, got the quotes, picked a company, and they’re working on it now.

They’ve been at it two days so far, but I’ve already been surprised twice. It reminded me how important it is to set your customer’s expectations.

Day one

They tore the old roof(s) off. You can’t see the sky, it’s just the old roofing material—the ceiling is still in place. I had no idea this would make a mess inside the house on the top floor. Paint chips, roof dust through some cracks and removed skylights. I guess I should have assumed, but I’ve never been through this before so I didn’t think much about it.

Would have been nice if the roofing company said…

“Hey, when we tear off the old roof you might get some black dust and paint chips on the top floor. You may want to cover up some of your furniture or other valuables just in case.”

Day two

Out come the blow torches. I didn’t know they’d be torching today. But I’m working from home and wondering what the acrid burning smell is and light smoke filling the house. Now I know.

Would have been nice if they said…

“Hey, today we’re going to be working with torches and toxic materials. Some smoke and fumes may get inside during this process. You may want to leave the house while we’re doing this.”

Day three

I have no idea what’s next. What happens tomorrow? They don’t tell you, they just do it and then you find out.

Would be nice at the end of each day if they said…

“Hey, so far we’ve finished A B and C. Tomorrow we’ll be doing D. Here’s what you can expect.”

Setting expectations is key

I have confidence in their work, but the experience has been soured by the the lack of expectations. Just giving me a feel for what’s gonna happen today and tomorrow would go a long way towards making the experience significantly better.

Gapers Block has a great piece on Hanson, the band.

Hanson is a great case study for the music business and the business business. They’re a group of guys — brothers, no less — who love what they do and don’t care what you think. They’ve built a deeply loyal fan base, they’ve built a great business, and they’ve been able to mobilize their fans to support causes that the band — and their fans — believe in.

And they’ve done all this after being written off and largely ignored.

What I found most impressive about the story is how dedicated they are to their community. They are part of the community, not just facilitators of the community. For example, to promote charity, and their “Walk Around the World” tour, they are walking a mile with their fans before each show. For each mile walked, the band donates one dollar on the walker’s behalf to one of five causes the walker can choose from. That’s just cool.

I think the whole Hanson story is simple one of dedication, product, and patience. They’re dedicated to their music, they put out a solid product, and their patience has allowed them to sustain long-term success. They’ve made it on their own terms on their own schedule.

Sidenote: In a strange set of circumstances involving Ryan Singer and his former employer, I happened to go see a Hanson show at the House of Blues in Chicago a few years ago. I was impressed and thoroughly entertained. I also got a chance to meet the guys and was impressed by their down to earth nature and genuine love for what they get to do every night. They love their music, they love their fans, their fans love them, and their fans love their music. It’s the perfect loop.

+--------------------------+---------------+
| country                  | country_count |
+--------------------------+---------------+
| United States            |        403585 |
| United States of America |        201800 |
| USA                      |        127270 |
| Canada                   |         88615 |
| United Kingdom           |         77154 |
| Great Britain            |         41376 |
| Australia                |         27648 |
| Germany                  |         25266 |
| Spain                    |         23312 |
| France                   |         22422 |
| UK                       |         16280 |
| Netherlands              |         15488 |
| Ireland                  |         15439 |
| New Zealand              |         12391 |
| Belgium                  |          9648 |
| Italy                    |          9608 |
| Deutschland              |          9600 |
| Switzerland              |          9281 |
| Mexico                   |          8866 |
| US                       |          8351 |
| Denmark                  |          7044 |
| India                    |          6302 |
| Brazil                   |          5835 |
| Sweden                   |          5662 |
| China                    |          5139 |
| Poland                   |          4963 |
| South Africa             |          4894 |
| Schweiz                  |          4514 |
| Japan                    |          4168 |
| Singapore                |          4141 |
| Norway                   |          4125 |
| Austria                  |          3793 |
| England                  |          3434 |
| Hong Kong                |          3422 |
| United Arab Emirates     |          3410 |
| Thailand                 |          2705 |
| Israel                   |          2598 |
| U.S.A.                   |          2496 |
| Portugal                 |          2491 |
| Russian Federation       |          2360 |
| Costa Rica               |          2337 |
| Philippines              |          2269 |
| Viet Nam                 |          2142 |
| Jordan                   |          1973 |
| Nederland                |          1928 |
| Finland                  |          1848 |
| Brasil                   |          1804 |
| Argentina                |          1750 |
| Turkey                   |          1713 |
| Peru                     |          1488 |
| Malaysia                 |          1481 |
| The Netherlands          |          1433 |
| Russia                   |          1398 |
| Greece                   |          1144 |
| Chile                    |          1142 |
| Romania                  |          1106 |
| Danmark                  |          1063 |
| België                   |          1056 |
| Ukraine                  |          1048 |
+--------------------------+---------------+

For example, there are 1481 people in the Highrise contact database from Malaysia, 3422 from Hong Kong, 23,312 from Spain, etc.

Note: People can enter whatever they want in the country field which is why some enter USA, some United States, and some United States of America.

73-year-old to play college basketball

Inspirational story of the day. The last time this guy played college hoops, Dwight Eisenhower was President.

Stunning. via Flickr.

Stunning. via Flickr.

Today we’re excited to unveil an enhancement that makes using Highrise even more convenient: The sidebar search-for-a-person feature is now significantly faster than before.

Searching for a person or company from the sidebar on the Dashboard or a person/company’s page is the most frequently used feature in all of Highrise. Highrise is about getting to a person/company’s page so you can enter a note or look up a previous conversation or grab a phone number. Now you can do that a whole lot faster. More speed and less wait time makes this experience markedly better.

Making this faster on the user experience side wasn’t the only goal here: The new sidebar search also reduces call-backs to the server. That lowers the number of requests to the database which, indirectly, makes everything else a little bit faster too.

Watch this video to see it in action

Sam Stephenson, one of our developers here at 37signals, has been working hard to make this a reality. And now that we’ve launched it, he put together a video showing you the before and after:

We hope this helps makes using Highrise an even better experience. Thanks for your continued support!

1. Who the fuck designs this shit? And 2. Gotta love the white remote.

1. Who the fuck designs this shit? And 2. Gotta love the white remote.

Brown: So are you going to run for governor?

Barkley: I plan on it in 2014.

Brown: You are serious.

Barkley: I am, I can’t screw up Alabama.

Brown: There is no place to go but up in your view?

Barkley: We are number 48 in everything and Arkansas and Mississippi aren’t going anywhere.

—Charles Barkley interviewed by Campbell Brown on CNN.

Touchscreen fun on SNL. (Hulu = US only)

Interior of a 1958 Subaru 360.

Interior of a 1958 Subaru 360.

Great shot of Mies. Photo by Werner Blaser.

Great shot of Mies.

This antique Skippy Racer is absolutely beautiful.

This antique Skippy Racer is absolutely beautiful.

I recently acquired an old farm house in rural southwestern Wisconsin. I’ve always wanted a place out in the country. With the real estate market taking a hit I figured this was a good time to buy. Time will tell on the financial return, but the peacefulness return is already paying off.

However, it’s not all about relaxation — I do want to work from there from time to time. Foolishly I assumed that broadband was just about everywhere now, but it’s not. If you’re a mile off the highway, or not in a town of thousands, you may be stuck in the 90s.

DSL: Too far away

First I checked into DSL. Verizon provides it in the nearby town which is a few miles away. But the central office is too far from my house so it’s a no go at this time.

Cable: Not available

Then I checked with the local cable company. There aren’t cable lines in the area so that’s not an option either. No cable TV and no cable internet.

Wireless ISP: No line of sight

I discovered an interesting option from a neighbor over the hill (land, not age). He uses a wireless service. He has a dish-like-thing on his roof and he has a line of sight view to one of about a dozen towers in a 30 mile radius. The speeds are multi-megabit up and down, there are no transfer limits, and it’s about $40/month. It’s a pretty sweet service. Unfortunately (from an internet service perspective) my property is stuck in a valley so I don’t have line of sight to any towers. They even tried climbing this old windmill on a hill, but it can’t see any of the towers either. So that’s a no go.

3G EVDO: Not in range (but I do get EDGE)

I have a Sprint 3G EVDO card which is wonderful when I’m on the road in big cities, but there’s no 3G out where I’ll be. I do get EDGE out there, and the card can handle that, so I can get access but it’s very slow. At least it works. I checked Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and US Cellular, but no one has 3G out there. US Cellular has the best cell coverage, but it’s EDGE-speeds at best. US Cellular does say they are rolling out a 3G network starting early next year.

T1

I don’t even know if this is an option, but I fear if it is it’s going to be hundreds or thousands to install and hundreds a month. Not an option for a sometimes house.

Satellite: Please no

It appears the only way to go is satellite. That means the horribly reviewed HughesNet. Terrible customer service, satellite latency (who knew the speed of light wouldn’t be fast enough), 2-year contracts, hardware and fees, and draconian download limits (200 MB/day or they throttle you way down).

Is anyone out there using HughesNet? I know message boards and forums are usually filled with the worst of the worst complaints, so any personal experiences with this service would be useful, thanks.

Any other ideas?

Please tell me someone has a really creative solution here. Is there something I haven’t thought of? Any geniuses out there with an answer? I’m afraid I may have exhausted my options beyond satellite. So satellite it may have to be, but I’m hoping there’s another way.