Refresh 009 — Fresh Perspectives

Posted Jun 27, 2008   |   1 Comments   |   by pcrump

Location TBD — Thurs, Jul 24, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM

As we’re trying to do once each quarter, we’ll take a break from the formal presentations this month to have a group share. We’ll take 30-45 minutes to geek out on some of the latest web industry news and share some personal favorites, valuable secrets, tips, tools, or whatever you feel could benefit the group.

Come ready to share anything you’d like — a headline or news item, a site, a tool, a snippet of code, a device, a book excerpt — anything large or small that you feel is current and elevates our web knowledge. And don’t think it has to be entirely unique (as in no one else knows about it already), it’ll kill the vibe. Just come with something that you know has been valuable/noteworthy to you, and don’t over-think it. It can be as quick as sharing a URL and a sentence about why we should visit the site. Or it can be as long as 5 minutes in a text editor demonstrating a few lines of code.

So stop for a few minutes before you head out and think of something to share. Do that, come relaxed, and the results will be sweet. See you there.  ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

Refresh 008 — UIE’s Strike Up the Brand

Posted May 23, 2008   |   10 Comments   |   by pcrump

Location: Durham, NC — Thurs, June 26, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM
In this virtual presentation, Jared M. Spool, User Interface Engineering’s Founder, will discuss UIE’s recent usability research into how people perceive brands on the internet and how teams can ensure their designs strengthen each user’s relationship with the brand. You will learn:

• The two important outcomes of branding efforts—affinity and dispositional returns—and why designers need to understand how these work
• Why ‘message’ branding doesn’t strengthen engagement, but ‘experience’ branding does
• The important role that user experience research plays in the design process for branding
• How measuring brand engagement can show the effects of a design

In his presentation, Jared will show how Amazon, Walmart, Ford, Apple, and Netflix have attempted to increase their users’ brand engagement ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

Refresh 007 Recap

Posted May 23, 2008   |   0 Comments   |   by Emily Bloom

Refresh 007 was a big hit! Stuart Halloway was highly engaging and his presentation, “Ending Legacy Code in Our Lifetime,” gave everyone lots to talk about - not just the developers, but the designers and “others,” too.  Stuart’s slides are available, and I know of at least one recap of the event.

Many thanks to Stuart for being our speaker. We’re also grateful to the West End Wine Bar - they let us have their downstairs, The Cellar, all to ourselves at no charge.  The ceilings were low, but the vibe was great. I think everyone had a lot of fun. 

Photos are on flickr.  See you next month!

Filed under: Refresh Events

Refresh 007 — Ending Legacy Code In Our Lifetime

Posted May 07, 2008   |   0 Comments   |   by pcrump

Location: The Cellar — Thurs, May 22, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM

Most software developers don’t have an exact definition of legacy code, but to paraphrase Potter Stewart, they “know it when they see it.” Unfortunately, legacy code has something else in common with Stewart’s famous subject — it is embarrassingly ubiquitous.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Stuart Halloway, CEO of Relevance, will share:

• A better definition of legacy.
• How existing technologies and development practices guarantee that most code will slide into legacy immediately.
• How you can stave off legacy by writing low-ceremony, essential code.

Agility can be done right. By respecting the dynamic, living nature of software/human systems, you can create systems that evolve to meet changing needs ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

006 Meeting Recap

Posted Apr 28, 2008   |   0 Comments   |   by David Eisinger

Refresh 006 was a major success. Nathan Huening from OnWired gave a great talk called “Dr. jQuery (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the DOM),” and his passion for the material was evident. In a series of increasingly complex examples, Nathan showed off the power and simplicity of the jQuery JavaScript library. He demonstrated that most of jQuery can be reduced to “grab things, do stuff,” starting with simple CSS modifications and moving to AJAX, animation, and custom functionality ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events, Sponsors

Refresh 006 — Dr jQuery (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the DOM)

Posted Apr 01, 2008   |   2 Comments   |   by pcrump

Durham, NC — Thurs, Apr 24, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM

The web isn’t what it used to be: with advanced browsers and powerful Javascript frameworks like jQuery, websites deliver user experiences that rival those of traditional desktop software. Nathan Huening, Director of Web Development at OnWired, will share the nuts and bolts of jQuery and how you can use it to build rich, professional interfaces. It’s easy! No programming experience required ... and feel free to bring your laptop since you can expect live, hands-on examples. To participate, you’ll need a copy of Firefox with the Firebug extension installed ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

005 Meeting Recap

Posted Mar 28, 2008   |   0 Comments   |   by pcrump

The laid back, free-form approach to the meeting was sincerely enjoyable and on spot. Thanks to Ogilvy and specifically to Callie, Noah, Chris, and Kendall for making it all happen. If you missed the meeting but have the chance later, make a reason to head over to Ogilvy for a visit — awesome people, immaculate space, and a ton of engaging work. There was no lack of sharing either — thanks to everyone for being plugged in and willing to speak up. If you’re looking to catch up on what went on, here’s the flow ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events, Sponsors

Refresh 005 — Kick Back, Freshen Up

Posted Mar 06, 2008   |   4 Comments   |   by pcrump

Durham, NC — Thurs, Mar 27, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM

For various reasons, we’ll take a break from the formal presentations this month. Come on out to Ogilvy where we’ll socialize a bit more than usual, eat, drink, and share. Share what? We’ll take 30-45 minutes to geek out on some of the latest web industry news and share some personal favorites, well kept secrets, tips, tools, or whatever you feel could benefit the group.

Come ready to share anything you’d like — a headline or news item, a site, a tool, a snippet of code, a device, a book excerpt — anything large or small that you feel is current and elevates our web knowledge. And don’t think it has to be entirely unique (as in no one else knows about it already), it’ll kill the vibe. Just come with something that you know has been valuable/noteworthy to you, and don’t over-think it. It can be as quick as sharing a URL and a sentence about why we should visit the site. Or it can be as long as 5 minutes in a text editor demonstrating a few lines of code.

So stop for a few minutes before you head out and think of something to share. Do that, come relaxed, and the results will be sweet. See you there.
... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

Refresh 004 — Justifying Design

Posted Jan 25, 2008   |   4 Comments   |   by pcrump

Durham, NC — Thurs, Feb 28, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM

Great design requires every design decision to be rationalized and justified. Explore the design process of great designers and discover tools and techniques to justify your own work.

Rob Goodlatte is an award-winning interactive designer and developer. Currently an undergraduate at Duke, his short design career has included work for Disney, Microsoft, and Stanford University. After graduation, he will be joining Facebook as a product designer ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

003 Meeting Recap

Posted Jan 25, 2008   |   0 Comments   |   by Emily Bloom

Last night we gathered at Bronto’s inspiring office for our first “Lightning Sessions” meeting. If you missed it, you should check out the flickr photos and Wayne’s video. Attendance was awesome as the Refresh momentum continues to build - we had about 35 people come out.  The Lightning Sessions approach was successful - presentation links are below. We hope to do Lightning Sessions about 4 times per year, but we have some ideas for improving the model next time around ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

Refresh 003 — Lightning Sessions

Posted Dec 10, 2007   |   15 Comments   |   by pcrump

Durham, NC — Thurs, Jan 24, 2008, 6:30-8:00PM

Starting in 2008, we’ll be using the first monthly meeting of each quarter for “lightning sessions”. Think of this meeting type as a 1.5 hour BarCamp or similar event where members shape the outcome, and the approach toward sharing and discussing is rapid fire. The meeting will consist of 5 predetermined presenters each facilitating a 10 minute lightning session on a predetermined topic. Topics will be a mix of web design, dev, and technology. So for the January meeting, we’re looking for 5 topics and 5 presenters. Please share comments on topic ideas and/or express your willingness to lead a session ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events, Announcements

002 Meeting Recap

Posted Dec 07, 2007   |   0 Comments   |   by Emily Bloom

Last night’s meeting may go down in RTT history as the most amusing talk ever.  Clinton R. Nixon has a knack for not just explaining web app security vulnerabilities and solutions, but for doing so with humor and flare.  We had about 30 people in attendance and another 5 or 6 following live on ustream.tv.  If you missed the talk, you can watch the video or check out the photos ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events

Refresh 002 — Fortified Web Projects: Fundamentals for Security

Posted Oct 26, 2007   |   0 Comments   |   by pcrump

Durham, NC — Thurs, Dec 6, 2007, 6:30-8:00PM

Clinton Nixon will share a high level view of common security risks and suggest some very practical approaches for protection. Clinton is a enthusiast for test-driven development, esoteric computer languages, and kittens. He serves humbly as a senior web developer at Viget Labs ... more

Filed under: General Discussion, Refresh Events, Industry Events

001 Meeting Recap

Posted Oct 25, 2007   |   1 Comments   |   by Emily Bloom

Thanks to everyone who came to the first meeting. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.  About 28 people came out in the rain to hear Jackson’s talk and share in the conversation.  From our informal poll, it seemed that a little more than half of us are developers, a little less than half are designers, and a solid handful of us identify as “in between.” This is exactly the kind of mix we’re going for at Refresh, so we’re off to an exciting start.  We created a flickr account and posted some photos from the first meeting ... more

Filed under: Refresh Events