How can we go forward when we don’t know which way to turn – John Lennon, precise as always. When you have a map and know where you are then it’s easy to move – or even run – forward.
Squace is on the Internet Venture map, the position is Universal Mobile Interface and the way forward is to supply other internet vendors with a simple and free toolbox to make there Internet services easy to use in the mobile.
What can you expect from the next release of Squace?
The key challenges the teamed was facing:
- Make it possible to access, store and share whatever link (URL)
- Reduce the size of the product to enhance speed and handset coverage
- Create easy tools and API:s for content providers to build mobile services and applications
- And – turn excellent usability into a user experience beyond expectations.
The truth is that the design specification covers lot’s of wall-space in our office and includes stuff yet to come. Quite clearly – the team was, and still is, setting up high standards for what Squace shall accomplish. Great work everyone, let’s have a release party and then gear up.
So, even before the releases, parties and all the fun work to come – let’s have a quick lock at Squace (yes, the live version will be provided shortly).
The foundation of the user interface is as before, links organized in a pattern of squares. If you are a not yet a believer (strange?) the square provides a superior oversight, reduces the number of clicks and, this is important, creates a look-, feel- and work-alike in most handsets. In fact we have yet another high level target – to cover more than 1500 different devices including every new Internet capable handset and, almost without native clients. In the new version we have mad sure that there is just one click to your bookmarks, or contacts, or your messages or your favorite services. But usability and functionality is not enough – there has to be a hart and feeling as well, tiny things, small details that take the square out of the square and makes the experience nice and natural. So, we have cut out all the squares – just pictures until you move the tool-tip – to provide a first impression that really makes a impact – great for brands.
Other important experience improvements is site icons presented with the name of the bookmark, extended actions i.e. that the user can change name, tag and make bookmarks private or public, menu to easy access all the basic views and pop ups (that disappears on tool-tip movement) for messages, API notifications and system messages (they will happen – we are server based).
The usability key is to reduce URL-tapping – and to achieve that we need some serious tapping, naming and tagging of any type of URL. Every bookmark saved in Squace is possible for other users to find with less tapping. The best example, and this is why easy sharing is fundamental in the UMI, when one user go through the struggle of tapping in a URL (less struggle if you do this on the computer) and then share that with your friends. Or why not a set of links (named Collections in Squace). It’s much like your friend is sending you I-tunes collections because you always complains of lack of good music. Some produce new stuff, others mix and share stuff together and most people are laid back consumers. Yahoo had some funny name on this pheromone.
At the bottom you have the dashboard with your favorite Internet services such as Facebook, Twitter and Gmail. Easy to find, easy to log on to and, this is the real benefit, easy to integrate with a content providers API. Create your own application, let people “download” you wrapped application from your site and you will not only have a premium space in the dashboard, you can also interact with the user – notifications will be collected in the pop up message bar. Read more about Squace free and featured business proposals under Publisher in the upcoming new website and learn how to create a mobile version of your in just a hour.
Let’s finish this session with some lyrics by another great artist. If you read the lyrics you understand why this song will be the lead theme at our upcoming party – Coldplay, you are invited to do Square One all night May 14.
Listen to Square One on Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/track/5DSPvCmOtmlKBGQwpsQvNd
you’re in control
is there anywhere you wanna go
you’re in control
is there anything you wanna know
the future’s for discovering
the space in which we travel in
from the top of the first page
to the end of the last page
from the start in your own way
you just want
somebody listening to what you say
it doesn’t matter who you are
under the surface trying to break through
decifering the codes in you
I need …?
I’m on the top, I can’t get back
whoa whoa whoah
whoa whoa whoah
the first line in the first page
to the end of the last page
you where …?
from the start in your own way
you just want
somebody listening to what you say
it doesn’t matter who you are
it doesn’t matter who you are
you just want
somebody listening to what you say
oh, you just want
somebody listening to what you say
it doesn’t matter who you are
it doesn’t matter who you are
is there anybody out there who
is lost and hurt and lonely too
they’re bleeding all the colors into one
and a few come undone
as if you’ve been run through
some catapult who fired you
you wonder if your chance will ever come
or if you’re stuck in square one
