WordPress in Pencil 
I used to hate doing it, but in the past few years I’ve begun forcing myself to draw at least one rough sketch of each idea I have when beginning a new design project. Every time, that one sketch turns into a complete set, and before I know it I’ve begun ripping out pages, erasing elements, redrawing, revising before I ever touch the mouse. Here’s a glimpse at the first set of ideas for the upcoming WordPress for iPhone app, including a few things we did better and a few things still to come. (It turns out that Field Notes are just about the perfect size for roughing up an iPhone app).
Speaking of using my iPhone in the car, the Kensington LiquidAUX seems to be the best solution available for cars with built-in aux audio jacks. The (expensive) Volvo iPod kit that I bought for my XC90 didn’t work well with my original iPhone (charged, but no audio), but it didn’t work at all with the iPhone 3G. I ripped it out and installed the LiquidAUX in about 10 minutes, and it not only works and sounds great, it does so with very little clutter, thanks to the Volvo’s well-hidden power and audio connections. It comes with a steering wheel remote that controls the iPod functionality wirelessly; it looks very cool but I haven’t bought a battery for it yet. The LiquidAUX Deluxe integrates everything into a dock, but I prefer to keep the iPhone free to pass around so passengers can control the music.
July 11, 2008
The past couple of days have been fun for those of us who get our kicks by thinking about design and technology. The kind of apps that have been written already for the iPhone are just as exciting to me as the original iPhone. They also give me something to aspire to. For the past few weeks a couple of us at Automattic have been working on an iPhone app for WordPress. It’s almost ready to go—I’m writing this post with it—and the process of learning the ins and outs of designing for the iPhone has been a lot of fun (because I am a nerd). Our app isn’t revolutionary. Blogging, or mobile blogging in particular, may turn out to be; who knows. I think it’s turned out to be a pretty cool app, though, and I believe it’s going to be a great tool for lots of WordPress users.
Because the conventions that make up the iPhone OS are so new, it levels the playing ground. Developers from a wide range of backgrounds have figured out how to design apps for this new platform that are as compelling as Apple’s, and extend it in some interesting new directions. I really hope that as we finish the development of version 1.0 of WordPress for iPhone and release the source for those who would like to contribute to the project, our app can join that list.
