Here are my insights from all the events I participated in at AdobeMAX this year. We are witnessing a convergence of technologies including: cloud computing, mobility, and social media. This will have a definite impact on how we teach and learn. There are three “elephants in the room” that we should focus upon.

• Combined technologies. Although many of these technologies are revolutionary by themselves (for example, cloud computing), we need to focus on the combination of these technologies. That is where the significant gains in both teaching and learning will occur. Although I am still trying to understand all the implications, tools like Adobe Proto running on a tablet and passing wireframe information to “the cloud” which can then be directly imported into Dreamweaver is an example of a small convergence which may well affect the way we teach web design to our students. We need to start thinking in the terms originally voiced by Tim Berners-Lee when creating the WWW – access to desired information by anyone, at any place, and at any time. After over two decades, this is now within reach.
• Magnitude. We are probably underestimating the magnitude of the changes happening. Consider that each major technological innovation (whether mainframe to mini-computer or desktop computing to the WWW) resulted in at least a 10 fold increase in the number of devices and interactions. We already have more devices connected to the Internet than there are people (and the cell phone is more ubiquitous than the toothbrush). We can no longer think in terms of a virtual campus with online classes. We need to start thinking about unfettered access to information on an “as needed” basis. We need to think of the experience for both student and teacher and how multiple devices/ views will affect these experiences.
• Flexibility. We need to rethink how we can make this possible in our institutions. At school, it is impossible for me to set the “out of office” assistant to reach students who don’t use their “sanctioned” email account (news flash – most don’t). We put together rigid budgets annually. We select textbooks months in advance of a given class being taught. All these approaches worked great in the 1960s. However, it is 2011 and we need to adapt. We need to adopt a much more flexible approach to teaching and learning and the devices this is happening upon. On demand eBooks (or chapters) might be the least of our concerns. I can almost guarantee this is going to be a most cathartic experience for most academic institutions.

Ok, enough speculation; here are some notes I took during the various sessions. I have listed them in chronological order.

October 3 Keynote – The Adobe Creative Cloud was announced (planned availability in November, 2011). Services, community, and applications are synchronized via the Adobe Creative Cloud. Initially individuals will have access to 20 GB of storage in this medium. Creative services – Adobe has acquired TypeKit (https://typekit.com/). This will be a subscription based service with fonts under one license and working with all browsers. Adobe Digital Publishing Suite, Single Edition was also announced. Creative community – Adobe announced https://creative.adobe.com/ where individuals can share examples of their work. One can also search for examples of work and see how it was created. Creative applications – in addition to familiar desktop applications (such as Dreamweaver and Photoshop), there will be a number of touch based apps (for tablets) emerging in the coming months. These include: Ideas (which allows you to sketch on your tablet and upload your ideas for further refinement in other apps), Carousel (which allows you to store, share, and edit your photos form the cloud – they no longer need to reside on a given device), Kuler (to use and design color themes), Collage (think electronic mood board), Debut (for more elegant presentations), Proto (for initial web design work and wireframes), Photoshop Touch (for editing of photos on tablets). These will initially be deployed for Android devices in November, 2011.

Developing Android applications with AIR and Flash Builder – This hands on session provided experience in developing an app and testing on your local Android device. We started with the basics of configuing your device and progressed through the more advanced topics of launching native SMS text and phone call applications, working with gestures, handling multi-touch, interfacing with the accelerometer, performing geolocation and interfacing with the camera. Working code snippets were provided (one needs the latest version of these tools to actually work with the code). Additional deployment issues were also discussed (including whether to pull the AIR app form the Android Market or include a captive Runtime version). I learned a lot in this session.

360/ Flex Unconference session – Getting data from here to there – This session covered the basics of connecting your Flex application to various data sources. Except for raw TCP calls, the following means of passing data were discussed (and code samples were reviewed): BlazeDS, remote object calls, SOAP and Web Services, REST/ JSON calls, XML over http, external variables within the web page itself (using FlashVars). Advantages and disadvantages of each approach were discussed along with a list of which servers work best for a given technology. This session provided a lot of useful information.

October 4 Keynote – Where the October 3 keynote focused on design aspects, this keynote focused on developer aspects. One of the items to emerge over and over was the inclusion of greater emphasis on HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript as the core means of developing apps. Flash was covered and the combination of Flash with HTML yields great possibilities. Flash Player 11 and AIR 3.0 were released (with many impressive new capabilities). Contributions from Adobe to WebKit and jQuery were highlighted. PhoneGap has been acquired by Adobe (it is already incorporated into Dreamweaver CS 5.5). Numerous examples of what can be done in Flash for gaming were also covered. Fireworks update pack for CS 5.1 was also released (which allows one to easily modify jQuery mobile templates to create a custom theme). CSS Regions and CSS Exclusions were also discussed (I have demonstrated these at a previous Adobe User Group meeting on campus). CSS Shaders has now been submitted to the W3c (think Pixel Bender using CSS). 2D and 3D graphics and animation within Flash were also reviewed. This was another impressive keynote with a lot of additional information wich may well affect what we need to include in our web classes.

Building your first mobile application – This was another hands on lab session (I tried to focus on the lab sessions as much as possible as I know the other sessions are being recorded and I should be able to watch them in the future). We built a simple application with Flex and Flash Builder. We also saw some of the pitfalls one may encounter when developing for mobile devices. We developed a mobile app covering the restaurants in the vicinity of the LA Convention Center and Staples Center. We also saw how data is passed to the application.

Design better experiences with Fireworks by understanding how people think – This was a great session on UX (User Experience). The presenter has a background in psychology and covered many aspects which can affect the outcome of our testing. These include the framing effect, anchoring effect, and the theory of constraints. We reviewed various techniques to help individuals focus on solutions (such as the 10 – 3 – 1 technique and 6 in 6 minutes technique). The presenter reviewed creativity and flow and discussed how our apps should enhance flow (where you get so lost in the experience that time seems to stand still). A humorous reference was also provided http://www.uie.com/brainsparks/2011/07/08/beans-and-noses/. (Sometimes you just have to let an executive make a serious mistake; it is the only way some learn). We also had the opportunity to creatively design a digital mannequin as part of the concluding exercise.

Build it with jQuery Mobile – This was another hands on lab where we developed a wine list application for deployment on Android or iOS devices. We reviewed the advantages of single vs. multi-page apps and spent a great deal of time actually developing a working app we could deploy. I participated in a similar session last year, but this one took advantage of the latest technologies including WebSQL and persistence.js. We worked with swipe gestures (to delete items in the application).

Adobe MUSE overview – Although I have been working with this product for a while (version 3 is available from Adobe Labs), I learned a lot in this session. This also was a hands on session. We covered the basics of working with the interface (I presented on this at a recent user group meeting). There are many new features in version 3. We built a standards compliant site in 90 minutes.

Work in new ways with mobile apps – This session focused on the use of the just announced Proto tool for tablets. We got to see how one can develop a wireframe and then pull the developed wireframe into Dreamweaver (it generates HTML code). This takes the recent trend towards HTML wireframing to a whole new level. One can also collaborate with others via the Adobe Creative Cloud (by sharing these prototypes).

CSS for Web and Mobile Design – This session focused on many of the new CSS-3 enhancements (a fair number of those covered with –webkit specific). Progressive enhancement and regressive enhancement were covered. A number of advanced techniques were covered (such as using border to generate a triangle and making a box shadow with only one side).

Mastering mobile design in minutes with Fireworks – After spending a fair amount of time on the fundamentals of mobile design, the speaker focused on the newly released CSS-3 enhancements for Fireworks. This allows one to rapidly create/ modify existing jQuery mobile themes (much more difficult in the past). I have downloaded a copy and am in the process of developing a deeper understanding so I can share with students.

What’s new in Flash Catalyst CS 5.5 – This was the final session I attended at AdobeMAX. It was also the session where I saw the power of social media. I learned about the death of Steve Jobs before anyone else in the room (roughly 100 people in attendance). Just happened to check Twitter feed prior to the start of the session. The history of Flash Catalyst was covered (beginning with the announcement of Thermo in 2007 – at the AdobeMAX I also attended). Many new features and components were presented (a fair number of which I was unaware of until this session).

One final “take away” – I am amazed at the power of social media (such as Twitter). Yes, I tweet a lot (over 3,500 times at this point). However, I met new individuals at AdobeMAX (they approached me based on my tweets). Turns out we shared a number of common interests. In one case, I tweeted a photo of the speaker and had someone two rows back tell me to look back as they were also in the audience. I have gained new insights into what can be done with social media like Twitter based on my participation in the conference.

Synopsis of the information presented below. As educators, we need to be aware of the profound changes happening at this time. We have roughly 3 years to adapt to these changes. Learning will happen when and where students choose. We must use these technologies to fully understand their capabilities (hint – if your teacher doesn’t have one or more tablets and smartphones, it does not bode well for them in the long run).

I participated in the following sessions:

• Joseph Labrecque – From desktop to mobile: application functionality for small screens. The key points of his presentation included the following – when going from desktop to mobile, one must distil everything to the absolute minimum. One should also focus on the platforms where the app will be used (and adjust accordingly). AIR (Adobe Integrated Runtime) is one technology solution which can help you deploy consistently with less time focused on individual platforms. In the world of mobile, one needs to focus on issues such as resolution, touch interface and multi-tasking (whether applications continue to run in the background or are closed when you open a new app). Individual clients are used to specific behaviours on their device (iPhone vs. Android) and they expect your app to behave similarly. Joseph also provided an overview of the mobile app he developed at the University of Denver (and explained why certain aspects of the desktop app were not included (or were moved).
• Tom Green – Multi-screen: Our lives just got interesting. Tom focused on the world view of mobile devices (and used China as an example of sophisticated mobile users). He helped put many of the issues we face into a global perspective. For example, the transactions on Taobao (http://www.taobao.com/index_global.php) were $60 billion (in equivalent $US). This is the Chinese equivalent of eBay (which reported $3 billion in the same time period). 66% of Chinese access the Internet via their smartphones (that is 660,000,000 people). 70% say they can’t live without their phones. 40% of Chinese “netizens” create content (equivalent of Facebook, Flickr, and so forth). This is 2 times the US rate. Humanity has become untethered. There were roughly 10 billion devices connected to the Internet in 2010 (and there were only 6.775 billion people). Smartphone sales have exceeded PC sales. All this has profound implications for teaching and learning. As educators, we don’t need to develop apps, we need to focus on learning experiences. Unfortunately for many – “changing education is a lot like changing a cemetery – you don’t get much help from the inhabitants.” As educators, we must be both consumers and creators of media. We have about 3 years before we are left behind. Institutionally we need to rethink where learning happens (hint – it will not be in the classroom). How do we keep up? As educators, we must be intensely curious and not afraid of change. Tom also provided a list of resources.
• Jenna Date and Dylan Vitone – Collaboration and partnerships within the community. Jenna and Dylan provided a number of examples of work their students have been involved with. Both Human Computer Interaction and School of Design projects. Unfortunately, Jenna could not share the results of much of her student’s work as they developed proprietary applications for various companies. They covered the process by which their students developed these applications. This included a lot of research (and involved “social following” – mining information from clients Twitter and Facebook feeds). Unfortunately, I had to leave this session a bit early to set up for my presentation.
• Mark DuBois – Modifying existing websites for mobile/ multi-screen – I focused on the actual process involved in transforming an existing web page into a page which displays properly from a smartphone to a large screen TV (the largest is presently 82 inches). If you would like to examine the actual presentation (or the code I supplied, please visit http://markdubois.me/2011edsummit).

• Working Connections conference – Springfield, Illinois, May – I had the distinct honor of teaching a week long class on HTML5 and CSS-3 to a group of very dedicated and passionate teachers (and individuals involved in both state government and  industry).
• WOW Web Design Contest – Kansas City, Missouri, June – I was able to help run these contests for both secondary and post-secondary students. I believe this is the 8th year we have done a national contest with a focus on web standards and professionalism. This was my first year to actually award the medals. It is an incredible experience to be on stage with over 18,000 people in the audience.
• MPICT conference – San Francisco, California, June – I also had the pleasure of speaking on HTML5 and CSS-3 for another week with an emphasis on aligning and modernizing web curriculum. I met many colleagues from across the western states (including Hawaii) and have made a number of new friends.
• D2W conference – Kansas City, Missouri, July – Not only was I able to participate in this conference at the last moment (many thanks to Dee Sadler), but I was also able to travel to the Designer to Developer Workflow conference with two colleagues from central Illinois. It was a great experience and a chance to learn even more about mobile development issues.
• Adobe Education Leader Summer Institute, San Jose, California, July – I have been privileged to attend this event for the past 3 years. This year, I gave a five minute presentation on how we are teaching Business Catalyst as part of our web business class. I also got to participate in a panel discussion with collegaues entitled “Tell Adobe.”
• SchoolOfWeb.org initiative – I have been asked to co-chair this initiative focusing on interdisciplinary education. Although this is a daunting task, we simply must succeed. Our fragmented efforts at various education initiatives need to coalesce and I am honored to be a part.

Ok, those are some of the highlights. I have left out many others as I want to focus on what this means for students in our web classes and why I think it is important for everyone to become more involved.

So what? I know that is likely the main question readers are asking. Ok, Mark had a fun summer and did a lot of traveling. What this means is that I made a concerted effort to keep my knowledge and skills up to date. This is something every person in this field should be doing. If you are a student in a rapidly changing field (like web systems) ask your teacher what they are doing to keep up with current trends and enhancements. As you may well understand, the pace of change in the field of web systems is rapid and accelerating. We now think in terms of mobile and multi-screen development first and web pages later. We need to think of the web as an immersive experience, not just information. I also made a concerted effort to network with as many people as possible. This is one of the main reasons I attend conferences in person. Twitter, webinars and the like only go so far. One needs to actually communicate with people physically. Additionally, I believe I have made a difference. Whether discussing aligning web curricula with current best practices, teaching HTML5, or discussing what we are doing in central Illinois, I understand that I have had the chance to influence a number of programs throughout the United States. By my count, this represents between 40 and 50 school programs (mostly community college and high school). In addition to specific classes, our national web design contest is a grass-roots effort to improve curricula throughout the US. Students who participate realize the only way they can achieve excellence and get on the medal stand is to fully understand and employ web standards and professionalism. They are taking this message back to their teachers and asking that these topics be covered in depth. If one includes all the colleges and high schools touched by our web design contests, we are well over 100 institutions that I have been able to directly influence this summer. To me, that is making a difference and raising the bar for web standards and professionalism in education.

Now for those who have read this far – why am I mentioning this at the beginning of the fall semester? This is a new semester and academic year. One of the reasons I enjoy teaching is that every year and every semester is a new beginning. We can constantly improve over past semesters. Those who have had classes before may have become complacent. Those who are just getting started may feel overwhelmed.  Don’t (in either case). Use this semester as an opportunity to network (learn from others). Everyone has unique knowledge and skills they bring to our classes. Use this semester to take advantage of challenges and activities outside of class. For example, we have a meeting of our local Web Professionals chapter and Adobe User Group meeting every month. Participate. Yes, I know you are busy. So am I. However, unless you make an effort to grow and stretch, you will remain exactly where you are. Don’t just consider or think about participating in the web design contest – do it. Commit now and make an effort to test you knowledge, skills, and abilities against others in April. If you do well at state, you will go on to compete nationally. If you don’t do well, that is ok. Learn from your mistakes and try again next time.

You have some great opportunities available to you as you take classes in our web curriculum. Use this as an opportunity to grow and expand. Don’t just limit yourself to class work. If you only do the minimum, how will you differentiate your accomplishments to potential employers? “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” Venture outside of your comfort zone and find the incredible.

I spent most of my time in the mobile track (gathering notes for classes I will be teaching this fall). Note to students – if your teachers are not attending conferences every year (and are teaching web technologies beyond the fundamentals), you are probably getting stale information. [Demand better.] I never cease to be amazed at how quickly things change. Just a small case in point – it now appears the actual number of cell phones exceeds the number of toothbrushes on this planet. I could only find one link to confirm this (so it may not be true). However, the fact that cell phones are becoming almost ubiquitous means we need to spend greater emphasis using them in our teaching. I am trying to stay on top (ok, the operative word is trying) of what is happening in the world of mobile/ multi-screen as it relates to web technologies. This was the main reason I spent my time and personal funds to participate in this conference.

Here are the sessions I attended (along with a few notes). I also include some final thoughts at the end of these notes.

Keynote on Workflow – Paul Trani – Paul spent the majority of his talk focusing on the improvements in a number of Adobe products to help expedite processes and improve workflows. Some of the products mentioned included InDesign, Flash, Flash Builder and Wallaby. Paul also demonstrated a Flash application running on a Android device that was communicating with an iPad, Android tablet (Xoom) and PlayBook. He also showed how one could debug directly on the device and send trace statements back to the mothership (laptop in this case). This was  quite an impressive demonstration of the capabilities of Flash Professional 5.5.

Is mobile for me? What skills do I need? – Chad Udell – Chad focused on the personal traits (not tools) necessary to be successful in this space. His main thesis was that workflows are changing and we need to adjust our skill sets to meet many new challenges. However, we have done this before (successfully). For example, many of us have been involved in changes from local applications and networks to the World Wide Web. We next made a successful transition to content management systems and then to rich Internet applications and so forth. Mobile is just the next step in the evolution of many technologies. Chad stressed the mindset and skills you need to be successful in this environment. This includes:

• ability to self teach,
• desire to learn (and keep up to date),
• an open mind (we sometimes need to unlearn and relearn),
• creativity,
• agility,
• decisiveness,
• flexibility,
• pragmatism,
• patience (and good time management skills),
• a thick skin (other will critique your efforts),
• and a willingness to spend money (one needs to obtain actual devices to test upon).

Adapting expectations to fit a mobile work flow – Joseph Labrecque – Developing for mobile is a double edged sword. It can be very frustrating due to the plethora of devices, screen sizes, resolution, processors and so forth. It can also be very exciting and challenging.  The rate of change is also amazing. This is part of what keeps it so interesting. Joseph also spent a fair amount of time reviewing the Denver University Course Media application he helped develop. He focused on issues such as work flow, expectations and design. Make certain you design for fingers in the mobile world (and don’t forget that finger placement can obscure content). Also, don’t forget to take into consideration the type of device being used. For example, Android phone visitors have somewhat different user interface from BlackBerry PlayBook users (for the latter, you access a sub-menu by swiping the top bezel downward). It is important to test on actual devices. One also needs to know their target audience and the age of mobile devices being used.

jQuery Mobile: learning from my mistakes – JP Revel -JP spent a fair amount of time reviewing the fundamentals of jQuery mobile. He also discussed other frameworks (like jQuery and Sencha Touch). Regarding jQuery mobile, JP covered the fundamentals of gestures, events, and themes. He also discussed the XHTML mobile DTD as an alternative to HTML5 for now. The majority of this talk focused on demos and code snippets.

Apps vs. Sites vs. Content – A vendor agnostic view on building stuff for the mobile web – Kai Koenig – Insight – U.S. is way behind the curve in terms of mobile. Many people in Asia have been using better and faster networks for some time. If you really want to focus on application growth markets, consider China and India. Kai discussed “the web is dead” article published on Wired Magazine recently as well as mentioning that mobile is the new standard to design for initially. He then spent some time reviewing various development alternatives. For example, one can go “native” for various environments (such as Objective-C for Apple iOS, Java for Android, C++, Java or Python for Symbian, Visual Studio for Windows Phone 7, Java for RIM). One can also develop web sites as an alternative to developing apps for each platform. One can place an emphasis on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. There are lots of libraries (such as jqTouch, jQuery Mobile, Sencha and so forth). WebKit is the main browser engine to target (along with use of local storage and geo location for the websites). Flash/ AIR is another alternative (as is Titanium). Although PhoneGap doesn’t compile to native code, one can still use it to develop applications based on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. What to build, who to target, and where to target are the big issues. Making money is also an issue. Unless you are one of the top 5 apps in a given market, the average price for your app may well be less than $1. You should also be aware of revenue sharing and legal issues in the appropriate market. For example, if the app is pulled from a market, you must refund money to the buyers.

10 minute Android app using Flash CS 5 – Rob Huddleston – Rob wanted to show something somewhat practical (instead of a simple “hello world” application. He is a user group manager and decided to develop an application to pick a random winner of a prize. Rob spent some time first showing that he could build the app in less than 10 minutes. He then reviewed the code and discussed best practices in creating the app. For those who are wondering, yes, I also followed along and built an app I plan to use at our next user group meeting. Rob then discussed deployment and options for Android devices. This includes versions, having a unique name, orientation (portrait or landscape), whether to use full screen or not and so forth. He also demonstrated how to debug directly on the application. Rob also discussed deployment of these applications.

 Automated workflows – Jesse Freeman – Jesse provided an inspirational talk stressing several key points. First – most of us are lazy (it seems to be a way of life). Take advantage of this and automate. Otherwise, we will make mistakes doing repetitive tasks. We should stop making mistakes. However, it is possible “your only purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others!” Don’t forget the main emphasis of any project – time, quality and money. You can have any two. We must employ automation. Identify patterns (for example in preparation of assets) and employ automation (such as Photoshop scripting) to help avoid mistakes. When working with a project, first develop conventions for initial setup. Then document these. Write out all the steps in a readme file. Where possible, re-use code and consider employing frameworks (if appropriate – often, they are not). Don’t forget that automation is an art form. You must find your own path as you practice your craft.

Wireframing/ prototyping for mobile using Fireworks - Jim Babbage – Jim stressed the fundamental reason to use Fireworks – save time (and time = money). If you save time, you can move on to other things. Jim covered building prototypes for mobile using Fireworks. However, he also adjusted his presentation to the needs of the audience. Since a fair number had not used Fireworks extensively, he spent time covering the basics. He stressed that one will save time, but that one should spend time learning the product before employing it on a project (with a deadline). That only leads to stress.

Developing compelling mobile user experiences – Chris Griffith – Although many metrics point to designing for mobile first, building mobile apps is hard (lots of different technologies and design considerations). We are dealing with a different set of users (bored and fickle). Many people download an app, try it one or two times, and delete it. If you make it past this, people often have fanatical loyalty to a given app. People want simplicity and ease of use. They want to play, learn, and communicate. However, this is a different medium. For example, touch is involved (but your fingers are connected to your hand and may well obscure some content). Don’t forget that in this medium, there is limited time, limited attention, limited pixels, limited processing power, and limited connectivity. What is the key problem you are trying to solve. What is the “home run” task? That is what you need to design and build. Chris also discussed a number of mobile design patterns. These include:

• flat cards – biggest advantages are quick and focused content, low chrome involved. Biggest disadvantages include traversing from start to end of stack and scaling the number of cards.
• tab/ nav bars – biggest advantages are easy access to main features and easy overview of content and features. Biggest disadvantages include the fact that tabs are always present and take up a significant amount of available real estate.
• list tree – biggest advantages are that these scale past 5 items and one can have direct interactions. Biggest disadvantages include that visitors must remember their navigation path and must return to the top node to access another branch.
• dashboard -  biggest advantages include revealing capabilities of the app and offering shortcuts to key sections. Biggest disadvantage includes having return navigation appear as a mystery.

Don’t forget that people judge an app by its cover. He included this image as an example.

Should we judge this book by its cover?

Media queries: mobile elixir or CSS snake oil? – James Williamson – Although there may be some fear, we can’t ignore mobile any longer. Yes, but we just got Internet Explorer to behave and now there are so many new devices (and interfaces). James began by reviewing media query syntax. He then proposed a new approach – load the mobile CSS first and progressively enhance to other platforms (as needed). Otherwise, all the code (CSS and JS will be loaded for small mobile devices). Load all the styles in one document using @media syntax (like @import) and pull in mobile first, then tablet, then desktop. He also discussed the <meta> attribute viewport and mentioned that media queries should alway be used in combination with this.

HTML5: the continuing saga – Seb Lee-Desisle – Seb began by mentioning that 5 years aso, if we wanted anything beyond core functionality on a web page we had to employ technologies like Flash. Now there are so many alternatives. He indicated that he is seeing a decline in jobs requiring Flash (at least in New York area). He reminded us it is always important to keep investigating alternate technologies. The majority of his talk relied on using real time Twitter feeds from the audience to post questions which Seb then answered. Much of the discussion focused on alternatives such as Corona and Unity.

Using jQuery mobile for your next web application – Andy Matthews – Andy began with a review of the capabilities of jQuery Mobile and which platforms have support. He then delved into the fundamentals of creating a simple application using this technology. He provided code snippets so we could follow along. Essentially we were reviewing the D2W mobile app he developed for the conference (including speaker notes and so forth).  He showed how we could employ additional CSS for progressive enhancement. He also reviewed themes and customization of themes. He also reviewed events and how they are handled.

Making WordPress bend to your will – Tom Jenkins – Tom reviewed a number of sites he has created using WordPress as the base system and then reviewed how one can use the various APIs to make necessary changes to the platform. He started with a review of themes and plug-ins and expanded into template tags. Emphasis was placed on add_filter and add_action. He also reviewed the fundamentals of creating your own widgets and plug-ins.

FW to DW to Flash to Catalyst – Tom Green and Jim Babbage – this final session reviewed creating a site for a theoretical client who is trying to sell tours to the spots where Jim and Tom go camping every summer. They discussed basic workflow and how to bend the tools to accomplish the task at hand. FXP file format was used as principal means of exchanging data between applications. It took them roughly 3 hours to complete a prototype site and the rest of their time was then spent on making it look more professional. Good overview of work flows involved.

Summary and insights gained from conference – Was the trip to Kansas City and 3 days of my time (and personal funds for meals and the hotel) worth it? Definitely. Not only was I able to network with a number of colleagues I have known for many years, I also met a number of new people and established many new contacts. After all, networking is primarily the reason I attend such events. I also learned a great deal more about the mobile environment. This is changing incredibly rapidly and it is tough to keep on top. I do find myself relying on tools like Twitter to learn the latest bits of information (and I was able to add a number of new individuals to follow). I obtained a number of insights about mobile development – especially the use of @media to pull in mobile, then tablet, then desktop CSS as needed. I also learned a lot about workflow and characteristics to succeed in this emerging environment. I received confirmation that the US is significantly behind other parts of the world in this space and we are trying to rapidly catch up. I believe I have a number of nuggets of useful information which I can convert into materials for use in my classes this fall (particularly the new class dealing with multi-screen). Thanks again to Dee Sadler for pulling all this together. Great conference.

I recommend clicking on one fo the thumbnail sized images below and then viewing the entire set at the Flickr website (you can also view these as a slideshow at the Flickr site).

To the contestants themselves let me offer my congratulations. You are all winners. I mean that. It takes an extra spark to put forth the effort to travel to Springfield, Illinois and spend two days away from family and friends. Of course, there can be only one winning team at each level. These two teams will be going on to the national contest in Kansas City in June. That being said, everyone present demonstrated their courage to test their knowledge, skills, and abilities related to web design against others in the state.  Everyone who participated demonstrated their willingness to put forth an extra effort. That is precisely what employers are looking for today. For those who are considering entering this contest next year – do so. Be passionate and committed to your profession. Demonstrate that you are willing to take risks.

To the judges (Brandy and Jonathan) I express my gratitude. Your assistance was greatly appreciated. The fact that you both took a day off work to judge is impressive in these tough economic times. I also appreciate that you are practicing professionals and are so willing to “give back” to help the next generation of web professionals. Having you there as part of the de-briefing session at the end of the competition was a distinct plus. This allowed the participants to directly hear your comments and suggestions.

Every year, I try to impart some observations and insights to those who participated. Surprisingly many of the same items come up year after year. I will only touch on some of these points below. I have tried to group them into technical (coding) and professional (non-coding) areas. For those reading this who are advisers and teachers, feel free to contact me if you would like to learn more about any of these items. We at WOW are always willing to help faculty by reviewing curricula and verifying class materials focus on web standards and modern design techniques. This is why we stress web standards as part of this competition every year.

Professional

• Ask questions. Ask insightful questions. Verify that you really understand the challenge. If you don’t understand a response, ask again.
• Don’t forget to diagram your work before diving into the actual coding. Scaffolding and wire framing are quite helpful techniques to allow you to focus on those aspects of each challenge which must be completed first (and which aspects should be consistent across all challenges).
• If you are told not to use templates (such as those found within Adobe Dreamweaver) and frameworks (such as Spry or jQuery) – Don’t use them. Yes, the judges notice this in a heartbeat and you lose points quickly.
• Divide and conquer – each team member has strengths and weaknesses. Identify those and play to your strengths. Don’t both work on the same aspect of a challenge at the same time.
• Keep on top of emerging trends (yes there were some questions about HTML5 on the quiz). Even if HTML5 is not yet a W3 recommendation, many browsers are starting to support. Yes, it takes time to learn new materials. This constant change is typically what attracts us to this profession.
• Make certain you take the time to thank your teachers and advisers for help they provided you to prepare you for this competition (and for your entry into the field of web professionals).

Technical

• Review your work. Make certain you have no “Untitled Document” in the <title>. Yes, the judges saw a number of these this year.
• Similarly, rely on CSS (not &nbsp;) for properly arranging materials on the page.
• Think progressive enhancement and graceful degradation as you develop pages for multiple browser environments (and different screen sizes and resolutions).
• Don’t rely exclusively on the design view in Dreamweaver. Know how to directly manipulate the code. It can be much faster to change CSS (for example – if you know how to code this directly).
• Regarding CSS – rely on inheritance and the cascade. Keep classitis to a minimum (this would be the use of a class for every item).
• Use the tool (Dreamweaver) to validate your code. I know the judges valiated the code and every team had multiple validation errors in basic HTML.
• There were not a lot of entries which relied on tables for their overall layout (but there were a few). Please learn CSS and web standards. Tables make it incredibly difficult for those using accessible browsers to navigate your pages and glean content (among other reasons why tables are not a good idea).

As the supervisor of this competition, I was glad to see that all teams competing relied extensively on Adobe tools. In my opinion, these are the best in terms of helping with web design. Yes, I am an Adobe Education Leader, but I said that long before I was chosen for that honor. The overall distribution of versions this year was the following:

• Creative Suite 5 - 55%
• Creative Suite 4 - 10%
• Creative Suite 3 - 35%

I provide a link to some photos I took during the competition. I hope you enjoy them (view them as a slideshow at Flickr). I also hope they convey the intensity and desire and passion present during the competition. Just follow the link below to view the photos in larger dimensions (and as a slideshow).

The short answer is that I simply could not afford to miss the wealth of information and networking opportunities afforded by AdobeMAX. It was a tremendous opportunity to learn from industry luminaries (and ask questions of them). This was an opportunity to network with over 4,600 highly creative and intelligent people.  It was an opportunity to gain significant insights into the directions our industry is headed. Without a doubt, this is the one major opportunity I have each school year to enhance my skills and knowledge in the disciplines I teach. I had the opportunity to network with so many people (including colleagues I already know and many I met last week). What other venue allows you to sit next to industry leaders an engage them in conversation directly related to the technologies I teach. I also obtained a number of working (and mostly working) examples of  code which I can use for demonstration purposes. Based on the information I received last week, I plan to incorporate a number of changes into various materials I cover in courses. I simply would not have been able to observe and obtain all this new information.

As an educator, this event was also important. In addition to AdobeMAX, I was able to attend the community summit and education summit held the Sunday just before the conference. I was also able to tour the School of Cinematic Arts at  the University of Southern California and observe their efforts behind the scenes. I was able to ask questions of the professors who teach in both the George Lucas Building and the Steven Speilberg Building. I was also able to attend the Adobe Design Achievement Awards. I do hope to be able to inspire some of my students to enter this competition next year. I could observe industry best practices and listen to those who have established those practices and ask them questions. I was able to significantly update my skills throughout the week. I was also able to network with a number of fellow educators. None of this woul have been possible without attending in person.

The reason I thought it important to include such a post is that I want students to understand the importance of keeping their skills up to date, the importance of participating in conferences, and the importance of networking (and continually growing your network). In my opinion, any teacher who teaches this technology and is not keeping up to date (through networking and attending conferences and training) is doing their students a significant dis-service.

• Deconstructing the HTML5 mobile development workflow – this session was presented by two Adobe employees who were instrumental of development of the assets and website for the hypothetical client – Citrus Cafe. As professional web designers and developers, they were able to shed significant light on what is the same and what is different when developing across multiple devices. Their main focus was on the areas of 1) discovery and planning, 2) design and production, and 3) testing and deployment. Numerous examples were presented (along with demonstrations of the development of the site at various points). A number of potential technologies were covered along with a rationale as to why certain technologies were selected for this project.
• Developing World Ready applications using the Flex SDK – this session was all about internationalization and the many issues involved (from whether text reads right to left or left to right, to number formatting, date formatting and translation of text). Given how much our world is becoming interconnected, this session provided me with a host of insights which I plan to include in a number of classes. Emphasis was both on localization and internationalization.
• Progressing beyond the desktop at universities with Adobe AIR – this was a great session which covered the capabilities of this technology. For example, one can integrate this with projection hardware and the operating system processes. Numerous examples were presented including a discussion of the Course Media server at the University of Denver and how an AIR application can be set to convert video to the appropriate format as soon as it is placed in a specific folder on the desktop. I got a lot of great ideas and a better understanding of the breadth and depth of this technology.
• Creating accessible Flash content with Flash Professional CS5 – this session provided a number of insights and tips I can employ in the web accessibility class. I learned about a number of tools which can now be used to check whether a Flash .swf file is accessible. I also gained greater insights into the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act recently signed by President Obama.
• Deep dive with Device Central CS5 – This was the final session of the conference and another BYOL (Bring Your Own Laptop). The focus was on the use of Flash in Device Central. In addition to better understanding how to use Device Central for testing and debugging, I received a number of working applications which I can share and demonstrate to students to help them better understand the capabilities of Device Central. For example, I was unaware that this tool supported the pinch behavior one experiences on smart phones. Yes, it involves a number of keystroke combinations, but it does work.

Overall, this was the most information intensive AdobeMAX conference I have attended. The emphasis on a multi-screen environment (especially mobile) was obvious throughout. I learned a lot regarding emerging technologies and what can be done today. The state of this environment is rapidly evolving and I am glad I was able to be a part of this event to obtain so much current information. I will be sharing some of this knowledge in various venues over the coming weeks. For example, I will be presenting on mobile at the next WOW/ Adobe User Group meeting on November 9 in TC 210 at 6:00 p.m.

I also included a few photos from Wednesday. I encourage you to follow the link below to view them as a slideshow on Flickr.

The general session focused on user experiences – the next generation. A number of examples of multi-screen applications were demonstrated. There was significant coverage of Google TV and the implications of that technology on the digital living room.

I also participated in the following sessions after the general session:

• How to make your application able to use social networks – this presentation focused on the use of Gigya as an aggregating service for social applications (such as Twitter and Facebook). I learned how to use Gigya to create a custom site (Domain Name associated with their API – essentially a C Name which forwards to the Gigya servers). I also learned how to use OpenID authentication within this environment (so a visitor does not need to authenticate more than once across various social feeds). Most of our work was done using Flash Builder.
• Fusing Art and Technology with Flash Professional CS5 – this session focused on a review of that part of the keynote which contained a fusion of Flash with the audio streams and gestures being generated on stage. In addition to obtaining code examples, we were able to better understand the though processes involved in creating this form of art. The individual who developed these applications is highly skilled in Flash and incredibly creative. Some of his clients include Wired Magazine, Nike, and Hard Rock Cafe. I have a number of photos and examples I can share with students to inspire them.
• Introduction to Adobe AIR for mobile – this session focused on a review of the enhancements since last year in this technology. Different form factors and functionality across numerous devices was discussed along with how AIR helps reduce the amount of necessary changes per platform. Along with a  number of demonstrations, there was an emphasis on debugging and packaging AIR applications for mobile. This was a great overview of what can be accomplished today with this technology.
• The AdobeMAX awards and sneak peeks this year were hosted by William Shatner. A number of possible technologies were presented (of course the disclaimer was that none of these may ever be developed as commercial products).
• I also participated in the MAX Bash on Tuesday night and had the opportunity to meet and network with a number of individuals. It was great to see so many familiar faces and catch up on what is happening in other colleges and universities. In addition to the vast amount of information and training received during this conference, I believe the networking with peers is as important and this venue was great for many of the necessary discussions.

As I also did for my previous post, I have included a link to a number of photos I took on Tuesday. It is probably best to view these as a slideshow at Flickr.

• Building an interactive portfolio with Flash Catalyst – this session emphasized round trip aspects in the workflow between Adobe illustrator and Flash Catalyst. Unfortunately, the lab materials provided lacked many of the necessary components to to work directly with the assets provided. Still, we were able to watch the instructor create a small portfolio (with transitions between states) in a relatively short amount of time. The portfolio also included some video clips. Although the lab did not live up to expectations, this was most helpful to me as I will be using Flash Catalyst as part of the user interface discussions in CMWEB 150 and I got a number of interesting ideas from the discussions we had as part of this session.
• Building Drupal Themes using Dreamweaver CS5 – this session lived up to its name. We first covered terminology and fundamentals so everyone understood how to work with the Drupal environment. We had been requested to pre-install the Acquia Drupal test environment and the Zen theme. The instructor then walked as through creating a sub-theme (which closely matched the materials provided) and also discussed creating templates in Drupal. All our work was accomplished via Dreamweaver CS5. This was a good review for me as it has been a while since I modified a Drupal theme.
• Build your first AIR application for Android – this session was all about experimenting with current technologies. We developed an employee directory and chat application using Flash Builder. We were then able to test using Device Central and out browsers. Most of the emphasis was on the version of Flex Builder presently under beta testing (called Burrito). It was eye opening to see how one can develop and deploy significant technology in a relatively short time.
• After the main sessions ended, I participated in a “meet the teams” session. I chose to participate in the Dreamweaver team (and got the chance to speak with Scott Fegette – manager of the Dreamweaver team at Adobe). It was also helpful to be able to put faces on those who have been working on BrowserLabs and NetAverages and other Adobe initiatives. I provided feedback as to how much I appreciated the extensive use of comments in the CSS in Dreamweaver CS5. I believe this really helps students learn best practices when they examine the code they generate as they build a web page.
• The last event of the night was an invitation only session hosted by RIM (Research in Motion) which focused on the new Playbook which should be available in the first part of 2011. During this session, I had the chance to meet and speak with Stephanie (Sullivan) Rewis and Greg Rewis. Stephanie created all the templates in Dreamweaver. Greg and Stephanie gave a presentation on HTML5 during the educator summit on Sunday. I also had the opportunity to speak directly with a number of individuals at RIM regarding their plans for use of the Playbook. I gained a number of insights as to how this tablet device might be used in a corporate setting.

Overall, this was a very busy first day of the conference. I have provided links to a few of the photos that I took (below). You might want to view them as a slideshow at Flickr.