linkminded

Designers ❤ Developers ❤ DESIGNERS

[linkminded-blog]

Now supporting Facebook auth

Good news! If Twitter isn't your thing, we've added the alternate of signing in with Facebook for all new users. 

We've opted to exclusively support social authentication for one reason: Convenience. Who wants to remember another password? Aside from snagging your profile picture, we solely use social auth for this purpose.

------ If you feel strongly about a traditional login alternative, we want to know. Please tell us why by sending an email to feedback[at]linkminded.co 

[linkminded-blog]

Featured Idea: Stance

Stance helps politically burgeoning twenty-somethings to hold well-informed opinions on the political topics that matter to them. It does this through a tablet app and browser plug-in. Stance gives each topic a convenient hub, bringing together all sides of the topic at hand to help give both a quick read, and more importantly, a deep level of understanding.

Here's a video that explains the concept further: 

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A few app screenshots

Topic Hub

User profile

Proposed safari browser iPad app plugin.

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Meet the idea man: Ian Arthur Spaeth

I love suspenders and pasta way too much, I’m OCD, and definitely have self-diagnosed ADHD. I constantly work in photoshop at 3200% getting everything lined up to the pixel, and I definitely don’t trust “snap to point” completely. I nitpick details and though it annoys some, it’s how I’ve always worked so I’m not changing now. This strive for “perfect” craft also influences how I think. Graphic design is about the clarity and understanding of information, so I’m totally team “form follows function.” Design is dictated by the audience, and a successful experience can only be created once the audience is thoroughly understood. Design for your audience, slap a pair of suspenders on it, and call it a day.

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Ian is looking for help with Webdev, IOS, and Android development. If you want to work on this great idea, get in touch with Ian here. 

You can browse other ideas on Linkminded here

[linkminded-blog]

Feature Improvement: Inquiries

We're one week in and the first thing we improved is inquiries. We squashed a few bugs and made a UI change. Now, you'll notice the message box is anchored to the top of the stream. While communication is not real-time yet, we're headed that way. 

We're quickly making improvements as bugs come up, so stick with us! 

[linkminded-blog]

Featured Talent: Micah Barta

“Half Texan and half Hawaiian, I'm just a nomadic island kid who really does not like working retail. Typographic privateer and purveyor of adorable critter illustrations, my creative goal is to tell stories through my work and to simply make people smile.”

Micah Barta is a Kansas city based designer who’s passion for design started when he was  just 7 while working at his aunt’s silkscreen shop. His imaginative work speaks for itself:

You can see some more of his illustration talent on our very own homepage.  For more info on Micah, or to collaborate with him, check out his profile here. 

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This is the first in a series of blog posts that highlight the top-notch talent joining Linkminded.

[linkminded-blog]

Meet the team

Joshua Eithun / @joshuaeithun a.k.a Gentleman Giant. Josh is an interface designer with a mission to make the internet better looking and easier to use. Josh has received local and national recognition for his web work as an Art Director at VML including a coveted Site of the Day honor from Communication Arts. He is a graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, and if he wasn’t working on Linkminded he would be brainstorming some other crazy idea. Steven Cummings / @estebistec Steven is a software engineer and web developer from Kansas City. He does backend, devops, APIs, and even a little frontend when they let him! Steven got his BS in Computer Engineering and Computer Science from Mizzou (the University of Missouri-Columbia). Later on he went to Cerner where he is a software architect building health-related web-services and sites. He resides in Belton, MO (just south of KC) with this wife and four kids. Garry Polley / @garrypolley Garry is a Co-Founder and developer for Linkminded. Previously, Garry has worked on a personal health record with Cerner Cooperation. Before that,  Garry helped to modify and create an online mathematics curriculum called GeckoMathematics.  Education is a thriving passion for Garry and it’s what he would do if he were not a developer.  Garry plans to help drive development and expand the features and community of Linkminded.

[linkminded-blog]

Here's a quick collage of some design elements that didnt make the cut. Man, the look of our site has come a long way.  Yes, we were almost named OpenLot. GASP! Have we said how excited we are to show you what we've come up with? :) 

[joelgascoigne-blog]

Buffer has been a crazy ride since I first had the idea back in October 2010. As we’ve grown the startup from nothing to 250,000 users, a $600,000 annual revenue run rate and a team of 6, we’ve done so from 4 separate regions of the world and experienced completely different cultures.

One...

[linkminded-blog]

When we submitted LinkMinded to Beta List we didn’t know what kind of response we would get, or if we’d even make the cut.

When our post hit we got subscribers instantly and virtually non-stop for the next couple hours. After the initial spike, the list grew consistently through the weekend and hasn’t stopped. The exposure and additional subscribers we got through Beta List will be crucial in forming our beta community.

Not only do we love Beta List for supporting our startup, we love them for giving exposure to startups of all kinds. We can’t think of a better “Startup for Startups”. Hopefully, one day we will have a big enough audience and return the favor to fresh startups and entrepreneurs. One thing's for sure - Beta List has earned a spot on our resources page. We hope the entrepreneurs and subsequent startups formed through LinkMinded will take advantage of this great opportunity. Now, exactly one week later, here are some stats (that don’t really tell you anything) :)

Our mailing list increased by over 400%

Total visits to our landing page tripled.

Our twitter following went up by 30%

Submit your startup to Beta List - only good can come from it.

[linkminded-blog]

Inside a LinkMinded company meeting. : ) 

[linkminded-blog]

Your Patience will pay off

Wow - it's been a whirlwind since Startup Weekend. Initially, we thought we wanted to get people using LinkMinded ASAP. A few days later, after catching up on sleep, we decided to take a little extra time and create the best experience possible for our users. Trust us, the wait will be worth it. And it wont be much longer. 

We can't wait to see the things you're gonna make. 

[linkminded-blog]

LinkMinded was brought to life in 52 hours at the 5th biannual Kansas City Startup Weekend in April 2012. Here are couple images that document the weekend.