Hi, I'm Marco. This is my tumblr.

things I found interesting

[fastcompany]

You need people around you that you can trust to say “that’s a shit idea". Every McCartney needs a Lennon.

— World-famous advertising creative Sir John Hegarty on how to be and stay creative. (via fastcompany)

[betype]

[parislemon]

Why you should move that button 3px to the left

Braden Kowitz on the importance of the details in design:

There’s a curious brain hack at work here. Our minds are deeply tied to emotional states. Being frustrated or happy changes the way we approach problems. I have certainly been in a bad mood, gotten confused by a product, and found myself repeatedly smashing a button to no effect. In my frustration, I try the same thing, justharder. But it doesn’t help me accomplish my goal. 

When we’re happy, using an interface feels like play. The world looks like a puzzle, not a battle. So when we get confused, we’re more likely to explore and find other paths to success. There’s a whole book on this topic: Emotional Design by Don Norman. But here’s the important bit: Getting design details right can create positive emotional states that actually make products easier to use.

[timeshaiku]

A haiku from the article: Beyond Profit: A Talk With Muhammad Yunus

[rickwebb]

It pays off in your life when you’re in an elevator and people are uncomfortable. You can just say, “That’s a beautiful scarf.” It’s just thinking about making someone else feel comfortable. You don’t worry about yourself, because we’re vibrating together. If I can make yours just a little bit groovier, it’ll affect me. It comes back, somehow.

Bill Murray, Star of ‘Hyde Park on Hudson’ - NYTimes.com (via rickwebb)

[marcopacifico]

The goal of a marketing interaction isn't to close the sale, any more than the goal of a first date is to get married. No, the opportunity is to move forward, to earn attention and trust and curiosity and conversation.

Seth's Blog: Free coffee, next exit

[cdixon-deactivated20191029]

[marcopacifico]

Things startups do need

Sunny office

Windows that open

Democratically controlled music system

Two forms of internet access

Beer on fridays

EVDO cards

Video game system

Good coffee maker

Proximity to public transportation

Proximity to park

Heating that goes all night

Health care plans...

[putthison]

[marcopacifico]

Buy good things.

[marcopacifico]

Pay attention to the fact that all the links you click on Twitter, on Facebook, on Pinterest, all take you to out of the simple flow of those apps and into a jarring, cluttered experience where the most appealing option is the back button. Stop being one of those dead-end experiences and start being more like what users have repeatedly demonstrated they prefer.

Stop Publishing Web Pages - Anil Dash

[marcopacifico]

Exactly --> Seth's Blog: The circles of marketing

[marcopacifico]

If it excites you and scares the crap out of you at the same time, it probably means you should do it.

Jack Cheng

[marcopacifico]

secrets about human behavior, which provide insights into the way people act even though they can’t tell you why, are levers for creating user habits and competitive advantage

The Next Secrets Of The Web | TechCrunch

[marcopacifico]

[jted]

[marcopacifico]

Paul Adams explains What People Share (on Facebook)

[marcopacifico]

"To improve is to change. To be perfect is to change often." - Sir Winston Churchill

[marcopacifico]

[marcopacifico]

The Social Software Inflection Point

Paraphrasing Zuck in this video of his talk at Startup School 2011: 

In five years people won't remember Facebook for the site itself. They'll remember it for all the apps and services that were built on top of it. The last five years were about getting people connected, now the question becomes, what are all the things you can build now that you have all these connections in place?

He compares CD-ROM software (think AOL, MS Office, Quicken) with internet software (think Google, Mint, 37signals) in the 90's/early 00's. There was a point where people were selling both, and if you were going to create something new, you had to choose — old way or new way. Eventually there was a tipping point, and it became a no-brainer to make internet software. 

We're a that tipping point with social software -- software that is "social by design," that uses social graph data and connections fuel the experience. You can choose to not to build on top of the social graph, and just build internet software, but doing so will increasingly be a losing strategy.

Ex: Internet Software = traditional ecommerce, Social Software = The Fancy & Pinterest

Ex: Internet Software = flickr, Social Software = Facebook Photos & Instagram

Ex: Internet Software = addictinggames.com, Social Software = Farmville and Draw Something