This month we're taking it easy with a casual happy hour at Mandeville Beer Garden. Feel free to bring a friend and come hang with us for our first ever Sarasota Tech holiday happy hour.
#4 - Sarasota Tech - Holiday Happy Hour · Luma
Join us at Mandeville for our first ever holiday happy hour. Open to the public.
In this era, every partnership or endorsement is a calculated risk, potentially polarizing consumers who increasingly gravitate towards or recoil from a brand based on its perceived social standing.
Are Modern Brands “Post-Purpose”? | Insiders
This article does not mention Bud Light, but it should. Talks about why brands are moving away from purpose based activism and focusing on core missions rather than pandering to specific audiences online.
Searching for a tool to make cross-platform design a breeze? Desperate for an extension that helps you figure out the HTML code of that fantastic color palette? Looking for a trick that will supercharge your productivity this year? We’ve got you covered.
30 Amazing Chrome Extensions for Designers and Developers
A bunch of useful extensions for web designers and developers.
We’re living in somewhat of a CSS renaissance with new features, techniques, experiments, and ideas coming at us to an extent we haven’t seen since “CSS3”. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when your profession seems to be advancing at breakneck speed, but it’s just as easy to be excited and inspired by what’s possible today that wasn’t even one year ago. While the complexity of CSS seems to be an ongoing discussion, Geoff Graham considers the ways “modern” CSS in 2023 has actually made CSS “easier” to write.
A Few Ways CSS Is Easier To Write In 2023 — Smashing Magazine
Not no-code related but relevant for those who want to keep up with how the underlying technologies are evolving.
In an era increasingly shaped by the marvels of artificial intelligence, the emergence of generalists as pivotal figures is unmistakable. David Epstein, in his pioneering work Range, makes a persuasive case for the merits of a diverse skillset. This argument gains even more relevance in the age of AI-generated content.
“We did it very differently. We weren’t going to go hire researchers—we wanted to get as much of this as we could programmatically. The way we built that loop is we went out and built a system that could take a domain name, or an email address, and then go hit every single public API or public service we could find to pull data back. So, everything from Google Search results to about.me, to GOIP data. We just found public APIs or APIs that we could pay for, or places we could scrape. We could go in real time and build a profile about that person and company. At one point there were about 215 different data sources, and as the company got bigger, we built our own data assets and data sources that were a little bit more reliable, but also defensible, and used less and less of the smaller public ones.”
TMW #152 | Has HubSpot bought a lemon?
Clearbit was recently acquired by Hubspot. In this excerpt, Clearbit's CEO explains their data collection methods.
Stumbled across this Manchester-based independent type foundry. Beautiful fonts and pretty cool type tester functionality. Browsing for the FlowMCR branding 👀
(17) Glenn at TheFlow on X: "🪄Learn to Build Anything Online
With my Black Friday deal:
I teach a course on the WWX stack — Webflow, Wized & Xano — the first of its kind in the world no less.
It enables you to build any kind of web app you desire & you can get it for FREE if you're smart..." / X
Glenn from The Flow Agency offering a promo and affiliate offering for his "Build Anything Online" Course & Community utilizing the WWX stack (Webflow, Wized, Xano).
Vincent Bidaux on X: "Exciting news! 🎉 Today I join @thatsfinsweet!
I'm transitioning from freelancing to focus on the amazing Finsweet free products that have already won so many hearts.
I can't wait to contribute to this incredible line-up of super powers!
https://t.co/hQdnKIxuXL https://t.co/VUqn1cwlce" / X
Vincent Bidaux joins Finsweet to work on their free products.
App for collecting user generated comments, reviews, and posts for Webflow sites. Built by Ian Ruta. Prompted by a problem that Ruta was facing for a site.
In this video you will see my step by step process for creating a functional website. From the initial stages of speaking with my client to delivering a beautiful website, you will see my start to finish steps in this video. If you are a website designer looking for inspiration on building your own process, I hope this helps!
Website Design Process for Clients (Start to Finish)
Interesting video from Megan Weeks about the design process for clients.
Since 2008, we have curated 8240 Single Page websites. Learn more about One Pagers or submit yours to get featured to 150k designers, devs & makers each month.
One Page Love - One Page Website Inspiration and Templates
huge library of hand curated websites for design and research.
Google said each note is ranked for a given web page based on its relevance to the search query and the content on the page.
The notes are crawlable by Google for ranking purposes. but the ranking is just for the notes feature. Google does not have plans to use the notes for ranking purposes in the normal search results. This ranking feature is isolated to just ranking the notes on this notes page.
Google Search tests Notes on search results
Interesting. Google rolls out their own note feature for people to leave reviews on search results.
Spline is a powerful 3D design tool that now natively integrates with Webflow allowing anyone to create fun, interactive and performant 3D animations. Join Aron Korenblit from Webflow and Gábor Pribék from Spline to learn the basics of Spline, how to import your Spline scenes into Webflow and how to use Webflow interactions to animate your Spline scenes for your site.
Getting started with Spline in Webflow
Livestream intro to Spline with Aron Korenblit from Webflow and Gábor Pribék
Thesis:
There will be a rise of $1M/month “paid communities” over the next 5 years.
Even a handful of $5M+/month paid communities. A few probably go IPO.
It’s SaaS-like MRR returns without having to compete against Microsoft. No investing millions to create software. 90% of these high cash-flow paid communities will come from B2B.
Each B2B segment will have paid communities. It’s the unbundling of YPO meets the unbundling of Slack/FB Groups.
YPO doesn’t feel fresh. Slack/FB Groups aren’t ideal for B2B use-case. Perfect storm.
GREG ISENBERG on X
Thoughts from Greg Isenberg about the future of paid communities over the next 5 years.
Today, I'm going to show you a new emerging UI design trend heading into 2024 that utilizes grid design much more than in the past. I'll feature 8 examples, and then my own custom design styled in the 2012 era, the present era, and finally with this new emerging trend.
Today, I'm going to test out the brand new ChatGPT Vision to see just how well it can take 3 different UI design mockups, and translate them to the browser with HTML, CSS, and even JavaScript.
Will ChatGPT Vision Replace Frontend Developers?
Interesting video about front end web design and AI.
Starting "Daily Bitflows" - a series where I'll share the most impactful thing I have worked on recently.
Expect a blend of animations, interactions, and custom code solutions.
Stay tuned & join me on this journey of these daily bits!
Tomáš Mrázek on X
Tomáš Mrázek launches daily Bitflows to share updates about recent work. Worth a follow.
You asked for it, so here it is: Flowcard - a free
@webflow
+
@splinetool
landing page cloneable is live! As usual, all animations done in Webflow.
- Live link: https://flowcard-site.webflow.io
Do you feel stuck with your layout skills? Do you find it hard to understand how to get to an advanced level in your compositions? To break free from designing cookie-cutter websites you need to be able to break the rules and create unique layouts that are tailor made to your client. In this video, we will cover 9 advanced tips of layout and composition in Web Design. These are dos and don’ts from a professional Web Designer with examples, that if you put them into practice, they will inevitably help you take your Web Designs to the next level. You could almost call this a layout & composition course for Web Design. Hope you find it useful!
9 advanced tips of layout & composition in Web Design
Variables allow you to create a consistent design system for your site. You can create variables for size, color, and font styles and reuse them for a consistent and faster design experience. When you update a variable value, that change will update everywhere it’s used on the site, even on elements in different classes.
Packing your digital product as if it is physical -- I've heard this advice before and seen other creators share that they've seen an uptick in sales after doing this.
We are a fast evolving company, we make mistakes and work hard to correct them. It’s very probable that some of the above choices will prove wrong in the future and the sooner we find out, the better! We are at the very beginning of our journey and past experiences taught us that the most interesting challenges are ahead of us.
Tech stack at amo
Startup amo shares details about their tech stack and philosophy.
Porsche has been embracing open source for awhile (Source: https://www.automotiveworld.com/news-releases/foss-movement-porsche-anchors-open-source-in-software-strategy/)
Yuhki Yamashita (CPO Figma): Inside How Figma Built FigJam AI
Interesting read on FigJam's origin story and how company responded to how people were using Figma during the pandemic. Overall user experience and fun as drivers in product development. Also liked reading about decisions made as part of FigJam's AI offerings.
A casual Christmas meetup for the Manchester Webflow community. Expect secret santa, food, mulled wine and perhaps a mooch round the Christmas markets.
Exact restaurant/venue to be confirmed once we have attendance numbers, feel free to email isabel@designsie.co.uk with any suggestions!
Join us every second Tuesday for a networking session at various locations within RADD. Rosemary District entrepreneurs, business owners, and professionals are all invited to connect and develop relationships with peers in the area.
RADD Connects November
Networking event hosted by RADD over at the Bayfront.
Do not post User Content that creates or may create a risk of harm, loss, damage, physical or mental injury, emotional distress, death, disability, disfigurement, or physical or mental illness to you, to any other person or group of people, to any animal or to any property.
Acceptable Use Policy
Webflow updated terms of use. Seems like they have pretty broad discretion here to turn anyone off they disagree with. It gets worse too. Check out the comments for more.
In the Academy Award-nominated Food Inc, filmmaker Robert Kenner reveals how the extensive range of products we see on supermarket shelves is actually controlled by just a handful of companies.
Today I’m going to reveal how the seemingly diverse list of websites in Google search results are often owned by just a few brands, and exactly what you can learn from those brands in question.
How 16 Companies are Dominating the World’s Google Search Results (2023 Edition)
Related to a couple of the things we have talked about recently related to the incentives in online advertising and how they have become fully perverted
PINC EXPERIENCE
SARASOTA OPERA HOUSE
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2023
8AM - 6PM
PINC - The Most Creative Day in Sarasota
Learn more about PINC - 👀
After a three-year hiatus, PINC, the most creative day in Sarasota, is returning to the Sarasota Opera House on Thursday, December 7, 2023.
An initiative of DreamLarge and presented by All Star Children’s Foundation and Ringling College of Art & Design, PINC promises a day of intellectual indulgence, featuring 12 thought-provoking speakers from every discipline imaginable (and unimaginable) who will immerse you in innovation, and creativity, and leave you with renewed sense of community.
I’ve audited over 1,000 websites to help with their SEO.
This includes multi-billion dollar brands, SaaS companies you might know (Ahrefs, ConvertKit, Kinsta), large affiliate sites and everything in between.
Here are some of the most common problems I find
Increasingly though, the web has become a broadcast platform for large vested interests because visibility and discoverability are declining for "average" and smaller publishers.
Glen Allsopp (
@ViperChill
) collects some amazing data on this consolidation of visibility and discoverability down to less than two dozen significant publishing organizations.
Sean Kaye on X
Well written take on the perils of large online publishers monopolizing distribution and using their Google rankings to game the system.
Brings up many of the questions and concerns we are trying to address with Atmos.
Creating a great portfolio is hard.
So, in Saturday’s space, we’ll discuss:
- Portfolio do’s & don’ts
- Choosing your best work
- How to stand out
PLUS, we’ll also showcase our fav portfolios and dissect what makes them awesome.
Set your reminder ↓
Ross Hatton on X
Ross Hatton hosting a"X" Space for designers to help them organize their portfolios.
On May 9, Sarasota County’s Public Safety Communications (PSC) staff provided guests with an overview of the technology used in the PSC, and a tour of the Emergency Operations Center and 911 Call Center. The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office and the county’s vendor, Motorola, shared information on 911 operations and the radio equipment used by the county.
News List | Sarasota County, FL
The upgraded CPE uses new location-based routing, which delivers the call and the caller’s location simultaneously to the 911 Call Center – making sure the call goes to the correct agency the first time. Sarasota County PSCC is one of the few agencies in the country to use location-based routing.
That’s the story behind Boston startup KnaQ. The decision to move to Sarasota was an easy one after KnaQ CEO Stephen Catanzano’s son chose to go to school at University of Florida in Gainesville. The family also had friends already living in Sarasota.
Boston startup relocates to Sarasota for growing tech scene | Business Observer
Boston startup moves to Sarasota and mentions the growing Tampa Tech scene.
Footer - A curated gallery of the best footer inspiration on earth | Product Hunt
Footer.design by Devin Fountain, Benten Woodring, and Matt Cram launched on Product Hunt on 10/31. It had a daily rank of #8 and a weekly rank of #24 in its category.
I wanted to share that today will be my last day
@webflow
. I feel so fortunate to have worked with this talented team. I can't wait to see all they'll accomplish next, and I'll always be rooting from afar.
Developer of a visual knowledge management application designed for visual thinking. The company's platform leverages the ease of use of a spatial canvas and combines it with the power of a peer-to-peer database to make new workflows possible, enabling designers and other creative professionals to build a collection of visual assets, write blog posts, or manage a complex project.
Kosmik Company Profile: Valuation, Funding & Investors | PitchBook
Beautiful SAAS websiet concept that describes a technical product beautifully. This would be a good place to steal inspo for the Atmos website if we can ever hire someone to do a proper site redesign for us. That Hero intro would be optima for organizing the chaos from various platforms into a single interface.
There are parts of this I love and other parts which I am not sure work. Either way, saving for creative inspo as these folks are playing in our backyard.
Your greatest business asset is your audience … the people you hope to serve with your business.
An Audience is Your Most Important Business Asset
Written in 2012 but still relevant today. Well articulated reminder about the value of building a real connection with your audience and how to build a business around that.