matthewvb

I recently had a chance to try out Balsamiq Mockups; an easy to use mockup/prototyping tool for Web sites and software developers. Balsamiq allows users to quickly and easily create mockups of screenshots and applications using a simple user interface. I think this is a great tool for those inexperienced and experienced to mock-up new projects (i.e. Web sites, iPhone apps, software apps, etc.).

To put the product to the test, I tried creating a home page for a new Web site. The great thing about Balsamiq is that I didn’t have to worry about colors (though it does do colors) or being exact — I can just throw pre-fabbed elements on the page, drag and resize, and be done! Overall, I found almost everything I would want to put on a Web site in the elements pool. It’s really great that they came pre-made with random text (like the tag cloud in the screenshot). I put a video player in the middle, a little audio player below that, and an aggregrate of Twitter posts. On the right I put a tag cloud, calendar, and some icon/links for contacting me (email, phone, etc). I left the left side open for some text, maybe blog posts or announcements.

I’d really recommend this product for someone who’s looking to do mockups and not have to worry about the detailed design of the product. Balsamiq is great for a quick and dirty shot at what you want a page or application to look like (including iPhone apps – they have various iPhone elements to use). At the end of the process, you could easily take a Balsamiq mockup (exported easily as a png) to a graphic designer to have them build a PSD with colors and graphics or take a copy the Balsamiq mockup to a developer to begin to build out the features required for the page. Check out their other examples of how to use Balsamiq.

One area I think Balsamiq can use some more work on is to continue to diversify their element pool. Once and a while I was looking for a certain icon or element and couldn’t find what I wanted (e.g. YouTube or TV logo.) To Balsamiq’s defense, they do offer Mockups To Go, a place where users can upload new elements and UI designs for people to use. Some are just groupings of new elements while others are full mockups ready to download and adjust as needed.

Balsamiq Mockups provide a great launching point for designing and developing Web sites and applications. Balsamiq runs on Adobe AIR and you can try it out online for free. You can purchase a copy for $79, but Balsamiq offers MANY free licenses. (Full disclosure: I received a copy in exchange for a review). Try it out and post in the comments your thoughts.

I read today over at RWW that FOX News covered a story, “Facebook Users Get Worse Grades in College.” The report follows an Ohio State Study that surveyed ~200 students (just over half grad-students) showing that Facebook usage is correlated to lower GPA.

I’m a bit frustrated for two main reason:

1) This isn’t breaking news. I reported in my research 3 years ago about the relationship between Facebook and GPA. I would not say conclusively that prolonged usage of Facebook results in lower GPAs, just that a relationship exists there (same as the researcher said from Ohio State). As I suggested, more research needs to be done in this field. Now, perhaps that’s what Aryn Karpinski of Ohio State did, but I’m not sure – haven’t seen the full dissertation yet. I’m assuming the research was a bit more qualitative than mine was, but it sounds like Fox is taking this a bit far with their overly suggestive title. It’s more than complex than simple usage drives down GPA.

2) I’m just a bit stunned that it took 3 years from the publication of my research and the spike in Facebook traffic last fall to get the news to realize something is going on here. There are tons of things on social networks that are impacting college students (and society) that need to be examined. Yes, there is a relationship between lower GPAs and increased Facebook usage, but why didn’t you cover the relationship between students of color using Facebook as a medium to connect with people on a college campus – when they felt unable to connect in person? Or about the way it allows for non-heterosexuals to connect to other students on a college campus? These are just a few of the golden nuggets that lie in the usage of Facebook.

If you ask me from the perspective of a person with a master’s degree in counseling and student development, I’d rather have a student spend an extra hour on Facebook and feel connected to campus and suffer a few tenths of a point drop in GPA, then to have a student feel disconnected from their campus for a mere few tenths of a point. The goal of a college is to educate first, but that includes social education. Connecting students is critical to students feeling accepted and able to succeed.

If you want to really learn about students and their life online, check out what Kevin Guidry is doing. Now this is where colleges (and news agencies) need to focus — understanding the online world, how we can live within it, and how we can use it to enhance society.

We need more research – more data. If you have some, please share it! We need to educate society about social networks and the impacts they have on…well, the rest of society.

Aryn: I look forward to reading your work. I hope you would send me a copy once it’s completed. And if you’re interested, I’d love to share my data that I’ve collected and collaborate on some future research with you.

(Danah Boyd is another great researcher on the topic – please check her out and read her great work.)

Update 4/14@9:38a: I just discovered that USA Today (via CNET), Time, and MSNBC have all posted similar stories about the research. Time and USA Today seem to provide a bit more than the FOX story,  but MSNBC is using the same article that FOX used. Still more needs to be said than just the same story — let’s see the other research people! I know there’s some people in Indiana doing this research as well.

I’ve recently stumbled upon a few stats that I find interested regarding my thesis I wrote in 2006, “Uncovering the social impacts of Facebook on a college campus.” I’m not trying to brag, but just excited to see my research is starting to make an impact on society and is being used beyond what I intended it for. This is very exciting in the area of social network research and the sociological and psychological implications it has. I made a few conclusions at the end of my thesis on the impacts Facebook carries, and look forward to seeing that theory expand as others add to the field.

Cited in Publications

I’ve been cited in 3 published books that I’ve been alerted from Google Book Search. They are:

• Always On: Language in an Online and Mobile World (Baron, 2008)
• Psychological Aspects of Cyberspace: Theory, Research, Applications (Barak, 2008)
• New Directions in Interpersonal Communication Research (Smith, 2009)

I’m very excited about these published works and am on the look for others citing my research. I’m assuming it’s starting to make it’s way into academic journals (something I wish I would’ve written it up for) and look forward to seeing academics add to the pool of social networking research.

Thesis Viewing Statistics

I’ve also recently noticed that K-State has begun publishing the statistics at the K-State Research Exchange (K-REx). K-REx allows students and faculty to submit research publications electronically as opposed to paying for the creation of mulitple print versions, binding fees, etc. Plus — it allows everyone with Internet access to read the research posted, without needing to be a student or have special access to the library collection.

K-REx has been keeping stats (from what I can tell) since July 2008. Since then, my thesis has had over 1200 views with an average of over 150 views a month. I’ve been the number one most viewed thesis for 6 of the 8 months (most recently beat out by faculty research on “Carcass disposal: A comprehensive review.” While I don’t have research interests in this area, it makes sense as Kansas is a very agricultural-based state and K-State has devoted many departs to studies surrounding argiculture.

Conclusion

I wanted to write this because, overall, I’m just flattered. I never really saw my thesis getting such traction. I claimed it was groundbreaking when I presented it and am delighted to see that it’s holding true. This is also a time when I need to reflect on bringing my research back to the front of my life and doing some follow-up on it and the progress/changes/status of where students (and society) are with social networks. I’m curious to learn more (as evident by my continued pursuit of advanced degrees) on the topic and would be interested in seeing how to take this research beyond groundbreaking and to the next academic/sociological/psychological level.

It’s been over six months since I last posted and I wanted to do a brief update about what I’ve been up to.

• Work: I’ve been cranking away hard at MPRI (L-3) as a Technical Lead / Project Manager on a really cool CMS we’ve built. There’s nothing like it on the market and we’re wrapping up our beta preparing for a  launch any day now. Our client is loving it and I’m happy to be launching probably the most powerful CMS I’ve ever run across.
• MBA: I’m cranking away with just over a year left to go to complete my MBA program at Mason. I’ve decided to forgo the official specialization for a hybrid of entrepreneurship and information systems. I plan on focusing on web technologies and building businesses around them (no surprise there). I’m also heading over to China for my international residency at the end of May which I’m very excited for.
• Personal Biz: Webtomic is pretty much gone now and I’m migrating my efforts to a new business. I started Webtomic as a blog back in 2003 and have migrated it to be my business center. My freelance has started to become specialized so soon I’ll be launching my new company, DemConnect, LLC. DemConnect will focus on building online brands and social networks for Government individuals, agencies, and departments. The website will be launching in a few weeks, but business has already started!

That’s where I’ve been. My plans are to keep this blog as my professional blog devoted to the web practices and business philosophies. You can hit up DemConnect for great info (soon) on Government and the web.

You can always follow me on twitter (@matthewvb).

Oh…and anyone interested in getting OpenCoffee Club in VA/DC back up and running, hit me up (comment, twitter, email, etc) and we’ll chat. Thanks to Paul for keeping it kicking this past year. I’m hoping to be able to step back up and get involved more (but we gotta start meeting back in NOVA )

Many managers/executives promote their open door policies. Some of them truly mean it — you can really walk in at any time; however, there are always those who don’t truly mean that their door is always open.

Merlin Man had a great post on a conversation he had with Sally.

To pull from the article:

Today I learned about a guy who’s one of the most respected and admired people in his company; and everybody in the company knows that his door is closed (really closed — no interruptions, no exceptions) all morning every morning. That? That is when he works. Then after lunch, through the end of the day, his door never closes — yes, come in and “interrupt” all you want. That’s the whole idea. And it works great.

I just loved this idea. It’s a great way to “manage expectations,” as Merlin puts it.  It is clear that this executive needs private time to accomplish a set of tasks daily, but he also values the philosophy of the open door policy. His hybrid approach is something I think many should consider adopting. True implementation of the open door policy often requires a strong balance of productivity versus working with those who invoke the policy.

My hat is tipped to the man Merlin references.  I feel his approach offers a great allowance and balance of productivity, visibility, and approachability in an organization.

I recently have been thinking a lot about the business I’m forming and doing the market research for. We (my business partner and I) have had many discussions on our business philosophy — and most importantly are employee relations. We think one of the key factors to a successful business is building a core foundation of positive relations with employees at all levels. One of the ways we want to help illustrate that all employees should be treated equally is through parking privileges.

This morning on the metro I really got to think, “What does it say about a CEO when it comes to having a reserved parking space?” I think instantly of hierarchy — that this person must boost some real importance if they need a space solely dedicated to them. That aside, what, in a company of 1000, do the other 999 employees think? That’s where the real key issue comes in.

Some employees will argue that the CEO earned their way to the top and deserves that space right next to the door; while others will argue that it shows the clear division of power within the company and that they feel a level of disconnect from their management. I surely hope to never create that level within my company, nor my business partner. While forming the parking plans for a business tends not to be a priority in a business plan, consider this: What does a parking plan say about how a business is run?

The reserved spaces plan says that to get close to the door, you need to be high up in the organization. Sure, this may motivate some, but chances are it will discourage most as they see the CEO pull up with their 10 second walk to the door and you take your five minute walk from the back of the lot. Throw in some threats about towing cars parked in the CEO’s spot and you have yourself some real motivated employees [note sarcasm]. Perhaps senior leadership and department leads of parking spaces; then a close parking spot may be closer to your reach.

The free-for-all game is only won by those who show up early. In at 6am? Great! Front row for you. Scheduled to work at 11am? Plan for that extra walk in through the full lot; oh, and they’ll all leave a few hours after you start…so enjoy leaving at 7pm in an empty parking lot while you mutter to yourself why you couldn’t have gotten a closer spot if everyone was leaving.

The solution? Great question. Some will tell you the happy medium: rotate spaces, give out special “employee of the month” spaces to those deserving, or some happy blend of the two. I can’t give you the solution to the parking problem (sorry — I’m sure you read this whole column thinking you’d get it), but I can tell you that the method you choose will have an affect on your employees and the organization whether you think it will or not. It’s the small things in an organization like this that grind at the morale of employees. Parking is something employees encounter every day — it’s the first thing impression in the morning and the last membrance of work when the leave. If you start their day on a bad note or end it on a sour one, it will wear on them after time.

Be smart about all things at your organization, and don’t overlook the small things like parking.