Me, Myself & UI: Jan 2022

It’s been a really long time since we sent out of these out and for that we have to apologize.?Life got busy, little ones entered our lives, and you (dear reader) suffered the consequences. But we’re back in business and gearing up for a fun, informative 2022.?

2022?– We have arrived!?Wow! How did we get here so fast? Despite COVID, it seems like everything is moving fast (an ugly reminder of my age) so let us drop the?science?from upcoming design trends, the Metaverse, exciting Chrome plugins to enhance your workflow and how to do a digital break up. Digital break ups? Read on and find out how to start your new year fresh!?

We’ve also got a new contributor!?Say hi to Mikko Ertolahti!

Design Trends for 2022

Hi! My name is Mikko and this is my first post to MM&UI. If you know me, you will know that I always say that I have been stuck in the 90’s – from?music?to movies. Take a look at the following article about the resurgence of 90s aesthetics and future trends. What do you?think??Trends and styles usually follow a cyclical pattern over the years and if the 90’s are to come back, maybe it’s time to get reacquainted with?David Carson’s grunge style.??

The Metaverse is Coming

The Metaverse is a hot topic. It could and most likely will be the future of the Internet.?Historically, we went from stone tools to the printing press and then to digital. The Metaverse seems to be the next step in the evolution. With that said, could the Metaverse right the wrongs in the?current online world???

I think mobile first to Metaverse could and will be the next step in the evolution of digital products and an opportunity to bring the internet back to its original roots with early adopters (*my pessimistic side says no).?Ready Player One anyone? (Fun fact – author Neal Stephenson coined the term “metaverse” in his 1992 novel?Snow Crash. Perhaps Zuckerberg was a fan?)

My Favorite Chrome Extensions

I’m obsessed with a good productivity tool and to help you kick off 2022 on the right foot, we wanted to share some of our favorite Chrome extensions to (hopefully) simplify your workflow.?

• WhatFont: Have you ever been on a page and wondered: “what is that font?” or “what size is that text? Use WhatFont to select the text you want style, weight, size, line height and font family.?
• ColorZilla:?ColorZilla is essentially an eyedropper tool for webpage. Quickly get the hex code for any color on a webpage.?
• Panic Button: Sometimes you have too many tabs open and you need to share your screen or just get them out of your eyesight so you can focus. PanicButton collapses all your active tabs and open a single new tab. Then when you want to reopen those tabs, hit the button to have your tabs all restored without hunting through History.?
• GoFullPage: Sometimes you want to capture a screenshot of the page but it’s too long and you don’t want to have to take 3 screenshots just to get a top to bottom view. GoFullPage scans the page and spits out a full screenshot.?
• SilkTide: This chrome extension can help simulate how a site would look to users with color blindness, dyslexia, myopia, as well as a number of other vision-based and cognitive disabilities
• JustNot Sorry: You should never have to apologize for the way you speak, but this plug in has been a handy reminder to be more assertive and clear when writing my emails.?
• Library Extension: This one is just for fun! If you’re like me - sometimes you see a book on Goodread and you want to know if it’s actually available at your local library. Library Extension inserts a widget on sites like Goodreads and Amazon showing you how many books your local library has, AND how many are currently available.?

Designing for Breakups

In 2021, I did a digital spring cleaning. I took the?Skimm’d challenge?and removed the podcasts I had no plans to catch up on, the email subscriptions I wasn’t reading, and the subscription services I wasn’t really making use of it. And let me tell you, some products treated me with respect and others...didn’t. Some made it easy and other made it really, really hard. So, I’m really enjoying?this read by Fast Company on how to design for user breakups and pauses?so that I don’t end up subjecting others to the same fate.?

Staying on Trend Just Got Easier

Mesh gradients are everywhere with brands lately. If you want to take advantage of this cool trend you can use third party applications like?Mesh Gradient, websites like?Products LS?or could go old school and use Illustrator. Following?Hicks Law, the path of least resistance is always easier.?Gautham?in the Figma Community created a very powerful tool to create custom Mesh Gradients right in Figma.?Give it a shot!

You Can Make ANYTHING!

Noodl?is a design driven dev tool where you can make literally anything. Need an app? Want an AR/VR experience, want a database driven responsive site? Noodl can do it. With upcoming?beta program?with integration for Sketch and Figma, you can literally bring your designs to life.?

Helpful Training Links:?

If you’re like us and looking to ease our way into 2022 with a little learning to reignite the creative muscles and get ready for the busy year ahead – you’ll probably be interested in these online courses!?

• First one is?Class Central’s report?on their most popular FREE online courses. Most popular free online courses.?
• And if that doesn’t float your boat, and you’re even more future focused than you’ll enjoy?this list of the most valuable skills to learn in 2022 from CNBC

Reach Us

Want more context? Would you like to submit your own article? Want to work with us and our amazing team? Please feel free to reach out (and feel free to share these emails with others)!?

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Mikko Ertolahti

Senior Experience Designer, Experience Design Team, Deloitte Digital

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Jess Pellow

Senior Experience Design Lead, Experience Design Team