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September 1, 2017

Women in Computer Programming History

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There has recently been much discussion about getting more women into computer programming roles – the case of the Google manifesto shows that what many us think of as outdated gender stereotypes about programmers are still alive and well in some circles.  However, it wasn’t always the case that computer programming was considered a ‘male’ field.  Early computer programming was dominated by women, and it was women who were seen as uniquely capable of being computer programmers.  Among early computer pioneers were many women who made important contributions to computer science and programming and invented many of the concepts & models we continue to use today.

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August 31, 2017

What Is a Design System and When to Create One

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Throughout my continuing journey as a designer I have started to notice several companies are creating what they call design systems. Some people also like to refer to them as design languages, visual languages, or human interface guidelines. Google has Material Design, Apple has created their Human Interface Guidelines, last year Salesforce put together their Lightning Design System, and Airbnb has recently put together a visual design language for their design team. I became curious as what a design system is and why these companies have started to create and document them. Below I’ve broken down my research into a few sections: what is a design system, what are the benefits, and when it is and isn’t beneficial to create one.

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July 14, 2017

Improving Supply Chain Management with Software

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By definition, Supply Chain Management (SCM) is the oversight of materials, information, and finances as they move in a process from supplier to manufacturer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer. Supply chain management involves coordinating and integrating these flows both within and among companies.* SCM is becoming evermore important for small businesses as larger companies they compete with invest more in transportation, logistics, and inventory.

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July 7, 2017

The Elements of Style

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A spate of applications have popped/cropped up in recent years with slogans like “Make Anything Art.”  They purport to transfer the style of one image and render the content of another image in that style.  In the sets of images below, the small inset image is the source of the “style” which is transferred to the larger image.  It’s an impressive trick, although I don’t know that it accurately represents what we mean by ‘style’.

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June 16, 2017

Moneyball for Brands: How Communications Agencies Are Using Data Science

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New model of the media landscape

Before I came to Grio to do software development, I worked as an analyst at a digital marketing agency. Communications agencies are experiencing an industrial renaissance thanks to the rise of social media and the proliferation of data around consumer online behavior. Every Facebook like, every Instagram post, and every click of a link is an opportunity to measure a brand’s influence.

In the past, agencies were separated by activity, such as public relations, advertising, or branding, but these days the responsibilities are much more blurred. Clients are demanding increasingly complex marketing campaigns across multiple platforms. As a result, all firms are being asked to do more work outside of their comfort zone. Basically, clients are looking for a one stop shop for all of their marketing needs. Companies are more than happy to try to be that full service agency.

In this post I’d like to share a quick overview of the changes that communications agencies are encountering, and how they are adapting by incorporating data science into their service offerings.

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June 12, 2017

Prototyping with Principle: A Quick Review

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Principle Icon

I’ve partnered with my client, Texture, for more than two years, and I am still continually learning in all aspects of design. I’ve been lucky enough to pick up two software programs in the last year; Sketch and Principle. I’d like to give a quick review of Principle and share my pros and cons as a new user

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June 6, 2017

Fake news

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Traditional media is no longer the only source of news. Internet and social media have become the main platform for news sharing.
According to Pew Research Center 62% of Americans get their news from social media. This means anyone can create and share news stories, regardless of their truthiness.

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June 6, 2017

Introduction to 3D Printing

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3D printing is the process of creating a three-dimensional object by adding many layers of material together. This process is performed by a computer controlled machine commonly called a 3D printer. This article will primarily be discussing the Fused Deposition Modeling(FDM) method of 3D printing. Most FDM printers will heat up plastic and push it out from a nozzle. This process is called extruding.

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May 31, 2017

Centaurs Versus the Total Perspective Vortex: Data Visualization and Complexity

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Data visualization projects are probably what first drew me to software. I loved the idea of creating tools with beautiful interfaces that allowed people to see, interact, and play with big systems and concepts that are ordinarily hidden from view. Our lives are shaped and shaken by complex forces; making them tangible is a potent challenge, and one that really speaks to me.

In this post, I’d like to talk about some of the ways data visualization holds utility as a means of democratizing systems thinking, some considerations for how this can be effectively achieved, and how we might think of data visualization as a tool in our kit when approaching Big Serious Complex Problems.

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posted

May 26, 2017

Software Licensing in Open Source

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Open Source software is ubiquitous today as a popular way to distribute software freely within the community. However, software licensing that is built on top of intellectual property laws is easy to overlook. Github shows that the percentage of their licensed public repositories has never passed 25% since 2009. Understanding these licenses and making the correct decision for a program can transform them into tools that can help creators’ intentions and goals for a project.

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