The World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies In Design | Fast Company | Business + Innovation

NIKE

For putting sustainability at the top of its design agenda. The sportswear company is aggressively pursuing new materials that can replace the EVA foam and nylon used in shoes. To do this, they're partnering with NASA, the U.S. State Department, and USAID to research the textiles of the future. Internally, Nike has synthesized and compiled nearly eight years' worth of their findings on sustainable materials into a beautiful and graphic app called Making, which enables any designer, anywhere, to create apparel that has less of a footprint.

Design the Details: Empty States by @hamishmcneill — Realmac Software Blog

One of my favourite things to do with new apps is to check out and screenshot the first-run experience. After navigating any initial welcome screens, I go in search of empty states; views within the app typically devoid of content or data. Essentially a blank slate, an empty state can be used to form the first impression made on a user. It’s the importance of these views that I find so interesting as they can often be a good indicator as to the level detail put in to building the app. As you’ll see, empty views can often be far from empty.

1 | The 13 Most Important Design Lessons Of 2013 | Co.Design | business + design

FROM WHY DESIGNERS SHOULD LEARN TO CODE TO HOW NOT TO RUN A KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN, HERE'S A CHEAT SHEET TO BEING GREAT AT YOUR JOB IN 2014.