inside apple

All was full speed ahead inside the Apple studios when I went to visit on 12 June. Their top designers took the time to meet with me, and for every minute I was there it was clear that all parts of the machine were geared up to the launch of the iPhone3G, Mobile me and the iPhone application store.

Hiroki took me briskly around the graphics studio - graphic design for web, retail and packaging, and also producers, motion graphics and the print center. Every part of the white walled building was accessed with swipe cards, and only to those who needed access to those rooms.The design studio was a quiet buzz of activity. I knew there was no point in trying to see exactly what people were working on, but there was a lot of work going on, people looking at pages, proofs, screens etc . . and lots of iPhone images.

Earlier in the day I had met with Jony Ive. The moment he sat down he had told me that we had 15 minutes before he had to meet his boss (Steve Jobs). Still he found the time to calmly explain some of the design decisions - that the bevel on the metal fascia was not so much a design decision for aesthetic reasons but resulted from the engineering - that is how the machine does it's work. He also noticed that my iPhone had a protective film on it."you don't need that" he said, "the glass really is scratch proof, unless you use a diamond on it". He also showed me his white iPhone 3G, which looks remarkably thinner than the 2G one. The curved back feels a little more comfortable in the palm.

Later in the day, when I'd finished my arranged meetings, I saw Jony again - he stepped into the lobby to welcome 2 more visitors into the building. It looks like his days are fast and furious! I had just come from the floor above his studio, where things appeared to be less hectic.

In contrast to the Graphic studio the User interface design studio was quiet and empty. But the silence also told a story of activity elsewhere. The WWDC, bringing together Apple developers from around the world was playing a very live role in products this year, with the iPhone application store opening very soon. All of the UI people were there, at WWDC, helping developers get the most out of Apple's Software Developer kit for the iphone and for OSX.

Back at Apple the one person remaining behind - who kindly gave me an hour of his time - was the Director of UI. He enthused about the virtual details, like the unlock button which elegantly bounces back every time you release it, with subtle lighting which highlight the words "slide to unlock" in the direction you need to move the button. It only unlocks the phone once you drag the button all the way to the end, making it almost impossible to unlock the phone in ones pocket.

I had a quick visit to Harriet, who was in a darkened suite of rooms in another building - filming the iPhone guided tour in a number of different languages. it sounded like a very demanding process - doing the same thing time and again, with people on hand to ensure every word was said and said correctly. Behind the scenes there was a classic engineering-black-box, which turns the iPhone 90 degrees to show how apps rotate to horizontal.

I went to WWDC on the following day. The place was a total hands on working conference, with accents and languages to be heard from around the world. There were sessions on subjects which seemed to make sense, but when I sat in to listen, the words lost all meaning. The labs were quietly buzzing. I bet there are many apps to come which were being honed, tested or born at that conference. I saw Scott Forstall giving out advice and darting form one person to the next.

My involvement started with a man in an orange teeshirt saying to me that I would have to start at a level I'd not understand. He then sat me at an imac with instructions to read 4 documents about Objective C and the iPhone SDK. I learned a bit, but realised I wasn't there long enough to get too much out of it.

I saw reports that reporters were at some points escorted to the toilets. With so much about to emerge from Apple and developers whose applications will be sold through the Application store, I'm not surprised there was some degree of caginess. The whole conference was covered by a non disclosure agreement, otherwise how could developers get anything done?

Looking back it is striking how every part of the Apple machine is working together, from conference down to individual meetings. The iPhone is manufactured, Ive can sit and enthuse on details with one he pulls from his pocket, but at that moment the industriousness around the iPhone continues in many ways. And who knows what else is in preparation at the same time. I heard there were some more presentations to Steve the following week . . what could those be?.

I was swept up in the sense of rush, and this was reflected in busy schedule they took me through. 2 weeks after my visit, free of jet lag and instead locked back into my work production routine, I am reminded of the extremely busy place that I visited.
Keep up the great work apple,

I think it's worth posting some ongoing musings on the web app design process as compared to the print design process.

Designing for the web has quite a different set of requirements. I like that you have to constantly think about the structure - where the user goes, how they get there, what they find when they are there and how they get back.
i think that the style and presentation are an additional layer on that, but decisions made about styling can have a direct impact on the method of interaction . . .

There seem to be 4 main part of the process

• aim and concept
• structure (which will modifiy aim)
• styling (which must understand the limitations of the structure)
• construction (coding - html, css, javascript)

the most logical place for overall direction of the design process would seem to lie at the structure/architecture level - because the site would need to retain it's structural integrity.

All the other areas require leads who are experts, and can respond to the requirements of the other parts of the process.

It's interesting that it is a somewhat more concrete process (than print). It is possible to build a working dummy more easily, because the medium you work in is the medium it is likely to be delivered on - and you can emulate the interactions quite easily (even if you can't code them - - - Keynote is working out well for me!) and see the holes, hone the process.

I must hone these thoughts at some point, but for now - post and be damned!

Steve Jobs and the London iPhone party

The iPhone was finally released into the wilds of London today. I went into the Regent Street store with Bobbie (also from the Guardian) to listen to Steve Jobs speak to a fairly small audience. His media handlers seemed a little tense, but to be fair, there was quite a crush of journalists wanting access to Steve. He was very relaxed, and unfazed by the various curveball questions about other European launches for the iPhone, and the revenue division between O2 and Apple "We're not going to discuss that today, but good question".

After Steve had announced price and talked a little about the iPhone, he handed over to the CEO of O2, Matthew Key (far left in the photo), who gave his own - Apple polished - keynote segment. That was unusual, most guests on Steves stage just talk. The coverage for EDGE at launch, at 30% of the UK, isn't great, but he also announced free access to 7500 hotspots, which helps the wireless coverage at least.

I hope and believe that the big change which iPhone will bring is to help grow the public, free wireless network, thus creating a new universe of web based mobile applications.
Steve Jobs mentioned that Apple.com will have a page showcasing the best web applications for the iphone, and apparently that will be on the site soon.

After the presentation we all got a chance to play with the phones. I love it. If anything, you can find your way into the apps so easily that the learning curve is about finding your way back out!
One small thing I noticed, and took the opportunity to suggest as a change (to Steve) is that currently there is a useful ".com" button on the keyboard for Safari. Why not have a drop-down menu on the key which offers others (eg .co.uk, .fr, .es etc) - perhaps localised for the most used in that market - with .com as the default. He thought about it a moment, then told me it was an interesting idea and he'd think about it. Thanks, maybe we'll see that as a wee update sometime. . .

Now on to work on some apps for the thing . . turning (news)paper based navigation aids into clickable buttons.

What a pleasant morning it has been, though I'd have preferred to have walked away with a phone in my hand!