Rob Fay

The steak is seared in a screaming hot cast iron skillet then finished in a 200°F oven until done to taste. The whole process is quite easy and results in a perfectly cooked steak. The contrast of the salty, golden crust and the smooth, buttery center is just pure heaven. Freezing the steak in advance will ensure that you don’t overcook the meat while you achieve that perfect sear. - Rob Fay

Most phones come with flimsy manuals with complicated language and jargon. These books, which can live on a bookshelf actually contain the phone. Each page reveals the elements of the phone in the right order, helping the user to set up the sim card, the battery and even slide the case onto the phone. The second book is the main manual – the phone actually slots into this and becomes the center of attention. Arrows point to the exact locations the user should press, avoiding confusion and eliminating the feeling of being lost in a menu. - Rob Fay

Teams moving to agile often struggle to integrate agile with best practices in user-centered design (UCD) and user experience (UX) in general. Fortunately, using a UX Integration Matrix helps integrate UX and agile by including UX information and requirements right in the product backlog. - Rob Fay

Here at Upstatement, we experimented with how to solve design and layout problems within a responsive framework. We learned a helluva lot as we went, like how to choose the right design software, strategies for thinking through breakpoints, and some best practices for designing in the browser. - Rob Fay

While people think and behave differently when they are in large groups versus when they are alone, I also believe that people behave still differently when they are in the presence of only one other person. This is often overlooked, yet I believe that creative people can be at their most effective when they work in pairs. - Rob Fay

As more and more devices in your home get connected to the Internet, the user experience becomes increasingly important. It's hard enough to use your PC sometimes, let alone fiddle with the remote on your Internet connected TV! So over the coming months we'll be exploring the world of User Experience design (a.k.a. UX design). We'll be interviewing UX experts and reviewing products that get it right - and some that get it wrong. We'll start by looking at how the user experience of televisions is becoming more interactive and what this will mean to your TV consumption habits. - Rob Fay