Moe Amer

We recently upgraded our financial management software to MS Dynamics Nav5. The automation ability features in the program will help us streamline our business, minimize errors and help our bottom line.

Betsy Balgooyen-Keller

I have been reviewing updates to HTML programming language and how we can utilize it to make websites more consistent for all the different browser and computer types. How you experience websites will change for the better, making it easier to get information and more fun with all the new features we can use.

Andrew Webb

The rapid adoption of the iPad, iPhone and other mobile devices is more than a change in hardware. It’s rapidly changing mainstream user behavior – and therefore prompts developers to design a user experience that is effective across all formats, both mobile and tethered. Knowing how to construct that user experience begins with understanding the tools for building and displaying sites and applications. Among the lessons of my summer: What it really means that different browsers display content differently; that competition between video formats means compressing online video and audio five different ways; that there is life after Flash (but still plenty of life in Flash!); and of course that there are no short cuts, and this ongoing interactive revolution underlines the importance of user testing at a whole new level.

Tyler Uteg

Over the last month, I have been looking into a new device that has the potential to add some flare to corporate meeting interaction. I recently tested the device, and was amazed that it has more than 16 features like Audience Response, person-to-person business card transfer, live agendas and much more. I plan to continue to conduct research and meet with the CEO of the company to determine ways that Quicksilver can implement this technology in our meeting productions.

Bill Talsma

A rapidly changing web environment affords many learning opportunities on a daily basis. In this business you’ve got to keep current with new technologies, design trends and programming languages. HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript libraries—like jQuery—have been the crux of many explorations for the last few months here at Quicksilver. We’ve just designed and built a new demonstration site of these collective learnings @ www.rivernorthweb.com.

Michael O’Brien

I have learned a lot recently about new approaches to presentation technology- namely, converting our presentation/capabilities demo to be compatible with iPad technology for greater presentation mobility. Being able to show our potential clients what we have done in a clear, concise, visually appealing format without having to worry about connections or projectors, has made explaining “What does Quicksilver do?” easier and much more interesting.

Kathy Morris

In the early 70s, when I was studying Radio, TV and Film at Northwestern University, one of the oft quoted communications gurus was Marshall McLuhan who wrote. “The medium is the message.”  I have railed against this idea all of my professional life, believing that content can be enhanced by the delivery vehicle, but the vehicle itself is not the message.  Steve Jobs seems destined to destroy my point of view.  The introduction of the iPad has marketing teams scrambling to deliver on the new platform, independent of what they have to say.  As we race to understand the unique characteristics of new communications technology, I will continue to challenge our team to develop creative and memorable content with which to populate them.

Jeff Maslouski

Due to our ongoing research project, I have had many learnings in the areas of online video regarding HTML5, Flash, and the new generation of mobile devices (from Apple to Android). There are so many fascinating aspects to the current debate, I decided to blog about it!

Diane MacWilliams

Integrated communications and integrated marketing are big buckets for delivering marketing communications programs. I have learned that “mobile” is the latest addition to the bucket (especially with the introduction of the iPad), and there are many “new” possibilities to incorporate this in programs we are creating. It requires learning new programming techniques, testing the results and understanding the audience. I continue to learn what is possible and how Quicksilver can help our clients deliver their important messages via these devices.

Pat Lehnerer

On several past projects, the question of whether to do an animation in Flash or video has often come up. Sometimes one method was better than the other, and it was a simple judgment call about which way to go. But today, we get requests for creating animation for mobile devices, which takes Flash out of the equation since some major devices do not support it. Since video is a more universal format for smartphones and tablets, it made sense to for me to ramp up my skills in After Effects. It’s amazing how much the software can do, and I can’t wait to start working some magic!

Barbara Key

Over the last few months I’ve learned quite a lot about how iPad’s unique characteristics and sociological factors make our client’s ideas resonate with their constituents. Its robust utilities and multimedia capabilities, “I can work and enjoy books, movies and games” allow greater flexibility when it comes to up-to-date communications. Designing the creative for our client’s objectives is critical to weeding out weak (i.e. unprofitable, untargetable or unmarketable) ideas quickly, and to developing a product that not only meets but anticipates their audience’s needs. This cutting edge creative design, based on our client’s objectives, is part of what sets us apart.

Laura Kalinowski

It seems the iPad can do just about everything – from Apps, to enhanced video viewing to experiencing the Internet in a new way. I was excited to learn that it is also a powerful medium for one of our clients’ preferred methods of presentation – PowerPoint. While PowerPoint is a Microsoft Office program, our talented Post Production Manager Jeff Maslouski recently experimented transferring a presentation from PowerPoint to iPad with an animation-heavy presentation we created. We were excited to discover that our PowerPoint transferred well to Apple’s Keynote software, and we were then able to put the presentation on the iPad. I’m excited to experiment more with these functions around animation!

Lakshmi Jayaraman

In the past few months I learned a lot about JQuery, HTML5 and how to create eBooks for iPad. I ended up creating eBooks in two ways:

• A web-based flipbook which looks like a book using HTML5 and Java script. This one can be viewed on any browser including IE and also on an iPad.
• eBooks in ePub format, the native format of iBooks in iPad. This again is created using HTML5, since we need to include videos and PDF links. This HTML file is then converted into ePub format by a free and open source e-book library management application.

Even though HTML5 specifications are not finalized yet, HTML5 and JQuery are so powerful that they can work on any browsers in including iPad. I think we should create our future sites in HTML5 and JQuery

Chris Bartot

ROMI = Return on Meeting Investment. More and more clients want to know how they can network, distribute presentation materials and measure audience response. They want a manageable and cost effective means to ensure their investment in the meeting or conference was worth it. Quicksilver is constantly researching innovative products that can achieve these goals. Enter the BeLinker Event Management system. BeLinker is a tiny and wearable device tied to powerful live event software that keeps track of everyone you meet, products and presentations you liked and enables audience response to keep everyone engaged no matter where you are at the conference. As a participant, you agreed to participate. So, why shouldn’t you get what you came for? We are excited to help your meetings come alive.

Dave Yakir

I’ve learned a lot about HTML5 video and how it could potentially change the way video is displayed on the web – for the better. I look forward to applying my learnings to the iPad and the web because more and more often the video we produce is geared for the web and mobile devices. Understanding the distribution process helps us in production.