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Oakland, CA
USA

My main blog is a Squarespace 5 blog located at saysbrad.com — I'm looking at migrating my technology/design site to Squarespace 6 (or perhaps another platform). It's quite a time consuming endeavor to do right and it's given me a lot to think about.

Life, Technology, Design

Filtering by Tag: madewithpaper

Several Exciting Things in Blogging

Brad Chin

iPad Paper sketch, MadeWithPaper FiftyThree

Turns out, trying to rebuild a website in Squarespace v6 with almost no spare time and not enough sleep is pretty hard. 

But I’m working on it. I’m just working on so many other things, too. I’m almost done with several reviews for some really cool products, and I’m really looking forward to updating SaysBrad with new visuals and features. 

If you’re thinking about creating or updating a website, I think Squarespace is a great option. And no, they aren’t paying me to say that — though I wish they were!

However, if you just want a simple blog, I’d recommend Posthaven. I’ve been experimenting with their service for about one month and it’s excellent, especially for mobile users (iOS, anyway — I’m not able to test Android). Priced at $5/month, the guys behind Posthaven promise to keep your content online forever after one year of paid service. I believe that they mean it, but only time will tell whether or not this promise holds up. Posthaven isn’t a huge company with massive, private resources. 

If you like trying new things and experimenting with code, maybe try Ghost. 

My experimental site, Bradtastica, is a Ghost blog hosted by the awesome guys at Ghostify. As is, Ghost is somewhat lacking and I think that there are too many bugs and uncertainties for business use, but the platform is new and full of potential. Within one or two years, Ghost will be a top contender and solid choice for blogging. Right now, it’s more… just kinda cool.

One more thing! 

Over the past several months (during my illness, mainly), I’ve tried several new capacitive touch styluses and have received offers to try a few more. I’m looking forward to posting some comprehensive reviews with sketches and photos. I’d wanted to get Says Brad moved to SS6 first, but with everything going on right now (disability, illness, moving, etc…), I’m not sure when that would be. (I’m also having major problems with the building that I’m in. Will probably have to write/share some scathing comments about PBT sometime.) I really want to separate the technology, political and personal content — just really lacking time and energy. So I’m formatting my reviews for this blog! I’m particularly looking forward to sharing my thoughts on Pencil, the stylus for Paper by FiftyThree. Have had a lot of fun with that. 

As usual, if you have questions or comments, you can reach me via my SaysBrad contact form (email), or through Twitter or Facebook. It’s nice to hear from everyone!

I hope you have a great week!

Black Friday Thoughts

Brad Chin

Note: began this entry last week. Been exhausted. :-(

Thanksgiving was the day after dinner with my parents, so I was pretty tired. We started to say what we were all thankful for but the conversation sidetracked, and never refocused. With the FLOTUS' suggestion in mind, we spoke about ObamaCare and politics... but I won't get into that here and now. I'm truly thankful for two wonderfully supportive parents and the relationship I have with my family now. Also, although we give each other a hard time, Stephanie does a good job taking care of me and reminding me to eat. I forget about that sometimes when I get involved in a project or, well, sleep.

It hasn't always been easy or fun, but I don't think I could get by without them and their support. Disability really sucks like that. Thank you. And a shoutout and thanks to all of the wonderful internet people — hopefully you know who you are. Your generosity, kindness and encouragement, thoughts and prayers are cherished and appreciated. I hope you have a great, merry Christmas! (...and a happy New Year!)

Now to Mainstream Sheeple Consumer (yes, very bleak—err, black) Friday thoughts.

I really miss Steve Jobs.

Mostly in an abstract way; it's not like I knew him personally, but insofar as a man (or woman) can be known by their great works and contributions, it pains me greatly that his direction and insight is no longer a constant.

Although Apple might honor and carry his legacy through their refinements and further developments of his breakthrough products, they've lost their prodigal navigator and are thusly adrift. It's impossible for me to know whether or not Steve would've allowed the iPad mini to exist, but I cannot fathom his acceptance of iOS7 on it.

Some people claim to run iOS7 just fine on first-gen minis. Many others, myself clearly included, believe that the tablet is just too slow for it. It's clunky. Glitchy. It crashes and lags.

It's ruined the mini experience for me. The mini was my favorite tablet, one of my favorite things, even with the iPad2-like specs and unimpressive screen. It gave me the iPad experience that I love on a device that I could use all day — the iPad 3 is just too heavy to hold up for hours. With iOS6, the mini was quick and stable.

It allowed me to create.

iOS7 was deliberately designed to be sleek and minimal — two qualities I don't have an issue with — however, it feels like style over substance. Over-engineered, unavoidable. Apple won't let dissatisfied users go back to 6, and even pushed the update install to devices. It seems like a marketing tactic to throw out at keynote speeches. Almost all of our users are on the latest version of iOS, while Android devices are split between...

Compounding my tablet frustrations are blogging woes.

Squarespace 5 has started getting hit with referral-link spam. At first it was maybe a few a week, then a few a day, now maybe a dozen per day. This nuisance isn't easy to take care of on an iPad, and has obscured legitimate comments, emails, questions... I've got to do something about it.

Sorry for the trouble here but I'll be happy to assist you. We will continue to maintain Squarespace 5 for customers. However, updates and apps that are released in the future will be geared toward the Squarespace 6 platform. – Squarespace Customer Care response

So it looks like I'm blogging on an obsolete platform. Simply move to their Squarespace 6? And perhaps in a few years, they'll grow tired of that, release version 7, and cut support/updates for 6.

I get that things progress and change is necessary for business, but because the systems are incompatible and there's no automatic 5 to 6 conversion tool, it's extra stress that I don't want.

So I've been looking into alternatives. I found two articles particularly informative.

I'd like to focus more on long form content and less on blog design; unfortunately, so many "blogging platforms" (CMS) are setup for full-site management and treat the blog as a secondary item and focus.

Perhaps more importantly (at minimum, of equal importance) is sustainability — Internet immortality. Permanent links. Link rot sucks. Importing and exporting content sucks — there's always loss and errors. That makes something like Posthaven — at least at face-value — very attractive. Their promise, for $5/month is a service that will last forever. I blogged at Vox, played with Pownce, tweeted at Jaiku, shared with Posterous — all gone.

I think my only real reservation with Posthaven at the moment is that I don't like the look, and it seems like there's no choice with that. No templates or themes, or CSS or whatever. Just pure, simple blog — take it or leave it. I don't think it's attractive or very usable. On their site, they indicate that custom design is something that they're working on implementing, so I'll have to keep an eye on it. If you use Posthaven, I'd love to know what you think of it, and how it compares to similar blog only services (like Medium, Ghost, Postagon, Roon, etc).

And then there's this: Web Design is 95% Typography – Information Architects — thoughts from the genius Oliver Reichenstein. I've read his thoughts on typography (I love typography and handwriting), and agree with most of it. It's particularly true for this blog, since I tend to post fewer, write longer (instead of many/short). This theme just looks bad with big type. If only I could work on it from my iPad.

I'm not good with code. I know a bit — enough to understand it when I see it, but I can't use code like I use a pencil (or stylus). I can't wield CSS as a design weapon, and that limits what I can customize on my own. If only I had more time, more years of life.

Squarespace (like many other visually fancy UIs) is difficult to modify on a tablet. There are a lot of JavaScript effects and overlays, menus and some drag-and-drop. Stuff mobile Safari doesn't do well (at least as Squarespace has coded it — I've seen some neat interactive HTML5 stuff on iPad, like FiftyThree's site). I really think that they could do away with all that or offer an in-app option, but alas, the limitations of small company. And they're based out of New York — not my first pick for a business.

My goal, of I can ever manage it, is to write about the tech, games and design that I love, disability and pain management, and politics (local, national, international). I believe that it's important to our first amendment and culture to express controversial and perhaps unpopular opinions, always remaining truthful and forthright. I don't like political correctness and white lies, and I don't want to live in a world where government tells me what I can buy, where I can go, whether or not I can own a gun, airplane or anything else. I don't want to live in a world where creativity and ingenuity is stifled and suffocated under the burdens of taxes, regulations, penalties, local, state and federal ordinances requiring prior authorization and approval, etc...

...but I really, really don't like all the public insults, flame wars, death threats, obscenities and personal attacks hurled at strangers online and elsewhere in our society today. There's an awful tension and hostility and a lot of hate — so I plan on contributing to debates without attacking others or responding to personal insults. I won't instigate persecution and I will report threats (and hate speech, where applicable), because it isn't right or productive. We do not have the right to never be offended, but we do have protection against battery, libel and slander. I encourage debates where people vigorously defend their positions and say "you're wrong," but I condemn the "you're an idiot and you should die" that seems to occur online with alarming frequency. Liberal or conservative, it doesn't matter who's saying it — this type of attack is wrong, and if I see or hear it in the mainstream media or popular blogs, I'll flag it — because I think character is important and people need to be aware of it.

In my experience, the racism, discrimination and flaming comes from:

  • people with an intellectually, factually indefensible position — perhaps thusly, they believe that their only option is to end discussion entirely or redirect it from information and ideology to personal attacks,

people so arrogant and/or narrow-minded that they believe that there's no possible way that they can be wrong; thus they are unwilling to even hear or entertain the opposing argument or view — and often in anger, shut down civilized discourse with disdain, using statements ranging from cynicism and snide remarks to outright vile hostility and threats of violence.

Sometimes it's difficult to contain anger, I understand that. But even if someone is wrong — stubbornly so — it would be far better to simply withdraw from dialogue than resort to conversational (or actual) thuggery.

So in the spirit of American Christmas, those are my stresses, wishes and cold-weather! winter worries. And now that I've shared them,

I can get back to blogging about fun stuff like iPad styluses and the joys of iPhone 5S. PLUS: why I won't ever switch from iOS to Android, and why I simultaneously want Android to always be awesome!

Happy December!

Post-Independence Day Post!

Brad Chin

Hey, everyone! Did you have a good holiday? The Fourth of July is a pretty exciting day. Not just for the fireworks — the United States of America is an amazing place, despite all of the crap that goes on.

I've been busy preparing a bunch of posts for Says Brad, controversial pieces, and spent the past few days confirming Squarespace Terms of Service with their wonderful support team to make sure that my content wasn't in violation of their ToS . It isn't, so soon I'll share thoughts on violence and video games, racism, race baiting and the parallels between the Oscar Grant and Trayvon Martin.

And of course, that's not all! More about the NSA and their spy capabilities, controversial laws and ways to protect your freedoms, and as always, app and game reviews, art and, well, whatever else I feel like sharing.

For more frequent updates, cool links/videos and artwork, check out my Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook page. (Also: 360/PSN/vita gamers, I'm currently playing Borderlands 2, Soul Sacrifice, and a few others — if you want to play, message rainfault and let me know who you are and how you found me! I'm also on Guild Wars 2, but less frequently this month: Bradtastic.1623)

 

The bad and badass of iOS 6

Brad Chin

Another sunset looking across Lake Merritt

Updating my iPad has been a big change — I'm still figuring it out, finding new things, getting frustrated and used to iOS6.

The first thing that I did was test out Siri. She's not quite the virtual assistant I was hoping for, but she's still cool; a very welcome (free) addition to my iPad, complimenting the dictation function elegantly. We're still getting acquainted — I don't know what kind of pair we'll make, at least until her sports knowledge extends to cover Tennis.

I like being able to set reminders and alarms on the fly. I'm excited about doing this on the iPhone 5 while I'm out; I'm still using the iPhone 4 (Siri isn't available on it), but I hope to upgrade soon. Telling Siri to remind me to stop by the supermarket at 2pm or to set an alarm for 8:30pm feels futuristic… because it works, perfectly.

A big what the suck

Apple, having declared thermonuclear war on Google, has replaced Maps with Apple Maps and has removed the YouTube video app. I'm glad that the new map app has turn-by-turn directions (aka real GPS navigation), but the new map app is fraught with issues. Some of the more hilarious mistakes will likely become Facebook memes. I haven't encountered an error yet (I think) but the lack of street view sucks. Yelp integration is good and bad because Yelp itself is flawed.

The YouTube app was actually pretty nice. Google released its own YouTube app for iPhone, but the iPad currently has only third-party alternatives. I've been using Safari — luckily, I don't watch much YouTube to begin with, so I'm not as affected by the change.

The badass

Safari is fantastic now. My favorite change? I can now attach/upload images to websites! Prior to iOS 6, file transfer could only be accomplished through apps. It's not perfect, but I've been able to add photos to:

  • My new design gallery here at Says Brad – I'm having issues uploading to this gallery, however. Hopefully it's a temporary, fixable issue. Squarespace support probably won't be helpful, however. (I'm very seriously considering switching to WordPress; I just don't know much about editing themes, and I'd like my site to look decent, so I'm trying to figure that out)
  • My Dribbble account – dribbble shots need to be resized to 400x300; I like using PhotoForge2 by GhostBird Software (universal, currently $3.99 USD), but there are others.

I really like Notification Center now, as well as Do Not Disturb. One simple change that saves a lot of time is the ability to tweet and post to Facebook from Notification Center. Also, I like the reorganized Settings.

I meant to keep this post short and sweet, but iOS 6 has so many awesome features, it's tough for me to be concise. I'll continue to add observations as I become more familiar with it, and when I get an iPhone 5, naturally.

Says who? Says Brad iPad art, Paper by FiftyThree
madewithpaper

Design is a Serious Lifestyle

Brad Chin

BC Logo Concept 2
"BC" logo conceptual designs, #madewithpaper

 

Bradtastic Brad Chin BC logo concept designs made with paper by fifty three
Putting letters and symbols inside of shapes and playing with balance and positive versus negative space. Reminds me of "cake cutting" from NUMB3RS. Says Brad

 

As an artist, designing for yourself is often one of the hardest things to do.

When I started designing professionally eight years ago, I would meet all kinds of professional artists who didn't have their own business cards and websites. Sometimes, I'd get the qualifying statements excuses, "oh, this card is temporary," (or old), "my site is under construction." Fast-forward: things are about the same, except I'm not out much due to disability and chronic pain.

Sometimes I talk to artists online — at least now it's easy to setup an online gallery, free blog, flickr account, etc. — but the situation is still similar. As a solo freelance designer, you can't hire someone else to design your own stuff, and if you want to pay the bills each month, you have to keep working.

Disability and chronic pain changed everything for me, every aspect of my existence. I'm doing things and dealing with things that I never imagined in my pre-teen years. However, I still like a lot of the same things.

I've tried to create a little something for myself over the years, eventually settling on something that I liked, only to create something better the next day, week, or month. As an artist and as with all things, learning and improving — progress — should be constant. Consistent. So it's only natural that I'd continue to get better.

Design is a mission

Design should evolve and progress with society and culture. Being a designer is a commitment — the process itself is its own art form. Design is a way of thinking and a way of being. Design must grow, and sometimes through growth, change, but the commitment remains in the roots. Great design requires a commitment to perpetual excellence.

But logos? Logos should be constant… at least for longer. Like a name, a logo is an essential symbol of identity, but it should be more. It should convey values and ideals, traditions and origins. It should impress upon and instill its audience with a thought or feeling. Good logos deliver messages. So how does a designer design a logo? Design is always changing, designers are always improving, but a logo should stay the same. A paradox? No. Difficult, though.

The big blessing, The New iPad

Using Paper, I created a few "BC" logo concepts — something I could use, like a monogram maybe. Throughout the day, I tweaked and refines these sketches; some were erased, others duplicated. Some of them work, others not so much. During this process, I thought about how I was doing what I was doing… and how special it is for me.

Several years ago, Apple released the iPad and surprisingly, changed my life. Earlier this year, I was fortunate enough to get The New iPad; just a minor update/refresh of the iPad 2 for some, this device changed my life again, and continues to with new apps and app updates.

Equally surprising is the app Paper by FiftyThree, my thoughts paralleling the first-generation iPad. (I loved The Next Generation from the beginning) When I first saw (both of) these, I thought more style than substance, and I probably won't use this. In both cases, I'm very happy to be so-entirely incorrect.

I couldn't envision the benefits. Both seemed too similar to stuff I already had, stuff I was satisfied with. Both have blown me away, both I've mentioned before.

I mention it now because both the iPad (especially the new one with the Retina Display) and Paper (with my super styluses, oStylus DOT and Cosmonaut) are my main creative tools. Despite my condition, I can quickly draw and write, even laying down. With Dictation on the New iPad, I capture thoughts without holding the device!

The stuff I've drawn here probably wouldn't exist without these things. Hopefully, both will continue to improve, as design should! (Paper could really use more color options, zoom, and Jot Touch/Jaja support!)

The bigger, better

The relationships that I've developed because of the iPad are perhaps even more extraordinary. I'm friends with people I'd never have met otherwise; people across the country, some from other continents, others out of our solar system on outpost space stations and starships.

Some of the app developers have inspired me to keep trying, keep improving. iOS developers and accessory makers (those I've interacted with) are all really nice people, easy to communicate with and quick to respond. They appreciate and often encourage feedback, constantly improving, as designers should!

In particular, I want to mention Lance Barton. His company makes blogging happen on the iPad. Blogsy is fantastic as-is, and is always improving… (there's a pattern to things I appreciate and admire)

Lance has been really courteous and generous with his time. We email, and although he isn't a big writer, he always responds. Hopefully we'll video chat; FaceTime or something. He's from California but llives in South Korea; I think that's pretty cool. Aside from being my friend, I think it's great that he cares a lot about Blogsy user experience and answers everyone's questions. I had an relatively minor issue publishing here using Blogsy; he invested a lot of time troubleshooting, and had his team figure out how to fix it.

I also want to mention Andrew Goss. He's a manufacturing jeweler in Canada and is fantastically generous and kind. He designed and made the amazing oStylus, and then improved it with the DOT, and then improved the DOT! He's also a grandfather. He designed the oStylus because he wanted a great stylus to use with his iPad. That's pretty cool.

Sometimes, the process is more remarkable than the outcome.

Design lead me the iPad and these people just as graphic design is the basis of the images above. Sometimes, the journey is more important than the destination. Perhaps design isn't just a way of life or result. Perhaps it's in the core, the components, the elements, the trials, the errors, the paths — both what is done and how it's done. Maybe sometimes God is in the details.

 

A final thought on portfolios for professional artists out there.

I've found that sometimes, a comprehensive portfolio can work against you and your client or prospect. This happens when a potential client sees work done for someone else, and is then set on something similar. Instead of presenting previous projects and too many options, if I thought someone might offer repeat business, I'd create a few free design concepts. The advantage is that it's customized specifically for that potential client, the disadvantage is that it could mean doing work for no money — and the risk that that s/he/they might take that idea and give it to someone else. (There are a few ways to mitigate this risk, however.)

Designing with Paper

Brad Chin

I used to like real, analog paper.

Clairefontaine, Rodeo, Whitelines, and the occasional Moleskine. However, instead of lugging around thick, heavy notebooks, I now use the new iPad…

For just about everything.

 

Now, instead of the stationery store, I have the App Store. My Paper is supplied by FiftyThree and my notebooks are supplied by Evernote, Noteshelf and ThinkBook. I create mind maps and mood boards in Infinite SketchPad and Adobe Collage.

With my disability, I have to do just about everything from home. The Apple iPad allows me to find inspiration and create in an organic, fluid fashion. Apps open quickly, the battery lasts all day — I design more efficiently on the new iPad than I ever did on a desktop computer or in a sketchbook.

The new iPad Retina display is stunning — it's so clear that the iPad 2 feels unusable by comparison. As an artist, photographer or designer, four times the pixels is a fantastic upgrade. Further, text is so crisp that I prefer the iPad over Kindle for reading.

Sketching in Paper helps me unwind and brainstorm new ideas. I use it when I don't want to focus on precision and finite control. Brainstorming is about broad strokes, which Paper handles phenomenally. Some of these drawings inspire new designs and illustrations — some just look cool. And I enjoy sharing them.

So blogging, photography, design — art — all aided by iOS; an iPhone and an iPad. I also like to use an oStylus DOT and a KlearScreen microfiber cleaning cloth.

I like designing new things…

If you know someone looking for a design, new business card, marketing materials, an advertising campaign, billboard, postcard or help with writing or branding, please tell him or her about me — with a brief consultation, I can answer questions and outline the project. Thank you!

Don't die today

Brad Chin

Happy 236th Birthday, America!

Three cheers! Fourth of July! Independence Day. Declaration of Independence. Fireworks, BBQ, drunk people. The United States of America. Three sheets.

I love America. Today is a great day to celebrate — but let's not forget what it's about. Looking across my backyard, Oakland (east, west and south of Lake Merritt), I've seen fireworks sputter and explode and in the sky since June 29. The pace is frenzied, the explosions progressively larger.

Believe me, it's beautiful. Unfortunately, it's dangerous.

These displays aren't set off by professionals in safe, controlled environments; hobbyists are firing off large fireworks from rooftops, alleyways, parking lots and street corners. Last night I saw the flashes of M-80s and M-1000s, along with a procession of gunfire.

People lose flesh, fingers, and lives from firecrackers and DIY explosives… I've seen some screwed up stuff on YouTube. It sucks that Oakland is too broke to afford an official firework show, but there are many across the bay area. There is, however, a family-friendly event at Jack London Square starting at 11am.

Oakland spent over $1M on Occupy clean-up; that could've been one heck of a firework show!

Second, don't let anyone drive drunk. Drunk drivers cause a majority of automobile fatalities. Take a cab, crash on a couch, safe a life. Thanks.

Sorry for being a buzz kill. I just want those I care for to be okay tomorrow, and don't like to hear about people's holidays ending in the county jail, ER, ICU or morgue. I'll watch the news tonight and tomorrow, and sure enough… but hopefully, I won't see you, or someone you know.

America is a wonderful place. Enjoy it. Let everyone else enjoy it.

See your friends and family. Laugh. Dance. Sing. Put a silly outfit on the dog/cat/baby/grandparent. Take pictures. Post the funny ones on Facebook.

And go to bed, safe and intact. Because tomorrow, people will be as serious and grouchy as ever.

What?! Blogsy compatible with Squarespace!

Brad Chin

Blogsy + iPad + Squarespace = Awesome, cubed

Blogsy is now compatible with Squarespace.

 

Blogsy is iOS’ best blogging tool. No doubt. If you have an iPad and you blog, you need Blogsy… that is, if your service is compatible with it. Blogsy has such a feature-rich, elegant environment that it enhances creativity. It does everything you'd expect — and a lot more.

One great, main feature is its WYSIWYG environment. It is structured similar to a word processor so it's automatically familiar. I think that this helps when blogging from the iPad, and also makes blogging more accessible to those without coding knowledge. Blogsy also has an HTML edit mode, but it isn't color-coded — serious programmers and coders may want to look at the other iOS options.

Overall, Blogsy is fantastic. And now, it's fully compatible with Squarespace, my favorite blogging platform! In particular, I like the drag-and-drop image uploader — Blogsy is much better than the universal Squarespace app.

Awesome Squared Cubed

I'm pretty sure that this new development means you'll see more blogging from me, as well as more #madewithpaper — perhaps in the Gallery!

Sketching with Paper

Brad Chin

Countertop Cityscape

Everyday objects can inspire. Bottles and objects on my bathroom countertop reminded me of downtown Oakland buildings, so I decided to combine the two.

I love skyscrapers and cityscapes; I like the architecture, the colors, lights and distant city sounds. I like the angles, contours, steel and glass. I also like abstract art — for me, it's emotion in tangible form. Combining these passions in Paper by FiftyThree on my iPad lead to this drawing.

Countertop Cityscape was a lot of fun to make. Keeping it messy let me focus on bold shapes, color and concept. For this kind of drawing, I think that the oStylus DOT is essential. I hope you like it!

I will continue posting shots as I continue experimenting with iPad art.

The best apps for iPad

Brad Chin

I created this graphic using Paper by FiftyThree. I just listed some of my favorite apps; if you use the iPad on a regular basis, you probably have many of them already.

Because the iPad is my main computer, I'm always looking for the best apps and doing whatever I can to improve them. These sketches, designs and doodles are a fun and easy way for me to share stuff about my favorite OS. I'm posting these drawings mainly at bradtastic.tumblr.com and my Facebook, but my favorites will likely end up here, too.

These sketches are quick to produce, and Paper makes them look particularly fancy. I'm more comfortable with the app's strengths and weaknesses now, so I've been drawing in Paper. These sketches inspire my other work; I used to use Brushes, Procreate and SketchBook Pro for preliminary sketch work, but now I like using Paper, Penultimate and Noteshelf for projects.

I've decided to turn my tumblr into a powered by iPad blog, focusing on sharing ideas that I capture with Paper and other sketching and note taking apps. I still haven't settled on a new name. Any suggestions? I've settled on this decision because of Apple's new iPad (or iPad 3, as some call it). It is a major upgrade from the iPad 2. I didn't read much on the iPad before, but with the Retina display, the new iPad is as clear as paper. Drawing and sketching feel just as natural, as images appear as crisp as printed pages.

If you use Facebook, please visit my SaysBrad FB page and say hi! If you make iOS apps or accessories, please let me know about it. I can write a review and send feedback!

Using Paper by FiftyThree

Brad Chin

This sketch demonstrates how I use Paper by 53. I like to create notes and mind-maps by combining the Watercolor tool with Draw, Write, Sketch and Outline.

Paper is a art, design and productivity app for Apple iPad that I've mentioned several times before, here at Says Brad and elsewhere. It's a beautiful, minimalist sketching, drawing and writing tool that looks great on the new iPad with retina display — but inherently, Paper by FiftyThree has strengths and weaknesses similar to a sheet of physical paper.

A blank page can be intimidating.

The app developers at FiftyThree have included some neat features in the app to make it less intimidating. There's a sample journal and walk-through video, but one of their best creative aids is very subtle. Each new journal (or notebook, pages) starts with just 10 pages. Ten: it is enough to feel expansive and real without being intimidating. Sometimes unlimited pages that you can't see seems daunting. You can always add pages or subtract them (by deleting).

Still, if you're going to pay $8 for a sketching app…

You may want to know more about what you're getting and what you can do with it. Reading through the App Store comments, one thing has become clear: Paper is misunderstood by many. At first, I didn't like it. I didn't think it was a real art tool. If you are curious what else can be done, search using the tag #madewithpaper at Twitter and Tumblr — some incredible artists have used Paper in amazing ways. Each tool can be purchased separately for $1.99, but I'd recommend getting the complete collection if you're going to use Paper… else stick with the free Draw tool.

How I like use Paper by FiftyThree

My favorite part of Paper is its custom ink engine. It is expressive and natural, and one of the first that really understands capacitive touch screen use. Without pressure sensitivity, the iPad is (in many ways) at a serious disadvantage compared to Wacom tablets. Many apps intimate, approximate, and imitate pressure by adjusting ink flow based on speed. The results often suck.

The Draw tool in Paper is thin when drawing slowly and gets thicker as you increase speed. Without zoom, this makes tiny, detail work and writing much easier than apps like Penultimate.

The Watercolor tool has a nice look and colors blend together beautifully. I like to create contrast with it, and color code related items.

I use the other tools to create basic shapes and add words, sketches and doodles.

Fast and Messy

When I first used Paper, I tried to keep everything neat and perfect, as I would in Autodesk SketchBook Pro. At that time, I didn't like Paper. I felt it was missing things, things I thought I needed.

At some point, I decided to just scribble — I decided to make a mess. It was fun.

Keeping things loose and not worrying about perfect lines, I put ideas on paper fast than ever. I could brainstorm or experiment, create lists and designs, and the results, while messy, were beautiful. Paper is exact enough to get a point across or capture an idea, and loose enough to stimulate new thoughts because it doesn't fill in all of the blanksintentionally.

Paper by FiftyThree has become an everyday tool for me, and I've never had more fun creating scribbles. It's helped me to breathe life into old ideas, and flesh out new concepts, including things I want to do here at my blog. Sharing pages is simple and quick, and the full journal PDFs look great, too. Paper is another reason to own an iPad!

I hope their next version will offer a way to rearrange Paper's papers.

How do you use Paper? Do you love it, or hate it? If you have thoughts or suggestions on Paper, leave a comment! Also, send them directly to the guys at FiftyThree! They care about feedback.

iPad can do anything, quickly

Brad Chin

The iPad really is an amazing tool — in can do practically everything!

(Yes, I know that the browser lacks Flash, but with HTML5 sites these days and the sheer number of iOS devices out there, Flash is on the decline, anyway.) Years ago, I was a skeptic; like many others, I saw the iPad as an oversized iPod touch, but once I actually held one and played with it, I realized what an impact the screen size makes. The iPad has come a long way since then, adding retina display (2048x1536 resolution, greater than 1080P)

It's much more than a toy. Just yesterday I painted a graduation card for my sister using Procreate, and I routinely use ThinkBook, Infinite SketchPad, NoteTaker HD, Byword, iA Writer, Evernote & Skitch, Blogsy and Noteshelf (now with retina graphics and Smart Pen support) for writing and note taking.

That might seem overwhelming, so here's an example of a simple, attractive way to capture ideas.

I use an oStylus DOT and Paper by FiftyThree to create simple, attractive mind-maps.

Paper is a minimalist sketching app I've become fond of for its unique style and dedicated community. It isn't a full-featured drawing tool, and many have complained about the freemium pricing, but if you can get past that, you may discover that Paper is a rich environment that can make you more productive.

Instead of fussing with neatness, perfect shapes and clean-lines, I put ideas on paper.

I like to start by capturing the mood with the watercolor brush, and add text, basic shapes and sketches with the write, draw and sketch tools. I like to connect concepts using lines, and group ideas by color. Paper allows me to work quickly; each page can become an outline or a piece of a larger mind-map, and an entire book can be complete within minutes. Individual pages can be saved as a photo or published to social networking sites, like my tumblr.

With the new version of Paper, I can export a notebook as a PDF and view it in iBooks.

For me, a capacitive touch stylus is essential, but you might not need one. Steve Jobs didn't like styli and designed the iPad to be finger-friendly… and it is. I use my oStylus DOT less than 50% of the time. However, certain tasks require precision not suited for fingertips — such as writing and drawing.

I'm constantly amazed by the amazing iOS development community; there are some stunning apps for iPhone and iPad, better than anything I've ever used on a desktop or anywhere else. Let me know what you think of Paper and the other apps I've mentioned, or if you know someone with an iPad, please bring them to my site!

If you have iPad questions, you can contact me directly: my name at gmail.