I came across something called Ribbon Hero while reading a Penny Arcade news post this morning. This is probably the most entertainment you’ll ever get out of Microsoft Office. The folks at Microsoft have found a way to make learning Office programs fun - you can increase your score by completing basic tasks, or take on challenges that will expand your knowledge of the programs exponentially.

Its a brilliant idea, and something to think about as far as a method for teaching the finer points in any given software package. Imagine this concept applied to Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, or Lightwave 3D. You could learn new things about any given image editor, website design program, or 3D animation software suite while still being hands-on with the software! Imagine the potential; most users of these programs only typically know the base 30% of the software they need to complete universal, basic functions. Applying game design to software in this way will allow users to expand that knowledge, and eventually achieve mastery of their software tools.

If you use Microsoft Word, Excel, or any other Office program on a regular basis (DDA Copywriters, this means you!) I urge you to check out Ribbon Hero!

DDA and DDA Medical are committed to providing quality marketing, elearning, corporate and medical platform design and development to fit all budgets. DDA’s extensive list of production credits include interactive video on the web, flash websites, 2d and 3d animation, 3d medical training tools, medical simulation, medical database development, and much, much more!

Last night in a conversation with my brother, he reminded me of a game called Earth & Beyond. As a science fiction game, E&B was very ahead of its time in scope and concept. The most interesting thing about it was the entirely player-driven economy, where prices had to be managed, goods transported (and protected from pirates,) and alliances made and broken. There are other games that do the economy thing better nowadays (EVE Online prominent among them,) but for my brother and me playing back in 2001, E&B was an interesting lesson in economics.

E&B’s official game servers have been down for years now, but in a quick google search last night I discovered that there are still ways to play. It is amazing to see how an enthusiastic group of players can act as independent developers for a dead game, animating, programming, and moderating even though they aren’t getting paid. They have writers delivering new content for the missions, 3D modelers creating new ships and game assets, and programmers tweaking game balance and design. The game has been updated as recently as September 2009, an amazing feat for a decade old space MMO!

I have been thinking of contributing a few ship models myself; when I’m not at DDA working on 3D animation, medical modeling, interactive medical training tools or websites involving integrated flash and live-action video, I’m at home playing video games or working on game mods. It is amazing to think that in my free time I can help contribute to a game I used to play almost 10 years ago - it just goes to show that with the progression of technology, games that took whole teams to create can be worked on with but a few people and desktop PCs now!

I’ve been thinking quite a bit about website design lately, noticing little things that make accessing sites easier. One of the most noticeable factors of a website’s efficiency in modern websites is the user interface; that is, the buttons that control everything the user does. This includes links, control panels, video stop/start buttons, radio buttons, radial menus, check boxes, and anything else that the user might type into or click on. The design of these elements is what makes or breaks a website; a good, well designed site knows which elements are important, and which are less so, and allows the user access to the things they need while reducing clutter and removing things they are not interested in.

To that end, the trend lately has been user customization. As more and more people become internet-savvy, more sites have been adopting options which allow users to change the basic layout and functions of their websites. Facebook, for instance, has applications that can be loaded into quickbars on the sides of the users homepage. DDA Medical’s newest website allows users to view any combination of text, images and interactive video they choose, all in a spiffy Flash format that allows smooth-as-butter transitions and is built within a colorful, eye-catching graphical interface.

We don’t just do that sort of stuff for our own sites, though. DDA Medical knows that designing a website for your Medical, Healthcare or Healthcare IT company can be challenging. That’s why we’ll do all the heavy lifting to suit your digital medical content needs! Whether it’s flash animation, 3D medical training simulations, live online webcasting with medical colleagues, on-site medical video, interactive online e-learning for the medical field, or anything else your Medical Organization may need, DDA Medical is there to help!