精东影视

What is your favourite website?

Google Analytics - My parents have some holiday cottages in Cornwall (www.carclaze.co.uk) and I monitor their website for them. I鈥檓 blown away by the breadth and depth of information that Analytics collects about visits to the site. You can analyse by location, time of day, hardware, software, how people move through the site - by day or week and even make annual comparisons. It鈥檚 endless and best of all free - just brilliant! Try explaining that idea to someone 10 years ago.

What is your worst digital habit?

Starting to surf the web for one thing only to find myself faffing around with something completely different. I鈥檇 love some virtual 鈥榖uffers鈥� to stop me wandering.

iPhone/Blackberry/Android. Which side are you on?

iPhone hands down! My four-year-old daughter uses my wife鈥檚 like it鈥檚 an extension of her hand. Meanwhile I鈥檓 stuck with my clunky Blackberry, but only for a few more months.

Are you into social networking?

I鈥檝e been on Linkedin for over five years now. It鈥檚 brilliant for finding common ground with your work colleagues or locating old contacts. Last year I started tweeting and I鈥檓 constantly amazed when meeting people how many tweets they remember. I鈥檓 often caught out and think 鈥榟ow the hell did they know what I was doing last week?鈥�. Strangely, it鈥檚 the things that you think are a bit dull which people seem to like. Recently I also started my own blog: www.justinnichollsarchitect.com. I鈥檝e noticed it鈥檚 a good way of slowing me down and allowing me to think more carefully about everything

Are you on Twitter? If so who do you recommend to follow?

@JohnPrescott - he tells it as it is; @boriswatch - if I鈥檓 having a crummy commute; @unconsumption for real sustainable living tips; and of course, @makearchitects. I recommend you follow your work mates. When I鈥檓 out and about it鈥檚 a great way of knowing how someone鈥檚 day鈥檚 going - a good example is @makeken. Apparently that鈥檚 what Twitter was actually invented for. Try me @justinpnicholls.

What is your favourite app?

GoodReader - allows you to squash a whole portfolio into an iPad. It鈥檚 great for lectures, formal client presentations or just showing some work over a quiet coffee. It鈥檚 never let me down. After that you can sit on the train and comment on a detailed report straight onto the screen. I bet the guys at Adobe Acrobat are kicking themselves about this one. 

What is your preferred means of communication?

Face to face meetings for the real important stuff, email for the day to day churn. I hate the phone - it鈥檚 disruptive and neither personable nor a formal record. Video phone could be interesting going forward. I often have a beer or two with a friend of mine in Atlanta, courtesy of Skype. Oh and voicemail should be banned.

What did you last buy online?

A pair of bright orange Falke slipper socks - yep get me! It gets better though. I now get weekly email bulletins from UK Tights whom I apparently bought the socks from. 

PC or Mac?

Google - your digital world is fully indexed, in the cloud, fast and fresh looking. Sadly they don鈥檛 have the slick hardware to match, yet! In the meantime I鈥檓 running clunky old Windows 7 on a beautiful silver MacBook Air. It鈥檚 like having a fine crystal wine glass and filling it with water from the River Thames.

Most played tunes from iTunes/Spotify?

Gabriel and Dresden鈥檚 self-titled album - fast and beautifully produced. If you鈥檙e not accustomed to your music at 180bpm, then perhaps start with 鈥楻ead my Mind鈥� by The Killers (Gabriel and Dresden remix). To slow down it has to be 鈥極ne Perfect Sunrise鈥� by Orbital. 

Justin Nicholls is a partner in Make Architects.