What’s new for designers, March 2016

Default avatar.
March 14, 2016
What’s new for designers, March 2016.
In this month’s edition of what’s new for designers and developers, we’ve included coding resources, drag and drop design tools, productivity apps, stock photo sources, coding languages, open source tools, inspiration resources, and much more. And as always, we’ve also included some awesome new free fonts! Almost everything on the list this month is free, with a few high-value paid apps and tools also included. They’re sure to be useful to designers and developers, from beginners to experts. If we’ve missed something that you think should have been on the list, let us know in the comments. And if you know of a new app or resource that should be featured next month, tweet it to @cameron_chapman to be considered!

Foodshot

Foodshot offers up free food photos from around the web, every day. They’re all hi-res and hand-picked. foodshot

Stripe Atlas

Stripe Atlas is a new way to start an internet-based business from anywhere. You can incorporate a US company, get a US bank account, and start accepting payments with Stripe from anywhere in the world. stripe atlas

Typeface

Typeface is a new Mac font manager that helps you pick the perfect font with quick and accurate font previews. typeface

CSSCO

CSSCO is a set of photographic filters made with CSS and inspired by VSCO and CSSGram. CSSCO

Ethical Web

Ethical Web is a set of ethical web design standards that focus on user-centered design, aiming to create a better web for everyone. ethical web

365cons

365cons is a daily icon diary created by Amy Devereux. Icons are designed in a variety of styles, making it a great source of icon inspiration. 365cons

Dorkoy

Dorkoy is a drag and drop website builder that lets you create an unlimited number of websites for one yearly license fee. It offers more than 100 different kinds of content blocks, email support, and more. dorkoy

Thunkable

Thunkable lets you build native mobile apps with a drag and drop interface. The currently support Android, with support for iOS on the way. thunkable

Statuspage

Statuspage lets you create a status page for your website or app that’s hosted on GitHub. statuspage

Coach

Coach lets you teach online, with no upfront fees (you just pay when you accept a payment). Easily share and sell your knowledge. coach

Attendize

Attendize is an open-source, self-hosted event management and ticket sales platform. It includes customizable event pages, attendee management, data export, event statistics, embeddable widgets, and more. attendize

Papier

Papier is a Chrome Extension that lets you capture notes in any new tab, and saves them locally so they’re still there the next time you open a new tab. papier

Ha.ckathon

Ha.ckathon lets you find hackathons in your area in one big directory. Sort them by who they’re open to, whether they’re online or local, and more. hackathon

Emojicode

Emojicode is a static, strongly typed programming language based on emoji. It lets you build fast cross-platform apps while having tons of fun. emojicode

Tster

Tster lets you create high quality mockups and wireframes right on your iPhone. It includes prototyping, multiple artboards, drag and drop shapes, and more. Tster

Pivle

Pivle gives you daily free graphics resources that can be used for personal or commercial projects. They include UI kits, PSD templates, icon kits, and more. Pivle

Bar.foo

Bar.foo is a collection of stories from Google software engineers. It includes stories about voice search recognition, smart compose in Gmail, collaboration in Docs, and more. bar.foo

Mapme

Mapme lets you build simple maps for free with no coding. Just create a map using the wizard, populate it with content, and then embed it on your site. mapme

SYBG

SYBG lets you automatically deliver personalized emails and on-site product update announcements for each of your users. sybg

Vocus

Vocus is a set of tools for Gmail that lets you add email tracking, meeting coordination, text snippets, and send later functions. vocus

Polymail

Polymail is a powerful email productivity app that runs natively on desktop and mobile. It’s currently in private beta. polymail

LOLColors

LOLColors offers curated color palette inspiration. Browse by latest or most popular. lolcolors

Visage

Visage makes it easy to create visual content for marketing that’s on-brand. It’s easy to use, and the visuals created are high-quality. visage

FocusList

FocusList is a productivity app that lets you timebox your tasks and use the Pomodoro method to get things done more efficiently; and to track your working habits and most productive times. focuslist

Respond

Respond, from Buffer, lets you deliver more responsive customer support on Twitter. It includes real-time monitoring, keyword search, reporting, team support, and more. respond

Samu

Samu helps you make sure you get the right things done each day, by prioritizing your tasks based on the Eisenhower Matrix. samu

Zed

Zed is an offline-capable, open source text and code editor for power users. You can use it to edit local files as well as remote files on any server. zed

Teh Playground

Teh Playground is a PHP testbed for rapid PHP prototyping without having to build your own LAMP stack. teh playground

SlimFAQ

SlimFAQ lets you easily create FAQs, with up to 20 questions for free (with branding). It integrates with Intercom, and includes search, customization, and more. slimfaq

Todo

Todo is a command line todo list manager that can be as powerful as you need it to be. It includes long-term scheduling, prioritization, contexts, and more. todo

Standup Bot

Standup Bot automates your daily standups in Slack. It helps keep team members accountable, tracks goals, and lets you share successes, plans, and upcoming challenges. standup bot

Reedsy

Reedsy is a free writing tool that lets you easily export your work to a typeset book (as either a PDF or ePub document). reedsy

Brand AI

Create a hosted style guide with Brand AI, which you can then integrate with your existing workflows and tools. You can start with your website style, or with a style guide template. brand ai

Hustle Mode On

Hustle Mode On is a curated directory of the best productivity tools online. There are categories for improving focus, creating new habits, mastering time, mastering Gmail, and more. hustle mode on

Ikra

Ikra is a free geometric slab typeface with low contrast. It’s great for use in identity, headlines, and information design. ikra

Flow

Flow is a free brush font with tons of character that’s perfect for display use. flow

PhotoCab

PhotoCab is a free display font with a retro, art deco-ish feel. photocab

Akmens

Akmens is a free brush font with a funky, modern vibe. akmens

Leoscar

Leoscar is a free display font with a modern look that comes in serif and sans-serif varieties. leoscar

Cutie Star

Cutie Star is a hand-drawn script font with a funky, vintage vibe and an irregular baseline. cutie star

Highlands

Highlands is a free, hand-drawn typeface that comes in two styles. It’s completely free for personal use. highlands

Fela

Fela is a free (for personal use) slab serif typeface that’s great for display use. It includes upper case characters, numbers, and punctuation glyphs. Fela

Johanna

Johanna is a modern, almost abstract typeface that’s great for branding, posters, and the like. johanna

Portica

Portica is a free display typeface that was inspired by Helvetica, and features strong lines with a solid body. portica

Cameron Chapman

Cameron Chapman is a freelance writer and designer from New England. You can visit her site or follow her on Twitter.

Read Next

3 Essential Design Trends, May 2024

Integrated navigation elements, interactive typography, and digital overprints are three website design trends making…

20 Best New Websites, April 2024

Welcome to our sites of the month for April. With some websites, the details make all the difference, while in others,…

Exciting New Tools for Designers, April 2024

Welcome to our April tools collection. There are no practical jokes here, just practical gadgets, services, and apps to…

14 Top UX Tools for Designers in 2024

User Experience (UX) is one of the most important fields of design, so it should come as no surprise that there are a…

What Negative Effects Does a Bad Website Design Have On My Business?

Consumer expectations for a responsive, immersive, and visually appealing website experience have never been higher. In…

10+ Best Resources & Tools for Web Designers (2024 update)

Is searching for the best web design tools to suit your needs akin to having a recurring bad dream? Does each…

3 Essential Design Trends, April 2024

Ready to jump into some amazing new design ideas for Spring? Our roundup has everything from UX to color trends…

How to Plan Your First Successful Website

Planning a new website can be exciting and — if you’re anything like me — a little daunting. Whether you’re an…

15 Best New Fonts, March 2024

Welcome to March’s edition of our roundup of the best new fonts for designers. This month’s compilation includes…

LimeWire Developer APIs Herald a New Era of AI Integration

Generative AI is a fascinating technology. Far from the design killer some people feared, it is an empowering and…

20 Best New Websites, March 2024

Welcome to our pick of sites for March. This month’s collection tends towards the simple and clean, which goes to show…

Exciting New Tools for Designers, March 2024

The fast-paced world of design never stops turning, and staying ahead of the curve is essential for creatives. As…