"TK" is a powerful placeholder that originated from the typesetting era, used to mark unfinished parts of a writing project without interrupting the writer's flow. It's easy to type, doesn't involve formatting, and can help with productivity and writing efficiency.

As UX designers, we explore how UX can act as a behavior change catalyst, transforming people to fit products. We can influence interactions with technology by understanding human behavior, motivations, and experiences. Success lies in knowing user motivations and designing competitive, habit-forming products, like gamification or seamless payment processes.

Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 and the Apple Watch. The larger iPhone sizes make the device more iPad-like, while the Watch aims to make technology more personal and integrated into everyday life. Apple Pay, a new payment experience for consumers, was also revealed.

EchoUser's smart home experts, Rally Pagulayan and Yi-Ying Lin, share insights on designing an effective smart home, and discuss their SXSW panel submission. Smart homes are coming, so we need to think about how users will interact with these technologies, and design with the big picture in mind.

We talked to designers Seiko Itakura and Yalu Ye about their SXSW submissions. Seiko thinks wearable prototypes are vital to creating enjoyable experiences, and I\we agree. Yalu wants to design timeless experiences that last beyond a few months. Both share important insights into better UX design.

We held a design jam at EchoUser HQ to distill asteroid data into intelligible information for the general public. Teams brainstormed creative ideas such as a game, an innovative website approach, a race to raise awareness and funding, and a basic platform. The jam was a success and a springboard for the upcoming Asteroid Hackathon event.

EchoUser co-founder Aaron Rich submitted a talk to 2015 SXSW about defining UX, which he sees as understanding the user experience, not just product appearance. Clients often focus on product appearance over experience. EchoUser prioritizes user and product research before design decisions.

EchoUser has opened a new office called "EchoUser East" in Washington D.C. under the leadership of Senior Experience Designer Laura Chang. The move is aimed at tackling new types of problems in industries such as security, health, policy, and education.

EchoUser has partnered with NASA's Asteroid Grand Challenge to organize the Asteroid Hackathon, inviting designers, engineers, and astronomers to turn asteroid data into digestible information for citizen scientists. The winning team will receive a cash prize to further develop their idea.

The smart home market presents designers with exciting opportunities but also challenges, such as protocol fragmentation and a need for a more holistic approach. For example, designing a smart fridge involves understanding user behavior, listing touchpoints, and designing systems that integrate them seamlessly.

Apple's new headquarters in Cupertino, designed by Foster and Partners, embodies the company's values and aims to be sustainable, with net-zero energy and increased open space. Sustainable design is becoming more important, and there is a question of how to balance sustainability with creating captivating experiences.

I recently participated in a meeting on innovating for disasters, with futurists, scientists, engineers, and designers. As a graphic note taker, I captured the day's discussions. We focused on earthquake preparedness, the role of fear in disasters, and how design can improve disaster situations.