October 2009
71 posts
January 1984: How Critics Reviewed the Mac →
Gruber points to this great review of the first Macintosh back in 1984. The quote he pulled out is brilliant:
The nature of the personal computer is simply not fully understood by companies like Apple (or anyone else for that matter). Apple makes the arrogant assumption of thinking that it knows what you want and need. It, unfortunately, leaves the “why” out of the equation — as in “why would I...
Martin Scorsese’s Top 11 Horror Movies of all Time →
I’ve only seen two of them. I guess I have some watching to do.
Seven Questions that Keep Physicists up at Night →
Which brings up another question: How much do we really know?
Trailer for ‘Invictus’ →
Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela is perfect. I’m very excited to see this.
The Only 12 1/2 Rules of Writing You’ll Ever Need →
Perfect.
The Orange Mountain Music Philip Glass Sampler... →
Amazon has a sampler album of music by Philip Glass that’s available as a free download right now. I’m not sure if this is a temporary offer or not, but I’d grab it while it’s free.
WatchI’m not going to lie, conceptually, the Microsoft Courier looks really, really nice. But, as we know, Microsoft has a lot of concept products that end up never seeing the light of day, so I’m not sure the final product will live up to the ideas seen in this video.
Arnaud Desplechen interviews Wes Anderson →
For Interview Magazine:
In the five films that Wes Anderson has directed, from his 1996 debut feature Bottle Rocket to 2007’s picaresque The Darjeeling Limited, he has managed to assemble a constellation of actors who might best be described as “Wes’s Gang.” This tragicomic fraternity includes Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, Anjelica Huston, Luke Wilson, and, of course, his college friend and...
The Visual Language of Herbert Matter →
This Visual Language of Herbert Matter is a revealing look at the fascinating life story of the highly influential mid-century modern design master. Known as a quintessential designer’s designer, Swiss born Herbert Matter is largely credited with expanding the use of photography as a design tool and bringing the semantics of fine art into the realm of applied arts.
I’m excited.
‘As Seen Through These Eyes’ Trailer →
“For these caged birds, art was their liberation song.” Brilliant. I need to see this.
Hulu to start charging for content in 2010 →
From the press release:
It’s time to start getting paid for broadcast content online. I think a free model is a very difficult way to capture the value of our content. I think what we need to do is deliver that content to consumers in a way where they will appreciate the value. Hulu concurs with that, it needs to evolve to have a meaningful subscription model as part of its business.
Very...
Design Intellection →
A great, minimal portfolio/blog full of some great work. It’s really nice to see a website that has the layout and typographic qualities of a printed piece.
25 T-shirts Graphic Designers Will Love →
I usually don’t like graphic tees, but there are a few here that are actually quite nice and full of good graphic design humor.
The Bold Italic →
The Bold Italic is a brand new online magazine about living in San Francisco but what makes it really exciting is the art direction and customized styling for each article. I think we’ll be seeing more and more of this type of web design in the near future.
Zeldman’s ‘Dirty Little Secret of Success’ →
Jeffrey Zeldman:
A contented person with a whole heart, who has never doubted for a moment that she is loved by God and the universe, should not bother trying to succeed as a creative entrepreneur. She should get a job working for someone else, turn it off at 6:00 PM, and come home to the people who love her.
Only a restless, broken heart can drive you to do what is necessary.
And that’s how to...
Shepard Fairey releases statement regarding AP... →
In a completely unexpected move:
The new filings state for the record that the AP is correct about which photo I used as a reference and that I was mistaken. While I initially believed that the photo I referenced was a different one, I discovered early on in the case that I was wrong.
In an attempt to conceal my mistake I submitted false images and deleted other images. I sincerely apologize for...
iDon’t Know How to Use Apostrophes →
Tony Delgrosso:
You know, if Verizon is going to pour millions of dollars into rolling out their iPhone-killing “Droid” handset, they could have at least hired an ad agency who knows how and when to use proper apostrophes and primes, and who doesn’t mix them multiple times in the same television ad.
It seriously makes the entire campaign look very amateur.
Barnes and Noble announces ‘Nook’ e-book Reader →
Looks really nice and will surely give the Kindle some much needed competition.
Introducing Magic Mouse →
In addition to introducing redesigned MacBooks and iMacs, Apple also released the brand new Magic Mouse, which is my favorite new product of the day. My two-year old Mighty Mouse stopped scrolling up about a year ago and has always felt outdated when paired with my MacBook Pro. It’s exciting to see Apple taking the technology and spreading it across all their products.
As I said on Twitter,...
What do you do after you start Twitter? Invent a... →
Jack Dorsey, one of the founders of Twitter is working on a new product that looks to amazing. In and of itself, it’s not overly revolutionary until you get to the last paragraph:
While most online journalists are anticipating that this device and software are going to be used in retail (can you say Apple Store?), I think Dorsey has bigger ideas - let’s face it, the guy doesn’t...
Jason Fried gets inspired by nature →
Jason Fried, when asked “What sort of things outside of design can make you a better designer? What else can inspire you to be a better designer?:”
Spend some time outside. Take a walk in the woods. Stroll through a prairie. Visit the desert (especially the Sonoran). Climb a hill. Get down on your knees and look at the grass. Plant a garden. No space? Get some plants or flowers and put them on...
Matthew Wahl profile at YouWorkForThem →
YWFT has a great profile on one of my recent favorite designers, Matthew Wahl. He creates some stunning typographic work in an unbelievably minimal style that I just can’t seem to get enough of.
Goodness Precedes Greatness →
A terrific article from Switchfoot lead singer and songwriter Jon Foreman for The Huffington Post:
Let’s face it. Mother Teresa doesn’t look that good in a negligee. And Team Hoyt won’t sell beer commercials to the networks. But when the ball players and the supermodels end up in rehab, we end up asking esoteric questions about what makes a hero. In the movies the good looking...
Interview with Christoph Niemann →
The 99Percent has a terrific interview with illustrator Christoph Niemann. I especially enjoyed this segment where he was asked about his creative process:
Ultimately, my whole approach to what I do is 95% effort and 5% talent. I really see it as a sport. You probably won’t become a tennis player if you don’t stand on the court for six hours a day and whack balls over the net. And if you do that,...
James Dyson’s newest Invention →
The New York Times’ T Magazine interviews James Dyson, the inventor of the bagless vacuum, on his latest invention: a bladeless fan. I’ve become increasingly more fascinated with Dyson over the past few months and have always said when I need to buy my first vacuum, it will be one of his.
I’ve always thought Dyson’s approach to product design/development was very similar to...
Disney’s Retail Plan Is a Theme Park in Its Stores →
Brooks Barnes for The New York Times:
The Walt Disney Company, with the help of Steven P. Jobs and his retailing team at Apple, intends to drastically overhaul its approach to the shopping mall.
Disney Stores, which the media giant is considering rebranding Imagination Park, will become more akin to cozy entertainment hubs. The chain’s traditional approach of displaying row after row of toys and...
Fur flies on ‘Mr. Fox’ →
Chris Lee for the L.A. Times:
In keeping with the stylized nostalgia that looms large in almost all his films, Anderson knew he was after a particular lo-fi aesthetic. And despite giant leaps forward in computer-generated imagery in recent years, he put CGI and green screen off-limits for “Mr. Fox’s” animators. Materials such as plastic kitchen wrap would stand-in for water,...
Polaroid to Relaunch Instant Camera →
Polapremium reports:
Polaroid will re-launch the legendary Polaroid One Step Camera and is therefore commissioning The Impossible Project to develop and produce a limited edition of Polaroid® branded Instant Films in the middle of 2010.
Completely unexpected and but incredibly exciting news!
Offensive Play →
Malcolm Gladwell’s latest piece for The New Yorker on football, dog fighting and brain damage. A very fascinating piece of writing from start to finish.
Three Little Lines →
Jen Scheutz explains the difference between the hyphen, the en dash and the em dash.
