Archive for March, 2010
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March 19th, 2010
Apples Human Touch
Multi-billion dollar companies are not usually noted for their humanity.
However, Apple have dedicated their homepage, usually at the heart of a company’s marketing strategy, to display an obituary to “a member of their corporate family and a good friend”. Jerry York, who passed away last night, sat on the Apple board of directors for almost 14 years ago.
The move on Apple’s part was particularly poignant considering that the Cupertino firm are gearing up to launch their latest revolutionary product—the iPad—in a fortnight’s time.
A beautiful human touch by a people-oriented company.
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March 19th, 2010
Websmith Tools
Websmith is a “collection of web tools and resources for Interweb Inventors”. The tea-stained creation belongs to the talented Belfast designer, Caroline Smith. Caroline is currently studying alongside me on the MA Multidisciplinary Design course at the University of Ulster.
Websmith is definitely a resource worth bookmarking.
Want
March 17th, 2010
Case-mate’s ID Case
Case-mate’s revolutionary iPhone ID case looks great. I’ll be sure to get my hands on one in the very near future … My three month old iPhone 3GS is already looking a little worse for wear.
Our stylish new iPhone 3G / 3GS protective ID case features an ultra slim slot for bare necessities—ID, cash, debit or credit card. For heading into work or out to the club, give your wallet a break. Turns out sometimes, you can take it with you.
Article
March 15th, 2010
The State of the News Media in the USA
The State of the News Media 2010 is seventh edition of PEJ/Pew’s annual report on the health and status of American journalism.
In his blog post, ‘The Money Graph’, Jeff Jarvis extracts data from the PEJ report that suggests that news organisations, fixated with implementing pay walls, are wasting precious time.
65% of online news consumers do not have a site that is so important to them that it stands out in their minds above all other sites they visit … 82% of those with a favorite site said they would find somewhere else to get the news (if they were asked to pay for the content) … Only 7% of all people who get news online through a favorite source would be willing to pay for the content. This is a sign of just how much initial difficulty the movement toward pay walls could have.
Note
March 15th, 2010
ABC Employing New Brand of Digital Journalists
A fortnight ago, ABC announced that a major restructure of their news operation would result in the loss of a number of jobs. However, it now appears that they’re seeking to strengthen their ranks with a new breed of digital journalist.
ABC has “multiple openings” for digital journalists who will need to be able to shoot their own video, produce, write and deliver stories on-air and online … In a job description that suggests the pace of digital journalism, the posting says candidates must be “capable of prioritizing and handling multiple projects simultaneously, under tight time constraints.”
Sources claim that ABC plan to commission digital journalists to work both individually and in small cells. Sit back and watch as other news organisations follow in suit.
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March 15th, 2010
Wired gets it. If you’re like me, your reaction to their prototype will be an instantaneous “neat!” followed immediately by “well, isn’t it obvious it was supposed to work this way?” When something creates and fulfills expectations at the same time, you know you’ve got it right.
— Jonathan Hoefler
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March 15th, 2010
Future of Mobile Devices: Penguin Books
Penguin Books have recently published “some imagined book-related ipad products” (and with commentary here).
Many of Penguin’s iPad books seem hardly to resemble “books” at all, but rather very interactive learning experiences.
Robert Andrews, PaidContent:UK
I’d agree with Andrews. Formless fluid content will undoubtedly regain the traditional printed format on tablet devices. However, definite media-rich content will take on new forms and continue to evolve over time. This can only be a good thing.
If you like what Penguin have to offer; there is other ‘imagined’ tablet footage that is well worth viewing:
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March 15th, 2010
Designing for the Web
Mark Boulton’s ‘Designing for the Web’ is now available to read for FREE online. I got my hands on a copy of the PDF version last year and only got as far as the first chapter. I’m hoping I get a little further now that ‘Designing for the Web’ is on the interwebs and not hiding away in folder on my Macbook Pro.
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March 15th, 2010
Beware of the roaming charges…
Check out this infographic depicting the share of the mobile browser market, as it was in February 2010. Apple are bossing the market where the iPhone and iPod are available. Their share will only increase with introduction of the iPad next month.
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March 15th, 2010
Life moves fast. Don’t miss a thing.
Palm webOS lets you use multiple applications at the same time and see all your information at a glance thanks to its intuitive user interface.
Palm
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March 15th, 2010
We aren’t really a newspaper anymore, we’re a technology platform.
Chris Thorpe (the Guardian) in a conversation with Andreas Ehn & Joakim Jardenberg.
Article
March 15th, 2010
NYT and NYU in Hyperlocal Journalism Experiment
The New York Times recently announced a collaborative project that will see the newspaper team up with journalism students and faculty from New York University.
NYTimes.com announced today a collaboration with New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute to create a new Local community news and information Web site covering the East Village in New York City.
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March 15th, 2010
Budget iPad
Struggling to find the money to pre-order that iPad you want? … Pritt Sticks at the ready.
Want
March 12th, 2010
Embody Chair by Herman Miller
Herman Miller’s culture welcomes innovative thinking, fresh ideas and an ability to solve problems in seemingly obvious—but previously unexplored—ways. Their team of designers and engineers strive to create well-designed and aesthetically pure working environments that inspire those who work within them. Bill Stumpf and Jeff Weber are the designers responsible for the Embody Chair. It sure is purdy!
What do we do every day? We sit. We sit in the office and at home. Staring at our computer screens moving nothing but our fingers. We get stiff and tired. Because sitting is bad for you. Embody is good for you. An agile chair that keeps your body and brain limber all day. Designed specifically for people who work for hours at computers, Embody is the first work chair that benefits both mind and body.
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March 12th, 2010
Zeldman on Publishing
Jeffrey Zeldman has been blogging about the future of publishing (and some other related topics) as of late. Three interesting posts for your attention:
Note
March 12th, 2010
iPad Commercial
You’d have had to been hiding under a gigantic rock not to have seen this commercial by this point. However, for the sole purpose of documenting its existence. Check out the semi-new iPad commercial that aired during last weekend’s Academy Awards coverage.
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March 12th, 2010
Losing readers by being yourself is winning quality in readership. Losing your personal voice is when you fail online.
Oliver Reichenstein, iA.
(via @standardistas)