So yesterday afternoon I came across an awesome clip from the Ellen show on absolutelytrue.com
I’m in love with Gladys. I mean, if this does not brighten your day, nothing will.
I did a bit of digging and discovered that not only am I way late to the Gladys party, but that she’s quite the celebrity at this point…as well she should be, because this lady is damn funny!
If you want to know more about her and see more clips you can go to her website and have a look around.
Now here is a marketers dream:
You’re spending millions in advertising dollars to run the traditional :30 sec spots during a major network’s prime-time TV show. But you want more bang for your buck, so you get the network to help you pull off the product placement opportunity of a lifetime where the writers write your product into the script! One of the main characters of the show literally walks your product onto the screen, logo-side out, for all 6 million+ viewers to see. Oh, and it doesn’t stop there. The character drives home your message by uttering those famous four words you and your marketing team came up with. It can’t get any better than that. But it does…
For designers who spend much of their time working in virtual environments, the act of creating something real with your hands can also be a vital tool to help innovate.
I just read this interesting article which describes software giant Adobe’s daylong workshops in which their product designers are faced with creating motion games, using simple elements like plastic beads and tiny sensors. If you’re a creative person I think you’ll find this a good read. It’s nothing revolutionary, but sometimes we need a little reminder to revisit the simpler tools as a way to help conceptualize the next new thing. If the continuous improvements made to Adobe products are any indication, it’s an investment worth your while.
In the last few years, I’ve found myself appreciating the tangible things I can create with my hands. Simple things like growing herbs or baking bread are activities I find satisfying because I can dig in and get a little dirty…and have something to show for it at the end. At work, taking the time to sketch concepts, build mockups or diagram relationships has only ever helped the problem solving process further along, yet it’s tempting to leap-frog over that step and grab my mouse. The thing is, not only is getting your hands dirty a great tool for designing a solution, but it’s fun too…think of it as therapy at work.
This Friday SCAD is holding it’s annual Sand Arts Festival. If like me, you spend most of your time staring at a computer monitor, this could be a great opportunity to get in some creativity and the great outdoors. Let’s call it dirt therapy.
And on a final dirt related note, I recently I came across this TED presentation by Mike Rowe, host of Dirty Jobs on the Discovery Chanel (a personal fav). While he starts out talking about the show, his ultimate point about the value of work is excellent.
I spent Saturday afternoon wandering around Forsyth Park enjoying the annual Sidewalk Arts Festival. It was a ridiculously good-looking day: sunshine, throngs of people, dogs, bouncy things (for kids to play on)…overall happiness in the air.
I’ve been going to Sidewalk Arts just about every year since ‘97 (my first Spring in Savannah), and I have to say that this is truly a wonderful event. The art is colorful and fun, tons of folks come out to enjoy it and there is a lot for kids to do which means it’s an ideal event for families. The ambiance is really the thing that makes it rock!
Because “ThunderFire” and “SonicNoseBleed” were taken, we’re releasing a WordPress plugin called “TextBlurb”. It’s a simple one that takes a little texty-text and gives it a place to lay it’s unwanted head until you need it.
Back when I was in college a friend introduced me to an awesome publication, dedicated entirely to notes and photos found lying in the streets, taped to cars and stuck or forgotten in a million other places. Found Magazine is a true work of genius, simple in concept yet enormously appealing. I don’t know if you’ve ever attempted to fabricate stories in your mind around snippets of overheard conversation or figure out the odd behavior of strangers - something I find entertaining - but if you have, then this magazine will be right up your alley.
I LOVE the commentary that accompanies each found treasure; sometimes they say what I’m thinking, and often point out gold I missed entirely.
There is so much good stuff to enjoy it’s hard to pick favorites, but here are a few finds I’ve enjoyed (click on the image to view the commentary):
A “Different” Grocery List
A Tiger Behind the Wheel
I Have to Go
This one worries me.
I’m sure many of you already know about Found, so here’s a little reminder to do yourself a favor and revisit the website or the publication. It’ll add a little something special to your day!
You’d have to to be living in a cave not to be aware of the rapid decline of the newspaper industry in the US. Actually…it’s happening everywhere. There’s an article on Tech Crunch that’ll give you an idea of how rapid that decline has become, in terms of the havoc it’s reeking on advertising revenues: $7.5 billion last year. OUCH.
Of course, the interweb is being blamed, the argument being that big bad Google is allowing the public to access newspaper content for free, so that now no-one wants to buy the newspaper. CORRECT. And also WRONG. Newspaper-type-folks please allow me to weigh in:
In light of all the hullabulloo over the Digg bar I think the latest strip from Brad Colbow is spot on:
The Creative Coast Alliance (TCCa) works tirelessly to help attract and grow the creative and technology companies in Savannah. As one of the many folks who’ve reaped the benefits of their efforts, we’re fans for sure.
Recently, they’ve taken it to a whole…’nother…level….
“The offer” is a collaborative effort between TCCa and Brenda Brathwaite, SCAD professor and game designer guru. What they’ve done is create an incubator for qualified game development companies, offering them free office space and a juicy tax incentive to sweeten the pot.
When I first started web coding a few years back, I did some really really strange things. Self taught from books, cereal boxes and decoder rings meant code was jumbled with misused “if statements”, “for loops” and various bits of hackery. I often think of the simple “ah ha” things that would have helped me get through those bumpy first few years and thought I’d share a few.
