Design

Random objects: The world's longest water slide

That's why I love L.A.: On the occasion of today's World Water Day, the streets in Downtown L.A. are blocked off for the world's longest water slide...

Microformats (II): The limitations of microloans

In an article in this week's New Yorker, James Surowiecki ("The Wisdom of Crowds") scrutinizes the effectiveness of microloans in bolstering the economies of developing countries. He posits that the hype around micro-finance neglects the small-to-medium sized enterprises (SMEs), the "missing middle" that is vital for a stable economy: "This isn't because microloans don't work; it's because of how they work," so Surowiecki.

The focus on the micropreneur, he argues, is "understandably appealing, but thinking that everyone is, and should be, an entrepreneur leads us to underrate the virtues … Read more

Fantastic voyage or why the miniaturization of matter matters to marketing

The miniaturization of matter has long been a human desire, and viewing the world from a smaller perspective is the core of many novels and movies. The idea of shrinking people for the purpose of traveling inside another human's body, in particular, has been frequently used in animated cartoons, including The Simpsons, Futurama, Beetlejuice, and SpongeBob SquarePants.

One of the most entertaining pieces in this genre is Fantastic Voyage, a science-fiction movie from 1966, which -- albeit not free of some severe logical flaws -- has lost none of its original appeal. Fantastic Voyage tells the story of a … Read more

Download customizable NCAA tournament brackets

It's the big dilemma for the fantasy NCAA basketball tournament pool manager: paper brackets or digital? Whichever option you choose, I've got you covered.

When I was a kid, the announcement of the teams and seedings in the NCAA men's basketball tournament was always accompanied by furious scribbling as I tried to manually create an instant tournament bracket. I just couldn't wait until the newspaper arrived the next morning to start making my picks.

The advent of the VCR reduced the furious scribbling, and the Web eliminated the need to write down teams at all. Now … Read more

SXSW Sketchnotes

Designer Mike Rohde attended several panels at SXSW Interactive last week and created 34 pages of sketchnotes for them in real-time, captured in a Moleskine sketchbook:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rohdesign/sets/72157604109069527/

And here's his post about them with a little more detail:

http://www.rohdesign.com/weblog/archives/002768.html

What I like about this unique format of panel transcripts is that it shows how rich those on-stage conversations actually were. Sometimes you find yourself in the audience, passive and wondering if the discussion on-stage is really all that meaningful to you. Well, it is -- … Read more

SXSW wrap-up: or how to link 3 panels in 3 synthesizing steps (+bonus)

Since the SXSW conference buzzword was convergence, Chelsea Holden Baker of Frog Design looks back at convergent themes of three panels in three synthesizing steps, and a little bonus at the end:

Blood Sweat and Tears: Great Design Hurts

John Gruber (Daring Fireball) and Michael Lopp (Apple), made the case for cultivating discomfort as a designer: "Are you willing to be an asshole?" We took a trip back through the iconic designs (like IBM) of Paul Rand and examined the allure of the Apple logo (whether rainbow-striped or white, what makes it sexy is the bite. It's … Read more

Innovation 1-on-1: Brooks Protzmann, Dell

This installment of thoughts on innovation comes from Brooks Protzmann. Brooks is the Manager of Visual Identity and the Brand Experience team as part of the Experience Design Group at Dell Inc. in Austin, Texas. He is responsible for the product-focused touch points of the customer's experience when engaging with the Dell brand, products, and services. His functional responsibilities include design strategy, visual identity, packaging, user interfaces, and information design. The Experience Design Group covers the entire Dell customer journey with integrated Industrial Design, Usability & Human Factors, and Customer Experience.

Prior to joining Dell Inc., Brooks was Director … Read more

eComm conference: The conversation is entering the mobile realm

I caught a few of the later sessions today at the Emerging Communications (eComm) conference in Mountain View, and the program was pretty good. The rigorously enforced commitment to micro-formats--a mix of five-minute lightning talks, 15-minute sessions, and 20-minute keynotes--worked out well: The presenters were forced to condense their thoughts to the core, and a wide range of viewpoints could be heard during the course of the day. Even the five-minute shorts were informative and sparked follow-up conversations.

For Luca Filigheddu from abbeynet, the five-minute limit was a natural fit for his topic, "Micro Video-Blogging and the Future of … Read more

Piaggio MP3 Scooter...not your father's Vespa

I'm loving this Piaggio MP3 scooter that has two wheels on the front. It uses a very trick suspension/steering set up to allow it to lean into angles just like a regular motorbike, though apparently it feels fairly different. The tripod stance also means it stands up by itself at slow speeds and stopped, negating the need for dragging feet for stability or a kick-stand.

The extra width also gives it a lot of presence which should be helpful on busy freeways. There is ample storage space under the front which makes it practical too.

Even though this … Read more