Really interesting article from the Atlantic — Is Google Making Us Stupid? The gist is that with such easy access to near-limitless amounts of information, we let machines supplant thinking and our attention span and memory retention suffers accordingly. I think the historical examples found at the end of the article are an interesting counterpoint to the premise — be wary of change because Bad Things will surely occur. However, in every example, the changes — paper, printing press, internet — brought much more positive change than negative. Perhaps we’re in the thick of a similar cycle — our brains just need to catch up with our ambition.
Category: blog
That Design is Money!
A really interesting and thorough look at the new Wells Fargo ATM interface (designed by Pentagram). Lots of good UI tidbits to be found here.
Noteworthy, early June edition
The nicer-than-the-name suggests folks over at the barbarian group are giving away a web browser called plainview — it’s tailor-made for presentations; just enter a URL (or a set) and you’ll see nothing but fullscreen browsing goodness. No browser chrome, distracting bookmark bar, tabs or other distractions. Did I mention it’s free?
(i)Phone as human to digital interface. — a (relatively) old-y but goodie from the gang at Zeus Jones posing the idea that connected devices like the iPhone a well positioned to become true extensions of yourself — with the ability to document virtually everywhere you travel and everything you see, hear and do.
Last but not least, a classic video from Charles and Ray Eames. I was explaining this video to someone recently — if you’ve never seen it, it’s worth your time to watch the whole thing.
Urban Photo Safari 2008
2008 Urban Photo Safari official t-shirt
Urban Photo Safari 2008 is right around the corner! (Saturday, May 17th from 9am – 1pm, to be exact.)
Urban Photo Safari is a free event created to encourage you explore KC, get creative with your digital camera and—most of all—have fun (friends, family and non-creatives are welcome, too).
You can find the location, rules, tips and more at UrbanPhotoSafari.com. Hope to see you there!
Of Interest – May 8
Information Design Patterns – a nice collection of common information design approaches; includes detailed descriptions, usage and examples.
QR codes are paving a way to share and hide media – I don’t think QR codes have really caught on in the States, but I think they offer a lot of potential for unobtrusive mobile/real-world advertising.
Best ATM Interface Yet – a nice write-up of the new Wells Fargo ATM interface — with pictures!
Brightkite – I’ve been using brightkite for a few weeks now; I’m still trying to get a handle on the possibilities it offers — I’d like to see location-enabled integration with Yelp, Upcoming and other local-centric services and advertising. I think it could really take off with GPS-enabled phones and/or automated updates. If you’re looking for an invite, hit me up on twitter or e-mail.
Speaking of twitter, Is JetBlue using twitter to spy on its customers…or blow their minds? is a good read — describing one guy’s personalized big brother-type experience with a notable brand. I can envision a day when this approach becomes unmanageable for big companies (like when the lawyers get involved). For now, it’s really exciting to see this kind of interaction with customers.
Good Ideas Have Legs
Since discovering the barbarian group’s website a scant four days ago, I’ve become completely hooked. As my feed reader inches closer to 500 unread items and my attention span dwindles accordingly, I cringe at their rapid succession of long form posts (4 of ’em so far today). However, each time I’ve taken the time to actually read the full posts, I’ve been rewarded by well-crafted ideas and a little rush of inspiration.
One today’s posts really hit home:
Agnosticism, media and otherwise touches on a subject that has been raised many, many times in my office the past few weeks. Quoting:
“… agnostic ideas, ideas that solve client’s problems without filtering them against a pre-set media vehicle or creative skill set […] sometimes that’s a television ad, sometimes a website, sometimes an LED display on a blimp, sometimes all three. But, who the hell knows ahead of time?”
The gist (to me) being: don’t cut the legs off your ideas by defaulting to traditional/tested/comfortable forms of communication — if an idea is good, it will shine anywhere.
Links o’ the Week
the barbarian group – read, read more, drool.
jQuery for Designers – right away, I found 2 things I’ve been thinking of trying.
Social Media Firehose – enter your name, website, or anything else you want to track and see what they’re saying about you.