class happenings

steve is presenting his honors project...again!!! and he has a mini me!!
*enormous amount of learning taking place here.

HOW WROOD!!! (rude fyi)

One important thing to keep in mind as a designer-be conscious of your audience. Even if you work is good-check the offensive factor and save yourself from public backlash. Being banned isn't all it's cracked up to be...especially if it gets you fired. Exhibit A:

burger king ad angers mexican officials

mexico's ambassador to spain, jorge zermeno said 'this advertisement denigrates
the image of our country and uses improperly mexico's national flag'. mexico has strict
laws prohibiting the defamation of the flag. zermeno also added 'it offends mexicans
and mexico.'



burger king has since stated that 'the campaign falls fully within the legal parameters
of the UK and spain and were not intended to offend anyone' however they have decided
to scrap the campaign out of respect for the mexican culture and its people.

the company said in a statement sent to the associated press it would 'air redesigned ads
as soon as commercially possible - the revised campaign will focus solely on the texican
whopper sandwich and will not feature any characters or the use of the mexican flag'.

last year, absolut vodka angered many US citizens with an ad campaign in mexico
that depicted an early 19th century map showing chunks of the USA as part of mexico.
this campaign was also dropped.

You probably thought it was Communist when...

It's a Wonderful Life taught us that family, friendship, and virtue are the true definitions of wealth. (*deemed by the FBI in 1947.)





This was interestingly funnly albiet eye opening question posed by Mr. Godin: What do you call things you disagree with?

In the 1950s, Congressman George A. Dondero denounced modern art as a communist plot.

Every day, you market ideas that some people are annoyed with or more likely, afraid of. And in the face of fear, we lose eloquence and start calling things names, usually names that don't make a lot of sense.

Nothing is a communist plot any more, but there's never a shortage of boogy men available to the people in the community that you're frightening.

But what else do you say to the opposition??? hmmmmm?

Present with Power

vital information for you everyday life:

The hierarchy of presentations

A presentation is a precious opportunity. It's a powerful arrangement... one speaker, an attentive audience, all in their seats, all paying attention (at least at first). Don't waste it.

The purpose of a presentation is to change minds. That's the only reason I can think of to spend the time and resources. If your goal isn't to change minds, perhaps you should consider a different approach.

1. The best presentation is no presentation at all. If you can get by with a memo, send a memo. I can read it faster than you can present it and we'll both enjoy it more.

2. The second best presentation is one on one. No slides, no microphone. You look me in the eye and change my mind.

3. Third best? Live and fully interactive.

4. Powerpoint or Keynote, but with no bullets, just emotional pictures and stories.

5. And last best... well, if you really think you can change my mind by using tons of bullets and a droning presentation, I'm skeptical.
A presentation isn't an obligation, it's a privilege.

1 HOUR WITH YOUR BUSINESS CARDS

BRIEF:
Business cards, those ubiquitous 2" x 3.5" pieces of paper stock, can be the perfect vehicle for invention. Bend one and it becomes a chopstick rest, add some paper clips and a bulldog clip and create an office pet, cut some notches in a bunch and you've got a versatile construction toy.

1 Hour Design Challenge: Your mission, if you choose to accept it-
to come up with a new use for the business card. The only condition is that it's gotta be 3D in some way. You can add materials or remove materials, but it should be obvious that your design started out as a business card. Post sketches of your idea, or if you can construct it in an hour, upload photos of your creation. Or embed a YouTube video for that how-to vibe.



CRITERIA:
Judging will be based on design execution, strength of concept, and what the judges think is the coolest idea.

Forum Gallery@ core77

COOL CHARACTER DESIGN

DO YOU LIKE MONSTERS? DO YOU LIKE CHARACTER DESIGN? WELL THEN BOY DO I HAVE THE LINK FOR YOU!
CHECK OUT THE PICTOPIA FESTIVAL 2009




HERE'S A SUM OF THE PRODUCT:
What a springtime! The Haus der Kulturen der Welt and Pictoplasma are hosting this year's PICTOPIA, a unique show on character arts and design. For six weeks, Berlin is transformed a world of imaginative creatures contributed by creative minds from all over the world. Enjoy our shootings from the opening night, followed by a Character Walk along more than 30 galleries stuffed with illustrations, objects and installations.

Don't Loose This Remote!

Lenovo rolled out their new line of computers today in preparation for the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show. Among the list is an "all-in-one" desktop that includes a motion-sensing remote for gaming.




The IdeaCentre A600 All-in-One Desktop includes a 21.5-inch frameless screen, integrated speakers, digital TV tuner and a 4-in-1 optional remote controller.

"It is the first to bring PC users the ability to play games using the remote control's 'motion drive' feature, which controls on-screen objects according to the movement of the remote.

Unlike competitor's remotes, the Lenovo 4-in-1 remote controller can also be used as a VOIP handset3 to make and receive phone calls over the Internet, similar to a typical cordless telephone. The remote also serves as a media center/TV remote, and with Microsoft Vista Media Centre users can use the controller to operate DVDs, movies and TV. Additionally, the remote also functions as an "air mouse" so it can be used to operate the cursor on the screen, eliminating the inconvenience of using a wired mouse."

That seems like an odd combination of abilities, and I'm not really sure how much I care about motion controlled games on my PC. The A600 hits from April starting at US$999.

THE POWER OF Wii

Attention! Attention!!
"Real-world devices with gesture-reading abilities are set to debut next year!!" aka: Soon TVs and PCs May Work Like the Wii.

Excited are wii?? yes, pun intended...but now how amazing would it be to be able to change the channel simply by waving your hand or even yelling at it? No more panicked searches for the remote in the never ending creases of the couch my friend. What brought on such amazing innovation? Well it just so happens we have the answer: companies are looking to free consumers from keyboards and remote controls in favor of more natural interaction with computers, TVs, and mobile devices.

Due to the major popularity of the motion-sensing Nintendo Will & Apple's Touch iPhone, people predicting that mainstream electronics controlled by gestures and voices will become common in the near future. "We want to improve the user experience by using gestures and natural language," says Eric Horvitz, a Microsoft researcher.