Within the office I take care of
small design work on top of my administrative work. My office had brand new
logos made through the business’ marketing team.
I was called in to my supervisor’s
office for instructions on making a postcard for an event using the font from
the new logo.
Me:
Well, I don’t know which font they used, it’s
most likely custom, but I could probably find something close to it.
In our on-going pursuit of trying to improve readability and usability of digital products and services, one thing that’s always struck us as odd is the way typography of email applications has been left untouched since the early days of the internet. Even modern applications released in the…
Last night I watched Design Is One at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. It was inspiring. Lella & Massimo are brilliant and surprisingly entertaining. There is something unique about designers who are partners in both life and work.
Their portfolio is unending, and each project contains a bit of magic. They mastered the practice of intertwining beauty and function. Just look at the poster above. The yellow cup has elegant curves, and a place for your thumb to rest while holding the cup. There’s actually a great story behind this cup and its failure as a product, but I’ll let you learn about it from Massimo himself in the documentary. The DVD will make a great Hanukkah gift (wink).
I am always deeply fascinated by tech products shown in movies set in the future.
Here we can see Joseph Gordon Levitt’s cell phone in Looper as he is receiving a call. Someone designed this hardware and software specifically for this movie. What does it tell us?
Screen
This isn’t the only recent movie to use a transparent cell phone screen. We also see one in Hugh Jackman’s phone in Reel Steel. What is the advantage? This forces all of the circuitry into the bezel. Good luck with that, Ive.
Icons
Battery: It’s full even late at night. Did JGL charge recently? Does it take weeks for the battery to drain?
Signal strength: 3 full circles (assuming this is the purpose of the icon in the upper right corner).
Phone: This is obvious since JGL is receiving a call.
Globe + Map: The map seems unnecessary considering we do not see where the call is originating from. Why show a map at all?
Progress bar: Above the four bottom icons we see a progress bar. It looks like JGL is on screen three out of four. Perhaps we are still swiping between sets of icons.
Gear: We are still using a gear to represent settings in the future.
Chat bubble: We are still texting too. :-)
Flux Capacitor & Pixelated Arrow: Your guess is as good as mine.
Shape
The phone’s shape is almost a perfect square. This tells us that in the future people either don’t watch videos on their phones, or the video format somehow returned to 4:3.
Actions
I believe it’s safe to assume that a red X means “do not answer.” A green OK is inconsistent. Why not show a green checkmark instead?
Buttons
I do not see any physical buttons. It must be entirely controlled by software.
Audio
I do not see any holes for noise to escape. How does JGL hear the caller’s voice? How does the phone ring? Note: It’s funny to use the word “ring” considering phones do not truly ring anymore.
Ports
The phone is too thin to plug in any cables. It must charge through induction (or wirelessly!).
Strength
JGL immediately smashes the phone with a rock after this close-up. I guess Gorilla Glass X isn’t indestructible.
Last night I watched The Monuments Men, and there’s one aspect that I’m still thinking about.
At one point in the movie (not a spoiler), there is a summary of everything that was stolen by the Nazis. Thousands of paintings, sculptures, jewelry, train cars, and 3,000 church bells.
Church bells? What was the purpose of stealing church bells? I can’t imagine them being particularly valuable. My guess? It was to signify the end of all religion. The Nazis would conquer everything including God.
I have always used Macs (except for a couple wretched summer internships). In fact, I’m putting together an Exposure post that will provide some insight into this collection.
LC
Performa 6115
Performa 6300
Power Mac G3 Blue & White
Powerbook G4
iMac
Retina iMac
When I look at this list and reflect, certain homes, games, and stages of my life come to mind. I can vividly remember where each computer lived, and what it was primarily used for. Sim City 2000, Warcraft II, Marathon, Starcraft, burning CDs, and, perhaps, the occasional essay.
Note: This does not include work computers. Also, y'all should check out the Thirty Years of Mac page that Apple put together. Gorgeous.
I giggle whenever I see a new Moto RAZR™ MAZZ™ HD2 Pro product announcement. I’m shocked companies still name their products in such a ridiculous fashion.
