"In our fast-growing industry, mobile advertising represents an interesting long-term revenue opportunity. Every month, nearly 50 million people access the Web using Opera on their mobile phones and together with AdMarvel, we think we can play an important role in the evolution of mobile advertising," says Opera CEO Lars Boilesen.

AdMarvel is based in San Mateo, California. It was founded in 2006, and works with a lot of different advertising firms around the world. It’s official description says:

AdMarvel makes mobile advertising work by enabling mobile publishers and operators to easily source, provision, manage and track advertising from virtually any ad network or direct sourced advertising inventory. As the leading trusted third party in mobile advertising, AdMarvel works with mobile publishers, developers, carriers, ad networks, agencies and advertisers to optimize advertising inventory and revenue. AdMarvel services work across mobile web, WAP, SMS and in-application modalities.

"We are very excited about joining forces with Opera," says AdMarvel CEO Mahi de Silva. "What started as a commercial relationship has blossomed into a wonderful partnership to serve the global mobile marketplace. Combining our monetization and analytics platform with the Opera browser and widget platform will create a new intelligent platform, where local and global advertisers can interact with a highly instrumented mobile audience."

Mobile advertising firms are being bought up like hotcakes. Other recent deals include Google acquiring AdMob and Apple acquiring Quattro. The Opera AdMarvel deal is reportedly for $8 million in cash plus a $15 million earnout.
 

Related Articles:

> Apple Acquiring AdMob Competitor Quattro Wireless

> Google Provides an Update on the AdMob Acquisition

> Google Buys Mobile Ad Firm For $750 Million In Stock

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There’s an Phone app that will help you pass the bar exam and become a legit lawyer, but it will set you back $999.99. It’s called BarMax [iTunes link], and it hit the app store just a couple of days ago.

The version that’s up there now has content for the California bar, but the fact that it’s called the “California Edition” seems to imply that other versions will come.

The app was put together by “top iPhone developers” (the iTunes description doesn’t say who exactly) and Harvard law lawyers, and it includes 1,371 real MBE practice questions, practice essays, audio lectures, more than 1,000 flash cards, and e-mail support with Harvard lawyers (they’re really hitting the “Harvard” thing home here). It looks like a complete package — something you’d expect from a desktop app, not an iPhone app. And as steep as $1,000 sounds, the BarMax website claims that it’s one-fourth the cost of a prep course covering the same material.

It seems like this would do at least as well on the BlackBerry platform as it would on the iPhone platform, but the developers haven’t said anything about plans for other platforms.

Tags: apple app store, barmax, iphone

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Music gear manufacturer EKS has leaked a new version of their Otus DJ controller ahead of the NAMM 2010 show that starts tomorrow in Anaheim, California.  The EKS Otus RAW DJ Controller provides the standard functionality DJs expect out of a turntable controller, plus some new added functionality and real turntable-like control.

(…)
Read the rest of EKS Otus Raw DJ Controller Revealed [EKS Has Outed The Otus RAW DJ Controller For NAMM 2010]

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The United States Supreme Court has just ruled to block video coverage of the Proposition 8 trial on YouTube.

The Supreme Court’s decision was made following an emergency appeal after Judge Vaughn Walker, the Chief U.S. District Judge assigned to the case, ruled in favor of permitting the YouTube trial coverage.

Due to the nature of the Prop. 8 trial — the controversial California case will determine whether or not the ban of same-sex marriages in the state is constitutional — parties on both sides hold impassioned views about Judge Walker’s original decision to permit time-shifted posting of trial footage to YouTube.

Defenders of Prop. 8 lobbied for the high court emergency appeal because they believed video coverage of the trial would cause “irreparable harm” to witnesses testifying in favor of the ban on gay marriage. On the flip side, the attorneys in opposition to Prop. 8 argued that the public had a right to watch the proceedings on the YouTube.

Regardless of where you stand on the matter, the Prop. 8 trial is yet another example of how social media and the online distribution of courtroom activities has become a topic that judges must now address.

[img credit: wallyg, Flickr]

Tags: media, prop 8, Supreme Court, trial, youtube

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Phone Halo, a start-up exhibiting at CES this year, is aiming to reduce the loss-incident rate. It has created a bi-directional keychain sensor that sends an alert when you’ve moved a certain distance from your BlackBerry, and locks and calls the device when you’ve dropped your keys or any other personal item you’ve attached the sensor to.

“It’s a Bluetooth device, so the two items speak to each other wirelessly,” says Christian Smith, a vice president of the company. “You can attach the sensor to anything, really: purse, a laptop bag, even a kid, and be alerted through your BlackBerry when the other item has been dropped, left behind or stolen.”

Users can also set up the Phone Halo system so that friends receive text messages with the GPS coordinates if your items are lost, and a mobile app tracks the distance between the phone and device.

Phone Halo formed two years ago by three friends at University of California, Santa Barbara, with a fourth member, Jacques Habra, joining later on as chief executive and equity partner. While brainstorming ideas for a competition in the schools technology-management program, a friend “walked into our dorm room, upset because he’d lost his phone. We all looked at each other and said, ‘Let’s make something that doesn’t help you find your phone after it’s gone — it keeps you from losing it in the first place,’” Mr. Smith says.

There are some limitations to Phone Halo. Because it’s a Bluetooth device, Phone Halo’s range is limited to about 30 feet. For example, users would receive an alert that they’ve “disconnected from” their keys if they leave them in a purse and walk 30 feet. The beep that goes off on the sensor isn’t very loud, something the company says it’s working on. And as of now, Phone Halo only works with Research In Motion’s BlackBerry, though Mr. Smith says the sensor will be supporting Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android platform.

“We’re really looking at preventing the loss of high-value items, like smart phones that can cost up to $500. Not only the cost of the phone, but things like valuable contacts and irreplaceable data,” says Mr. Smith. The company also plans to work on attaching the technology to other personal items, such as credit cards, so that they won’t be left at the ATM or behind the bar after a late night.

The sensor, available in March, is manufactured by EmLinq, based in Simi Valley, Calif., and retails for $70.

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Many designers and artists have a true love for vintage and retro design and share their passion when the opportunity arises. One could probably find several hundred showcases of retro designs on display today in the 21st century, but not many of actual vintage ones that were used in the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s and are still in use today.

To celebrate the beauty of vintage and retro typography, we have compiled a showcase of vintage and retro signage to inspire you: a great excuse to take five minutes out to admire the styles, whether simple or complex, and the love that went into creating these gorgeous vintage signs.

Showcase of Vintage Signage

Sydney

hampton inn. green bay, wi. 2006

deangelis (delightfully different) donuts
Rochester, PA

bakersfield
Drive-up green burger/pastrami joint

Simmons and Clark Jeweler in Downtown Detroit

liquor. santa monica, ca. 2006

Put Some South in Your Mouth

Seoul rock
Rock & roll joint somewhere in the upmarket Apgujeong.

Mel’s Drive In
Great retro neon and bub signage for Mel’s in Hollywood.

they go together like a horse and carriage

4600ish N Western

Walthamstow Stadium

Motel Hamburg

Remember me, summer

Italy Ninetta von Blaschke

Tradewinds Motel

Canterbury Records

IN, Cambridge City-U.S. 40 Rihm’s Drive-In Liquor Store Sign

Johnny Rockets on Woodward in Downtown Detroit
A cool sign for a 50’s style diner, this chain of restaurant was originally launched out of California in 1986. Located in Foxtown, this diner is right near The Fillmore, Fox Theater, and Comerica Park.

Eyetwist signs

The Flame

Eyetwist signs 2

Urban Script
As seen in downtown Buffalo, New York.

Ice-Cold

Casa de cadillac, Sherman oaks

prcssd. las vegas, nv. 2007

The Palms Motor Hotel
Portland, Oregon.

Lights for Liquor

route 66. seligman, az. 2007

Bubbles

Parkside
Parkside Candies in Amherst, NY.

Krispy Kreme in Kolor
Brainerd Road, Chattanooga, TN.

Carling Black Label Beer
Albany, GA; Oglethorpe Lounge.

South Haven

Last Click

route 66. hackberry, az. 2007.

Uncle Jer’s
Great side wall signage for Uncle Jer’s on Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles doing business since 1978.

Chubbie’s

R.I.P. Zipperhead
A South Street icon bites the dust. At least the new shop left the giant creepy ants on the facade. And there is Crash, Bang, Boom — a very respectable spin-off shop, around the corner. Philadelphia, PA.

>>> Moving Forward >>>

Flickr Groups

Flickr is a superb place to search for inspiration of all kinds, no matter what your project. Check out some of these great sign-related groups, and contribute to them if you have your own great photos of vintage signs!

• Faded Signage
  Dedicated to faded signs, and has over 13,500 photos to date!
• San Jose Vintage Signage
  Unique and vintage signage (in their original form) from San Jose, California.
• Signage & Typography
  Typography in signs, including advertising, neon and even simple instructional text.
• Vintage Neon Signage & More
  Old signage from motels, shops, bowling alleys, car lots and cafes.
• I Love Old Signs!
  Working and broken neon signs, steel signs, plastic signs and ghost ads.
• Motel & Hotel Signs
  This group is dedicated to motel and hotel signs, both new and old.
• Vintage Texaco
  Vintage Texaco goods, from old oil cans to postcards to toys… and of course vintage signs.
• Plastic Signage
  Plastic signs: new, vintage and everything in between.
• Liquor Stores
  Photos of liquor stores. And what do liquor stores have in common other than liquor? Signs!
• Vacuum Formed Signs
  Vacuum formed signs from all eras.

Further Resources

• Making Vintage-Style Signs
  A great walkthrough on how to make your very own vintage-style signs for your own home.
• How Neon Signs Are Made
  A great article on the history of neon signs and how they are made.
• 50 Examples of Vintage Typography
  A collection of 50 vintage posters advertisements that make great use of typography.
• 20 Insane Vintage and Grungy Typography Poster Designs
  A magnificent collection of modern typographic posters that use vintage and grungy effects.
• Vintage and Retro Typography Showcase
  A beautiful and elegant collection of vintage and retro typography used in advertisement and brand design.
• 60 Rare and Unusual Vintage Signs
  A huge and stunning collection of vintage signs of all kinds, including labels and packaging and street signs.
• Retro and Vintage in Modern Web Design
  Same topic, different media. A great showcase of vintage and retro styles from modern Web design!
• 35 Beautiful Vintage and Retro Photoshop Tutorials
  A huge collection of the very best vintage and retro Photoshop tutorials!

(al)

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Post tags: retro, showcases, signage, typography, vintage

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Gallery 1988 in California recently held an art show consisting completely of works inspired by the show LOST. If you’re a LOST fan, like I am, then you’ll love this. But even if you’re not a fan you can still appreciate the talent of the artists. Below are a few samples of the amazing artwork. Click on the link to see more.

lostundergroundartshow.blogspot.com

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Frank O. Gehry is a world-renowned architect. His long career has many works from homes to the great museums that have become postcard towns.

Frank Owen Gehry was born in Toronto, Canada, February 28, 1929. He was a creative child who played with wooden sticks building small towns with his grandmother. He spent time drawing with his father, and his mother was the one who introduced him to the world of art.

“So the creative genes were there … But my father thought I was a dreamer, I wasn’t gonna amount to anything. It was my mother who thought I was just reticent to do things. She would push me.”

In 1947 he moved to California and attended Los Angeles City College, eventually graduating from the University of Southern California’s School of Architecture in 1954. He took a break from the practice of architecture, working in various sectors, but went back to school for one year to study City Planning at the Harvard Graduate School of Design

Influences

Gehry worked for the office, Wdton Becket & Associates, for Victor Gruen in Los Angeles, and for Remondet in Paris.

In 1962, he started his own office designing a wide variety of residential, commercial and institutional sites. And it was with his own house that he best gained notoriety for his work.

Works

Frank Gehry receives frequent criticism for his work because its architecture is very controversial and has unusual shapes and movements. But looking at his works, we can notice the trend and direction of his projects, as well as the concepts of his architecture. In purer forms, through the famous icons such as binoculars, to the organic volumes.

In some works, deconstructive provisions are clear, but when released to the organic shapes these features go beyond. Like it or not, the architecture of Frank Gehry is recognized and visited throughout the world, with postcard towns that were forgotten by tourism.

“Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness.”

Easy Edges Furniture series

Loyola Law School, California, USA

Edgemar Retail Complex, California, USA

Frances Howard Goldwyn Hollywood Regional Library, California, USA

Chiat/Day Building, California, USA

Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany

Frederick Weisman Museum of Art, Minnesota, USA

Iowa Advanced Technology Laboratories, Iowa, USA

Center for the Visual Arts, Ohio, USA

American Center, Paris, France

Dancing House, Prague, Czech Republic

Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Bilbao, Spain

Der Neue Zollhof, Dusseldorf, Germany

DZ Bank Building, Berlin, Germany

Experience Music Project, Washington, USA

Gehry Tower, Hanover, Germany

Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, Bard College, New York, USA

Maggie’s Dundee, Dundee, Scotland

Walt Disney Concert Hall, California, USA

Ray and Maria Stata Center, Massachusetts, USA

Jay Pritzker Pavillion, Illinois, USA

MARTa Museum, Herford, Germany

IAC/InterActiveCorp Headquarters, USA

Marqués de Riscal, Elciego, Spain

Art Gallery Of Ontario renovation, Ontario, Canada

Gehry House, California, USA

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In just a few hours the 96th Rose Bowl Game will be taking place between Ohio State and the University of Oregon. However, before the “Granddaddy of Them All” bowl game kicks off, an even older tradition will be taking place: The Tournament of Roses Parade.

Now in its 121st year, the Rose Parade is often known as “America’s New Year Celebration.” Held in Pasadena, California, the Rose Parade is a spectacle of floats, bands — and of course — roses.

If you can’t catch the event on TV, you can watch the 121st Rose Parade online via KTLA:

Photo courtesy of KTLA.com

Tags: livestream, rose bowl, rose parade

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The lawsuit, which was originally filed in 2006, argued that because iPods don’t come with a decibel meter that lets users know how much noise the device is producing, consumers don’t understand the potential damage they could be causing themselves by listening to loud music for long periods of time. It also claimed that the earbuds that come with the iPod increase the risk that damage could occur because they are designed to be placed inside the ear.

In dismissing an appeal in the case Wednesday, a three-judge panel from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals called the claims “obvious” and said that a reasonable person could easily avoid hearing loss by turning the volume down. The judges also said that the plaintiffs in the case—a Louisiana man and a California man—lacked the legal standing to bring the case because neither one had actually suffered hearing loss.

The court also pointed out that iPods come with a warning that listening to loud music through headphones can result in hearing loss. During arguments, Apple’s lawyer said the intended use of the iPod was to listen to music–not necessarily loudly–and that making the company liable for people who turn the volume all the way up is akin to punishing a car maker whose vehicle can travel above the speed limit or a food company whose product is so delicious that people don’t want to stop eating it.

An Apple spokesman said the company doesn’t comment on legal matters.

Jeff Friedman, an attorney who argued the case for the plaintiffs, says he is disappointed with the decision. He says that judges didn’t address his central argument that simply putting a decibel meter on the iPod would resolve the issue. He also says that a growing body of research—some of which he presented as evidence in the case—shows that people using earbuds tend to listen to music at unsafe levels when they are in a noisy area such as an airplane.

Mr. Friedman, of the Berkeley, Calif., law firm of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, says he is still considering his options in the wake of the ruling. But doesn’t have much hope that the case will be heard by the full appeals court. In the meantime, he says that he has stopped listening to his iPod while he jogs.

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Facebook and MySpace app maker and advertising network RockYou isn’t having a great December. Earlier this month, 32 million passwords were compromised by a hacker going by the alias of “igigi.” That’s more than half of RockYou’s monthly active users.

The password attack, carried out through an SQL injection and the passwords stolen from an unencrypted plain text document (a big no-no), has been a black eye for the social application company. Its troubles aren’t over though, as a man from Indiana has filed a lawsuit against RockYou, one that has the potential to become a class action affair.

According to Wired, the lawsuit (which you’ll find embedded below) accuses the company of “failing to secure and safeguard its users’ sensitive personally identifiable information, including e-mail addresses and passwords.” The 27 page document goes on to explain how RockYou failed to protect its users or notify them of the data breach, thus recklessly endangering the information of its users.

The suit seeks class action status (meaning any of the other people affected by the data breach could join the lawsuit). In addition, it seeks unspecified damages and requires RockYou to better protect its data. It was filed by Alan Claridge of Evansville, Indiana in the Northern District of California, where RockYou is headquartered.

RockYou’s most popular apps include Super Pets!, Birthday Cards, Hug Me, Pieces of Flair, and SuperWall. The full lawsuit is included below:

[via Wired]

Tags: Data Breach, facebook, Facebook app, hacker, lawsuit, RockYou

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The reason I feel sorry for him is because I think he is going to continue to be the butt of jokes everywhere for years to come. I know that time heals all wounds. He and his wife will probably get divorced and in a couple years, it will all be over. However, I don’t think the Tiger Woods jokes are going away any time soon, if ever.

Just like we will forever associate O.J. Simpson with the white Bronco chase and the glove, I think we may forever associate Tiger Woods with his sexual escapades. I don’t think of football when I think of O.J. Simpson, and it’s sad to say that as this continues, we may not associate Tiger Woods with golf as much as we do with sex.

According to http://newsblaze.com, “Disney has joined in making jokes at the expense of Tiger Woods even as a new poll shows the embattled billionaire golf star’s popularity sinking to levels usually reserved for politicians.”

Thank you to @krystynchong for sending this video to me. You know your life has hit an all time low when even Disney characters are making fun of you. This video is from the Aladdin show at Disney’s Adventure theme park in California. Could it get any worse for him?

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Google’s corporate headquarters, fondly nicknamed the Googleplex, is located in Mountain View, California. Today it’s one of Google’s many offices around the globe. While their offices are not identical, they tend to share some essential elements. Here are a few things you might see in a Google workspace.

<!–break–>

The Google Culture

Though Google has grown a lot since it opened in 1998, we still maintain a small company feel. At lunchtime, almost everyone eats in the office café, sitting at whatever table has an opening and enjoying conversations with Googlers from different teams. Our commitment to innovation depends on everyone being comfortable sharing ideas and opinions. Every employee is a hands-on contributor, and everyone wears several hats. Because we believe that each Googler is an equally important part of our success, no one hesitates to pose questions directly to Larry or Sergey in our weekly all-hands (“TGIF”) meetings – or spike a volleyball across the net at a corporate officer.

We are aggressively inclusive in our hiring, and we favor ability over experience. We have offices around the world and dozens of languages are spoken by Google staffers, from Turkish to Telugu. The result is a team that reflects the global audience Google serves. When not at work, Googlers pursue interests from cross-country cycling to wine tasting, from flying to frisbee.

As we continue to grow, we are always looking for those who share a commitment to creating search perfection and having a great time doing it.

An Inside Look at Google – Working at Google

Here’s a look at life at the Googleplex in Mountain View:

Here are a few things you might see in a Google workspace:

• Local expressions of each location, from a mural in Buenos Aires to ski gondolas in Zurich, showcasing each office’s region and personality.

• Bicycles or scooters for efficient travel between meetings; dogs; lava lamps; massage chairs; large inflatable balls.

• Googlers sharing cubes, yurts and huddle rooms – and very few solo offices.

• Laptops everywhere – standard issue for mobile coding, email on the go and note-taking.

• Foosball, pool tables, volleyball courts, assorted video games, pianos, ping pong tables, and gyms that offer yoga and dance classes.

• Grassroots employee groups for all interests, like meditation, film, wine tasting and salsa dancing.
  Healthy lunches and dinners for all staff at a variety of cafés.

• Break rooms packed with a variety of snacks and drinks to keep Googlers going.

Photos from officesnapshot





































































Photos from Google

About the author

Hi! I’m Paulo Canabarro and I’m here to post some really cool stuff for you, if you have any ideas or any requests please get @ me – pvpcanabarro@gmail.com you can also Follow me on twitter!

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To celebrate their 30th birthday next year, fashion brand Stussy has teamed with Japanese electronics giant Ricoh to produce several limited edition Stussy-branded digital cameras. The camera is based on Ricoh’s GR Digital III camera, which made it’s debut in August 2009.

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Read the rest of Ricoh Stussy-Branded GR Digital 3 Camera Revealed [California Fashion Brand Stussy Teams With Ricoh To Create Limited Edition Camera]

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Richard Meier’s work is easily recognized in most cases by the use of white and its uses. He established his own pattern of work, which today serves as the inspiration for great architects, forming a school of his architecture.

Photos from richardmeier.com.

Richard Meier was born in Newark, New Jersey on October 12th, 1934. He studied architecture in Cornell University, graduating in 1957.

“I believe that architecture has the power to inspire, to elevate the spirit, to feed both the mind and the body. It is for me the most public of the arts.”

Influences

After college, Meier worked in several architecture offices. In 1959, he worked briefly for Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, after working for 3 years for Marcel Breuer.

In 1963 he started his own work in New York and already in 1972 was identified as one of The New York Five, together with Peter Eisenmanm, Michael Graves, Charles Gwathmey and John Hejduk.

Richard Meier was greatly influenced by architect Le Corbusier, using many of his ideas in his work. Mies Van der Rohe and Frank Lloyd Wright were also extremely important for his career.

Works

Meier has a concept of designing very clear and his works are easily recognized. Over time one can see the consistency and dedication in his work which forms his philosophy in all works. His more recent works, however, show a greater refinement compared with his first projects.

Richard Meier has done countless residential projects, all with interesting variations on the theme while every solution maintaining a great aesthetic quality and functionality. In 1984 he received the Pritzker Prize, rewarding a great career and a great variety of work performed.

“White is the most wonderful color because within it you can see all the colors of the rainbow. The whiteness of white is never just white; it is almost always transformed by light and that which is changing; the sky, the clouds, the sun and the moon.”

Lambert House, New York, USA.

Smith House, New York, USA

Saltzman House, New York, USA

Bronx Development Center, New York, USA

Douglas House, Michigan, USA

Museum for the Decorative Arts, Frankfurt, Germany

Siemens Headquarters Building, Munich, Germany

The Getty Center, California, USA

Siemens Office and Research Facilities, Munich, Germany

Richard Meyer & Partners New York Office, New York, USA

Barcelona Museum of Contemporany Art, Barcelona, Spain

KNP Headquarters, Hilversum, The Netherlands

Camden Medical Centre, Singapore

Rachofsky House, Texas, USA

United States Courthouse, New York, USA

Gagosian Gallery, California, USA

United States Courthouse, Arizona, USA

Ara Pacis Museum, Rome, Italy

Jubilee Church, Rome, Italy

Tan House, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Peek & Cloppenburg Department Store, Düsseldorf, Germany

Southern California Beach House, California, USA

UCLA Eli & Edythe Broad Art Center, California, USA

Burda Museum, Baden-Baden, Germany

Joy Apartment, New York, USA

Arp Museum, Rolandseck, Germany

Malibu Beach House, California, USA

9900 Wilshire, California, USA

Tianjin Villa, Tianjin, China

On Prospect Park, New York, USA

About the author

My name is Marcelo Seferin, I’m an architect from Porto Alegre, Brazil and I’m the chief architect at Seferin Arquitetura, an office that works with architecture, interior design and sustainability projects. You can check our work at http://www.seferinarquitetura.com.br and you can follow me at twiiter http://www.twitter.com/mseferin.

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Webmonkey got the chance to sit down with Dan McComas (aka kickme444), creator of the amazing Reddit Secret Santa program, for an exclusive interview. Since launching redditgifts.com a month ago on November 16, around 5,000 participants from the Reddit community have taken part in what is believed to be the largest Secret Santa program ever.

We spoke with Dan, who by day is a systems architect from Alameda, California (and a camera shy one at that, hence the portrait), and got some details about how the project came to be, how he built and launched the website in such a short amount of time, and whether he’s going to do it again next year.

The Story:

Dan thought up the idea on November 10. He posted on Ask Reddit wondering aloud if anyone would want to participate in an anonymous gift exchange.

Ideas began flooding in, so Dan created a Secret Santa subreddit and encouraged other users to subscribe to it. Within a couple of hours, over 1,000 users had subscribed.

The community quickly flushed out a set of rules — you had to have signed up as a Reddit user before November 10, for one, and they set a $15 cap on gifts.

Dan realized something this big couldn’t be administered by hand, so he created a quick site in Django and parked it at RedditGifts.com. At first, all it did was provide information and the rules and take sign-ups through a form.

The site launched on November 16th, less than a week after the idea was proposed.

The back-end was fully automated, so all Dan and his wife had to do was provide customer service via e-mail. In total, they sent out over 30,000 e-mails — an aggregate of different bulk e-mails to different subsets of users who each had different issues or needs. But still, lots of e-mails.

Around 5,000 people signed up to exchange gifts. By the night of Tuesday, December 15th, all but 300-500 had followed through. That’s a success rate of around 90 percent.

Reddit users spent over $114,500 on gifts. Yes, many people broke the $15 rule. The real gift was to FedEx and UPS — over $47,000 was spent on shipping. View the full stats here.

Reddit users were matched up with strangers, so they had to casually stalk one another on Reddit to learn as much as they could about their recipients’ personalities.

During sign-up, people were given a blank text field for special requests. Most left it blank, but others put book titles, food allergies or other special requests.

Most gave one gift and received one gift, but some people gave two or three gifts.

Participants were encouraged to document the gifts they received, and you can see the various unboxing shots on a Gift Gallery. In true Reddit fashion, you can vote up the cooler gifts.

Dan was matched with a 17-year-old from San Diego (his only request was that he received something his parents wouldn’t freak out about) and an avid Reddit user who was a bit older. Dan walked around the shops in his home town of Alameda and put together some packages of novelties like Space Invaders ice cube trays and sci-fi memorabilia. The avid Reddit user got a rare Upvote Breakfast poster.

Dan received two gifts. He got an ancient wooden ring from Ireland from one person, and a Gameboy Advance from somebody else — either from Sweden or Finland, he’s not sure. It came with a Donkey Kong game and a European power plug, so he can’t use it without an adapter.

Will he do it next year? He’s not sure. He and his wife are exhausted from all the work. Much of the informational copy, the sign-up form, the database and the rest of site he built are all reusable, but this project pulled in more traffic than any website he’s ever created during his professional career.

Wednesday December 16th will mark one month since the site’s launch. All that in a month! Amazing.

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The architecture of Daniel Libeskind is striking and characteristic. A man with a great life story, a degree in music and professor of architecture at several universities, had his highest recognition on winning the bid for the new World Trade Center in New York. His repertoire of projects, however, clearly shows his work concepts.

Photos from http://www.daniel-libeskind.com

Daniel Libeskind was born in Lodz in Poland after the war, on 12 May 1946. He is the second son to Dora and Nachman Libeskind, survivors of the Holocaust. As a child he learned to play the accordion, and was even on Polish television at 13 years of age. He studied music in Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarship.

In 1959, Libeskind’s family moved to New York. There Daniel continued to study music becoming a virtuoso. He studied at the Bronx High School of Science and in 1965 became an American citizen. Completing his studies, he graduated in 1970 from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art and received his post-graduate degree in 1972 in History and Theory of Architecture at the School of Comparative Studies at Essex University.

Influences

Libeskind worked briefly as an apprentice to Richard Meyer and was hired by Peter Eisenman, but didn’t stay long.

He met his future wife and working partner in 1966. After a few years, they married and traveled to the United States, visiting the works of Frank Lloy Wright. After that, Daniel taught at several universities around the world. Since this was his main activity for a long time, he only finalized his first project at age 52, the Felix Nussbaum Haus.

Works

Early on Libeskind was labeled as the architect whose designs were impossible to be built. He won his first competition in 1987, a house in Berlin, but was never built. The Jewish Museum Berlin was the first major project to be built, with greater recognition, but became more famous after winning the tender for the reconstruction of the area of the former World Trade Center, destroyed in the attack of September 11, a project that was named as Memory Foundations.

Studio Daniel Libeskind is two blocks from the WTC site, and has projects in all corners of the world. In addition to building some securities, Daniel also designs stages for theaters and operas, where there is a clear relationship to his architecture.

“Ever since I began architecture, I had an abhorrence to conventional architecture offices. There was something about the atmosphere of redundancy, routine and production that made me allergic to all forms of specialization and so-called professionalism. Ten years ago we founded our office in Berlin as a result of a decision, an accident, a rumor on the street and began an unimaginable journey down a path on which we are still traveling.”

18.36.54, Connecticut, USA

The Ascent at Roebling’s Bridge, Kentucky, USA.

Cape Grace, Monaco

Contemporary Jewish Museum, California, USA

Danish Jewish Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark

Dream Hub, Seoul, South Korea

Extension to the Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado, USA

Denver Art Museum Residences, Denver, Colorado, USA

Felix Nussbaum Haus, Osnabrück, Germany

Fiera Milano, Milan, Italy

Glass Courtyard, Berlin, Germany

Grand Canal Square Theatre, Dublin, Ireland

Imperial War Museum North, Manchester, England

Jewish Museum Berlin, Berlin, Germany

London Metroplitan University Graduate Centre, London, England

Memorial Foundations, New York, New York, USA

New York Tower, New York, New York, USA

Riverstone, Incheon, South Korea

Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada

Studio Weil, Mallorca, Spain

Tangent, Seoul, South Korea

The Villa, Worldwide

Westside Shopping and Leisure Centre, Bern, Switzerland

The Wohl Centre, Ramat-Gan, Israel

About the author

My name is Marcelo Seferin, I’m an architect from Porto Alegre, Brazil and I’m the chief architect at Seferin Arquitetura, an office that works with architecture, interior design and sustainability projects. You can check our work at http://www.seferinarquitetura.com.br and you can follow me at twiiter http://www.twitter.com/mseferin.

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It all started because a California police officer went over his monthly texting limit on his department-issued phone: a lawsuit that could have important ramifications on how we use cell phones and other mobile devices at work.

This spring, the Supreme Court plans to hear a case that sprung from a lawsuit SWAT team Sergeant Jeff Quon and three other officers filed against the police department in Ontario, California, after the police chief read their personal text messages. If you think the idea of your boss keeping tabs on your bad grammar and heavy use of emoticons is bad, Quon had also used his work pager to engage in some pretty serious sexting.

To be fair to his boss, Quon did sign a city policy that states that he’s only allowed limited personal use of department electronics and that he shouldn’t expect any measure of privacy — so maybe he should have thought before he started sending racy messages into the ether. Regardless, Quon and Co. won the battle at the local level, on the grounds that the chief reading the texts amounted to “unreasonable search,” which the U.S. Constitution doesn’t truck with.

Now the city has appealed to the Supreme Court, who will decide in June whether or not Quon was in the right, and, more importantly, whether you have the right to text with abandon, free from the peering eyes of your employers.

With mobile technology becoming more and more entrenched in our lives, this Supreme Court decision could be a doozy.

What do you think? Should your texts be as open for review as your performance? Or are some thing sacred?

[img credit: Nate Steiner]

Tags: california, iphone, lawsuit, sexting, Supreme Court, SWAT, texting

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Marco Aslan is a Brazilian Filmmaker with a great passion for nostalgia which reflects on his works making each video a one of a kind. The mix of images with sound created by him brings a peaceful feeling that keeps you focused and watching each clip till the end. If you want to get motivated and inspired, sit back relax and watch these.

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The work of Marco Aslan can be seen at marcoaslan.com or on his Vimeo Gallery

Well, I am a 23 year old from Sao Paulo Brazil, and was raised basically watching movies. I always had a passion for visual audio. Being Cinema, Television, Commercials, VideoClips, I always loved the combination and the mix of visual, and music.

I speak four languages (Portuguese, French, Spanish, and English). I come from a multi-cultural family but was raised in Sao Paulo and I consider myself Brazilian.

I’m currently living in Los Angeles, trying out my lucky on the World of Cinema. I almost had the luck of signing with a commercial director but it didn’t work out. There is a lot of things involved on the process and a lot of risks for both sides therefore I continue looking for an opportunity.

I have a passion for nostalgia and that’s what I like to film in a spontaneous way.

My favorite filmmakers are: Walter Salles, Jean Pierre Jeunet, Guilhermo Del Toro, Alfonso Cuarón, Michael Mann

My favorite Movies: Central do Brasil, Amelie, Children of Men, Magnolia, The Insider.

Voyage

Journey

Liztomania

Shot with a combination of the Canon 7D and HVX200. Lenses used: Canon EF 24-105/4L, and Tokina 11-16mm. Shot in California, Summer 2009. Song is “Lisztomania” by Phoenix.

Summer Trip

This video was made with some recycled footage from a Summer trip.

Phantasmagoria

2006 – Young man wakes up in the middle of a forest to encounter a lost French Peter Pan from the 1960′s. Old footage shot by my Grandfather during the 60′s.

For more visit marcoaslan.com or on his Vimeo Gallery

About the author

Hi! I’m Paulo Canabarro and I’m here to post some really cool stuff for you, if you have any ideas or any requests please get @ me – pvpcanabarro@gmail.com you can also Follow me on twitter!

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From the dreadful art work created for Nosferatu in 1922 till the present, horror movie posters has evolved with time, immensely. Having celebrated the twisted, the sick, the ghastly, the disgusting and the terrifying, this genre of art is highly evocative. It may be just another creepy photograph conveying malicious promises, or an abstract interpretations rendered by an elaborate painting, designers are experimenting with their creative juices from time immemorial to bring out the ghastly effect in their posters.

Creepy typography, high contrast illustrations, horrific creatures and ominous taglines are trademarks of effective horror movie posters. Creating an aura of mysteriousness while freaking out your audience simultaneously, works best for these posters. Raw terror, suspense and a hint of fright-fest are the things that your poster needs to convey to stimulate the nightmares and excite the curiosity of your potential moviegoers, so that they cannot help but check out for themselves what the movie has in store.

However, it isn’t easy to create a spine-chilling poster, which looks both brutal and spectacular at the same time. Like, blood smearing across the poster may make it look like a finger painting by a kid. The potential of a true designer is revealed in subtly arousing terror in viewer’s imagination by making this ordinary blood look extraordinarily ghastly.

To draw inspiration from some of the best horror movie posters of all time, you can check out our collection of 50+ horror movie poster designs in this article.

Nosferatu (1922)

F.W. Murnau’s German silent classic is the original and some say most frightening DRACULA adaptation, taking Bram Stoker’s novel and turning it into a haunting, shadowy dream full of dread.

Dracula (1931)

This is the first screen version of Bram Stoker’s famous tale based on the smash hit stage production. Count Dracula arrives in London and immediately works to enrapture and transform into vampires young Lucy Weston and her friend Mina Seward.

Frankenstein (1931)

Scientist Henry Frankenstein and his hunchbacked assistant, Fritz, embark on an unholy mission by stealing a body from a graveyard and a human brain from a medical college. Unbeknownst to Frankenstein, however, Fritz takes a violent and murderous abnormal brain.

White Zombie (1932)

After arriving in Haiti to meet her fiance, a blushing bride-to-be is quickly transformed into a pallid, soulless body by creepy voodoo master Bela Lugosi, at the behest of a jealous rival who desires her.

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

A masterly mix of horror and black comedy, is the first in a series of sequels to FRANKENSTEIN. Mary Shelley resumes her gothic tale after the face-off in a burning windmill between Henry Frankenstein and his horrific creation, the Monster.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)

Jean Frollo, chief justice of Paris. Spying a spectacularly beautiful Gypsy woman named Esmeralda in church, he sends his factotum, Quasimodo, to abduct her. Frollo’s plan is foiled by Phoebus, captain of the guard, and the hunchback is sentenced to public flogging and exposure.

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)

When uncle is found murdered on the grounds of the family estate, Sir Henry Baskerville arrives from abroad to claim his ancestral home on the fog-shrouded Devonshire moors.

Village of the Damned (1960)

For 10 hours, something — or someone — causes all the residents of a small British hamlet to black out. Shortly thereafter, several women end up pregnant, and the babies they give birth to have startling physical similarities: they’re white-haired and frozen-faced, with formidable intellects and the ability to communicate telepathically.

Psycho (1960)

Bates presides over an out-of-the-way motel under the domineering specter of his mother. The young, well-intentioned Bates is introduced to the audience when Marion Crane, a blonde on the run with stolen money, checks in for the night.

The Birds (1963)

Wealthy reformed party girl Melanie Daniels enjoys a brief flirtation with lawyer Mitch Brenner in a San Francisco pet shop and decides to follow him to his Bodega Bay home. Bearing a gift of two lovebirds, Melanie quickly strikes up a romance with Mitch while contending with his possessive mother and boarding at his ex-girlfriend’s house.

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Seven people secluded in a Pennsylvania farmhouse face relentless attacks by reanimated corpses seeking to eat their flesh. The group, which includes a married couple and their daughter, a pair of young lovers, and an African-American man, try to keep their sanity as the living dead keep trying to enter the house.

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

A young, happily married couple, waif-like Rosemary and struggling actor Guy, move into a spacious apartment in a venerable old building off Central Park. They are befriended by the elderly couple next door, Roman and Minnie Castavet, who seem to take a special interest in Rosemary’s well-being.

The Exorcist (1973)

Regan MacNeil, a 12-year-old who is possessed by the devil. After exhausting all other practical options, Regan’s mother, Chris, acknowledges the supernatural nature of her daughter’s condition and recruits Father Damien Karras to stage an exorcism.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

Five unsuspecting teenagers driving in a van through sun-scorched rural Texas. After a terrifying exchange with a demented hitchhiker, the group ends up at an old farmhouse. At first, the house appears to be abandoned, but soon, the evil residents begin to wreak havoc on the youngsters’ lives.

Jaws (1975)

During the height of beach season, the Massachusetts resort town of Amity Island is terrorized one summer by surprise attacks from a great white shark. Three unlikely partners team up to hunt down the rogue and destroy it: the new chief of police from New York, a young university-educated oceanographer, and a crusty old-time fisherman.

Carrie (1976)

Carrie White has her first period while showering after a physical education class. Her mother, Margaret, a religious fanatic, never told her about menstruation, so Carrie thinks she is bleeding to death. Her cries for help are met with abuse by the entire gym class. The gym teacher, Miss Collins is horrified at Carrie’s naivete.

Halloween (1978)

An exercise in simple, pure horror, HALLOWEEN takes us into the world of a mad killer, Michael Myers, who at a very young age stabbed his older sister to death. Locked away for many years in a mental hospital Michael escapes one night and returns to his hometown to continue his killing spree.

Alien (1979)

Inside a crashed ship, the crew members come upon strange pods, one of which spews forth a repellently fleshy insectile creature that locks on to the face of the unlucky Kane. Despite Ripley’s advice, science officer Ash allows Kane to return to the ship, where the creature finally releases its grip.

Friday the 13th (1980)

The film begins in 1958 as two summer camp counselors at Camp Crystal Lake sneak away from a campfire sing-along to have sex. Before they can completely undress, an unseen assailant sneaks into the room and murders them both.

Salem’s Lot (1979)

A writer returns to his New England home town only to find its genteel citizens are turning into vampires. This cable version of SALEM’S LOT was released theatrically overseas as BLOOD THIRST and… A writer returns to his New England home town only to find its genteel citizens are turning into vampires.

The Shining (1980)

Jack Torrance, a Vermont schoolteacher working at the Overlook as a winter caretaker. The glorious early-20th century resort only operates in warm weather because the snowy roads deny access in the colder months, so Jack brings his wife, Wendy, with him, as well as his young son, Danny, who possesses some unique psychic powers.

The Howling (1981)

Popular female reporter in Los Angeles who cannot escape the horror of a traumatic experience that she suffered while trying to capture Eddie Quist, a dangerous serial killer. When her psychologist recommends a retreat to “The Colony,” up the Northern California coast, she reluctantly agrees, hoping to recover from her nightmarish visions.

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

David Kessler and Jack Goodman are two American students on a backpacking tour of Europe. Wandering the backroads of gloomy East Proctor, England, they find a pub where the unhelpful locals act suspiciously strange. The unsuspecting boys flee the pub in search of lodging after being warned to avoid the moors.

Poltergeist (1982)

Life in the Freeling family’s tract home is comfortably bland, but frisky poltergeists soon put a little excitement into their daily routine–moving furniture and communicating with their youngest daughter, Carol Anne, through the television set. Unfortunately, harmless pranks quickly turn nasty and the previously friendly ghosts kidnap Carol Anne, trapping her in the spirit world.

The Thing (1982)

A group of weary scientists enduring the winter in an isolated camp deep in Antarctica chance upon an alien spacecraft buried in the ice. Near the strange craft is the body of an alien being, frozen solid. Thinking they have made the find of a lifetime, the scientists bring the alien body back to camp and thaw it out.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

A replusive, decaying figure with razor-sharp appendages (and an even sharper sense of humor!) suddenly appears in the dreams of four Los Angeles teenagers. It is the ghost of Freddy Krueger. A replusive, decaying figure with razor-sharp appendages (and an even sharper sense of humor!) suddenly appears in the dreams of four Los Angeles teenagers.

The Hitcher (1985)

When a young man, driving to California by himself, naively picks up a hitchhiker, he gets more than he bargained for: the hitcher is a serial killer who mercilessly slashes anyone he meets. When a young man, driving to California by himself, naively picks up a hitchhiker, he gets more than he bargained for: the hitcher is a serial killer who mercilessly slashes anyone he meets.

Aliens (1986)

Ripley, the sole survivor from the original ALIEN, is awakened after 57 years of drifting through space, her stories disbelieved by Company executives who tell her that the alien’s planet is now inhabited and colonized. When contact is suddenly lost with the colonists, Ripley returns to the planet with a squad of marines, an android, and a Company executive with a mission of his own.

The Fly (1986)

Spaced-out scientist who invents a genetic teleportation machine and accidentally transforms himself into a fly. In the horrifyingly graphic detail that is his trademark, Cronenberg depicts the scientist’s painful mutation from human into insect.

Hellraiser (1987)

The tale of a man and wife who move into an old house and discover a hideous creature–the man’s half-brother, who is also the woman’s former lover–hiding upstairs. Having lost his earthly body to a trio of S&M demons called the Cenobites, he is brought back into existence by a drop of blood on the floor.

Evil Dead II (1987)

Group of people are trapped in a cabin while ancient evil lurks outside and threatens a fate worse than death. Can brawny wiseguy Ash save the day, or will his dead girlfriend come back to cause more trouble?

Child’s Play (1988)

The Lake Shore Strangler, a mass murderer who has plagued the Chicago area for months, meets his untimely end when he gets shot in a toy warehouse. Left for dead, the killer summons the strength to.

Pet Sematary (1989)

Dr. Louis Creed, having just moved to Maine with his wife and two children, is heartbroken when he finds that his daughter’s beloved cat has been hit by a truck and killed. Thankfully, a strange, elderly neighbor called Jud knows a secret that may spare the young girl’s tears.

Arachnophobia (1990)

The film’s opening moments picture an insect expert digging up and then tracking the travels of a poisonous male spider who has burrowed in the coffin of one of its victims from the Venezuelan jungle to California. Although the scientist knows they are deadly, he wants to pursue his research regardless of the danger.

Misery (1990)

Romance author Paul Sheldon longs for parting with Misery. Sheldon’s plucky heroine of seven novels has delivered Sheldon fame and fortune and recognition beyond the average writer’s dreams, but she is also interminably linked to him.

Cape Fear (1991)

Public defender Sam Bowden served as the attorney for brutal rapist Max Cady at his arraignment. Shocked by the violence of Cady’s crime, Sam duplicitously withheld information regarding the sexually promiscuous activities of Cady’s rape victim–information that might have won Max’s acquittal.

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

FBI trainee Clarice Starling is sent by her supervisor to interview ferociously intelligent serial killer Hannibal “The Cannibal” Lechter at his cell in a Maryland mental hospital. The FBI hopes Lechter can provide insight into the mind of killer-at-large, Buffalo Bill, whose current abductee happens to be the daughter of a senator.

Army of Darkness (1993)

Through a magic spell, Ash, a modern-day discount-store employee, finds himself back in the middle ages. Given the key to return home by an alchemist, he bungles the incantation and, instead, releases the forces of darkness. Now Ash has one job to do before transporting to the future: defeat the army of the evil dead… if they don’t defeat him first.

Seven (1995)

Set in a perpetually gloomy unnamed city, the film follows Somerset, a retiring police detective, as he experiences his final week on the job, reluctantly working with assertive newcomer Mills. When an obese man is found brutally murdered in his home, the seasoned Somerset realizes this is no ordinary killing–someone tortured him because of his appetite.

Scream (1996)

A hyper-intelligent serial killer preys on the teenage denizens of a small town, using their fascination with horror movie conventions to set up his diabolical doings. An intelligent, well-crafted… A hyper-intelligent serial killer preys on the teenage denizens of a small town, using their fascination with horror movie conventions to set up his diabolical doings.

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

The film is composed entirely of reportedly “found” footage shot by three missing college students who made a journey to the woods of Western Maryland in 1994 with the purpose of making a documentary about a “witch” of local legend who is linked to murders and mysterious occurrences spanning 200 years.

The Sixth Sense (1999)

Dr. Malcolm Crowe, a successful Philadelphia child psychologist who is haunted by the sudden reappearance and suicide of a former patient. Months later Dr. Crowe encounters Cole Sear, a troubled, withdrawn young boy who bears a striking similarity to his earlier patient. Dr. Crowe is compelled to help Cole, not only for the boy’s sake, but for his own redemption.

The Ring (2002)

Group of teenagers all die suddenly and inexplicably exactly one week after watching a mysterious videotape at a remote cabin in the Pacific Northwest. Journalist Rachel Keller, a relative of one of the victims, begins an investigation that leads to a mountain resort where she discovers the tape, which contains footage of random and surreal images.

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Joined by Shaun immature and ever-present roommate, Ed, Shaun excels at nothing except drinking pints of ale and watching television, which causes friction with his girlfriend, Liz. Before Shaun can save his relationship, however, he’s got to fend off a horde of zombies that are slowly taking over the city.

Saw (2004)

A young man named Adam wakes to find himself chained to a rusty pipe inside a decrepit subterranean chamber. Chained to the opposite side of the room is another bewildered captive, Dr. Lawrence Gordon. Between them is a dead man lying in a pool of blood, holding a .38 in his hand. Neither man knows why he has been abducted, but instructions left on a microcassette order Dr. Gordon to kill Adam within eight hours.

Dawn of the Dead (2004)

The action begins with nurse Ana waking up to discover her boyfriend has become a tasty midnight snack for a formerly cute neighboring kid. To her horror, she realizes that the whole town is in a similar state of ghoulishness, until she runs into still-alive cop Kenneth; the levelheaded Michael; and Andre, a rebel with a pregnant wife in tow.

The Amityville Horror (2005)

When George and Kathy Lutz come across a beautiful river-front colonial home being sold for a steal, they suspect a catch. Once informed that the home was the site of a grisly mass murder, they decide to buy the house anyway and eagerly move in, bringing with them Kathy’s three children from a previous marriage.

Hostel (2006)

Paxton and Josh have embarked upon a hedonistic tour of the continent, and somewhere along the way they picked up an Icelandic lunk named Oli. In Amsterdam the trio partakes of the pastimes most dear to frat boys everywhere: weed, prostitutes, and nightclubs. But when a fellow traveler tells these thrill-seekers about the decadent scene that awaits them in Bratislava…

The Omen (2006)

Robert Thorn is unaware of such dark prophecies. Thorn, a senior American diplomat, has other things on his mind. His wife, Katherine, has endured a difficult delivery and she’s as yet unaware their newborn child has died. Devastated by the loss, Thorn’s concern turns to Katherine, who had suffered two previous miscarriages. The news will surely devastate her.

28 Days Later (2007)

Six months after the rage virus was inflicted on the population of Great Britain, the US Army helps to secure a small area of London for the survivors to repopulate and start again. But not everything goes to plan.

The Mist (2007)

This film adaptation of a Stephen King novel is an intense and terrifying ride from beginning to end. The monsters are scary to be sure, but it is the humans that provide the real horror.

Shutter (2008)

A newly married couple discovers disturbing, ghostly images in photographs they develop after a tragic accident. Fearing the manifestations may be connected, they investigate and learn that some mysteries are better left unsolved.

The Eye (2008)

The remake of the Hong Kong film “Jian Gui”, a woman who receives an eye transplant that allows her to see into the supernatural world.

The Uninvited (2009)

Anna Rydell returns home to her sister (and best friend) Alex after a stint in a mental hospital, though her recovery is jeopardized thanks to her cruel stepmother, aloof father, and the presence of a ghost in their home.

Pandorum (2009)

A pair of crew members aboard a spaceship wake up with no knowledge of their mission or their identities.

My Bloody Valentine (2009)

Tom returns to his hometown on the tenth anniversary of the Valentine’s night massacre that claimed the lives of 22 people. Instead of a homecoming, however, Tom finds himself suspected of committing the murders, and it seems like his old flame is the only one will believes he’s innocent.

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In this article, I will go over a few steps you should take to optimize your WordPress installation for search engines. While WordPress has good SEO features out of the box, these tips will help you maximize your search engine results while also making sure your site is the best it can be.

1. Optimize your titles

By default, WordPress usually puts the title of your blog before the actual post title. Since most search engines only display the first 50-64 characters of your <title> tag, you want the actual blog post title to come first.

For example:

Tips for Making WordPress Friendly to Search Engines - YourSiteName.com

is better than:

YourSiteName.com - Tips for Making WordPress Friendly to Search Engines

Always be sure that the title of your post comes before anything else. Two main reasons are:

1. Search engines will like you more if the title of the post comes first. This helps them put more importance to the keywords in the title.

2. A descriptive and optimized title is one of the most important aspects of your page SEO. The title lets the search engine and users know exactly what this page is about before they visit it.

Use the All In One SEO plugin to keep the proper title formats over an entire blog without having to edit any template files. The above screenshot shows the settings we currently use on WPSwitch.

2. Use good meta descriptions

Most bloggers who use WordPress never do much on the SEO side for meta descriptions because they believe that the auto generated descriptions that comes standard with WordPress is good enough; but that’s not truly the case if you’re concerned about effective keyword indexing on search engines.

Your best chance of getting a high ranking on a per-post basis is by manually typing in a good description for every article you write. Again, I would suggest using the All In One SEO plugin as it allows you to do this very easily. By combining a keyword-rich title with a matching description, you are bound to see an increase in search traffic.

As you can see in the two screenshots above, by optimizing meta descriptions, one of our pages is able ranked highly (withing the first 5-10 results in Google) for a particular search term. Now that you know the importance of a detailed and keyword-rich description, I hope you see some great results.

3. Rewrite your URLs with permalinks

Permalinks are enhancements to your existing URLs that can improve search engine optimization by presenting your post, page, and archive URLs as something like:

http://sixrevisions.com/tools/managing-your-fonts/

rather than

http://sixrevisions.com/?p=423

Changing the default web addresses/URLs that WordPress generates to something more readable is effective to search engine optimization because it is presumed that URLs are taken into consideration when indexing and prioritizing search results. Often, these URLs are called "pretty URLs" because they’re much more readable and gives the users a clue as to what the web page will be about (as in the above comparison of URLs).

Making your permalinks friendlier and readable requires little more than a short trip to your WordPress admin panel. Once you are there, go to Settings > Permalinks and edit the settings as shown in this image below:

I prefer to include the category in my title and write the URLs like this:

/%category%/%postname%

This would result in a format that looks like:

http://example.com/the-category/the-post-title

if you want it even shorter you can exclude the category and just use the following value for the Custom Structure setting:

/%postname%/

If you are now just setting up a new WordPress site, then you are set to go. If your site has been up for a while, than I suggest using the redirection plugin so that your visitors will not get the 404 page after you rewrite your URLs to pretty URLs.

4. Use breadcrumbs

Using breadcrumbs on a WordPress site is often overlooked but can be a huge benefit for your readers and for SEO. Links with good key words that relate to the post topic and links to internal web pages is one of the ways search engines determine the relevance of a web page to search terms.

By using breadcrumbs, you make it easier for the readers to navigate and help the search engines to discover the structure of your website. On WPSwitch, we use the Breadcrumbs Plugin written by Joost De Valk. It only takes about five minutes to set up. (Find more helpful WordPress plugins).

5. Generate an XML Sitemap for search engines

An XML Sitemap is a listing of all the pages and posts on your website. This helps the search engine crawlers get a machine-readable structure of your websites. Having a properly structured sitemap has great benefits in the search engines.

Thanks to the massive amount of plugins, generating a sitemap with WordPress is super easy. I suggest using the XML Sitemaps.

This plugin will generate a special XML sitemap that will assist search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo and Ask.com in more extensively and accurately indexing your posts and pages. The plugin supports various WordPress generated pages as well as custom URLs. Additionally, it notifies all major search engines every time you create a post about the new content by pinging them.

6. Describe your post images meaningfully

Another often-neglected item in WordPress SEO is using proper and keyword-accurate alt and title attributes with images in a post or page. Adding a short description of your image using proper keywords can boost your search engine hits through image searches like the one from Google Images. Since you are using WordPress, adding alt and title attribute values to images is easy.

While saving your image, be sure to give a short and simple name with a dash between each keyword. For example, if you have a picture of a California Redwood tree, name it appropriately, such as california-redwood-tree.jpg or california_redwood_tree.jpg instead of something vague and non-descriptive like postimage03.jpg or screenshot20.jpg.

(read about tools for optimizing your images).

Once you place your image in a WordPress post or page, it will automatically use the title given as the proper alt description.

If it does not fill it in automatically, you can type a description in the title input field. By implementing these image attributes, it will also make it easier for people who use a screen reader to browse your site.

In summary: don’t neglect your images, name them properly, and assign meaningful title and alt attributes to them.

7. Link to related posts

One favorable method for helping search engines find content that is relevant to a given web page is adding a "related posts" section that links to other posts that have a connected subject.

By doing so, you also have the primary benefit of showing your readers other posts that they may want to read as well.

Many WordPress plugins will automatically generate a list of related posts for each of your posts. There are way to many too mention here, but you can find a list in the WordPress plugins section at WordPress.org just by searching "related posts".

WPSwitch currently usees the Yet Another Related Posts Plugin and it works very well. This is our favorite because it gives you a templating system that allows control over how the related posts are displayed.

8. Use good keywords in post headings

Search engines give more weight to keyword items depending on what type of heading that is being used. To get the most juice out of your titles, make sure the post title is an <h1>.

The name of your blog should only be an <h1> on your front page. On single, post, and category pages, it should be no more than an <h3>, some even choose to use other HTML elements such as a <p> element to keep the markup semantic. The title of your site does not need to carry as much weight as the topic you are writing about.

To make sure your site name is only an <h1> on the home page, you can use the code below and modify it to work with your theme in the header.php file. This checks to see if you are on the home page or other pages and decides what heading tag to use. Most people use this link for the logo of the site linking back to the index.

<div id="logo">
<?php if(is_home()) : ?>
<h1>
  <a href="<?php echo get_option('home'); ?>"><?php bloginfo('name'); ?></a>
</h1>
<?php else : ?>
<a href="<?php echo get_option('home'); ?>"><?php bloginfo('name'); ?></a>
<?php endif;  ?>
</div>

When fixing your headings on posts or pages find the code that looks like this:

<h1><a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>"><?php the_title(); ?></a></h1>

Headings are super easy to edit and are found in the single.php and page.php and various archive pages of your WordPress theme. If your current theme does not use headings in this manner, I suggest you take a few minutes to make this easy change.

9. Avoiding duplicate content with robots.txt

With WordPress showing the same posts on multiple pages like the index, tag pages, archives, author pages, and category pages, it is very easy to have duplicate content. Duplicate content, in the eyes of search engines, is frowned upon. By creating a robots.txt file, you can completely avoid this issue.

If you want to create your own robots.txt file, you can use the following:

User-agent: *
 	Allow: /

Disallow: /wp-content/
 	Disallow: /trackback/
 	Disallow: /wp-admin/
 	Disallow: /archives/
 	Disallow: /*?
 	Disallow: /*.js$
 	Disallow: /*.inc$
 	Disallow: /*.css$
 	Disallow: */trackback/
 	Disallow: /c/
 	Disallow: /author/
 	Disallow: /tag/

User-agent: Mediapartners-Google
 	Allow: /

User-agent: Adsbot-Google
 	Allow: /

User-agent: Googlebot-Image
 	Allow: /

User-agent: Googlebot-Mobile
 	Allow: /

#User-agent: ia_archiver-web.archive.org
 	#Disallow: /

Sitemap: http://wpswitch.com/robots.txt

This is directly from the current Robots.txt we’re using over at WPSwitch. If you use this, be sure to change the Disallow: /c/ to whatever category structure you are using like /category/, for example.

We also disabled indexing of all .js, css, and .inc files that shouldn’t be search-engine crawlable.

A much easier way if you are not code-savvy is to use the Robots Meta plugin. This modifies the default one made by WordPress from your original install.

Summary

I covered just a few easy ways to create WordPress sites that search engines will love. I know this seems like a lot of busy work, but if you sit down for a few hours, the return of your time investment will be worth your time. If you feel overwhelmed by the many things listed here, you don’t have to do them all at once. Take a few minutes out of every day and do them one at a time. By the end of the week, you will have an SEO optimized blog that you and the search engines will be proud of showing in their search results.

Need help? Got questions?

If you still need some help or simply don’t have the time to make these changes, just give me a shout in the comments here or on WPSwitch and I will see what I can do to help you.

Related Content

• 16 WordPress Sites to Help You Build a Better Blog
• 10 WordPress Plugins Guaranteed to Save You Time
• 15 helpful WordPress plugins for the savvy user
• Related categories: WordPress and Web Development

About the Author

Matt Alexander is a passionate Web junkie from Dallas, TX specializing in WordPress blog design. He is currently a full time freelance designer and blogger at WPSwitch. If you need some help with WordPress you can always find him on Twitter.

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According to The Register, , Mozilla may soon build a marketplace for add-ons:

Mozilla has said it will “probably” open a marketplace for Firefox add-ons sometime next year.

Add-ons product manager Justin Scott (reluctantly) announced the news this morning at an add-on-happy conference in Mozilla’s home town of Mountain View, California. “We’ll probably be doing a marketplace pilot in 2010,” he said.

Scott did not provide details. But earlier in the morning, he did say that Mozilla has no intention of using DRM – not that you would have expected anything else. “I don’t know what we’ll do, but we won’t do DRM,” he said.

It wouldn’t be too surprising to see Moz bolt in a payment model to the existing add-on repo, which already has a review process. Of course, once you start paying developers to build add-ons, many more add-ons will need to be reviewed and Mozilla will have to make tough decisions about to what extent add-ons will be reviewed, if at all, and what kind of charge, if any, will be imposed on add-on providers.

There are already some browser extensions that come with a price tag. This happens in both IE and Safari, both browsers lacking a vibrant extension community; and it also happens with Firefox, where there is a vibrant community of typically free, open-source, extensions.

An add-on marketplace would formalize the payment model and add a big incentive for developers to build seriously useful add-ons, given the possibility of reaching a market in the hundreds of millions. The flipside is that we might no longer see free versions of some of our favorite add-ons. Given its open-source DNA, it might be nice to see a “donate” button beside any of the free offerings in the store.

It’s also interesting to consider how an app store might open up a marketplace for new types of add-ons. For example, if you see the browser as a convenient sandbox to drop small desktop apps into, we could end up with simple games and utilities which might otherwise be released as shareware. Print-on-demand might be another application.

This is all hypothetical for now, but it’s still fun to speculate on what could become of AMO!

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These are some cool illustrations from Mike Mitchell’s portfolio. He is a 27 year old illustrator / concept artist currently residing in Los Angeles, California. I really like his skull illustrations with the big heads.

Visit Mike Mitchell’s website here.

(Seen at Surfstation)

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What does the future of search look like? In Google’s world, much of it seems to revolve around getting away from the desktop.

At an event in California today, the company unveiled a number of new search technologies, including a Labs feature it calls “Google Goggles” that allows users to snap a picture and get information about it (not unlike other technologies we’ve previously written about).

Google’s also demonstrated a number of new voice search features — such as the ability to speak in one language and have resulted translated on the fly into another — as well as new location features, like making the mobile Google.com homepage location-aware.

The event is still ongoing, and we’ll post updates as we learn more.

Tags: Google

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Water beds seem to have gone out of fashion and quickly as they came in. And yet, many of us still cling to the idea is something cool, unusual and unique. While traditional beds filled with water might not be as functional or comfortable as we had hoped, designers are still experimenting with the potential combinations of liquid volumes and relaxation objects in the home.

A water bed surrounded by a moat – what an interesting way to wake up in the morning. Still, it is certainly not something for sleep walkers. We like to relax in water though, right? So how about taking water and applying it to another piece of furniture … such as a couch? Probably a crazy idea, but it does get you thinking about the other strange and interesting ways we can mix water with furniture design.

SOURCE

Main Image Source

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This week, Perfect 10 completed its filing of a motion for sanctions against Google in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Perfect 10 is accusing Google of "widespread discovery abuse," which the company says includes multiple violations of three separate court orders.

Perfect 10′s legal feud with Google began back in 2004. The case dealt with Google’s use of thumbnails from Perfect 10′s site. It was essentially a question of whether or not that was considered fair use. Google had eventually lost the case, but the ruling against Google had been tossed out by an appeals panel. That was in 2007. However, it did not end there. Fast forward to now.

"Google appears to have the view that it is above the law," says Perfect 10 President, Dr. Norm Zada. "We spent a great deal of time and effort obtaining Court orders requiring Google to produce documents critical to our case. In our view, Google has not complied with those orders."

Perfect 10 says the case revolves around the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which was passed by Congress in 1998 to address issues concerning copyright infringement on the Internet.

"Under the DMCA, a search engine such as Google may receive limited immunity from monetary damages for copyright infringement if it complies with the requirements of the DMCA," Zada says. "The search engine must act expeditiously to remove or disable access to infringing material upon receiving notice of infringement from the copyright owner, and it must adopt a procedure so that copyright holders will not have to provide the search engine with notices about the same infringing material or the same infringers over and over."

Perfect 10 says it has argued that Google has "failed to satisfy" these things. Perfect 10 says a judge ordered Google to produce its DMCA log, which the company says is defined as "a spreadsheet-type document summarizing DMCA notices received, the identity of the notifying party and the accused infringer, and the actions (if any) taken in response."

Perfect 10 is insisting in its press release that Google has violated multiple court orders, and that Perfect 10 can’t "fairly litigate the case" without such documents. 

Perfect 10′s  motion for sanctions against Google is currently set for hearing on December 21. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Perfect 10 hasn’t had the best of luck in the past.

Related Articles:

> Court Is OK With Sexy Google Images

> Perfect 10 Loses Again

> Perfect 10 Tries Again, This Time With MSN

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His projects have impressive moves, the volume and the materials of the buildings make it seem part of the landscape with fascinating inserts. The architecture of Antoine Predock is a unique experience for its users.

<!–break–>

Antoine Predock was born in 1936 in Lebanon, Missouri. He studied at the School of Architecture at the University of New Mexico and graduated from Columbia University. But it was in New Mexico where he cultivated his early concepts, learning to respect the cultural roots of the site, which serves as a principle for all his works.

Learn more at predock.com

“ New Mexico has formed my experience in an all-pervasive sense. I don’t think of New Mexico as a region. I think of it as a force that has entered my system, a force that is composed of many things … Lessons learned in the American Southwest apply anywhere in the world – my “regionalism” is portable.”

In addition to the natural conditions of the site, such as prevailing winds and movement of the sun that are basic to any project, Predock believes in the existing aura of the space, a transcendental power that emanates from the earth. Too philosophical? Looking at his work not so much.

Influences

During his period at Columbia University, Predock got involved with dance and body in space through the work of Jennifer Masley, Merce Cunningham, Yvonne Rainier, and then Anna Halprin.

“This influenced my work profoundly. I think of my buildings as processional events, as choreographic events; they are an accumulation of vantage points both perceptual and experiential.”

His early education was based on modernism and considers the influence of of a young Louis Kahn, very important for his career. The intensity and attention to Frank Lloyd Wright’s details were also important for him.

Projects

Some of his projects seem more to be acts of nature, as if the ground shifted for a moment and stopped again. However, other projects seem to be in constant motion, telling a story in each detail of the building. All these elements added up to a line of simple raw materials, makes a mere look at his work become an indescribable experience.

In 2006, Predock was awarded the AIA Gold Medal, joining a select group of award-winning architects. The office Antoine Predock Architect PC now has 3 studios: Taipei, California and identified as its base, New Mexico.

School of Architecture and Planning, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA

Highlands Pond House, Colorado, USA

Rice University South Plant, Houston, Texas, USA

San Diego Padres Ballpark, San Diego, California, USA

Cornerstone Arts Center, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA

Mesa del Sol Town Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Robert Hoag Rawlings Public Library, Pueblo, USA

Student Activity and Recreation Center, Columbus, Ohio, USA

Austin City Hall and Public Plaza, Austin, Texas, USA

Flint RiverQuarium, Albany, Georgia

Logjam House, Rio Blanco, USA

Gateway Center and Plaza, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

Arizona Science Center, Phoenix, Arizona, USA

“Critical to the spirit in my work is the enigmatic quality of the desert. You think you’ve got it, you think you understand; then you turn
over a rock or crawl under a larger rock and you discover other worlds, other realms within.”

Venice House, Venice, California, USA

West Mesa House, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Dance Studio, San Diego, California, USA

Social Sciences and Humanities Building, Davis, California, USA

Mesa Public Library, Los Alamos, USA

Rosenthal House, Manhattan Beach, California, USA

“I personally retain a hands-on connection to my design process working with clay, ink, pastel and collage, but I feel deeply connected to
the digital realm at the same time. Computer technologies and the expansive internet only make my studio’s process richer, more complex and more complete
than ever before. I have extraordinarily talented, young colleagues who have grown up in cyberspace.”

Canadian Museum for Human Rights, Winnipeg, Canada

National Palace Museum Southern Branch, Chiayi County, Taiwan

National Archive of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark

About the author

My name is Marcelo Seferin, I’m an architect from Porto Alegre, Brazil and I’m the chief architect at Seferin Arquitetura, an office that works with architecture, interior design and sustainability projects. You can check our work at http://www.seferinarquitetura.com.br and you can follow me at twiiter http://www.twitter.com/mseferin.

Sponsored Links:

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I’ve asked two of my favourite up and coming designer/illustrators to talk to me about mixed media illustration, specifically about the importance of telling a visual story with your pieces and what makes them tick. I’ve highlighted some of their best pieces and asked them to explain the deeper meaning behind them.

This multi person interview is a new type article on Designfeedr, if you want more of this stuff you know what to do, comment and let me know!

Thanks for taking the time to do this feature article. For starters please introduce yourself to the readers.

First, a big thanks to designfeedr for having Kode and I for this little dialog. My name is Anthony Harmon, I’m 25 and currently living in San Diego, California. I surf, snowboard, fly fish, eat a ton of chile relleno burritos, do my best to stay up on the latest discoveries with science, enjoy philosophy and discussions revolving around consciousness and claim The Big Lebowski as my all time favorite movie.

Names kode, I’m 23 from melbourne australia i run the company BossLogic. I have been a graphic designer well over 5 years now but I’m also studying Communication design and photography to expand my skill set.

Consciousness is a representation of how I imagine energies flowing in and out of the body during meditation. I incorporated the image of the Buddha for clarity of the concept. This was a really fun piece to make and has gotten a great response within the community. – Anthony Harmon

Respect is part of a 2 part series I did with the talented anthony. It depicts a powerful figure standing above the bleeding earth on the day of decent – Kode Abdo

It seems the line between design, illustration and art keeps on blurring. Blogs are calling illustrations “designs”, illustrators are referring to themselves as artists and artists are suddenly all over design sites. What is your take on this?

I think a distinction in language is important especially from the artist/client perspective. There needs to be a mutual understanding of what the client is asking for and what he/she should expect from an artist. That being said, I think this “blurring” of terminology is stemming largely from the fact that many artists, illustrators and designers are themselves putting their hands in several creative cookie jars. The dynamic flexibility offered in today’s applications lends itself to experimentation and the crossing of creative fields. It’s a natural and necessary progression that is/will continue to produce fresh approaches to design.

I agree with Anthony on this though I also believe that clients need direction at times and as designers and creative minds we should listen and paint the picture of their image, be that design, illustration or anything in between. That way we can go from pitching to actually producing.

What did you see is the image of the man that is left alone in this world. He saw all the wars, the agony and poverty yet could not change a thing – Kode Abdo

New illustrators often focus solely on style and forget to imbue a piece with a concept or story. What advice can you give in this respect?

That’s where I found myself when I started. These days I can only do design if it means something to me or the person viewing it. Style is what divides us from other artists but I can’t do a piece anymore without incorporating it with story.

My advice is that eye candy design is great to look at but with a story behind it you’ll feel something which puts the work on a whole other level.

I think lots of people view coming up with a concept as the expendable cherry on top while it’s actually the essential foundation for any successful piece to stand on. I’m not saying there aren’t plenty of aesthetically rich pieces without a concept, but when we “separate the men from the boys” the great designers consider every aspect of a design. The concept ties a piece together. It stitches the individual elements into one cohesive piece. It gives a sense of richness and completeness sometimes even on a subconscious level.

Getting into the habit of coming up with a concept as part of the initial design process will pay off in spades as you progress as an artist. It’s something that won’t go away and is certainly worth your effort, so do it!

Once you’ve found the inspiration for a new piece how do you proceed to flesh the concept out?

I’ll usually start with a very rough compositional sketch. Then I spend hours upon mind numbing hours searching for good quality stock photography (the fun part!). Next I crop out the elements of each image I’m going to use (the other fun part!). I then put the piece together layer by layer like a delicious 7 layer bean dip. After that I work on blending, the lighting and end with coloring and color correction.

See, Pen and paper for the win I too always start with my best friends the sketchbook and the pen. I basically draw out what I call blueprints, kind of like how movie makers do story boards. I then get the resources I can find online and bring out my Canon 5D MKII for the ones I can’t find.

Eden came about after reading a book on the indigenous shamanistic cultures in South America. In the book it discusses the Shaman’s ability to control the elements and in particular the weather. The concept was to have someone summoning the spirit of the earth. – Anthony Harmon

Need for greed symbolizes the higher power in the world today. Money is the only thing on their minds while we await the savior that will never come. – Kode Abdo

Follow the white rabbit obviously revolves around the Alice in Wonderland story. A little cliche, but whatever. I tried to join unusual perspectives from the stock to give a disjointed surreal effect. – Anthony Harmon

What is the one piece of advice you’d like to give struggling illustrators? Struggling how?

I know they’ve have heard it a million times before but don’t give up if you love doing it. Trial and error is what makes you great in the end, even if you keep getting bad feedback on your work build off that point and challenge yourself to do better on your next project. I have done hundreds of pieces I didn’t like in the end but still learnt a lot from since trial and error is key.

If you are struggling for ideas, can’t quite get things to look the way you want or are feeling plum out of creative juices (no pun intended) it may be time for a break. I have days where I’m so utterly upside down in what I’m doing that I drastically overwork a piece or waste hours upon hours “polishing a turd”. Sometimes the best thing to do is take a step back, take your mind off of art and go do something that makes you happy. Sometimes I drop everything and go surfing for an hour or two, come back and gasp at the monstrosity I thought was a stroke of genius hours earlier. Take a break and come back to it later.

World Domination shows the earth has reached it’s demise with evil being the victor. This version was straight out the mind of anthony – Kode Abdo

How important are trends in design and illustration? In your opinion does embracing the hot new thing as it comes along get you more exposure or can it actually work against you?

I think trends are an inescapable part of anything creative and they have their place and value. Trends help to propel the industry forward particularly from the consumer stand point. Personally I enjoy keeping tabs on the mainstream circuit. Experimenting with popular techniques and aesthetics keeps me in touch with what I am often asked to produce from clients. I see it as another trick in my bag, but am careful to not become absorbed or lose track of personal style. Depending on how you walk the fine line, trends can either put you in the lime light or sink your battle ship. Watch yar step mateys.

Exactly. It’s a double edge sword, you can get exposure out of it or you can be labeled a trend follower. In my opinion it’s the trend setters that shine in the end.

Fast forward five years into the future: What will illustration be like and how will you have adopted to this?

I think we are on the cusp of some serious revelations within the world of technology. I’ve been seeing more and more on the multi-touch screens that Microsoft claims will replace the need for keyboards and mice. Obviously this would open up a pandora’s box for software developers everywhere. I foresee much more hands on, interactive, animated design taking the front lines. I hope the good people at Adobe are having some serious brainstorming sessions as how to best utilize something like this.

A lot of designers are converting to 3D which is seeing more and more use. I’m not saying this is a bad thing, just that it will possibly be what design is in five years.

Thanks for the time guys. Be sure to check out the portfolios of both Kode Abdo and Anthony Harmon.

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This is a really huge article showcasing beautiful landscape desktop wallpapers, where everybody should find one, which suits for their desktop perfectly. Maybe there is winter coming, but we can warm our hearts with colourful, deep and inspiring wallpaper, while taking break or working hard on deadlines. Whole article is ordered in resolutions from lowest to highest, from 1280×960 to 2560×1600 and even higher. Just scroll through, enjoy and pick up your favorite wallpaper!

1.Lost Lagoon – Print Version by stotty

Resolution: 1280×960

2. Terragen – Erat by tigaer

Resolution: 1280×1024

3.

Breaking The Foundationby Vincent Hernandez

Resolution: 1280×1024

4. Eclipse III. WP by realityDream

Resolution: 1280×1024

5. Koh Kood Sunset Wallpaper by nxxos

Resolution: 1280×1024

6. Colorful Dream by hypnotic

Resolution: 1280×1024

7.

Beautiful Flower

Resolution: 1280×1024

8. Blue Waters And Hills Landscape

Resolution: 1280×1024

9. Neverending Walk

Resolution: 1280×1024

10. Hill Houses

Resolution: 1280×1024

11. Riverside by Deinha1974

Resolution: 1440×900

12. Green Land by Deinha1974

Resolution: 1440×900

13. Divine Connection by Deinha1974

Resolution: 1440×900

14. IR Island by nxxos

Resolution: 1680×1050

15. Seasonal Rains by gtxx1015

Resolution: 1680×1050

16. Lovely Hill Background 16:10 by Mega-Art

Resolution: 1680×1050

17. Grass by Jorlin

Resolution: 1680×1050

18. Auroral Dawn by dilekt

Resolution: 1600×1200

19. Newport Beach, California

Resolution: 1600×1200

20. Tahitian Paradise

Resolution: 1600×1200

21. Mystical Waters, Yosemite National Park, Califor

Resolution: 1600×1200

22. Best Of Nature Islands Wallpaper Pack 2

Resolution: 1600×1200

23. Alpine by Gus7avO

Resolution: 1600×1200

24. Luminosity by dilekt

Resolution: 1920×1200

25. Valley of Lambs by Deinha1974

Resolution: 1920×1200

26. Dawn On The Deck by l8

Resolution: 1920×1200

27. Down On The Deck by l8

Resolution: 1920×1200

28. End of Autumn by peehs

Resolution: 1920×1200

29. Suite Clouds Rain

Resolution: 1920×1200

30. Pebble beach

Resolution: 1920×1200

31. Ibis

Resolution: 1920×1200

32. Blue Dock by dimage

Resolution: 1920×1200

33. Taiwan Wallpaper Pack

Resolution: 1920×1200

34. Mistery by atanastsvetkov

Resolution: 1920×1200

35. Grand Sunset by myINQI

Resolution: 2560×1600

36. Reichenbacherhof III by Hexaloner

Resolution: 2560×1600

37. Hungarian Skies WP by realityDream

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

38. Enter The Road

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

39. Grizzly River

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

40. Rainy day in sunny june by ssilence

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

41. Crazy Sun

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

42. The Spectrum Of The Sky

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

43. Silence

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

44. Darkness To Light

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

45. Grassy Sunset

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

46. Before The Storm

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

47. Canadian Pacific Railway

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

48. Lake Louise

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

49. Moraine Lake

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

50. Stream’s End

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

51. Monumental Simplicity

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

52. Turquoise Reflections

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

53. Beachside Wallpaper Pack by r3novatio

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

54. Same Color At Night

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

55. Beautiful Beach

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

56. Silent Day

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

57. Incredible View

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

58. Conquer the World by Dawn42

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

59. GRNSCR by NickCreevy

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

60. Daniel Island Golf Course

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

61. I’ve reached the end of the world

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

62. I love blue!

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

63. Golf Club

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

64. Sunrise over the fog

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

65. Tree in a Spring Meadow

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

66. The end of a great weekend

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

67. Dramatic Sky

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

68. HD Wallpaper: Glacier Sunrise

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

69. Route to Castle Mountain

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

70. The Opal Lake

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

71. Cloud Canyon HD Wallpaper

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

72. Balance Wallpaper

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

73. Forever Lake

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

74. Smoke on the Water

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

75. House in the Sea

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

76. The Rising Sun by Mac002

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

77. Horsepower by TheAL

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

78. Castle Nowhere by TheAL

Resolution: Multiple resolutions

Related posts:

1. 33 High Resolution And Eye-Catching Spring Desktop Wallpapers
2. 66 High Resolution Nature Desktop Backgrounds
3. 40 High Resolution And Elegant Apple Wallpapers
4. 40 Inspiring High Quality Typographic Wallpapers
5. 25 Winter, Snow And Christmas Related High Resolution Wallpapers

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I have compiled a showcase of some of my favourites from this year’s competition, but be sure to check out the site and vote for your favourites!

The contest is broken down into three categories: People, Places and Nature. Click Here to head over to National Geographic to vote now! Voting ends Dec. 4th.

And if you liked these stunning photos be sure to check out our first National Geographic Photography showcase: 31 National Geographic Photos

A single lightning strike covers the sky off the coast of Virginia Beach, Virginia, striking in the Chesapeake Bay.

David Hanson crosses a fallen log beneath soaring trees and a lingering fog in Washington’s Olympic National Park.

Masjid Selat Melaka is a new landmark in Melaka on the man-made island of Pulau Melaka near Malacca town. Masjid Selat Melaka is built along the coastline of Straits of Malacca, at the water level of the sea. So, in the evening at high tide, Masjid Selat Melaka looks like a floating mosque. This shot was taken on the day of Eid ul-Fitr, often abbreviated to Eid, that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.

Nazroo, a mahout (elephant driver), poses for a portrait while taking his elephant, Rajan, out for a swim in front of Radha Nagar Beach in Havelock, Andaman Islands. Rajan is one of the few elephants in Havelock that can swim, so when he is not dragging timber in the forest he is used as a tourist attraction. The relationship between the mahout and his elephant usually lasts for their entire lives, creating an extremely strong tie between the animal and the human being.

After a rarely seen spyhopping of a dwarf minke whale the whale slowly descended in my direction and we came close to a 1.5m distance. The shot happened early in the morning around 7 a.m. and it was a rough surface and it was not easy to control my own movement. ISO 200 1/400 f7.1 13mm Tokina fisheye 10-17mm lens Nikon D200 aquatic housing.

A young snow monkey (Japanese macaque) is warming up in a hot spring in Japan.

The view from Verdugo Crestline Drive in Tujunga, California, on August 31, 2009

A dainty tree frog on a bunch of lady’s fingers bananas, from a home garden in Queensland, Australia.

An adult and juvenile bearded vulture, a threatened species, have a quarrel over territory. This action captured at Giants Castle in the Drakensberg region of Southern Africa.

Andrew and his friend, a young sperm whale named Scar, were swimming together off the west coast of Dominica. The two of them became “friends” after Andrew saved Scar’s life.

Taken at 1:22 a.m. on March 11, 2008. My wife and I arrived at the 528 Causeway in Cape Canaveral with our Sony 100a DSLR. With a low, solid, overcast of clouds covering the launch site, they launched. I pushed the shutter and started a 15 second time-lapse exposure! Disaster!!! I ripped the camera off of the tripod, spun the program wheel to anything else and started to squeeze the shutter. I was only able to take two photos as the shuttle Endeavour lifted into the overcast. This is the second one.

This magnificent spectacle stands in solitude outside of Gerlach, Nevada, quietly marking the passing of time. Layer upon layer building skyward, this leaking geothermal well spews a steady stream of scalding, mineral-laden water.

After a long day walking all around Paris, heading back to my hotel I could not help but be compelled to capture a truly amazing sunset through the Arc de Triomphe.

Wild winds and a big tide combine to whip up large waves that thrash against the sea wall. Briefly the sun backlights the tower through sodden air. A hesitant photographer is drawn closer to the fury to chance more than just his camera.

This shot was taken just before the sunset. The title seems to fit the view as it contains all the basic “elements”: water, earth, and air.

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So, as I was deciding to write this article, I wanted to get a diverse group of people to answer the simple, yet powerful question: “What are you thankful for?” I apologize for the length, but I guarantee you that reading through these inspiring messages from people around the world is well worth your time.

When I asked the question, no background was given, only the question. I chose random people from different backgrounds to include in this article to show that while we are all unique, we are all very much the same.

If you are not celebrating Thanksgiving this week, please at least take a few moments to appreciate and cherish what means most to you, and celebrate what you are thankful for in life.

What Are You Thankful For?

@TrendyDC from Washington, DC

“Just returned from Peru helping out orphan boys & grateful to be blessed with a family, job, food, comfortable shelter and healthcare.”

@Alyssa_Milano from Los Angeles, California

“This year, I’m thankful for my husband, who every day inspires me to be a better woman.”

@StaciJShelton from Cleveland, Ohio

“I’m so very thankful for love, family, friendship and the power of connection. Pure love for people changes lives.”

@Minervity from Stockholm, Sweden

” I am thankful for my wonderful & beautiful daughter. Thankful for all the creative inspiration my friends share and project. I am thankful for all the wonderful friends I’ve made this year.”

@BenParr from San Francisco, California

“I’m thankful that our society has love and friendship, for they are the most fulfilling part of our lives.”

@SusanLorelei from Pittsburgh, PA

“I suffered a horrible loss this year & am truly thankful for people God has brought into my life to provide cheer & strength.”

@GaryVee from New York City, NY

“Easy answer: The health of my loved ones!”

@ChrisTuff from Atlanta, Georgia

“I’m thankful for my friends and family who make me fired up to wake up every morning and excited for the next day.”

@PrayForAidan from Concord, North Carolina

“My oldest son surviving and thriving…” http://prayforaidan.com

@ItStartsWithUs from Milwaukee, WI

“I’m thankful for the surprising number of people who are willing to give of themselves to help others, with no expectation of reward.”

@ButtercupD from Los Angeles, California

“Thankful for my family, friends and relatively good health!”

@fjfonseca from Barcelona, Spain

“For life, the biggest gift of all, with its good and bad things, ups and downs I am thankful for life itself.”

@ShellyKramer from Kansas City, Missouri

“I am thankful that my family is well & healthy, for the great friends I have, for a roof over my head, food on my table, family in my arms & love in my heart.”

@Msaleem from Chicago, Illinois

“What am I thankful for… a lot of things, my health, friends, great jobs and colleagues, what’s not to be thankful for?”

@ClementYeung from North-East UK

“I am grateful for love, for without it our actions would hold no meaning. I am grateful for my life, for without it I would not be here to experience that love.”

@AdamsConsulting from Atlanta, Georgia

“I’m thankful for my son,my Twitter friends & that I’m able to help others during this season. It’s a blessing to be a blessing.”

@Toad_Mario from Atlanta, Georgia

“I’m thankful for my family, my dog named Sunny and my Nintendo DS.”

@BelindaAng from Singapore

“I am thankful for…. waking each day to see the sun, blue skies, white clouds and knowing that I am loved.”

@Zee from London, UK

“For meeting the most wonderful person in the world and getting to spend the rest of my days with her.”

@ChrisBrogan from Boston, MA

“Thankful for a supportive family who knows there’s a method to my madness.”

@RayBeckerman from New York, NY

“I’m thankful for the privilege of being part of a social media revolution which makes it much easier for all people to be citizen journalists.”

@MarySarahMusic from Texas, USA

“I am SO thankful for life! I have the greatest, most supportive parents ever! And mostly just for the life I get to lead and hopefully can help others in return.”

@Jaycbee from Atlanta, Georgia

“I am thankful for the many blessings I have received in life. For my family and friends, old and new, near and far. thankful for my Faith.”

@soulboykirk from Nova Scotia, Canada

“Thankful to be gifted in different disciplines; for great music, the arts in general; for the net/Twitter/FB giving me helpful global friends.”

@AbsolutelyTrue from South Carolina

“I’m thankful for those who truly care about me and carry me in their hearts.”

@Milagro88 from Vietnam

“I’m thankful for my amazing family, our health, freedom from financial worry, intelligence, spirituality & peace at home and for friendships!”

@Ruth_Z from Tel Aviv, Israel

“I’m grateful that I have a job that causes me to create something new every day and to be the wheel that drives the wheel.”

@Iconic88 from Sydney, Australia

“I am thankful for my family, friends, culture and every experience I’ve had in my life to share the lessons with others.”

@ModelSupplies from Detroit, MI

“So grateful for the chance to connect with all of my Twitter & FB follow-friends whose love and support shows in each and every character!”

@AdNys from Los Angeles, CA

“Thankful for: Family (2 young sons). Life (love). Love (purity). Wilderness (keeps humans sane). Journalism (long live the 4th estate).”

@Lotay from Los Angeles, California

“I’m most thankful for God.”

@HeyKim from USA

“I am thankful for family… friends and NBA basketball.”

@Ostrick from Los Angeles, California

“I am thankful for my health, loving family and sharing stories and ideas.”

@StefanieWood from Bristol, UK

“I’m thankful for my friends and family, my job and car, and generally the quality of my life.”

@Cheth from Manipal, Bangalore, India

“Thankful to all the people who didn’t help me, so that I could learn it myself. Thankful to all those people who criticized me! And to all who supported me.”

@TrendTracker from New Jersey, USA

“I’m thankful for my family and friends – and for the freedoms and blessings I enjoy from so many who have sacrificed so much.”

@JeffRago from Studio City, California

“I am thankful for the people in my life and the experiences that bring us together.”

@DelWilliams from Los Angeles, California

“I’m thankful for the friends I have made on Twitter, and the opportunities this platform has brought me.”

@KrystynChong from California, USA

“I’m thankful for my health. Hard to enjoy anything when your body isn’t functioning as usual.”

@ChiniehDiaz from Manila, Philippines

“I’m thankful for my awesome family & my sense of humor. Life can never get you down when you have those.”

@HappySoul from London, UK and Asia

“I’m thankful for my blessed family & friends, my life & love experiences & choices, bad & good, that have made who I am today”

@Daniel_Barta from Örményes, Hungary

“I am thankful for this wonderful world and for this wonderful life to God. And things like having wonderful friends is amazing.”

@AdventureGirl from LosAngeles, California

“I am thankful for Twitter. Without it, we would not be able to help change the world along with those less fortunate who hopefully now will have a voice.”

@KyNamDoan from San Francisco, California

“I’m thankful for family, good luck, and San Francisco.”

@IgorBuhovec from Riga, Latvia

“I’m thankful that… I didn’t spend a minute in fear. It’s about wars and terror. I live in quiet EU country and that’s great.”

@ColourOfAir from Cluj-Napoca, Romania

“I am thankful for the gift of life, my wife, music, art, friends, being healthy. God bless!”

@WTFJAY from Toronto, Canada

“I am thankful for the time I get to spend with my family.The last few years have been difficult, and they have helped me through it.”

@Cupcakes5 from Pittsburgh, PA

“I am thankful for freedom and all that entails.”

@Virtuosoblogger from India

“I am thankful for all the love and support shown by my friends and family.”

@binoyxj from Bangalore, India

“I am thankful for friends..the ones i manage to keep up with….both online and offline.”

@jmdc88 from Washington, DC

“Thankful to wake up each day to have a chance to do whatever I can to make the world a better place. Being alive, and being loved by family & friends.”

@phaoloo from Taipie, Taiwan

“I am thankful for living on this earth.”

@Dublins98Dave from Dublin, Ireland

“I’m thankful for finding my best friend Tracy, marrying her and starting a family. She makes my life utterly amazing.”

@ProjectKpaz from Boston, MA and Brazil

“I am thankful for having found relatively early in my life what it is that I really can’t live without, music.”

@LarisaBelliveau from Rochester, NY

“I am thankful for my “learning experiences” because they polish my soul.”

@BerniePiekarski from Orlando, Florida

“To be alive. Had heart attack & triple bypass 4/6/09 Health is good today. For my family & friends. Without them I really have nothing else.”

@Blogomomma from Chicago, Illinois

“God’s intercession of grace. Thru my good, bad, and ugly – epic failures,biggest regrets,worst heartbreaks-He NEVER left me!”

@Sloane from New Orleans. Louisiana

“Thankful for trusting in myself, willingness to open my heart to friends, faith and love of my family and ability to give back to others.”

@PrintedProof from Massachusetts, USA

“I am thankful for my freedom more than anything. I love the ability to raise my children my way, work a job I love, and sleep in peace & comfort next to the woman of my dreams.”

@ChrisPirillo from Seattle, Washington

“I’m thankful for my friends. I’m thankful for the internet and I’m thankful for the opportunity to say Happy Thanksgiving.” (More from Chris in this video.)

For those who wonder why I chose Chris Pirillo for the bottom of this list, he responded with a video. And while it did not quite fit with this article, it was lots of fun to watch.

And finally, I am thankful that I was able to bring so many wonderful and amazing people together for this article. Thankful for family, friends and associates. Thankful for yet another day on this Earth. Thankful that peace is always a possibility.

And now…What are you thankful for?

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Software developers who want to come up with their own software for Microsoft’s touch-based Surface technology can now do so for free, as the Microsoft Surface SDK is now free for all at the Microsoft Download Center.

Surface was announced by Microsoft at the D5 conference in 2007, and is aimed at the retail/hotel/hospitality marketplace, but not for the home consumer, yet. The multi-touch technology is different from ‘regular’ touch-screen tech in that it can recognize different gestures, can track up to 52 different touches at a time and can also keep track of different users, too.

So far, Microsoft Surface has been used in AT&T Wireless stores, Harrah’s-owned bars and resorts, and is featured in Disneyland’s Futureland exhibit in California. Surface is also highly featured in television shows like CSI: Miami and EXTRA! Entertainment, in what is likely product placement paid for by Microsoft.

The Microsoft Surface is not selling cheap, with a regular commercial unit costing $12,500 and a developmental debug unit costing $15,000 (with 4 developmental licenses). But if we’re to consider the company has said in 2007 that they hope to get the units cheap enough to make a consumer home version by 2010, maybe there’s light at the end of the tunnel for us, mortals.

See: Microsoft Surface Gets Closer To Becoming Mainstream [Microsoft Surface SDK Avaialability Confirmed]

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That’s the question Google is hoping to answer with Chrome OS, the open source operating system centered entirely around its Chrome browser. All your apps — e-mail, communications, docs, photo management — are delivered through the web browser, which sits on a lightweight Linux-powered desktop.

The company debuted Chrome OS Thursday morning during a press event at its headquarters in Mountain View, California. Wired.com’s Dylan Tweney was there to bring us all the details, and you can expect a post from him Thursday morning [Update: Dylan’s post is up on Gadget Lab].

In the meantime, Google has posted a video (below) making an argument for why you’d want an operating system that funnels all of your productivity tasks through a browser: “It just gives you the internet, which is all most of us use our computers for now, anyways.”

And here’s a demonstration of the user interface. It’s striking — the browser is all there is to it.

Read the overview on the Google Blog. Also, be sure to check out some of the initial design specs, including the OS’s ability to auto-update silently and daily.

See Also:

• Five Questions About Google Chrome OS
• Google Takes On IE, Firefox With Chrome Web Browser
• Google Shows Off Chrome Themes With Cool YouTube Hack

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The first real customer experience we have when we get a new product is the package. Of course you might say that with the internet we can buy online and see the product before buying it, I know I get it, but the package design is a very inportant part of the customer experience. The unboxing process is exciting, Apple has shown us that it really matters, and whe have been seeing more and more companies following that wagon.

In this post I decided to look for really cool package designs, but not randomly or super famous pacakges such as the awesome Apple boxes. Therefore, I will list only dark package designs. Some could be described as product designs, such as the "Salt&Pepper Cell", but they are so cool that deserved a spot in the list.

Steve Jobs has always been fascinated by packaging, believing the unboxing routine to be a crucial part of the customer experience. All of Jobs’s products have been carefully packaged going back to the original Mac in 1984. Jobs believes unpacking a product is a great way to introduce unfamiliar technology to the consumer — they explore the components as they unbox them. – Cultofmac.com

Mehmet Gozetlik’s Portfolio

I’m not a battery!

Created by Antrepo Design Industry as “Salt&Pepper Cell” and it is like a D size battery also the dimensions too. Material used is stainless steel and glass, the power indicators on the sides correlate to the amount of spices left in the shakers, before refill time. The color options are Red&Turquoise or Black&white.

Studio43′s Portfolio

Aaron Willard

Kon•verse: Logo and packaging design for a California wine company. The packaging uses a minimalist design approach to capture the essence of the brand.

j Kaczmarek’s Portfolio

Smay Design

ACDC Backtracks Box Set

Packlab

Pop-Up Popcorn

“In 2008 Anni Nykänen [of Packlab] won four awards for her Popcorn concept. Three of them European student design awards at the IOP: Student Starpack Awards. The Gold, Best in Show Award, Marks & Spencers / Korsnas Frovi Sponsored Award as she helped PACKLAB. Lahti Institute of Design to win the Eric Dickens Award for the second time in 2008. Months later her packaging picked up a 2008 Honorable Mention at the Worldstar Student / Packaging Design Competition (International) Award.”

Studio Kluif

A humourous take on copy paper sold by international European retailer, HEMA.

DHNN (design has no name)’s Portfolio

Undoboy’s Portfolio

Furry Utopia – create a new brand called furry utopia selling conceptual design merchandise

Greig Anderson’s Portfolio

Cassette Badge Sets

Being a child of the eighties I have fond memories of cassettes and I have created these limited edition badge sets as a reminder of this past format. There is currently 12 different cassette types by some of the mainstream tape manufacturers that I remember having in my childhood. Each set consists of 6, 25mm button badges which are created as circular crops of the actual cassette artwork. These are attached to a printed cassette back board and sealed in a classic cassette box with a custom inlay card giving a brief history of the cassette format…

Good Creative’s Portfolio

Didac Catalán’s Portfolio

Branden Tintiangco

“Introducing 12 new bottles designed by up-and-coming artists from New York to Hawaii, the 1800 Tequila Essential Artists series celebrates a dynamic range of original artwork on a unique and unexpected medium – bottles of 100% Agave Silver Tequila! Showcasing eleven designs gathered from over 15,000 online submissions, selected by 1800 Tequila, and one special edition “celebrity artist” bottle, this new line is a vibrant example of the undiscovered, yet soon-to-be-recognized talent residing across the country.”

jkr

kr were challenged to produce an eye-catching can which evokes positive associations to the iconic brand – simply, to make a good pack great.The team elected to do this via a full-blooded use of the traditional harp emblem. This approach has resulted in a single-minded design which better acts as a “badge in the hand”

Nuria Herrero’s Portfolio

Isabela Serta

The idea of this project is to promote a more healthy food consumption and, concurrently, to also promote sustainable local agriculture, which involves methods that do not harm the environment, respect workers and animals, provide fair wages to farmers and support farming communities…”

Nanospore’s Portfolio

HOMOGENY is collaboration between Nanospore and Royal Elastics – set for a Fall ’08 release. it features our little nameless friend, which serves as a symbol of the similarity in structure between organs or parts, possibly of dissimilar function, that are related by common descent. Light and dark. Color and monochrome. Land and sea. Love and hatred. Joy and pain.

FIRMA’s Portfolio

We are involved in all stages of a brand development and there is one that we call PACKMAN. PACKMAN means packaging that connects our clients with their customers and sets them apart from their competitors.

Amelia Roberts’s Portfolio

Michael McDevitt’s Portfolio

Client: Mission Product Holding, Inc.

Background: To create a range of packaging that demonstrates a high level of performance and social responsibility while remaining linked to the skin care category.

Kristeen Wegner’s Portfolio

Thorbjorn Ankerstjerne’s Portfolio

A selection of designs for carrier bags for the danish pharmacy chain Apotek. I worked on this project during my placement at Kontrapunkt, Copenhagen.

Miguel Ramirez’s Portfolio

Markus Schaefer’s Portfolio

Transformer Studio’s Portfolio

Isse is a luxury mobile phone brand, producing exclusive jewell phones. Precious metals and gems are used in phone decoration as well as more than sixty techonological processes are applied.

Jeremy Mlodik’s Portfolio

Nuria Herrero’s Portfolio

Michael Freimuth

Michael Freimuth continues his amazing work for Azita’s, this time for their limited edition dry rubs…

David Garcia’s Portfolio

Evan Geltosky’s Portfolio

Sources

• Behance – Package Design
• LovelyPackage

About the author

My name is Fabio Sasso, I’m a graphic/web designer from Porto Alegre, Brazil and I’m the founder of Abduzeedo. I hope we can share lots of information, tips, and ideas through Abduzeedo. Also you can follow me on Twitter or my personal site at http://fabiosasso.com.

Sponsored Links:

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In a ruling that’s a surprise to no-one in the tech industry, a U.S. District Court judge has ruled against Psystar, a company manufacturing Mac clones.

The short of it: Psystar established a business to sell Mac software on non-Apple hardware. Apple contended in a lawsuit that the Mac OS X end user license agreement (EULA) prohibits the use of the software on machines not manufactured by Apple.

U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup issued a summary judgment on Friday, coming out in favor of Apple.

Groklaw writes of the decision:

Psystar just got what’s coming to them in the California case…. It’s a total massacre. Psystar’s first-sale defense went down in flames. Apple’s motion for summary judgment on copyright infringement and DMCA violation is granted. Apple prevailed also on its motion to seal.

Psystar’s motion for summary judgment on trademark infringement and trade dress is denied. So is its illusory motion for copyright misuse….Here’s what’s left to be decided at trial: Apple’s allegations of breach of contract; induced breach of contract, trademark infringement; trademark dilution; trade dress infringement; and state unfair competition under California Business and Professions Code § 17200; and common law unfair competition.

Interestingly, PCWorld argues that while Apple certainly has the law on its side, the company could have much larger market share if only it would allow 3rd parties to run Mac OS X on their own hardware. That outlook isn’t Apple’s philosophy, of course: the company’s iron-clad grip on the entire user experience is what ensures consistency throughout.

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California based manufacturer of custom gaming machines, CyberPower have just announced their new Xplorer series of gaming notebooks running on the brand new Intel Core i7 mobile CPU and Intel’s new PM55 chipset. The series consists of three new models, the X7-7700, X6-9900, and the high-end X7-8500.

(more…)

See: CyberPower brings out Core-i7 based notebooks for extreme gaming [CyberPower X7-7700, X6-9900 & high-end X7-8500]

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Box Bottle Bag is available for Pre order for only $23.10 from Amazon, and ships early March.  The book was written by Andrew Gibbs.

He founded The Dieline in 2007 – and has tended to its growth since then.   Andrew Gibbs has a passion for design and a motivation to succeed. In a short 6 years he finished both high school, and received his bachelors’ degree in graphic design from the Art Institute of California. he is now a Creative Director for the leading beverage development company in the nation; he designs and develops consumer beverage brands and retail packaging for national and international brands as well as private labels.  Besides his continued dedication to The Dieline, he is currently working on his first book on package design with F+W Publications’ HOW Books. He resides in Los Angeles, California with his partner, and two crazy cats.

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Ok, before I begin you might say that bridges are not architect buildings, that bridges are engeneer stuff, and so on. But I should say that this kind of building without the architect’s touch would be just another bridge and nothing else. The architect brings a memorable experience to this path and creates wonderful landscapes with these contructions, some of them representing cities such as San Francisco, where the Golden Gate Bridge has become one of the city’s most beautiful and photographed attraction.

Each build has its own features: the length, size, materials, colors and of course, the place where its constructed. I choose 12 bridges with different designs from around the world, to show you how the imagination of the architect can transform what would be a simple passing on an unforgettable moment on your travel!

Vasco da Gama Bridge, Lisbon

Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California

Brooklyn Bridge, New York

Bixby Bridge in Big Sur, California

Alamillo Bridge in Seville, Spain

Bridge-Tunnel Combination: Oresund Bridge, Sweden – Denmark

JK Bridge in Brasilia, Brazil

Kurilpa Bridge, Queensland

Skye Bridge, Scotlhand

Hangzhou Bay Bridge, China

Millau Viaduct, France

Puente de la Mujer, Buenos Aires

About the author

I’m from Brazil, co-founder of Zee with Fabio. Nowadays I like to play with Fireworks, Photoshop and improve my skills in CSS. If you wanna request some posts, please feel free to contact me or follow on Twitter.

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Did you also know that in California there are even bus stop shelters with “Got Milk?” written on the side? But get this, these bus shelters smell like chocolate chip cookies! Now that’s my kind of bus stop!

There are also ads encouraging us to drink our calcium in Mexico (¿Toma Leche?), Switzerland, Germany, Canada, India, Australia, South Africa and Brazil.

According to Wikipedia, “The slogan “got milk?” was licensed to the National Milk Processor Board in 1998 to use on their celebrity print ads, which since 1993, included celebrities from the fields of sports, media and entertainment, as well as fictional characters from TV and film such as The Simpson and Batman, posing in print advertisements sporting a “milk moustache”, employing the slogan, “Where’s your mustache?”

This is the very first “Got Milk?” commercial ever. This commercial, featuring actor Sean Whalen and directed by Michael Bay, is the original created over fifteen years ago:

There is no doubt that this ad campaign has increased milk sales, which were dropping for 20 years before these ads. But, in the States, where milk is seen as a kid’s beverage (when was the last time you saw an adult order milk with dinner in a restaurant?), has it increased milk consumption among adults? I don’t know the answer to that question, but I know that I almost always think of a milk mustache every time I drink a glass of milk.

Here is a small sampling of some of those very memorable ads. Enjoy!

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MOUNTAIN VIEW, California — Vladimir Vukićević was working at the Mozilla office when Firefox was first released into the wild.

“All of our servers melted instantly,” Vukićević says. “We spent an hour trying to get the downloads back up.”

Indeed, the anticipation around the release of Firefox 1.0 on November 9, 2004 — five years ago Monday — was electric.

Mozilla had already produced its own eponymous browser based on open source code in 2002, but it was largely considered a failure. Firefox was the organization’s great re-do, and its second attempt to unseat its biggest nemesis, Microsoft Internet Explorer.

A half-decade later, Firefox is no longer a scrappy upstart but a dominant player. Old rival IE still commands around 60 percent of the market share, but close to a quarter of the web now uses Firefox — a formidable number which speaks to its success as an open source project. At a time when nobody wanted to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft, thousands of disparate programmers rose to the challenge, landing Firefox on the short list of other open source triumphs like Wikipedia, Ubuntu Linux, WordPress and the web itself.

Successes aside, Firefox is now at a tipping point.

Five years ago, it was all about beating Microsoft. Left unchecked, the company was free to dictate what shape the web would take. Firefox’s popularity created a new market for web standards and forced Redmond to take open web technologies seriously.

Now, Firefox faces a bigger struggle. It needs to continue to innovate and remain relevant in an ever-changing, and ever-more-competitive, landscape.

“When it was just us and Microsoft, the story was very simple — it was the little guy versus the giant,” says Mozilla’s Mike Beltzner, who oversees Firefox’s development. “Now you’ve got heavy hitters like Microsoft, Google and Apple all competing, which make the stories a lot more interesting.”

The web itself has changed significantly in the last five years, as well. It’s no longer just a network of connected documents, but a full-fledged platform filled with real applications that run in the browser and share data with one another.

“It’s hard to cast your mind back and think about what the internet was like in 2004,” says Beltzner. “Five years ago, there was no Google Maps. Gmail was very new. All these things — applications that are now parts of the web that we would never think couldn’t be there — were just not there. Most of the reason was that browsers weren’t yet being designed with all of these advanced capabilities.”

Firefox was one of the first browsers built for this new web filled with applications. As a result, it gained favor with developers and users. But it also encouraged fiercer competition.

“It’s not just that the platform has changed, there’s a whole ecosystem of great browsers now,” says Mozilla’s Johnathan Nightingale, manager of the Firefox front end features team.

We’re in the middle of the second great browser renaissance, and Firefox is no longer the sole leader. Feature-wise, Apple’s Safari browser is neck and neck with Firefox. Internet Explorer is catching up quickly. In September of 2008, Google released its Chrome browser. Much like Firefox, it arrived with a huge fanfare and quickly proved to be the web’s new golden child — simpler, faster, better than everyone else.

Along with Chrome, Google launched a public relations campaign highlighting the benefits of using its browser to run web applications like Gmail and Google Docs. Google’s PR push underscored the importance of things like browser performance and speed among developers and the general public alike.

In short, Google brought sexy back to the browser.

“One of the things Chrome did is make the way everybody communicates about browser development more energetic and public,” Vukićević says. “Before Chrome, we were doing a lot of really interesting things, but we were having a hard time communicating that.”

Nightingale agrees that since then, Mozilla has gotten a lot better at building up excitement around new features in Firefox. The company has launched a Hacks blog that shows demos of all the latest technologies, and it posts videos — sometimes as many as three or four per week — showcasing the innovations coming out of its experimental Labs office.

“Compared to the world that just had IE6 in it, we’re able to generate excitement about what we offer much more clearly,” Nightingale says.

In response to the increased interest in new technologies, Mozilla has stepped up its release schedule, too. The wait between Firefox 2 and Firefox 3 was close to two years — a eon in web time.

“When Firefox 3 neared completion, people were tremendously angsty that it was such a superior experience to Firefox 2, yet we hadn’t shipped it yet,” Nightingale says. “That’s what stung the most. There were all these great features and we weren’t ready to give it to people yet. We had to change that.”

Mozilla took another year to push out Firefox version 3.5, which arrived this past June. But now, the team is committed to delivering a new release every six months. Firefox 3.6 is due by the end of 2009.

“We can’t have another two years where we’re sitting on awesome stuff that the rest of the world doesn’t get to have,” Nightingale says.

Another cause for angst around the release of Firefox 3 was its abundance of features, which some users saw as unnecessary bloat. Version 3 fixed many of the stability and performance problems of its predecessor, but Firefox’s transformation from 2004’s svelte browser to today’s full-bodied machine was only made more obvious by Chrome’s debut as a bare-bones speed demon.

Still, Chrome’s arrival has put increased support for open web technologies on everyone’s roadmap. The next versions of Firefox will continue down that path.

At the top of the list for Firefox’s future is better support for HTML5, the set of technologies — already heavily supported by Firefox, Chrome and Safari (but not IE) — that define how web pages are built and how web applications function. Also, Mozilla has thrown its weight behind two open source technologies, the Web Open Font Format (WOFF) and the Ogg Theora video format. Both enable new methods for displaying fonts on web pages and for playing videos in the browser which don’t rely on proprietary technologies like Microsoft’s Silverlight and Adobe’s Flash and AIR.

This commitment to tools that let developers build better web experiences without using plug-ins was one of the project’s core principles when it was first launched.

According to Nightingale, openness will continue to play a key role in shaping the browser’s future.

“We always ask, ‘What is it that people on the open web can’t do right now? What’s pushing them towards things like Adobe AIR and Silverlight, or other technologies that are single-vendor silos?”

When a developer loses the ability to view a web page’s source code (something you can’t easily do in Flash) they can’t see how web applications and complex interactions function. And, he says, that stymies further experimentation.

“The web is going to be an awesome place to innovate in five years because we’re going to chase down every awesome development in the proprietary world and make sure it happens on the open web as well. If we fail, then we’ll end up in a place that’s less recognizable than the web today, a web filled with a bunch of internet-delivered Flash executables.”

See Also:

• Firefox 1.0 Makes Flashy Debut
• More Firefox Bloat? Say It Ain’t So, Mozilla
• Mozilla Pushes the Web Forward With Firefox 3.5
• How Firefox Is Pushing Open Video Onto the Web
• Fennec Fits Everything You Love About Firefox Into Your Pocket

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For this Sites of the Week we have selected some great sites such as the new Authentic Jobs and Wildfireapp. Also we’re featuring a great portfolio site for 31three, and much, much more! As usual we would love to hear from you, keep sending your suggestions to us and we will be more than happy to feature your site.

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You can send me your suggestions via Twitter twitter.com/FabianoMe or twitter.com/abduzeedo, and include #abdz_sites in the message.

DESIGN / CSS

Fontanel – fontanel.nl

Fontanelle is an online magazine that focuses on the latest developments in the design world with a focus on the young, talented and upcoming generation. (via Google Translate)

Authentic Jobs – authenticjobs.com

Authentic Jobs is a targeted destination for web & creative professionals, and the companies seeking to hire them.

APP / WEB APP

PagerDuty – pagerduty.com

Tired of being the last to know when your systems are down? PagerDuty aggregates alerts from any monitoring tool that sends email and calls you if there’s a problem.

Wildfireapp – wildfireapp.com

We’re dedicated to developing simple tools that help you promote your organization on the social web. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, Wildfire Interactive, Inc. is a privately-held technology company specialized in developing simple tools that enable organizations to engage the hundreds of millions of users of social network sites such as Facebook and MySpace.

COMMUNITY / STORE

2high Festival – 2highfestival.com

Backbone Youth Arts presents 2high Festival. For two days Brisbane Powerhouse plays host to 2high Festival which brings young and emerging artists with interactive displays of art, live music, performance, and everything in between.

New Horizon Youth Centre – nhyouthcentre.org.uk

New Horizon Youth Centre aims to enable young people to gain skills and knowledge to improve their life chances and to help them move from adolescence into adulthood.

FLASH SITE

EKSRTD – eksrtd.com

EKSRTD – Home of a fashion & art inspired design collective.

Gladeye – gladeye.co.nz

Gladeye is a digital creative agency. We produce original interactive work for websites, games, interactive stories, and online advertising campaigns. We also develop online business strategy and web applications that people like to use.

BLOG / PORTFOLIO

31three – 31three.com

As a developer, you’re an extremely creative individual. Getting your websites to behave in Internet Explorer is proof enough… you are creative. Even so, you may not have the time or know-how needed to get the design of your site looking as clean as your code.

Kean Richmond – keanrichmond.com

I’m Kean Richmond, a web designer and developer, based in North Yorkshire, UK. I love what I do and getting to not only design but build the websites I create is incredibly satisfying. It also has many benefits such as giving me an understanding of the overall processes involved in creating a website.

TEMPLATES

Headlines – woothemes.com

Headlines continues where our old magazine themes left off. It has tons of requested features like featured area, social bookmarks, author highlighting, flexible layout to name a few. It’s the perfect platform to launch your magazine or blog and reach out to the world!

Clickcloud – themeforest.net

Clickloud is a web 2.0 business software template. It’s mainly directed towards the companies that either produce or administrate web 2.0 software content (cloud software companies) but it may be used for a variety of other things: company portfolio, personal blog theme etc.

About the author

I’m from Brazil, co-founder of Zee with Fabio. Nowadays I like to play with Fireworks, Photoshop and improve my skills in CSS. If you wanna request some posts, please feel free to contact me or follow on Twitter.

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Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the British physicist who first designed the way web servers deliver pages to web browsers nearly 19 years ago, sees great promise in HTML5, the much-anticipated rewrite of the language used to build web pages.

“I think (HTML5) is great,” he said at the Worldwide Web Consortium’s (W3C) annual member gathering, taking place here this week.

HTML5 is a mixture of several different technologies that allow content creators to do more with web pages. It defines rules for presenting video, audio, mathematical equations, complex layouts, 2-D animations and non-standard typefaces. Each bit of technology has its own working group within the W3C chartered with developing that one component.

“We’ve had the pieces for a while,” he says. “Seeing all these things finally coming together is exciting, and it multiplies the power of each one,” Berners-Lee says.

HTML5 also enhances the way browsers can store and process data, which has led to the creation of more complex and rich web applications that run in the browser like Gmail, Facebook and apps that allow real-time data sharing, like Google Wave.

“Yes, this is a markup language for web pages,” he says, “but the really big shift that’s happening here — and, you could argue, what’s actually driving the fancy features — is the shift to the web becoming a client-side computing platform.”

The HTML5 specification is close to completion. The most recent releases of browsers like Firefox, Chrome, Safari and Opera all support most of the technologies being rolled in to HTML5. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer supports fewer of HTML5’s advancements, but it’s catching up. HTML5 is expected to become an official recommendation by late 2010 or 2011.

Now that the web has been elevated to a more powerful computing platform by HTML5, Berners-Lee says it has also given rise to complicated security issues.

“You got a piece of code from site A, and you’re person B running a browser you got from company C, and that code wants to access data stored with company E for the purposes of printing it on a printer owned by company D — How do you build that so that it’s not susceptible to all kinds of nasty attacks?”

“The technology is very exciting, but there’s actually a lot of work to do in these corridors to make it work on the real web in a secure way.”

See Also:

• W3C Drops Audio and Video Codec Requirements From HTML 5
• Google Throws Its Weight Behind HTML 5
• Google Waves Goodbye to E-Mail, Welcomes Real-Time Communication

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These colorful illustrations are from Christopher Lee’s project “The Great Hunters.” He is a graphic designer from Sacramento, California. His favorite quote for inspiration is “Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life” by Picasso. I love his pick of colors in his illustrations.

Christopher Lee’s Website..

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The free performance is supposed to start at 7 PM California time (the Foo Fighters will be using the Studio 606 complex in Northridge as a base of operation).  It’s sure to be a big draw, considering that the band has over 821,000 Facebook fans.

Of course, in all honesty, the Foo Fighters and Facebook don’t have much hope of matching U2 and YouTube.  Reports indicate that U2′s Sunday night broadcast generated 10 million streams, which is an astonishing number.

Factor in U2′s bigger fan base, plus the fact that this is a Friday, and again, no one should look for a repeat performance (in a manner of speaking).

Still, the spate of major concerts that’ve been streamed (toss in Hulu’s coverage of the Austin City Limits Music Festival, if you like) seems to represent the start of a trend, and should mean a lot to music fans who don’t feel like flying across the country and spending still more money on tickets.

Related Articles:

> Hulu To Cover Music Festival, Include Facebook

> Google Aims To Make Finding Music Easier

> MySpace Introduces New Music Features

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YouTube, a site where literally anybody can upload their videos for the appreciation of others, became the fourth most popular site on the Internet in less than a year. Compare that to newspapers and television, which both have been experiencing decreasing viewership in recent years. People need, want, and will seek out every conceivable sort of information, and the Internet is the place to find it.

Who Wants To Know?

Information isn’t just of use to the casual browser or dedicated auction enthusiast, however. Equally and increasingly interested are the very people posting content to the many pages on the web. Who is visiting which pages? How much traffic is your site getting, and how does it measure up against traffic going to similar sites? What has changed since you put up the big new advertising system last year? Necessity being the mother of invention, this increasing craving for varied and precise forms of information has led to the steady growth of a field called Web Analytics.

What Are You Looking At?

Put simply, Web Analytics is a system of study dedicated to collecting, measuring, and reporting on web and Internet data. This general idea breaks down further into two broad disciplines. The first is on-site analytics, which concerns itself with the journey of each user to a website, and is of primary concern to the owners of that site. It records information ranging from a record of which pages are being visited to a comparison of which pages garner more purchases from visitors. Off-site analytics focuses on information on the Internet as a whole, such as what websites more people are visiting, and what sites are being talked about most frequently. Both methods seek to answer the key question for any website operator – what are people looking at?

But What Does It All Mean?

Proper Web Analytics goes a step further than simple data collection, however. It also concerns itself with interpretation of the data in a context that allows the site owner to take appropriate steps. Let’s use the advertising campaign mentioned earlier as an example. Simple web measurement would be the collection of how many hits and purchases the site gathered before and after the campaign. A serious analytic comparison would explain how quickly purchases picked up after the change, what products and portions of the site drew more traffic as a result, and which pages remained unaffected. In short, web measurement is the gathering of the data; Web Analytics is the comparison and interpretation of that data.

The importance of the analytics field to the modern site owner can be observed in the sheer volume of material available on the subject. Sites offer free programs allowing users to set their own metrics, and others can be purchased, offering extra features and a professional interface. Hardcover and electronic format books have been published dealing with the material, and people have formed associations for the purpose of standardizing Web Analytics methodology and terms.

There is even a Web Analytics conference, the E-metrics summit, held in Santa Barbara, California and London, England each year. Going even further, there are listed job offerings in the field that offer salaries approaching $100,000 a year. Clearly this is not a passing fad, but a serious, vital step for any website interested not just in drawing an audience, but keeping it.

It’s All About Information

Of course this all begs the question – how does a user get started. Moreover, to what degree should they seek to implement Web Analytic tools and techniques? Perhaps a bit counter-intuitively, the quest for information begins with information. Site owners know what they want to accomplish with their sites, be it promoting a specific product or generating an audience for geopolitical discussions in a casual atmosphere. This information is the best place to start because it allows the user to begin understanding what information will help them pursue their goal.

For example, if a page is intended to promote an e-book series, then the user wants to know what information will help them do that promotion. They can then look for analytic tools that will tell them what pages are more successful at selling e-books, and what techniques are less successful.

Taking the time to sit down and think through the purpose that analytic information is ultimately intended to accomplish will make the search easier, and more fruitful from the beginning. With this basic framework established, the next step is the web itself. A simple web search on ‘Web Analytics’ or ‘Web Analytics for beginners’ will return a substantial amount of information. From there users can locate articles, videos, and e-books that will help them make the decisions they need to make their websites successful.

Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. Go to http://www.Brandsplat.com/ or visit our blog at: http://www.brandsplatblog.com/

Post from: SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources

Web Analytics and Your Website – What You Need to Know

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I remember when I first saw it. My dad called me over to his office, where he had a x86 PC with a 1200 bit/s modem, which I’d mostly used for games (I was 15 at the time) and connecting to various BBS‘. He said: there’s this new thing, they call it the Internet. I think it’ll be really important.

What can you do with it, I asked? You can see what’s on other computers, far away, he said. You can do it via Gopher, or FTP, or Cello (the predecessor of today’s WWW browsers). There wasn’t a lot to see there, so I quickly moved onto other things, but soon after that day, a new way to browse the Internet came out: Netscape.

And suddenly, the Internet became great. I could find out about games and bands I’d never heard of before. I could see what the weather is like in South Dakota. I could create a personal page (that’s what people did on the Internet before blogs came to be) with my biography and picture for everyone to see. I jumped on the train and never looked back.

The real beginning was a couple of decades earlier, although no one can really set the exact date for Internet’s birth. But on October 29, 1969, the first two nodes of ARPANET were interconnected between UCLA’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and SRI International (SRI) in Menlo Park, California. It took 12 years for 213 computers to get linked in the network.

Somewhere after that, things started changing, fast. Netscape – the archetypal browser – was overrun by Internet Explorer. It took about 10 years for Netscape’s market share to fall from over 90% to less than 1%. Then Firefox started eating away at Internet Explorer’s market share. Who knows what we’ll be browsing on in 10 years?

Fast forward to today, and the Internet has over 1.5 billion users, and most of them can’t imagine the world without it. Most of you don’t need an explanation of what it is and how it works; it’s one of the fundamental things you encounter, like rain or electricity. It’s in our blood. It brought us the ability to communicate fast, to connect with our friends, to create stuff together; it brought us social media, Twitter and Facebook.

But unlike rain or electricity, it changes, faster and faster, each day. Its first 40 years were just the beginning, and I’m really, really interested in what it will look like in another 40 years. Whatever it is, it’ll probably be unimaginable from today’s standpoint.

Do you remember how you learned about the Internet? What was your first experience with it? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Eraxion

Tags: birthday, internet

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San Francisco’s famous Bay Bridge is being shut down by the California Highway Patrol in both directions. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, “pieces of the cantilever section section fell during the late-afternoon commute.”

Interestingly enough, Twitter was first on the scene, as the commuter Joe Marshall (@larfo) snapped this Twitpic of the Bay Bridge debris. The image, taken about two hours ago, clearly depicts the San Francisco Bay Bridge with what appears to be cables down and bridge mass spewed everywhere.

The Chronicle reports:

“A chunk of steel lay in the middle of the far left lane of the upper deck and an object that appeared to be a cable was on a Ryder truck dangling from the side of the span.

Authorities have not said how long the closure will last.”

While this is certainly not the first time that a Twitter user tweeted breaking news before mainstream media outlets — there’s plenty of incidents like the Jakarta bombings and Hudson plane crash to reference — it certainly serves as another telling example of the power of Twitter as a communication platform.

Image from wallyg on Flickr

Tags: bay bridge, San Francisco-San Jose, twitpic

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This week on Designers Book Shelf I got a lot of reading suggestions for you. Every Tuesday I will be posting new suggestions of books for designers and everyone that loves design and art in general. Check out what I have for you this week and stay tuned for more next week.

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If you interested in sending your book suggestions, leave a comment or email abduzeedo@gmail.com with the subject Designers Book Shelf.

Special Thanks to Nijssen Sander for sending out these book suggestions.

The Elements of Typographic Style

by Robert Bringhurst (Author)

Price: $19.77

Amazon Review

This lovely, well-written book is concerned foremost with creating beautiful typography and is essential for professionals who regularly work with typographic designs. Author Robert Bringhurst writes about designing with the correct typeface; striving for rhythm, proportion, and harmony; choosing and combining type; designing pages; using section heads, subheads, footnotes, and tables; applying kerning and other type adjustments to improve legibility; and adding special characters, including punctuation and diacritical marks. The Elements of Typographic Style teaches the history of and the artistic and practical perspectives on a variety of type families that are available in Europe and America today.
The last section of the book classifies and displays many type families, offers a glossary of typography terms, and lists type designers and type foundries. The book briefly mentions digital typography, but otherwise ignores it, focusing instead on general typography and page- and type-design issues. Its examples include text in a variety of languages–including English, Russian, German, and Greek–which is particularly helpful if your work has a multinational focus. –This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Review

(from Amazon)
This book should be required reading for every graphic designer, book designer, typographer and certainly anyone directly or indirectly responsible for unleashing the current wave of awful typography on an unsuspecting public. Bringhurst covers everything from the basics of type styles to advanced kerning principles to the finer points of page proportions, all in a succint yet engaging way.
Bringhurst does an excellent job of laying out a series of rules and guidelines, while making it clear that these are a starting point, a foundation for good type design, not a set of limitations. He is a poet as well as a typographer, and his eloquence pays tribute to the field as no one else has.

The book features a good deal on the evolution of typography and includes great side-by-side comparisons of typefaces to illustrate specific points. He also deals extensively with punctuation marks, diacritics and the duty/joy of designing type with languages other than English in mind. I find myself returning again and again to the section on the subtleties of page proportions. He also achieves the nearly impossible balance of singing the praises of the old masters while not being afraid of the best of what’s new and experimental.

The Book of Bunny Suicides

by Andy Riley (Author)

Price: $8.00

User Review

I love this book because of one single statement, how much can you do with one given fact, how does the bunny kill itself?

Customer Review

(from Amazon)
The best thing about _The Book of Bunny Suicides_ is that there’s actually not that much gore involved. Oh, sure, there are plenty of decapitated, disemboweled, liquefied, and otherwise visibly deceased bunnies in evidence. And don’t get me wrong: that’s funny too.
Yet Riley is clearly among that rare but blessed breed of humorists who recognize that the anticipation can be even funnier than the payoff. And so, right after he shows us three bunnies impaled upon a light saber, he shows us two more bunnies calmly sunning themselves on the beach as Noah’s Ark prepares to depart.

On the downside, Disney may never hire Riley again once it gets a load of _The Book of Bunny Suicides_. On the upside, he’s already proven that this would be Disney’s loss rather than his.

Kustom Graphics: Hot Rods, Burlesque and Rock ‘n’ Roll

by Julian Balme

Price: $29.16

Book Description

Many Kustom Kulture artists are now crossing over scenes, creating graphics for hot rods one day, burlesque events the next, and dreaming up flyers for a new crop of indie rock bands—all part of an explosive international graphics movement. This overview of the best artists in this subculture includes work from California, the Midwest, the East Coast, Mexico, Japan, the UK, Germany, Scandinavia, France, and Germany. This roundup of Ed Roth and Von Dutch-influenced artists presents a mass of work impossible to beat for sheer visual inventiveness, vibe, and color. Author Julian Balme is a writer and art director for numerous Kustom Kulture magazines, creator of the famous London Calling cover for The Clash, a passionate racer of hot rods, and one of the foremost commentators on Kustom Kulture and Kustom Graphics.

Customer Review

(from Amazon)
I think this book is absolutely great. Tons and tons of pictures. All high quality art for this type of genre. I purchased this book because I really dig Rockin’ Jelly Bean’s work but there are lots of great artists represented in this book. I highly recommend this book whether or not you’re into hotrods, tattoos, and rock & roll type stuff. It’s well put together and a great book to add to your book collection.

Fadings: Graffiti to Design, Illustration and More

by Siggi Schlee

Price: $22.31

Book Description

Graffiti, with its unique aesthetics and unconventional values, has had an increasing influence on several areas of visual communication for a very long time. Fadings presents the work of 24 graffiti artists whose commercial success has been based on their graffiti experience, including 123Klan, Flying Fortress, Viagrafik, Hixsept, and Atalier. To give the reader an understanding of each artist’s creative process, the book presents a selection of projects from briefing stage through development of the creative concept to final execution. Fadings is split into three sections: the first, From the Scene, presents a detailed profile of each artist (five to eight pages each); the second, Into the Scene, presents interviews with art directors and companies who use graffiti as a commercial visual language; the third, Clash, features work by innovative, upcoming artists from the scene. INCLUDES A CD-ROM WITH FONTS, ANIMATION, MOVIES AND THE FADINGS “SOUNDTRACK”

Customer Review

(from Amazon)
I really liked this book. It showed how artists kinda grow up from graffiti to graphic design, that it’s more proffesional. It had some great pictures. Every artist has a job description of what they do etc. Its in german and english, so you all should know. I got what i expected from it. Alot of the artist include CMPONE,123 KLAN, TYPEHOLICS, BACKYARD 10 ETC. It gives you alot of great ideas also of course.
The cd that it comes with is alright the “so called soundrack” that they speak of is only one song that i think is really horrible. It has some cool fonts, and wallpapers too. This is a must for a you graff heads.

About the author

Hi! I’m Paulo Canabarro and I’m here to post some really cool stuff for you, if you have any ideas or any requests please get @ me – paul0v2@abduzeedo.com you can also Follow me on twitter!

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Mashable and Demand Media’s joint event, Media Mixer LA, the official after party of the 140Conf LA, is this Wednesday, October 28th at the H.Wood. The event starts at 5:00 pm, directly following the 140Conf LA event.

Join the Mashable and Demand Media teams along with the 140Conf LA attendees, the local Los Angeles tech and social media scene and guests of our media partner, New Media Vault for an evening of networking. The event is free, but we ask that you RSVP through our Facebook event page.

Media Mixer LA Details

When: Wednesday, October 28th, 2009, 5:00 – 9:30 PM
Where: H.Wood, 1738 N. Orange Dr., Los Angeles, CA
RSVP: Free, Facebook Event Page or Eventbrite

Thanks to our Partner

“Demand Media is a leading internet company transforming how online media works. With a comScore Top 25 U.S. network of premium online brands, a breakthrough internet content studio and an enterprise social media platform deployed on the world’s leading digital destinations, Demand Media’s unmatched combination of capabilities makes it possible for more than 80 million people each month to engage in conversations and form passionate communities around relevant content. One of the web’s biggest and fastest growing online media companies, Demand Media is based in Santa Monica, California with offices in Austin, Bellevue, New York and London. For more information visit www.demandmedia.com.”

Thanks to our Media Partner

“The New Media Vault is the East Side’s first New Media Networking Event. Held monthly in Downtown Los Angeles at The Crocker Club, the Vault is a chance to mingle and mix with others from the worlds of TV, Film, New Media, Tech, Advertising and Venture Finance, and to make new acquaintances and catch up with old connections. The New Media Vault provides networking opportunities in a comfortable, low-key and casual environment, and brings new media into the historic core of Downtown Los Angeles.”

Tags: media mixer la

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Not only does Jay own one of the original nine ‘63 Chrysler turbine cars, he built his own with the help of some of the guys in GM’s Advanced Design Studios. How cool is that? Jay had the designers at GM draw sketch after sketch until he saw the very image of a supercar that he had in his mind. And he called it the EcoJet.

The EcoJet was one serious project. Jay hosted some of the fabrication at his own monster garage in his home in California. The car was built with help from some great auto-geniuses such as Metalcrafters (concept car pros), Alcoa, Weismann (McLaren F1), and GM. A ton of GM superior parts were used such as those found in Corvette ZR1, C5 and Z06 C6. The turbine is the one found in US Coast Guard Dolphin helicopters.

Now, things only got better after Leno completed his little project. As a test, Jay raced his EcoJet with a jet plane on an airport runway… and beat ‘em up to 160 MPH. Jay’s super-craft is geared to get up to over 245 MHP.

The EcoJet was built on an environmentally friendly theme, no animal-sourced products were used. The car runs on bio-diesel rather than gas. As green as this car is, it still only gets about 5 MPG. But you have to remember this is a jet more than it is your family sedan.

Over-all I have to say that Jay Leno has built one sweet ride.

Jay Leno may be known first for his comedy, but in a close second is his car collection. Take a look at a few of the other supercars found in Jay’s garage…

Lamborghini Countach

Blastolene's Piss'd Off Pete

Mormon Meteor III

Rocket Car

McLaren F1

Lamborghini Miura S

The EchoJet

Car images courtesy of http://www.jaylenosgarage.com

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