An animation of a world completely comprised of typographic characters.

Radiohead held an online contest inviting DJs to remix their song, Nude, off of In Rainbows.  Apparently, this was a difficult task, being that the song is in 6/8 timing at 63bpm (most DJs mix in 4/4 time at 120bpm).  Most of the entries were only songs in 4/4 beat with sound bytes from the song arbitrarily thrown in.

The following was done by James Houston on outdated hardware.  Get through the first minute, which is just a “warmup”, and you will hear a beautiful symphony.  It reminds me of an art show I saw in Pittsburgh which consisted of a room full of dot matrix printers that were forced to play a concert (they eerily sounded like string instruments).

I think it is very much in the spirit of Radiohead.

Big Ideas (Don’t get any) from 1030 on Vimeo.

“Based on the lyric (and alternate title) “Big Ideas: Don’t get any” I grouped together a collection of old redundant hardware, and placed them in a situation where they’re trying their best to do something that they’re not exactly designed to do, and not quite getting there. 

“It doesn’t sound great, as it’s not supposed to. ”

A warning:  This site contains sound, so if you do not want to hear it right now, visit it later.  As the sound is one of the things that adds to the experience.

Experience 159

This is a wonderfully immersive flash site done in French for Alfa Romeo called experience 159.  It is the first site I have seen in a long time that uses flash that I actually have thought - wow, this is exactly what flash was intended for!

The site creates an experience.  Even though I have little idea what the text says (I only know the french basics), and I could care less about Alfa Romeo cars (not exactly in my price range), I found myself clicking through every section just to experience more of the site.

The music is beautiful, the sound effects are perfect (when you mouse over the main navigation, you can hear different ambient sounds for each section, when you mouse over text within sections, you will hear a musical note that will change each time), the graphics and photography are intense and dramatic, and all of this sets up interactivity how it is meant to be in flash.

Now, I’m not saying that every site should be in flash as long as it is like this.  Of course, this only is useful for a select market.  Most web sites these days exist because people use the internet as their sole way to find specific information and do research.  So most web sites need to provide that information.  As entertaining as this site is, it would not work for most companies (as in, it would not bring them sales, just the possibility of a bunch of people looking at their site).

Also, this site is not perfect.  It makes some of the major mistakes that most sites built entirely in flash make.  Namely, the inability to skip an intro (and there are lots of mini intros that, the first time visiting the section are very engaging, but on repeated return are a bit long and tedious) and no use of the browser’s back button (although they do have the ability to return to the main menu, which makes things a little bit easier in navigation).

Just last week I ordered new business cards for Bravos Media and also some for this blog.  I have been having problems lately with OvernightPrints (the place I had been using) and I had heard about Print100 and their Spot UV Coating techniques and had been dying to try it out.

What better way than on my own cards?

I received them Tuesday, and all I have to say is - “WOW!”

They are much thinner cards than I am used to, but the quality far outweighs other companies I have tried.  For one, the colors seem more vivid, but smoother.  The Spot UV Coating (the designer providing the files - me - selects where the gloss will go on the card) really makes the cards POP.

But one of the most notable things I can say about these cards is that they are waterproof.

That’s right, that’s a big old puddle of water on my business card.  I soaked it in the bathroom sink before taking a picture.  And as you can see, the water is just collecting on top.

How can this be?  It actually is because there are thin layers of plastic on each side of the card.  After they print it, they apply a plastic coating.  I dissected a card (below) for your viewing pleasure (you guys are so lucky that I butcher my own business cards).

So now you can do what you always wanted to do, and extend your marketing to your target audience that lives under the ocean, without worrying about your business cards disintegrating into nothing or becoming illegible because of bleeding ink.

The plastic also makes the business cards difficult to tear up, so if you have any disgruntled customers, they won’t be able to take it out on your lovely cards.  Instead they will have to funnel that anger directly to you.  How lucky of you.

All thanks to Print100.

If you are starting a new company, and you want it to be successful, there is one thing you can do that will make all the difference.

Hire a professional designer to design your identity and any important collateral.

If you hire an amateur or someone who doesn’t entirely understand the concepts of design, it will show. Your potential customers will subconsciously know the difference. It will reflect poorly upon your company and damage your credibility.

Ultimately, what you do in a decision to save money will end up costing you a lot more money than you “saved”. You will, first of all, be out the money that you did pay the “amateur”, and then the money you will inevitably have to pay a professional designer to fix your design. You will also have lost all of those potential customers (income) who turned away because they didn’t take your company seriously (because let’s face it, neither did you). And the clients you will possibly lose in the change of your company’s identity - some may associate it with instability.

Do things right the first time. Take your company’s design seriously. Hire a professional designer.