WOW
on Jun 26 in Entertainment
Who would have thought that immediately upon his death, Michael Jackson’s albums would skyrocket to the top of the iTunes Top Albums list – IN THE FIRST EIGHT SLOTS! It’s a testament to the artist that has passed. RIP MJ.
The most interesting site ever…
on May 12 in General, Noteworthy, WWWis AcademicEarth.org
Whatever possessed these great academies of learning to pass on the gift of knowledge is something to treasure as this site is absolutely mindblowing to me. If you feel inteleectually starved some days and want to work the muscle that is your brain. Log on, you won’t regret it.
Even more amazing and somewhat disheartening is that more than 50% of the traffic for this site is from outside the US which shows a great intellectual curiousity from abroad. Regardless, it’s not worth missing
The call to action and which ad sold the jeep
on May 08 in Design
There is a great writeup on Before & After web magazine about a designer who was testing which type of design worked better for a Craigslist ad for the Jeep CJ7 he was selling. The premise is that one barebones ad that blandly lists off the features and amenities of the vehicle is not as enticing as the wild-styled alternative which features scribbled features and drawings overlaid on top of a photograph of the vehicle.
The responses were both fascinating to observe for their strong opinions but also how off-base they were. The public consensus based on the comments to the post strongly favored the second option, but it was all based on conjecture and guesstimation, both which turned out to be wrong:
- “If you’re a Jeep/truck person, you’re a little ruff around around the edges . . . so a dirty, ruff ad will sell over a nicely laid out one.”
- “The grungy version (if that’s what you’d call it) wins hands-down. Have seen this type of ad before, and it works well for the right audience.”
- “Grubby, hands down. Jeeps are for getting your hands dirty, or at least feeling like you do. Ad #1 looks like a medical specimen compared to Ad #2.”
- vs. “Not so sure having read all the comments. Both seem okay-ish but nothing to write home about. Really guys, do you think #2 is that good? I mean, what a mess. Maybe us European guys like car ads clean, nice, Volvo-like. I hate scribbles, so ad #1 works fine for me — change the fonts, please!“
Ozeworks takes a crackshot at explaining why it’s not as perfect as it seems, and I agree:
- “Depends on the target demographic. In terms of the one you expect us to say will sell, i.e. the second one, I find the yellow text hard to read, and there is too much of it. So it takes work to find out what is being sold. And we all know people hate putting in effort to understand anything. So while it might be the obvious design choice, that does not mean it will sell.”
While I felt the second option to be more compelling because it tickled my design fancy, I didn’t find it to be as straightforward as I would want and expect from an ad for used car. It turns out, the first version sold it.
Who knew? Printing on a Mac CAN be sexy!
on May 05 in FileMaker, General, InBloom, Mac, SoftwareThe folks at NRG Software put up a post about how Mac OS 10.5.2 now has Zebra printer compatibility. For the uninitiated, this means Macs can finally interface to the Zebra printers just about every retail business uses/needs. Dymos are good but not for heavy duty printing. I’m absolutely psyched and you can definitely plan on seeing this in InBloom.
Logo Design: SwingStudioOnline.com
on May 01 in Design, General
I recently had the opportunity to design a quick logo for a friend’s new dance venture. Have you ever really wanted to dance without having to master Fred Astaire’s graceul footwork? Then this is the site for you: SwingStudioOnline.com
Brian and Autumn are two friends who have managed to synthesize the essence of West Coast Swing which is deceivingly sultry, less acrobatic, and just as much fun as “lindy” swing dancing. They’ve done this with an online video membership site that gives you access to video lessons you can practice in your own home. This is perfect for those who want the privacy of their own home and the desire to really hone their chops without hauling to a dedicated dance space. Move the coffee table over and get ready…
Where The Wild Things Are
on Apr 30 in General, WWW
I can’t remember any book from my childhood more than Where the Wild Things Are
Thanks to LegWorkStudio for putting it on my radar!
Barcoding is not dull anymore
on Apr 16 in Design, GeneralYou can’t help but be struck by the differences this attention to detail would make in having a package standout. A company named Bar Code Evolution is pushing the edge that deserves to be pushed.
Thanks to DesigniousTimes for the cool link!
Spicy Soup & Marketing Across The Pond
on Apr 14 in Design, General
I couldn’t help but chuckle on this packaging which made its way into a Kroger supermarket I was in, in Atlanta, GA. Packaging was definitely on my mind as I was encountering a whole bunch of ingredients which I seldom see in my generic supermarket and I was fresh from reading the new Patterns book. The book is worth reading so I definitely recommend checking it out.
Ricky Gervais + Elmo = Hilarity
on Mar 12 in GeneralWhich FileMaker toolbar is better?
on Mar 05 in GeneralI’m posting links to two versions of basically the same toolbar for an update to a FileMaker-based product that is in development. Which one works best in your opinion? CLICK ON EACH VERSION TO SEE A LARGER VIEW. Any thoughts are appreciated…
Version 1
Version 2
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