December 2008
40 posts
Lack of Details: The artwork of Patrick McDonnell.
My wife and I recently picked up a book by Patrick McDonnell (of Mutts fame) for our kids. Something struck me about his work that I had failed to see in the past, the lack of detail in his work.
With tiny gestures and very few lines he is able to sculpt enough of his characters that you can fill in the rest with your mind. With it comes these feelings of purity, imagination and spontaneity. Its...
Where we do what we do. →
I’m a huge fan of peering into people’s work environments. From full on studios to freelance havens wherewedowhatwedo.com gives you an inside peak. [via Noah Stokes]
“We are made of Art and Science”
– Jonah Lehrer
How do you figure it out? →
37signals asks if you have a problem with a product, how do you figure it out? Great question, responses are fascinating.
“Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or...”
– Unknown [via i can read]
“Enjoy the little things of life… for one day you’ll look back and...”
– Robert Brault
“Design is relationships. Between form and content.”
– Unknown [via i can read]
1 tag
Precision.
I’m a details man, anyone that knows me would tell you that. I care about grids, kerning, line-height and everything else in between… down to the very pixel that something aligns itself too. Many would argue that this is one of my greatest strengths. In the last week or so I’ve been pondering this idea of precision. Is it really my strength or perhaps my greatest weakness?
I...
“Do you have ideas OR do ideas have you?”
– Unknown [via i can read]
“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some...”
– Emerson
Page2RSS: Create an RSS feed for any web page →
It is a service that helps you monitor web sites that do not publish feeds. It will check any web page for updates and deliver them to your favorite RSS aggregator.
“It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.”
– Unknown
The 7 signs of the Apple apocalypse (aka... →
A hilarious look at something that might not be too far from the truth. [via Tap Tap Tap]
Inspiring ambigram identities →
Ambrigram identities/symbols have always fascinated me. LogoDesignLove recently took a look at 15 well known ambrigram identities, its a great gallery to spend a few moments in.
WatchThe making of an Eames chair, 1970.: saw this on 37signals and couldn’t resist posting it here, love the attention to detail in this.
“The thing is, not all data is equal, and measuring the truth based on volume is...”
– Seth Godin
Flexible Inputs →
Luke Wroblewski writes another great article on why we should advocate for flexible inputs in our forms. We’ve gone to flexible inputs for our internal apps for awhile and its amazing how much cruft they cut out of the user interface (no more help text, multiple fields or calendar pickers).
Update: Luke has now posted some video’s showing a way to use input masks as a way to use...
Today's Images →
Each morning, before starting work, Eric Baker spends 30 minutes looking for images that are beautiful, funny, absurd and inspiring. Here’s Today.
1 tag
I don't want to grow up, I'm a Toys"R"Us kid...
Today I went to the magical place of Toys”R”Us, at least thats how I remember it in my head. Is it just me or has this fine establishment turned into a bad mix of Kmart with a dash of Walmart sprinkled on top? I remember it being a huge Costco-like experience, clean, well kept with super great toys that I could only wish to have. Instead I experienced a dirty, jam packed, stuff...
Obama logo ideas that weren’t chosen →
Sol Sender has offered up a few more interviews. This time he is showing some of the designs that weren’t picked. Personally this stuff is fascinating to me. I’d love to see the “non-picks” for other major brands out there, anyone, anyone?
Interview with Jesse Bennett-Chamberlain →
Interview with Jesse Bennett-Chamberlain gives some background on where his design talents originated and how he runs his business.
Using our creative talents for Good.
I read the following twitter post from Jeremy Cowart today and was moved:
Doing family portraits of the homeless and poor today with some other photographer friends today. Looking forward to it!
It made me wonder how are we as creatives using our creative talents for good? This seemly tiny gesture on Jeremy’s part will more than likely impact these families in a huge way this season.
...
“I like coffee so much that I have tea for breakfast: The first cup of the day in...”
– Christoph Niemann’s illustrated coffee notes
Early Adoption
futon: i should sign up
me: you should
futon: but i'm lazy
me: you are
futon: you're the early adopter for the both of us
LittleSnapper →
I’ve been beta testing LittleSnapper over the last week and its pretty much the next best thing to slice bread for screen captures.
Update: Jon Hicks is now calling this his tool for creative spongery, I agree completely!
Update: Mike Rundle writes up a quick post on the details of LittleSnapper, particularly the icon design.
1 tag
WatchBrilliant iPod touch ad featured on Yahoo! Games
Update: CNet has now joined the fun.
10 Principles of the UI Design Masters - NETTUTS →
Here are 10 extremely useful principles from some of the best minds in the User Interface field.
1 tag
“A picture is worth a thousand words. An interface is worth a thousand pictures.”
– Ben Shneiderman, 2003
3 tags
Back.
After almost 12 months off to this day I’ve decided to bring back PWS. Mainly because over this past year I’ve wanted to say some things and haven’t had a great place to say them. Previously PWS was designed for the big thoughtful posts, the type that people could ponder over, think critically and then comment (oh wait maybe I was thinking of another blog out there). Well I...