Now I happen to have an excuse to blog about the second of two ‘full scale’ robots being built in Tokyo. Perfect for Friday reading. The other false idol erected in Japan is devoted to another genre than the Gundam, although I believe that the Tetsujin ‘Gigantor’ is just as massive and commanding of it’s intended surroundings. Not sure why civic projects took this form as opposed to the creation of something somewhat useful like the St. Louis Arch. Or maybe the fixing of roads and infrastructure. Whatever drives this is pure fanime and it couldn’t happen anywhere else so I guess it’s either you embrace it or really embrace it because it’s not going anywhere.
For the most part I have been dying to upload a photo of the Gigantor for weeks now. I love how this statue definitely strikes an action pose, but closely resembles a cartoon as much as possible. Awesome, but somehow saddening.
It is about time someone found a profitable use for limited run, somewhat bespoke Laser-Cut product and you can thank furniture manufacturer B+N Industries. So, it’s kind of trippy but the interplay with lighting is really compelling. It’s only a matter of time but I look forward to seeing something raised off of the surface in question as opposed to just cutting into it, essentially creating two parallel layers.
What I think has the largest degree of potential is the tying together of furniture into the surrounding environment via the continuation of the same pattern or motif. Sure, you are more or less pushed into doing something that isn’t easily updatable without the swapping out of different panels but as long as it’s modular in it’s application that can’t be all bad.
That being said I’m sure it costs way too much to be viable by many people that don’t run high end showrooms but that doesn’t mean people with access to Laser Cutters can’t put together something similar with nice vector-based lineart and a little time. Via IfitsHipItsHere.
In 2005, Omega spent $350,000 on the Ultra Thin Omega watch that belonged to President John F. Kennedy. Not surprisingly they announced the launch of a limited-edition timepiece that will be virtually identical to the “Ultra Thin” Omega that Kennedy wore during his January 20, 1961 inauguration and throughout much of his presidency. In a limited edition run there will be 261numbered commemorative gold watches available for the bargain price of $8,250. Do I like the design? Yes, it’s slick as hell and signals the return of the Tank body style that evokes Mod in so many different ways–it’s the approach to the timepiece’s marketing that bothers me.
Using dead presidents to sell watches (not limited to just his signature series timepiece) is Tacky. I don’t care if it benefits the JFK Foundation, which I am sure is hurting for cash. This is worse than seeing dead celebrities digitally inserted into modern-day commercials in order to sell carbonated sugar water. It could be the image that one is buying into and aspiring to become a part of that bothers me, but I think it’s more than that. It’s a push to use his image to hock an unrelated product line that is a total stretch at best. To think if he made any statements thinking that one day they might be reused for this purpose is absurd. It’s a longer reach on a few levels due to the use of a quote given in a speech about man’s aspirations to go to the moon being used to sell premium wristwatches. Can someone tell me how this makes sense?
French cuff shirts may not be as prevalent as they were two or three years ago but the perfect pair of cufflinks has finally arrived. Basic and about as unadorned as you can get these show off one’s sense of style and will surely cause someone to ask where you purchased them. At about $80 they may be a bit pricey given their material and effort to manufacture but they do make a statement without trying. Check them out here.
http://www.vimeo.com/5651466
After seeing a few different approaches to the incorporation of AR in recent months I finally saw something worth posting about. Sure, this has been used in everything from Mini campaign (later copied by the Toyota IQ, who must have the laziest Ad Agency) to portfolio teasers for designers but the interactive approach above breaks new ground. How to make it personal was really the push this technology needed in order to begin to make the inevitable jump to ubiquity. Bear witness to an elegant stumble out of the starting blocks below:
Being contextual in nature makes it more compelling because it speaks not only about the individual behind the card but also about what they may want to project out to a wider audience in order to ‘pitch’ themselves more effectively. As if having to maintain a Digital and Print-based portfolio, Resume (.pdf and .doc), and Coverletter ready at moments notice wasn’t enough already because I am all about getting something like this pulled together….Did I mention you can snag the codebase for free here? Now I just need to figure out what the hell to do with it.
I heart The Rakes and their lead singer’s near constant Johnny Rotten impression. The video definitely fits the gritty 8-track quality recording; you can almost hear the synthetic digitally remastered tape hiss in the scant moments of white space–which you should consider to be your welcome to the post-post punk era.
Having to deal a lot of both challenges lately at work got me thinking about these veritable twin titans of software development and it occurred to me that there is indeed something worse than dealing with both: Indecision.
Sure, Feature Creep is annoying and is an ever-present danger that every program (Hardware or Software) runs into eventually given the cycle of elaboration and construction. But, in my humble opinion this can be managed via someone highlighting the offset in Time-To-Market if these items are going to be taken under consideration. Since these requests seem to come from upper management this is something that is usually well out of my control even when I veer out of my lane a bit. After all, these things happen and you can see them coming most of the time.
Descoping tends to be difficult because of it’s emotional roots. It has been my experience that the Design and at least the baseline Development is usually completed, or at least planned/budgeted for by the time it gets removed from a product. Worse case scenario is that something is done, ready to be added into the offering and the decision is made to pull a function or feature due to implementation risk or quality issue. This doesn’t prevent those that put in the work to get a bit insulted because I (and many others) believe that anything worth doing that provides a competitive advantage doesn’t come easy. That, it’s inarguable to say working on something only for it to be for naught is frustrating as hell for everyone involved. This is also an occurrence of a decision that tends to come from upper management that myself and peers find ourselves at the mercy of.
I suppose it’s fair to say that if you have built anything put out to market that you might see at leaked on Gizmodo, in CES pictures, or blogged about you have experienced both Feature Creep and/or Descoping. Plus you have probably felt the pain of something being near finished or shippable only to be canceled due to adverse market conditions or customer changing their minds. This isn’t the Indecision that I am referencing though. Cancellation of product or projects is something you live with (although the first is always the worst), but it’s the day-to-day indecision from those that are supposed to direct the product and manage it’s development that really grind you down over time. It may just be me, which I can accept, but when Product Management makes decisions they shouldn’t be about Design or Technical Requirements I feel we all have to live with them to a certain extent. This is of course contextual, but there are items that aren’t worth arguing over in order to reduce churn in order to get things out the door.
So–what is the problem? It’s fairly simple: Waffling back and forth over these items is detrimental and leads to accelerated burn out of everyone involved because it leads to more work. Everyone changes there mind occasionally but doing so without acknowledging the reprecussions is ignorant because it doesn’t respect the inputs of others. And usually results in pissing off Program Management something fierce to boot. As of late I have noticed that this is done agnostic of delivery date on an alarming basis which squeezes resources further, resulting in increased estimates and quotes. Good times for everyone.
How to evoke the essence of being Powerfully Nerdy. Unfortunately it will set you back over $30 to do so. Via Rumplo.
Alliteration aside this basic bike is awesome. Previous to the Moto-Guzzi, in the 1960s and early 70s the Italians cornered the European market in lithe, stripped-back 50cc motorcycles. Plus it’s so much less nerdy than those Vespas you might see cruising around. The majority of designs were invariably minimal, resembling little more than a bicycle with an engine and gas tank because……..that’s all they need to be if you think about it. Malanca was one of those Italian manufacturers, producing mopeds and small motorcycles from 1956 to 1986. Pictured above is the Competizione 4m, which is the best combination of chrome, white tank/housing elements, touches of red, and a black powder-coated frame I have ever seen. Great–now I am torn between this and a proper fixie for a garage project. Via Bikeexif.
http://www.vimeo.com/5677104
I don’t know how the projection on this building is this cleanly done with such bright contrast given other environmental-based projects I have seen. I personally think that the montage itself could benefit from some artistic assistance and less….high school artistic elements that are clearly derivative of M.C. Escher and other artists that enjoy the application of random floating body parts, specifically hands and eyes. In short, Surrealism is for Tweens and Stoners. What is nicely done is the integration with the existing structure, which is O. M. Ungers’ “Galerie der Gegenwart“—or it was before projection artists at Urbanscreen got involved.
How would I change the application of this animated art while keeping the theory behind every structure effectively becoming a screen around us intact? The thought of a structure that breathes or undulates based on the number of people within certain degrees of proximity comes to mind. Using proximity, heat, light, and sound-based sensors working in unison would be advantageous and create a more imersive experience. Get rid of this Surrealistic approach and go with something cleaner that makes people do triple takes instead of focusing in on realistic depictions and renderings of hands from a texture-mapping and movement standpoint. Using the existing elements in an additive or reductive manner is what gets people’s attention and keeps it. Via Gizmodo and a half a dozen other websites and blogs.