Unfurl is a collection of links, media and my observations concerning anything that may have caught my attention on the web.
With an obvious focus on creative and user centered design, this scrapbook's primarily purpose is for my personal reference. However anyone is more than welcome to comment and contribute.
Surviving an expedition to the supermarket can be tough. Luckily western civilisation has finally gone old-school and started packaging six-legged bundles of energy otherwise know as insects. I'm a little disappointed the ants don't come with a magnifying glass so you can toast them yourself.
Make sure you check out the video at the bottom of the page. It makes light of the Death Star realities you never got to see in any of the Star Wars films. It reminds me of a scene from a film (I can't remember the name) where someone points out that when the Death Star was under reconstruction in the Return of the Jedi, it would have been largely occupied by contractors. Therefore the Rebels were responsible for the loss of a great many innocent lives (or were they truly innocent if they took a job on the Death Star??).
While we're talking about the Death Star and Lego, check out this Lego Death Star. O to be a kid again...
It's true. The simple ideas are often the best. How come it's taken so long to realise such a practical idea as folding bike handle bars? The icing on the cake is the idea within an idea - the handle bars lock together. Doesn't really stop anyone from stealing the bike. Only thing is you have to be happy riding without any hands and never turning corners.
I've always wanted a Sony Bravia LCD TV. After months of window shopping I've concluded LCD is far superior to plasma (maybe it's go something to do with the fact that I'm a designer and glued to an LCD for most of the day). Anyway, I'm kinda glad I haven't splurged before now as Sony has recently unveiled the new XBR8. It's the duck's nuts.
This is a beautiful example of an old invention given a new (and practical!) twist with new technology. I also love the fact the designers haven't stopped there, as they've gone on to add a few other, maybe less whizz-bang, but nevertheless practical features.
Kind of reminds me of the surfer's pillow - a pillow with a net connection so it can read the surf reports and wake you up if it's worth suiting up. Great stuff!
OK, so I kind of knew last night was always going to be a late one, but I was determined to get Mac OS X 10.5 (aka Leopard) up and running on 3 machines.
There's not really a single reason why I upgraded. As I expected it's the net effect of a wealth of small improvements to day-to-day tasks that has lived up to my expectations. I love the subtle refinements that make the Leopard feel like OS X has really matured.
There's a few surprises in there too. I love the ability to screen share - this is especially good in a double story house with 3 macs. Now I certainly didn't upgrade in anticipation of a new screen saver, but the new Mosaic screen saver is truly stunning. At first I didn't think anything was happening but it soon became obvious why it initially took some time to start. Check it out, it's one of those "how on earth does that work?" type of scenarios.
Then there's Time Machine. Probably what I was looking forward to most with Leopard. Now back up isn't particularly exciting but when you've got a laptop full of precious music, photos and hundreds of hours worth of work, it's certainly important. For years my trusty old You Synchronize has toiled away keeping a single copy of everything backed up. But I'm really looking forward to the way Time Machine takes it to a completely new level with multiple copies all indexed in a slick new interface. Given I'm only half way through the initial back up of 3 machines, it might be a while before I can really see how good it is. Actually, let's hope it's something I never have to use.
This isn't just another awesome portfolio site. It's an awesome portfolio blended with a wealth of discussion (OK, a blog) and personal interests into a visually stunning and somehow uncluttered design.
I have a thing for portfolio sites and this one absolutely rocks. Not surprisingly he also has some great work in his folio. Check out the way the theme matches the time of day - nice.
If I could go back and start my career over I think I'd get into motion graphics/design. There's so much I admire about this form of art. It takes all of the basic design principals and commercial considerations I apply in my current job and adds movement, timing and sound to bring it to life. All of this without the technical constrains plus you have the viewer's undivided attention (at least when they click play). I guess the skill is in keeping them until the final frame, or better, replaying the movie.
Today we launched the new version of the Citysearch TV Guide. A huge leap forward from the old guide, this version now includes pay TV channels, the ability to personalise your preferences, enhanced time and display controls, a nifty widget and a much clearer interface.
Ah model making. Aside from Lego, I think a lot of what I put into my work today I owe to those old plastic model kits.
This site takes me back to being a kid (can you smell the hobby glue?). I love the creative but it's a pitty you've got to click down through half a dozen menus to get to any content.
