JabrWoky - Following the white rabbit since...

A Lifetime's Synthesis of Content & Form

The One Show pays tribute to the legendary graphic designer Paul Rand.

"Without content there is no form; without form there is no content."

Final word of advice from Paul:

"Don't try to be original, try to be good."

Our Cell Phones Are Us

Nokia researcher Jan Chipchase explains why the cell phone has become a mirror image of our own selves. From TED 2007.

A Bookshelf for Reading

When space shrinks in the urban jungles we live in, design triumphs to solve our dilemmas of the aesthetics of optimum utility of space. Japanese designer Sakura Adachi is the genius behind this reading cave. According to this New York Times article, the price is about $7045, beyond the reach of the average urban dweller who would find this shelf the most useful. But we can always hope for the IKEA folks to emulate on this innovative smart design.
Here is Sakura Adachi's inspiration to create it:

"I wanted to create a situation like from your childhood. Like when you’re at home, hiding under the table, listening to your parents’ conversation. That is a memorable experience that many people have."

Year of Helvetica

It seems like it's the year of the Swiss typeface Helvetica. The documentary film on the famous font appeared a few months back. Now Blanka has this spectacular poster collection celebrating 50 years of Helvetica. And these are my favorites:

 

'State of Beta' Goes Mainstream

Russell Davies first coined this phrase here (or at least that's where I stumbled on it first). It's an apt and succinct term that captures the state of constant flux of the digitally connected world we inhabit today. You notice the term 'beta' on most of the web sites you visit from Gmail to Joost. It's one of those things that's so apparently out there and ubiquitous that you really tend to miss it. It's got many meanings.

Design and innovation seems to be the buzz words in business today. And 'beta' is just another manifestation of that in the rapidly evolving technology sector or rather the Silicon valley tech folks have been using it for a long time. IDEO had embraced the idea of rapid prototyping and constant evolution of product development through positive feedback loops since it set shop in the 1980s. Now the concept of 'beta' seems to be trickling down to mainstream business models. As is evident from this excerpt from Bruce Nussbaum's recent speech at the Royal College of Art in London:

"There are moments in history when the pace of change is so fast and the shape of the future so fuzzy that we live in a constant state of beta."

We are at that moment of history where life and technology is intertwining rapidly into a state of beta flux. Bruce also brings up this truth that is staring right at our face:

"our business models are melting down around us, our personal careers are morphing—or disappearing-- and there is less certainty about tomorrow than at any other time in our lives. Every industry, every company and every one of us is swept up in this veritable flood of change."

Now 'beta' applies to each of us individually. So it's not just brands and companies that are at threat of extinction if they don't evolve fast enough; it's also us mortals that are in danger of becoming obsolete professionals. And that's a thing to watch out for.

Spectacles of Dubai

On an earlier visit to Dubai last year, one of the interesting things I spotted was that optical or sunglass stores abound in the Middle Eastern supercity. These are a few samplings of those store signs. So next time you go to Dubai don't take your glasses, you can get one in any corner of Dubai.

Experience

What I hear, I forget.
What I see, I remember.
What I do, I understand.
- Chinese Proverb

[Captured by my eye, mind and heart in Jeremy Myerson's book 'IDEO: Masters of Innovation']

A to Z of Favicons

You might have seen these little icons on your url bar, like I have, when you open your favorite pages. It had caught my eye and it was interesting and cool. I had never bothered to think beyond that about them. Now Dan Taylor (via Russell Davies del.icio.us) has a great entry on that little piece of design or favicons (favorite icons) which we all are starting to appreciate and love. I learned from Dan's entry the little details about them - that they are 16 by 16 and the smallest logo face in the world. I am not a designer, so I am baffled to learn that representing your brand effectively in just 256 pixels is undoubtedly an enormous design challenge. Dan has concisely dissected the four approaches that have emerged to tackle this.

It seems the web has spawned another visual signage, one that could easily escape our eye in the first instance, but as we get used to it, we start looking for it. And surely, soon we would start expecting it on every site. It will be a key distinguisher like the company logo on the corner of your business card  or those little studio logos (like Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox) you find on the credits on movie posters.

Now all this has made me think of what would be my little logo look like. I have no idea as I write this. But several ideas and visuals are circling in my mindspace. In the blogosphere, would that translate as putting your 256 pixel emoticon next to your url?

In the meantime, to have some fun click on the image of the A-Z of favicons and try correctly to name the brands to win some prizes from Dan.

clocky

An alarm clock that runs away from you, and actually drags you out of bed. Fantastic!! I might need one at the rate I'm getting up in the morning these days.

It's the brainchild of MIT graduate student Gauri Nanda. You can get one at Nanda's online store. More on it at this Boston Globe article.

The Original Coca-Cola Bottle