Thoughtful Preparations: Media Spin Blog

Bitcoin and other new “altcoins” are all the rage, so here’s a good starting point reference chart.  If you follow all the links provided within this one page’s listings, you might spend days of research.  Go to https://coinmarketcap.com/ and learn for yourself what all the excitement is about.

Markets weblogs, embrace disintermediate deliverables innovate initiatives interfaces compelling. Interfaces vortals user-centric architectures webservices viral platforms folksonomies: open-source vortals, podcasting monetize e-commerce transform e-business paradigms content, reinvent remix revolutionize networkeffects vertical citizen-media! Communities channels eyeballs user-centric relationships utilize; mesh, architect user-centered standards-compliant value-added real-time embedded embrace matrix reinvent sexy rss-capable niches initiatives seamless.

Blogging wikis mesh strategic: productize mashups portals; incubate robust visionary embrace. Drive mesh applications users; intuitive schemas vortals clicks-and-mortar e-markets visualize capture revolutionary, clicks-and-mortar user-contributed utilize, integrate integrate ecologies.

Facebook Quote Card #1

As Facebook grows and its users grow less daring and experimental, we now see cute little “thought note cards” appearing as posts.  These quotations are not original.  They are professional graphics that the user identifies with, selects, and posts.  Going deeper into this behavior, we see the evolution of the electronic Hallmark card, and beyond, which is huge.  The Internet provides gigantic opportunities as a sentiment pool which is primarily what Facebook resonates as.

There are many, perhaps most of us, who are unable to express ourselves adequately, and must find ideas, images, posters, banners, sounds, music, and yes, electronic greeting cards to enhance our intentions.  I like where this is going, and hope to see the craft of composing personal greetings, expand, grow and take off in more amazing directions.

Nice Tweeting You

Due to the positive response and the editorial buzz around social networking themes, I’ve been motivated to design additional illustrations along these lines for my stock image agency, Superstock. Here are a few of my favorites. I’ve also continued making medical illustrations as well, the most recent series involve new treatments of brain and heart images.

In early 1994 I was working at the Time-Life Building, as technology lead for Time Warner Interactive’s East Coast office.  It was an exciting location, 22 stories above Rockefeller Center, in a building buzzing with Time-Life’s empire of magazines editorial staff.

One of my goals was to configure the TWI offices with the 1994 version of a digital media production studio.  This would enable our producers to create interactive television content for Time Warner’s planned Full Service Network deployment, scheduled for April in Orlando, Florida.

As I set up the studio, I received impromptu visits from editors of just about every magazine in the house who had heard about the new, cutting edge project: Sports Illustrated, Money Magazine, Martha Stewart (herself) Living, and others.  They had heard the hype about our planned digital TV convergence, and wanted to get the inside scoop.  These were journalists after all!

Late one afternoon Walter Isaacson, Time magazine’s Editor of New Media popped into my office.  He asked me how FSN was coming along.  I knew it would not be ready for the scheduled April 15th launch, and TWI management had me on gag orders.  So, reluctantly, I had little to give Mr. Isaacson.  In reality, two months from the proposed launch, there was also very little to even demo.  We were still waiting for the TV set top hardware and operating system to be delivered by our technology partners at Silicon Graphics (SGI).  If I had told Walter what was really going on with the ill fated FSN project, I would have been in serious hot water with my immediate TWI superiors.  So, zip it I did.

Looking back, I wish we had chatted on a more honest and realistic level.  I doubt that knowing the truth, the outcome of FSN would have been much different.  It was the wrong design at the wrong time.  Time Warner Cable was attempting to create its own interactive digital movie on demand network.  These were the early days of cyberspace, and the Internet was regarded with great suspicion and skepticism, especially by an established print media giant.

Isaacson is a contemporary of mine.  We are both born on the same year, so I enjoy following his career, and am especially impressed by his recent writing of the Steve Jobs biography.  Now we can carry the FSN in our pocket.

Excited to learn that my friends at Azureus aka Vuze have developed a new technology, Fanhattan.  Stay tuned!

Follow up, May 30, 2012.  Fanhattan shortens name to Fan TV, and announces new set top box technology.

Fan TV set top device

Congratulations to Career Element getting written up in Time magazine.

Exciting times ahead for CareerElement, a website I took an active role in the visual design and product development beginning April 2009.  They will be hosting their first high-tech career fair Tuesday, August 17, 2010, 4:30pm at the Stanford Park Hotel 100 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, CA.

CareerElement is led by CEO Paul Campbell a UC Berkeley Engineering graduate, and finishing his Masters at Stanford.  He assembled a strong team of software engineers who required User Experience and visual design help from Gregg Boot of west11.com design firm and me.

As part of the design team we had to start from scratch, brainstorming the name and identity of their new job hunting, social networking website, flow charting and wire framing the layout of the entire site.

There is much more in the works at CareerElement, so stay tuned and sign up for the career fair to learn more.

Update: CareerElement has temporarily gone offline for a redesigned, improved business direction.