Wednesday, July 30, 2008
$@*%! Editors!
When I read about Giles Coren, a writer for The Times in the UK, I was reminded of that old saying, “An egotist is a self-made man who worships his creator.”
I’ve met plenty of creative people with enormous egos, but Giles seems to be so full of himself, I’ll bet the airlines make him book a second seat (maybe a whole row) to make room for his ego.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Sunday, June 29, 2008
Fun With Semicolons
Kurt Vonnegut evidently didn’t have much respect for semicolons, pointing out that they serve no purpose and that “the only reason to use one is to show you’ve been to college.” And one of New York mayor Fiorello LaGuardia’s favorite put-downs for intellectual bureaucrats was to call them “semicolon boys.”
That’s probably because “semicolon boys” (and “semicolon girls,” of course) spend their days debating the delicate nuances of various sentence clauses, coordinating conjunctions, conjunctive adverbs, and other grammatical subtleties you’ve either never mastered or just plain forgot.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Form Follows Me
If “form follows function,” then how should multi-function devices be designed?
According to industrial designer Tamer Nakisci’s solution, the perfect form does not exist. So just create the perfect form for each function, and voilà, “form follows you.”
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Monday, April 14, 2008
An Internet of Things
Noted sci-fi author Bruce Sterling wrote a non-fiction book a few years ago called Shaping Things, presenting his vision on how humans will interact with the world of the future—not just with fellow humans, but with all the objects, both important and trivial, that impact our lives.
One of the main points Sterling raises is that our world is rapidly being reshaped, whether we like it or not, into an Internet that represents not just information, but things.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Friday, April 11, 2008
The Bloch Sphere
Turns out there’s a sphere with my name on it.
No, it’s not really named after me, but the Bloch sphere does illustrate the power of animation for visualizing complex concepts.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Sunday, April 06, 2008
Thinking Outside the Rim
Most designers would probably be thrilled to have the privilege of creating a postage stamp. But what about a coin, something they’ll be minting for a generation or two?
Or what if were an entire set of coins, one that’s destined to set a new standard in design, sculpture, and national identity?
How many designers have done that?
The latest in this rarefied group of designers is Matthew Dent of London, who won a public design competition by creating an absolutely stunning look for the UK’s new coins, blending traditional and contemporary imagery in a clever interactive way. And he’s only 26 years old.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Saturday, March 29, 2008
I Still See Yellow
Slate ran an article on phone books – asking “Why Won’t Phone Books Die?”
In the article, Bill Gates is quoted as predicing that “Yellow Page usage among people, say, below 50, will drop to zero—or near zero—over the next five years.”
I’m not so pessimistic on the future of printed phone books. Certainly usage is on the decline. And while it’s been a long time since I’ve actually used the white pages to look up someone’s phone number, I still use the yellow pages from time to time.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Branding a Campaign
Usually I avoid discussing politics here. But today, I’m going to make an exception.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Place Stamp Here
Thanks to the US Postal Service, I’m doing my best to stamp out boring direct mail envelopes. And it doesn’t even cost more.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Sunday, December 30, 2007
Lost in Translation
Sometimes when I read the instructions that come with consumer electronics, I’m intrigued by the way certain words and concepts are translated into English.
I suspect that’s because most foreign language dictionaries are really more thesaurus than dictionary – failing to provide much insight into the various nuances of word usage.
So I was amused when I took a look at some of the copy on the web site for Aeroflot, Russia’s flagship carrier.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Bulletproof Persuasion
The more we’re exposed to advertising, the more jaded we become. That’s why I try as hard as I can to some way to prove vague product claims.
Whoever developed the advertising concept for LifeLock deserves an award (and a big fat raise, of course) as this is a strong example of the effectiveness of providing compelling proof of performance.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Got 30 Seconds?
Ironically enough, I think the web is actually breathing new life into what I think is a dying form of media – the 30-second TV spot.
When you watch TV, the ads are so easy to ignore these days, but for at least one form of online media, I’ll bet they’re far more effective than on TV.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Saturday, September 29, 2007
Home Sweet Home
Even when I lack experience in a specific industry, I can usually study existing marketing communication tactics and catch on pretty quickly on the most effective strategies.
But I must admit that there are some forms of advertising I just don’t get.
I mean come on, what’s the deal with real estate advertising?
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Friday, August 31, 2007
Click Here? Click There? Hmm…
Navigating through a company’s web site shouldn’t be an exploration of discovery into unknown lands.
It should be an intuitive experience because your visitor will have preconceived notions of how your site should operate. You may not like it, but if you deviate from these prevailing standards, you do so at your own peril.
Yet some web designers still feel there’s a need to be creative. I’m all for creativity, provided it doesn’t interfere with usability.
I ran across a web site for a company called ShareChive. The company’s products and services may be excellent, but the site presents some serious stumbling blocks to any visitor.
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Posted by Richard Bloch
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Sunday, July 29, 2007
Now Available Online
I get a kick out of some of those sponsored ads you see on the search results pages at Google and Yahoo.
Some of them seem quite strange …
