TAKEAWAY: While my 2002 book Pure Design is virtually out of print, we will be bringing you the short “fable-inspired” entries, offering solutions for magazines, books, newspapers and websites.It is all about the basics of visual journalism. Starting here July 1.
Pure Design comes to the blog
As readers of Pure Design know, I was inspired by Aesop’s fables to write short, all inclusive entries on a variety of design-related topics, from color and typography to white space use and page architecture.
My plan is to add new thoughts to each of the “fable entries”, to update the topics whenever possible. Our summer intern, Reed Reibstein, will be assisting me as we prepare the materials for presentation in this new medium.
As I read through the material one more time, I realize that 85% of what is in Pure Design still matters today. I will make an attempt to update that other 15% who which we can add new dimensions almost 7 years later.
Pure Design’s pages will be available as PDFs through the Issuu viewer (http://issuu.com/) embedded in the blog.
My new iPhone 3G S
Yes, sir, I stood in line almost two hours at the Apple Store in Tampa last Friday, but emerged with my new iPhone.
How do I like it?
Well, I was already sold and consider this marvelous machine indispensable. But what I liked the most about the new one is my ability to record a video (yesterday I had a good time cavorting with the grandchildren in the swimming pool—-along with the doggies, Charlie and Jagger—-and making videos to capture the moment; I also love the Voice feature, allowing me to send recorded messages to friends and clients (much easier than typing a text message). As for speed, the S in 3G S does stand for speed. Fast is the word here.
I am still reviewing the tutorial on www.apple.com, and discovering the new iPhone.
For now, count me among the very satisfied customers.
I guess I had tons of company on lines at stores across the USA to buy the iPhone. Apple Inc.said Monday that it has sold more than 1 million iPhone 3GS models through Sunday, just three days after the phone’s launch. Some 6 million customers have downloaded the new iPhone 3.0 software in the product’s first five days, Apple top man Steve Jobs said the iPhone’s momentum is “stronger than ever.”
That thinning American newspaper
You can feel the lighter weight when you hold editions of the St. Petersburg Times and USA Today: same for many other US newspapers
I remember the days when the Sunday edition of an American newspaper was heavy to the point of requiring two hands to pick it up from the front yard to bring it into the house. In fact, it was common knowledge that if everyone boarding a Sunday morning flight at JFK in New York City carried a full copy of the Sunday New York Times, it would considerably alter the weight of the aircraft! Maybe this was only a myth that newspaper editors were proud to echo, but not totally far fetched.
Yesterday, as I picked up copies of my local papers, The Tampa Tribune and The St. Petersburg Times, the first thought that hit me was: is this a Sunday newspaper? Quite light, both of them.
This morning, at the Tampa International Airport, I pick up a St. Petersburg Times and a USA Today. In both cases, I did a double take to make sure that the thin edition in my hands was complete, not missing any sections. Yes, they were.
USA Today carries four thin sections: two of 10 pages, each, two of 6 pages each, this Monday.
The St. Petersburg Times today, volume 125, number 333, carries four sections as well with pages as follows: Main section, 14 ; Metro,6: Bay Link (a mixture of classifieds and lifestyle,14; Sports, 8.
Mind you, as a reader, I appreciate these more compacts, quicker to get through editions, but I am sure it hurts in terms of advertising revenue.
Kick your week off with some provocative reading
Some interesting links to get your Monday off to an informed start, from the IFRA Executive News Service
Monday 22 June 2009
– USA: Putting a Price on News
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/21/opinion/21pubed.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y
– Germany: Axel Springer CEO Sees Paid-For Web Content
http://news.morningstar.com/newsnet/ViewNews.aspx?article=/DJ/200906190806DOWJONESDJONLINE000567_univ.xml
Journalism’s future and 5 minutes with Sir Tim
http://zoniereport.com/2009/06/journalisms-future-and-5-minutes-with-sir-tim/
– Life after death: newspapers and the re-invention of paper technology
http://www.ojr.org/ojr/people/emilyhenry/200906/1753/
– Rules of Engagement for Journalists on Twitter
http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2009/06/rules-of-engagement-for-journalists-on-twitter170.html
– The Newspaper Isn’t Dead Yet – Why newsprint still beats the Kindle.
http://www.slate.com/id/2220793/pagenum/all/
– The Future of Media, One Panel Discussion at a Time
http://www.foliomag.com/2009/future-media-one-panel-discussion-time
– Readers Want to Pay for News Online—So Let Them
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/columns/stopthepresses_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003986123
– Anderson, Bezos, O’Reilly talk newspapers
http://blog.internetnews.com/agoldman/2009/06/newspaper-business.html
TheMarioBlog posting #284