Are you Bot or Not? Sveda Vodka's creepy new create-your-own robot site.

Stumbled across this new viral site today for Sveda vodka, which had been previously promoting it's Vodka with a highly-sexualized female robot...now, you can make yourself one!

http://www.areyoubotornot.com

Well, you can make a male version...but I went with the sexy female version in the french maid costume. I think black leather with some ruffles looks good on me, right?

These types of sites have become very popular over the years, from R/GA's extensive but short-lived Verizon Action Hero site, to the amazingly popular "Elf yourself" that pops up every holiday season.

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Storyboard #2 - Robot-Free Vacation Resort

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Story Board #1 for Future Counselors.

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Digital Design Powerpoint

My latest powerpoint file for Digital Design.

Digital Design Powerpoint

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Top Baffling Commercial Lies

Well, it's not the most hard-hitting news piece to come across the internet, but I found this rather amusing and quite truthful.  We are bombarded by commercials and advertisements every day, and many times, we take what we see and hear with a truthfulness that we wouldn't apply anywhere else. But we really, REALLY should be questioning our commercials more.

A recent post on Cracked.com takes the top 6 "accepted truths from commercials" and breaks them down in quite a humorous way...here's the 6 with my little thoughts:

6. Only Women Eat Yogurt
No men were available for these commercials? Or does yogurt really not effect us?

5. One Car on the Road Per Night:
Is there really only one, amazing high-end car driving around at night, showing off it's sleek aerodynamic styling and anti-lock brakes?

4. Dog and Cat Food Is Delicious:
After watching many commercials, I have a hard time not being tempted to grab some Fancy Feast and a tall drink, and dig into that tasty cat food!

3. Cosmetics and Candy Are the Same:
Both look good enough to eat, right?

2. Your Feet Are Haunted
How many commercials do we need with feet that catch on fire, smoke, look green, or just evoke general disgust from the rest of society?

1. Your Body Is Filled With Windshield Wiper Fluid:
From diapers to tampons, why is the "liquid" always light blue?

Read the article at Cracked.com

Dangerous Flash-mobs...the ugly side of connectivity.

A fascinating, and scary, article on the current state of flash mobs.  This term once stood for harmless, instantly-formed groups, notified by text messages and email blasts, that showed up a specified spots and danced, had playful snow ball battles, and confused and amused everyone else.

But now, these Flashmobs have turned violent, with a major focal point being Philadelphia.  Four incidents of 100+ youths forming spontaneously, running through shopping malls and the city, and attacking each, pedestrians, and vandalizing property.  Also of note is that many of the teens participating in it are of African-American descent, with many of the areas of the city hit being primarily white.

In my opinion, this is alarming.  There is always power in large groups, and many times, large numbers of youth will become emboldened beyond their normal parameters.  I can easily see how this would be a wild and exciting proposition when I was a teenager...just to take part in something, especially if all of your other friends are going to as well.  It's purely with the invention of text messaging, social-networks, and instant communication between large groups of people that this is possible.  It will also take an innovative solution to bring it under control again.

Read the New York Times link...

Image courtesy of Laurence Kesterson/The Philadephia Inquirer

My convoluted thoughts on violence in video games

My classmate Jooh recently posed this question to us on his blog:

"We have been watched super-realistic virtual worlds through various medias, such as movie, TV, youtube, and etc. and it deems that there is no limitation in virtual world. People can fly, can become an animal.  I recently watched a demo play of "God of War 3." It was filled with blood and cruelty. However, is it appropriate? Even though there is no limitation of expression in Virtual Reality, why do we need this?  I want to hear from you.  Please share your thought about the cruelty that seems across the line of freedom of expression."

I decided to weigh in...and below is my convoluted thought patten.  I struggle to find a place to stand on this issue, but I thought I'd share.  My response:

This is a very complex issue to discuss...and as a US citizen, I find myself quite confused about where exactly I stand on this.  On one hand, my country is a violent place, with relaxed gun laws, domestic abuse, violent criminal behavior, and nightly news reports filled with fear and danger.  On the other hand, the United States seems to have a love affair with violence, so much so that many of our most famous heroes in games, film, and television, are ultra-violent types.  Kratos in God of War.  Scarface in the movies.  Jack Bauer on 24.

Amazingly enough, the US, in contrast to, say, Europe, has a much bigger hang up with nudity, sexuality, and any expression of sex in media .  Violence is accepted and showcased far more than anything related to sex, in my opinion.

So, what am I saying here?  I'm saying that violence sells in this country, and because of that, violence is showcased across all of our media.  Games such as Mortal Kombat, God of War, and Modern Warfare tap into a primal need in many people to see and feel the exhilarating rush that comes from watching violence, and that need is stoked by the fact that violence is glorified in so many ways here.   Why are so many video games about killing other people, or killing aliens, or fighting people?  There is something there, something that humans have a primal urge to see, and possibly experience themselves.  But I have to believe it also is caused by the society and culture we live in.

On the other hand, I grew up with semi-violent videogames, albeit in the Nintendo 8-bit era...where the violence was much more "pixelly" and less realistic.  And I was able to understand that it wasn't real...but nowadays, as the lines blur and graphics like God of War get more disturbing and realistic, will kids be able to understand it?  And video games offer much more than a television show or a film, because in a video game, you are able to actually produce the violent act...to take a life...or to shoot "someone" dead without a real thought as to the consequences.

(thanks to gamesradar.com for the image)

Jetblue Airlines Terminal, and the future of ordering?

My wife and I were recently at the new Jetblue Airlines Terminal at JFK Airport in Queens, NY.  We were taking a flight to California, but had some time to eat dinner before boarding...and decided that eating at the airport would be the best option considering our timing.

While the new Jetblue terminal is quite impressive, I was most impressive by a small Boar's Head sandwich shop with the larger JetBlue Food Court.  The shop seemed to be operating in an efficient fashion without a human taking the order!  My initial reaction was to look for some other area where you order, but what I found was pleasantly surprising.

Instead of a human being, there was a touch-screen interface, which customers were using to place a quite elaborate sandwich order.   Everything from picking the bread, to the sandwich "insides" (meat, cheese, etc), to the toppings (and amounts) was chosen in a step-by-step visual interface.  Even the price was instantly updated, and items were easily added and undone.

Once entered, the order was instantly sent to one of 5 workers who were preparing sandwiches behind a deli counter to the left of the touchscreen.  There were two touchscreens, and customers waited in two lines to use each one.  Once a worker called out the appropriate number, the customer took their sandwich and went to pay at the cashier nearby in the Jetblue Food Court.

Now, while the cashier area for this Food Court serviced all of the shops (to allow customers to pick and choose from various eateries and snacks before paying), the fact that the sandwich shop was working well by eliminating a front-register human being spoke volumes about a possible future for fast food, and food ordering in general.  Just the fact that:

a) the orders were being put in by customers themselves and transmitted to those who were actually making the sandwiches

b) the customers seemed to have no problem with the interface, or the fact that they were entering orders in on a touchscreen

really speaks to how far we've come, and have adapted to the use of visual interfaces and computers to enter, interpret, and transmit our needs to the actual people doing the service.  I could not see this possible years ago without the ubiquitous takeover of the internet, and the visual interfaces and cues that come with it.  And I expect to see more of it soon...

New York's Tech Scene

New York's Tech Scene gets a big write-up in the New York Times.  It's a good sign that the dot-com's and internet start-ups are starting to come back.  One of our clients is a recent internet start-up that attended a few of these Tech Meetups, and had even asked us to go (which we plan to at some point).

The article states that mobile services and computing, which finally have a lot of infrastructure in place in the NY area, are driving a lot of the new innovation and development.  I can attest to this as well, as my clients are getting into the act and starting to request Iphone apps, and sites/applications that offer more community functionality. 

The smartphone has caused many clients and companies to rethink the way they are communicating with their users and customers, and I think it's something that has real relevance here in NYC.  This city, more than any, typifies the "on-the-go", "get me everything instantly" mentality, and whether you find fault in that or not, it's an attitude that will prevail and drive the tech industry for the foreseeable future.

So, it's a good sign, and makes a lot of what I am learning at school, and applying to my company, seem all the more relevant.

Read the Full Story here

Clicker.com...or, the last in a long list of reasons that I am getting rid of cable tv.

Well, I've done it.  Given up cable tv...for how long, we'll see.  But as of today, it's done.  One call to Time Warner was all it took.

Will I miss it?  Not sure yet.  But the reality is that I've been watching about 80% of what I want to see via the internet.  Sites like Hulu.com, youtube (to some extent), and the individual channel sites have given me on-demand access to the shows I love...when I want them.  If I miss the Daily Show at 11 the night before...well, it's on Hulu.com the next day.  Anytime.

And now comes Clicker.com.  It claims to be an aggregator for ALL of the online television portals and shows, and claims to be the TV guide for the online viewer.  I have yet to explore it fully, but it looks like I'll have more time to...now that I've gotten rid of the old tv.

theGlueproject.com Article - To Gate/Cull or not to Gate/Cull?

Gating is the act of closing off a community to only a certain group or amount of people.  Culling is the act of going into a community and weeding out those who may not belong do to a myriad of reasons.  And explaining why in a transparent way to everyone else.

Eight Points:

1. Use your Mission/Worldview/Creed/Ideology/Purpose/Values…whatever you call your founding idea and values.
2. Have Rules and use them consistently and fairly
3. Approve Membership
4. Use a ‘Cultural Sieve’
5. Have a Like-get-Like Strategy
6. Accountability. Self-Policing. Transparency
7. Charge a Fee.
8. Have Courage and Be Kind…and don’t let it get you down.

The many faces of Chiquita Bananas

It's amazing where branding and brand identity can be played with, as seen in these great stickers for Chiquita Bananas.  Chiquita's branding, as with most banana branding, has been the small sticker that is found on each banana. 

By taking this well-known sticker and replacing it with a large series stylized faces, designer's Neff Ink have given a subtle sticker a very cool spin.  I love how the faces retain the Chiquita colors, but take immense liberties with the expressions, characteristics, and look of each face. 

Read full article here.