An 86 year old Japanese Buddhist nun is focused on the forefront of mobile technology by writing a cellphone novel. Cellphone novels are a growing trend in Japan, where subscribers (usually young women) sign up to receive short fiction via text messages. The story, called "Tomorrow's Rainbow" focuses on a young girl who meets the love of her life after the trauma of her parents' divorce.

Read More about it here.

A little while back, AOL site Spinner.com, posted the top 25 band logos "of all time" (personally, which I think is still up for debate).

Which reminded me of another site, http://pictograms.blogspot.com/ which has been archiving a huge collection of band logos, fonts, and iconography as well.

This morning I came across a really fascinating article covering the debate over inexpensive online logo & "branding" companies by Doug Bartow (id29) via the Under Consideration design discussion blog Speak Up.

It highlights the ongoing debate of accessibility of design for all (income brackets) versus "...the devaluation of the design process altogether, particularly in brand development and identity design, which many consider the pinnacle of our field." – by cheapening the proverbial playing field.

In his field study of this issue, Doug commissions 4 different online companies to come up with logo options for a fictitious project and then analyzes and critiques the results. It is a good exploration of what you really get from these types of logo chop shops.

The Challenge: Hire four online logo design companies, give them the same visual identity problem to solve, then critique the results.

Take a look here.

Last Saturday ,  there was an opening of a group exhibition featuring commissioned works by 130 something artists at Jonathan LeVine Gallery in Chelsea.

I didn't want to go because it was storming like crazy!!  However, the gallery was packed with so many people.

All the artists got a 7” x 5” wooden panel, and those artworks created a single continuous work. I liked some paintings a lot. But some were just crappy things and the price were like $600....?!  I don't know what Art is!

At least, I got free beer-.

http://jonathanlevinegallery.com/?method=Exhibit.ExhibitDescription&ExhibitID=FB86C9CC-19DB-5802-E0C4211518300C5B

In honor of its 75th anniversary this year, Esquire magazine will be publishing a cover incorporating flashing text designed by MA-based company E Ink (whose technology is also applied in Amazon.com's reading device, Kindle). The text, which reads "the 21st Century Begins Now," will lose juice and stop blinking after 90 days.

“I hope it will be in the Smithsonian,” said David Granger, Esquire’s editor in chief,..."The possibilities of print have just begun. In two years, I hope this looks like cellphones did in 1982, or car phones.”

Read more about it in the New York Times here.

The LUPE may look like another touchscreen camera but this concept is designed for ease of use and simplicity even tho technically it’s quite complex.

Rebranding & overhauling their corporate images that is... from Starbucks to AT&T – and Walmart is the latest to jump on that bandwagon.

Check out this Businessweek article on corporate rebranding.

Jacqui Cheng over at Ars Technica writes...

"How many times have you stumbled home after a long night out with
friends, only to plop down in front of the computer and start sending
e-mails that you would wake up regretting the next day? ..."

"Called "Mail Goggles," the Gmail add-on makes sending e-mail from Gmail
more difficult during certain times that you can set manually (while
sober, that is). How does it do this? If you have Mail Goggles
installed—which you can do by going to the "Labs" tab under your Gmail
settings and turning them on—it will force you to answer a series of
math questions before sending out any new messages..."

Read the full article here.

Stressed out, fretting over the next impending deadline? Need a creativity break? Try Mr. Picassohead – an interactive distraction created by Ruder Finn Interactive. Allowing you to let out your inner Picasso.

Just in case you were wondering whether the Hadron Collider being tested right now at CERN has destroyed the world yet, you now have a handy website to go to check it out: http://hasthelargehadroncolliderdestroyedtheworldyet.com/

Twitter just launched a new architecture to help streamline some of their navigation, featuring a simplified top nav, and a tab-base right navigation for moving through tweets. Not sure how I feel about it yet, but check it out at Twitter!

The designs for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing have been revealed, called "Fuwa" (below). It's being reported in the WSJ that even the mascots' designer doesn't want to take responsibility if these don't go down in history as iconic Olympic mascots.

Not that the Fuwa have been the only controversial mascots; since its inception at the Munich games in 1972, the Olympic mascot has always been a source of debate (more mascots below after the jump). The article goes on to state how the Fuwa may be the result of "Too Many Chefs" syndrome and a bureaucratic backlog, a challenge in trying to create an iconic image representing 1.3 billion people and their history - the five Fuwa were pared down from over 1,000 sketches submitted by the artist.

Not sure what I think about them...any thoughts?

Continue reading to see some other mascots from past Olympics...

The first Olympic mascot - Waldi (Munich 1972)

Cobi (Barcelona 1992)

Izzy (Atlanta 1996)

Syd, Ollie, and Millie (Sydney 2000)

Athena and Phevos (Athens 2004)

Not sure what to do when you're feeling chill? Sophisticated? Energetic? I Feel NYC is one of the most clever (and funny/useful) Google Maps application that I've come across. Also available for London.

I am a member of AIGA!! (The Professional Association for Design)
I got an invitation for the exhibition, " 50 books/50 covers of 2007". Since I am designing the 4corners new book i felt these book covers might help me to get inspiration.

This exhibition showcases selections from the “AIGA 50 Books/50 Covers” competition, which aims to identify the 50 best-designed books and book covers of the year. Selections were made by a distinguished jury and become part of the AIGA Design Archives, where images, full credits, project statements and jurors' comments for all selections are available.

Gallery hours:

Monday through Thursday: 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Friday: 11:00 a.m–5:00 p.m.

...you get the Most Innovative Celebrities in Digital Media, or, the Econoclast10.

Hilarious truth. Luckily we have already gotten our seats at the window.

It might seem like a bit of an overkill with all of these Twitter clones, but Yammer seems to fall into a bit more of a niche. Creating a network solely for you and your coworkers (based on your email addresses), Yammer lets you microblog what you're working on, and check in with your colleagues as well. You can also post updates directly through an IM service. Seems like it could be handy in a company where lots of people work offsite. Check it out here.

...well now may be your chance! Check out iKnow.co.jp for a really great and simple online learning tool - which allows you to enroll in and take courses directly on the site, track your progress, and connect with other students. The architecture and interface are so straightforward and simple, really easy to use. This is huge, because, as a former Instructional Designer, I know that designing a usable and functional UI for training and education is super difficult. I'm thoroughly impressed! Check it out koko.

I've always been a fan of movie posters - but I think they're so often seen as pure advertising and the excellent design sense of some of them goes unnoticed. Here is a great compilation of some of the best!