If you enjoyed Ken Cosgrove busting a move on Mad Men, then you’ll love it even more when Daft Punk comes to call in the last century. We dare you to keep those happy feet still. Full story at YouTube via Kottke. Messing with TV.
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Mad Men meets Daft Punk [video]
Holy Kaw!24 May 2013 | 5:36 pm -
FOMO the Movie: The Terrifying Social Truth
Mashable24 May 2013 | 9:00 pmFor all the amazing ways social media has changed our lives, it's come with some downsides, as well. Chief among those is FOMO — that is, of course, Fear of Missing Out, a documented disease among social media addicts Surely you're familiar with the feeling. A simple night relaxing at home is no longer good enoughTwitter brings fun updates from friends on vacationInstagram is full of photos from a party you weren't invited toFacebook is a veritable minefield full of reminders of all the wild fun you're not having there on the couch. And yet ... you can't stop checking. Suddenly your… -
Take A Secret Look Inside The Cocoon As A Caterpillar Transforms To A Butterfly
Fast Company24 May 2013 | 2:00 pmUsing three dimensional x-ray imaging, we can now see the magical process of metamorphosis up close. Happy summer! The transformation of a lowly caterpillar into a graceful butterfly is the kind of shocking fact of nature that’s used to get children excited about science, so visible is the transformation, so tangible are the lessons. But what’s actually going on inside the cocoon? Typically, scientists have had to dissect them to find out, killing the organism inside as a result, a casualty of scientific inquiry. Another problem with cutting the cocoon to see what’s inside:… -
The First Six Months Developing For The Computer On My Face
TechCrunch24 May 2013 | 9:00 pmEditor’s note: Jon Gottfried is a Developer Evangelist at Twilio, Co-Founder of the Hacker Union, and a StartupBus Conductor. Follow him on Twitter @jonmarkgo. Being one of the first cyborgs in the world, I have been privy to a unique set of bizarre experiences that have led to some early observations and theories about the future of Google Glass and wearable technology. At Glass Foundry SF, among the likes of Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, the New York Times and Hearst, was a rag-tag group of independent developers building Ice Breaker: myself, Song Zheng, and Rajiv Makhijani. When I… -
Overcoming the impossibility of amazing
Seth's Blog24 May 2013 | 2:00 amIf you set your bar at "amazing," it's awfully difficult to start. Your first paragraph, sketch, formula, sample or concept isn't going to be amazing. Your tenth one might not be either. Confronted with the gap between your vision of perfect and the reality of what you've created, the easiest path is no path. Shrug. Admit defeat. Hit delete. One more reason to follow someone else and wait for instructions. Of course, the only path to amazing runs directly through not-yet-amazing. But not-yet-amazing is a great place to start, because that's where you are. For now. There's a big difference…
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Holy Kaw!
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Mad Men meets Daft Punk [video]
24 May 2013 | 5:36 pmIf you enjoyed Ken Cosgrove busting a move on Mad Men, then you’ll love it even more when Daft Punk comes to call in the last century. We dare you to keep those happy feet still. Full story at YouTube via Kottke. Messing with TV. -
One-upping Bond: Behold, the self-destructing hard drive [video]
24 May 2013 | 5:18 pmWorried about someone making off with your hard drive and all those super, secret files the bad guys are dying to get their dirty hands on? Well, chances are they’ll just hack you and the damage will be done before you have a clue what happened, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the show [...] -
What a week’s worth of groceries looks like around the world
24 May 2013 | 5:07 pmEver stop and look at your grocery cart as though it wasn’t yours? Would people say you were a healthy eater, a busy person, a late-night snacker? Photographer Peter Menzel decided to use a wider lens and focus on what families from different countries consume in a typical week and, as you might guess, pizza figures prominently [...] -
One thing a leader must to do succeed
24 May 2013 | 3:46 pmSadly, 25% of businesses fail within their first year and an astonishing 70% of businesses fail within ten years. So, if you’re thinking about starting a business or you’ve recently made the leap, how can you optimize your chances of success? What is the single most important factor in determining your success? 1. Build a strong [...] -
Wow! Couple’s close encounter with surfing killer whales in boat wake
24 May 2013 | 1:30 pm
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Mashable
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FOMO the Movie: The Terrifying Social Truth
24 May 2013 | 9:00 pmFor all the amazing ways social media has changed our lives, it's come with some downsides, as well. Chief among those is FOMO — that is, of course, Fear of Missing Out, a documented disease among social media addicts Surely you're familiar with the feeling. A simple night relaxing at home is no longer good enoughTwitter brings fun updates from friends on vacationInstagram is full of photos from a party you weren't invited toFacebook is a veritable minefield full of reminders of all the wild fun you're not having there on the couch. And yet ... you can't stop checking. Suddenly your… -
Elon Musk Wants to Build an Electric Pickup Truck
24 May 2013 | 8:30 pmHow did you spend you Friday night? Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk spent his answering questions about paying back the government and musing about the next kind of electric vehicle he might like to make. After posting a number of tweets about his thoughts on proper taxation and how he did (PayPal and Zip2) and didn't make his fortune, Musk appeared to drop in something of a non sequitur: Would love to do a pickup truck. Something w ultra low cg for sports car handling, dynamic air suspension & mega torque. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 25, 2013 While building an electric truck would… -
Askem Gets You the Answers You Need, Fast
24 May 2013 | 8:01 pmThe Launchpad is a series that introduces Mashable readers to compelling startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. Name: AskemThe Pitch: Askem aims to simplify your decision-making process Why It's Taking Off: Askem lets you share your questions online and create up to five different text responses to choose from, so you can cut through the digital noise and get the answers you need instantly. If you post pictures of three different outfits on Facebook or Twitter and ask which one you should wear tonight, chances are you’ll… -
Video Captures Scary Washington Bridge Collapse
24 May 2013 | 7:04 pmMore proof that the cameras are everywhere. The frightening collapse of a bridge in Washington State on the busy Interstate 5 was actually caught by a surveillance camera. A huge portion of the bridge fell into the Skagit River on Thursday night after an over-sized freight truck struck part of the structure. The grainy video, obtained by AP, actually shows a large white truck moving through the bridge moments before a large section carrying two vehicles plunged into the river below. Miraculously, the passengers of all those vehicles escaped with only minor injuries. According to an AP report,… -
Myspace's New Architects Reveal How to Rebuild a Brand
24 May 2013 | 6:27 pmThere's perhaps nothing harder than changing the public perception of a brand once it's been imprinted in popular culture's psyche. Especially when it's left a bad taste in users' mouths. But that was exactly the job facing Ben Johnston and Jess Huddart, CEO and creative director of Josephmark, the 25-person Australian studio tasked with rebuilding the new Myspace from the ground up. The duo recently came to Los Angeles where they spoke with Mashable about the challenges and successes of redesigning a brand. They say the project's goal is to bring the site back to its simple core values of…
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Fast Company
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Take A Secret Look Inside The Cocoon As A Caterpillar Transforms To A Butterfly
24 May 2013 | 2:00 pmUsing three dimensional x-ray imaging, we can now see the magical process of metamorphosis up close. Happy summer! The transformation of a lowly caterpillar into a graceful butterfly is the kind of shocking fact of nature that’s used to get children excited about science, so visible is the transformation, so tangible are the lessons. But what’s actually going on inside the cocoon? Typically, scientists have had to dissect them to find out, killing the organism inside as a result, a casualty of scientific inquiry. Another problem with cutting the cocoon to see what’s inside:… -
Students Design 22 Playful Wooden Toys For Kids
24 May 2013 | 1:15 pmTwenty-two seniors in the Rochester Institute of Technology’s Metaproject03 created products that would fit in with Areaware’s fun-loving collection. Though it seems counterintuitive, limitations can be the best thing to happen to the creative process. Narrowing down parameters--think form, function, color, size--often brings focus to an otherwise overwhelming chaos of opportunities around what to do and where to begin. The Rochester Institute of Technology established the Metaproject Initiative to give students a chance to get to know the properties of a particular material, in… -
Dear Abbys: A New Esquire Column Sources Life Advice From 100,000 People
24 May 2013 | 12:06 pm"Dear Abby" comes into the Internet age with a new Esquire column chock-full of advice from 100,000 of the author's closest friends. Who do you turn to for life advice? In "My Huddled Masses," a new weekly Esquire column, editor-at-large A.J. Jacobs is turning to 100,000 of his closest Facebook friends. The experiment in life advice for the masses puts Jacobs at the helm of an open-sourced pool to which anyone can contribute. Jacobs describes his role as a kind of Nate Silver of columnists, "curating and collating and commenting on the mass’s responses." Each week, he'll print the best… -
A New Model To Pay For Infrastructure in Chicago
24 May 2013 | 12:00 pmThe Chicago Infrastructure Trust creates a new way to pay for things like improvements to bridges and roads that won’t destroy the city’s already stretched budget. The next big thing is funding urban infrastructure is now coming online in Chicago, and Tim Logan has done a deep dive on what that means at Next American City. The core idea is simple: Governments across Europe, Canada and Australia have long turned to the private sector to help finance public assets, and even in the U.S., more places are dabbling in it. But it’s still rare for cities to take the lead. And no… -
Steven Holl’s Sports Complex For Columbia Looks Like A Transformer
24 May 2013 | 12:00 pmSteven Holl’s first building in New York is packed with the architect’s signature, whimsical flourishes. After designing buildings all over the world, from Helsinki to Beijing, the New York-based architect Steven Holl has finally completed his first freestanding structure in the city. Unfortunately, it’s on a neglected corner lot at Manhattan’s northernmost point--a less than prominent location for Holl’s belated New York debut. In New York, his adopted city of 35+ years (Holl was born and trained in Seattle), Holl has only done a few small galleries and interior…
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TechCrunch
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The First Six Months Developing For The Computer On My Face
24 May 2013 | 9:00 pmEditor’s note: Jon Gottfried is a Developer Evangelist at Twilio, Co-Founder of the Hacker Union, and a StartupBus Conductor. Follow him on Twitter @jonmarkgo. Being one of the first cyborgs in the world, I have been privy to a unique set of bizarre experiences that have led to some early observations and theories about the future of Google Glass and wearable technology. At Glass Foundry SF, among the likes of Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, the New York Times and Hearst, was a rag-tag group of independent developers building Ice Breaker: myself, Song Zheng, and Rajiv Makhijani. When I… -
50M Matches Strong, Hot Mobile Dating App Tinder Is Ready To Go Global, And Move Beyond Flirting
24 May 2013 | 8:44 pmDigital dating is nothing to scoff at; it’s a big business, and it’s changed a lot of lives — mostly for the better. Yet, while dating has seen enormous progress during the Digital Era, there’s still a lot garbage out there, and the space is still mostly dominated by a handful of old names. A gaggle of dating sites and apps have appeared over the past five years, but few have had real staying power, and many have gone the way of the dinosaur. While it’s still too early to make any pronouncements, it’s looking more and more like Tinder could buck the trend. -
Google Now's “Topics” Page Returns And Shows You How Much Google Knows About You, But It Only Works On Android
24 May 2013 | 7:34 pmA few weeks ago, Google briefly made a “Google Now” topics page available on the web and then took it down again. The page showed a list of topics Google believed you were interested in, based on your search history. Now this feature is back, but it’s a bit different from the leaked page. A few days ago, it seems, the company quietly (re-)launched this feature with the latest Google Now update. The leaked page was also visible on the desktop, but it looks like Google has plugged this hole the cards are now only available on Android – and only by going through Google… -
Ask A VC: Index Ventures' Danny Rimer On The Future Of Ecommerce And More
24 May 2013 | 2:50 pmOn this week’s Ask A VC episode, Index Ventures partner Danny Rimer joined us in the studio. Rimer has been in the venture industry for over 11 years so he had plenty to share on how VC has changed, and the differences in the venture world in Europe and the U.S. Rimer, who has led the firm’s investments in Etsy, Nastygal and many others, also talked to us about the future of e-commerce and how the industry is changing for startups. Check out the video above for more! -
Microsoft And Google Bury The Hatchet To Work On A Windows Phone YouTube App With Ads
24 May 2013 | 1:31 pmOnce a upon a time, Microsoft saw fit to put together a YouTube app for Windows Phone and it was actually pretty great — it let users download videos straight from the app and there was nary an ad to be found. To absolutely no one’s surprise, Google wasn’t too pleased: after all, the features that made the app so appealing didn’t exactly jibe with YouTube’s terms of service, and the search giant demanded the offending app be removed. Well, after a bit of back and forth (and a conciliatory update), it seems the two companies have finally come to an agreement.
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Seth's Blog
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Overcoming the impossibility of amazing
24 May 2013 | 2:00 amIf you set your bar at "amazing," it's awfully difficult to start. Your first paragraph, sketch, formula, sample or concept isn't going to be amazing. Your tenth one might not be either. Confronted with the gap between your vision of perfect and the reality of what you've created, the easiest path is no path. Shrug. Admit defeat. Hit delete. One more reason to follow someone else and wait for instructions. Of course, the only path to amazing runs directly through not-yet-amazing. But not-yet-amazing is a great place to start, because that's where you are. For now. There's a big difference… -
Thoughts on education and the burgeoning trophy shortage
23 May 2013 | 2:00 amIt's graduation season, so a few relevant links about school, students and our future: Here's the audio of an interview I did with PlayBuffet My TEDx talk about education And a reminder about Stop Stealing Dreams, a free manifesto that asks, "what is school for?" I hope we can ask this question more and more often... Feel free to share with your favorite graduate. Or her parents. Bonus: 20 video minutes at Creative Mornings. -
Let's start with "sorry"
22 May 2013 | 2:43 amBy the time the phone rings, there's already trouble. When that manager is called or this department is reached, it's because someone is disappointed, angry or stuck. Illness, broken promises or a real urgency have led to this new conversation even taking place. So don't start with, "[Name of company] mumble mumble" as if there's a blank slate just waiting to be written on. There's already a lot of writing on that slate. Don't demand to know the record number or begin with doubt and an edge of dismissal. Be on our team. "It sounds like we've got a situation on our hands..." is a fine way to… -
Levels of marketing magic, the placebo effects of desire
21 May 2013 | 2:45 amANTICIPATION: Before the product is released, the true fans are buzzing and speculating and waiting in line. The anticipation is self-reinforcing, a placebo effect of desire. UTILITY: The album is good, the software is useful, the book changes things. It works better than we hoped. Exceeding expectations pays significant dividends. REMARK: It's purple. Remarkable. Worth talking about. The word spreads. Ten people tell ten people and suddenly, it's abuzz. Not because of PR or hype, but because the remarkability is built right into the product or service itself. And more people enjoy things… -
You should buy the book
20 May 2013 | 8:33 amMitch Joel is a generous and perceptive blogger. Well worth the daily read. He has a new book. You should buy it. David Meerman Scott writes an essential blog, daily. His book is a classic. You should buy it. Tom Asacker writes a very thoughtful blog about marketing. Worth the read. He has a new book. You should buy it, too. Every day, Mark Frauenfelder and Corey Doctorow blog tons of goodness at Boingboing. They each have books. You should buy them and share them. Bernadette Jiwa's blog keeps getting better and better and you are probably already reading it. She has a new book on the way.
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NYT > Home Page
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Gas Cylinder Blast on Pakistan School Bus Kills 17
24 May 2013 | 9:51 pmAt least 17 children were burned to death in eastern Pakistan on Saturday when a faulty gas cylinder exploded on the bus taking them to school, police said. -
Game 2: Pacers 97, Heat 93: LeBron James Stumbles and Pacers Top Heat in Game 2
24 May 2013 | 9:45 pmLeBron James scored 36 points, but his two late turnovers helped Indiana beat Miami to tie the Eastern Conference finals at one game each. -
In Race to Fill John Kerry’s Seat, Little Talk on Policy
24 May 2013 | 8:25 pmAs Election Day nears in Massachusetts, the race between Gabriel Gomez and Representative Edward J. Markey for the Senate seat vacated by John Kerry has focused on lesser issues. -
New Computer Attacks Come From Iran, Officials Say
24 May 2013 | 7:22 pmThe recent attacks seem to be aimed at sabotage rather than stealing information, United States officials say. -
The Saturday Profile: Kilian Kleinschmidt: Calm Boss at Center of a Syrian Refugee Camp’s Chaos
24 May 2013 | 6:52 pmKilian Kleinschmidt, who runs an overcrowded Syrian refugee camp in Jordan for the United Nations, is a ruddy-faced German who thrives in international disasters.
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Wired Top Stories
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From Arrested Development to Dr. Who, How Binge Watching Is Changing Our Culture
24 May 2013 | 3:30 pmWhy do we binge watch? One way to answer this question is to say, well, we binge on TV for the same reason we binge on food. And these psychological factors are no doubt apt. But the anthropological ones are perhaps just as useful and a little less obvious because culture is a thing of surfaces and secrets, and the anthropologist is obliged to record the first and penetrate the second to figure out what?s really going on. -
The Xbox One Misses the Perfect Set-Top Box Target
24 May 2013 | 2:55 pmThe Xbox One could have been the true center of your TV universe that let you throw all those other boxes away. -
Better Place Runs Out of Juice, Reportedly Plans Bankruptcy
24 May 2013 | 2:51 pmBetter Place's plan to create a world full of electric vehicles that swap their batteries when they run out of juice is reportedly dead. -
BMW Fires a Legendary Motorcycle Into the 21st Century
24 May 2013 | 1:44 pmBMW's bikes have always been an amalgamation of form and function, which makes them more purposeful than pretty. The Concept Ninety finally manages to balance the two. -
30 Things You Didn't Know About Return of the Jedi
24 May 2013 | 1:30 pmTomorrow sees the 30th anniversary of the release of Return of The Jedi. To celebrate, here are 30 things you might not have known about the movie.
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@ProBlogger
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How to Create a Blog Purpose Statement in 3 Simple Steps
23 May 2013 | 8:54 amYesterday, I shared a series of questions to help those bloggers seeking a little clarity when it comes to what their blog could be about. Today, I wanted to share 3 more questions – these are not so much focused upon YOU as a blogger but upon your readers. Hopefully they’ll also help you achieve a little clarity. Who are your readers? What do they need? How will they change as a result of reading your blog? Answer these 3 questions and you will actually have a pretty good purpose statement for your blog. You could certainly go into some real depth on each question but even doing… -
7 Questions to Ask Yourself to Bring Clarity to Your Blogging
22 May 2013 | 8:28 amDo you feel like you’ve lost clarity around what it is that you’re trying to do with your blog? I’ve recently bumped into a few bloggers grappling with this idea. Some were new, even ‘Pre’ Bloggers, while a couple had been blogging for a while but had lost some direction. Out of these conversations, I put together a set of questions to help them think it through. The questions revolve around asking: What are YOU About? While I won’t guarantee you instant clarity on answering these questions I hope that putting a little time aside to work through them… -
7 Steps to Proofreading Like a Pro
21 May 2013 | 9:37 amThis is a guest contribution by Charles Cuninghame, website copywriter and owner of Text-Centric. I’m sure we can all agree that proofreading is the least fun part of blogging. But while it may be tedious, it’s well worth the effort. Typos are not only embarrassing, they can also cost you money. In a widely reported study in 2011, British entrepreneur Charles Duncombe found a single spelling mistake can cut online sales in half! If you don’t have a product, then you could be missing out a blog subscriber or repeat visitor! Here’s a tried and tested proofreading process that I’ve… -
Are You Balancing Emerging Technology with Effective Strategy?
20 May 2013 | 8:21 amLast week I was asked at a conference to reflect upon the future of digital and among other things I made a reflection that seemed to resonate with those gathered. It was: Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater. As online publishers we see a steady stream of articles being written about new and future technologies, companies and trends in the online publishing space. It is certainly an exciting time to be doing what we’re doing with such amazing development happening all around us and some amazing projections being made about what is ahead of us – however in the midst… -
How to Blog Like a Pro: Workshop on the Gold Coast Australia – Next Week
19 May 2013 | 7:56 pmNext week (29th May) I’m running a special workshop at the Internet Conference on the Gold Coast here in Australia. The workshop is titled – How to Blog Like a Pro – and you’ll get 4 solid hours of teaching in it – all delivered by me in a workshop limited to 40 people only. The workshop has only previously been available to those signing up to the full 3 day conferences as an add-on but there are a few tickets still available and so I asked the organisers if we could sell them as a stand-alone ticket (i.e. you don’t have to come to the full 3 day event).
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Entrepreneur
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Yelp Continues to Defend Against Claims of Review Manipulation
24 May 2013 | 12:00 pmSome business owners are expressing anger and confusion over the site's system for filtering reviews. -
Google and Facebook Said to be in Battle to Acquire Social Mapping App Waze
24 May 2013 | 11:00 amRead about the growing interest in the Israel-based Waze, the problems with Twitter's two-step authentication process, Flickr's website malfunction and more social-media news. -
9 Ways to Build Your Pinterest Audience
24 May 2013 | 9:30 amBeing strategic about how you use Pinterest will help you grow your following considerably. Here are nine easy tactics to help you gain an audience. -
How to Create a Sustainability Program for Your Restaurant
24 May 2013 | 9:00 amThree tips on how to source ingredients responsibly from the experts at the National Restaurant Association Show. -
5 Ways to Lose Investors in Under 3 Minutes
24 May 2013 | 8:30 amThe opening of your investor pitch is critical. Flounder and you might lose a venture capitalist's attention from the start. Here are five missteps VCs look out for when sitting down with entrepreneurs.
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Lifehacker
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Make Something Great with PVC Pipe This Weekend
24 May 2013 | 1:00 pmAlthough not one of the DIY All Star materials, people use PVC pipe to create all sorts of awesome things because it's cheap, sturdy, and versatile. This weekend, grab some at your local hardware store and tackle one of these fun projects.Read more... -
Have any tips for parents dealing with temper tantrums?
24 May 2013 | 12:30 pmGreat discussions are par for the course here on Lifehacker. Each day, we highlight a discussion that is particularly helpful or insightful, along with other great discussions and reader questions you may have missed. Check out these discussions and add your own thoughts to make them even more wonderful!Read more... -
Make a MacBook Dock with Sugru and a Few Cables
24 May 2013 | 12:00 pmLaptop docks generally don't come cheap—especially when you have a Mac. DIYer Johan Frick put together a simple docking solution with the necessary cables and a little bit of Sugru, saving a ton of money in the process.Read more... -
This Week's Most Popular Posts: May 17th to 24th
24 May 2013 | 11:30 amThis week we looked at the best Android phones around, got some career advice, and got some nice airline and hotel upgrades. Here's a look back.Read more... -
Cork or Twist: What's the Best Way to Stop Up a Wine Bottle?
24 May 2013 | 11:00 amCork, synthetic cork, or screw cap? Each medium has its perks, it seems. But which one keeps wine aging the right way? The experts at Stack Exchange attempt to put the controversy to rest.Read more...
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MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors
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Apple Removes Download Options From Quicktime Trailers Website
24 May 2013 | 4:09 pmIt appears that Apple has begun quietly phasing out its trailer download options from the trailers.apple.com website, effectively eliminating 1080p trailer availability. Previously, the site gave users the ability to stream trailers in 480p or 720p, along with providing download options for 480p, 720p, and 1080p. Trailers uploaded to the site after an approximate date of May 22 no longer have any download options and can only be streamed in-browser at 480p or 720p. Trailer options before 5/22 Trailer options after 5/22 While trailers uploaded before May 22 can still be downloaded, Apple… -
iPhone Urinalysis App Draws U.S. Government Scrutiny
24 May 2013 | 11:33 amThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration has sent a letter to BioSense Technologies over its iPhone uChek urinalysis system, asking why its medical app hasn't been cleared by the agency. The app is one of the first that turns the iPhone into a medical device, designed to read urinalysis test strips that are normally examined by users and compared to a color-coded chart. With the uChek system, patients can take a picture of the strip with the iPhone's camera and then receive an automated readout of parameters like glucose, urobilinogen, pH, ketone and more. The app also stores results which then… -
Apple Slashes Prices on Refurbished iPad Mini and iPad 4 Models
24 May 2013 | 8:14 amApple today significantly reduced prices on refurbished models of the iPad mini and fourth-generation iPad, with all models now carrying approximately 15% discounts relative to brand-new units. iPad mini - 16 GB Wi-Fi: $279, down from $299 previously and $329 brand-new - 32 GB Wi-Fi: $359, down from $389 previously and $429 brand-new - 64 GB Wi-Fi: $439, down from $489 previously and $529 brand-new - 16 GB Wi-Fi + Cellular: $389, down from $429 previously and $459 brand-new - 32 GB Wi-Fi + Cellular: $469, down from $519 previously and… -
More Details on Jony Ive's Flat iOS 7 Design: Heavier on Black and White
24 May 2013 | 6:30 am9to5Mac shares more details on Jony Ive's redesign for iOS 7, noting that not only will it bring a flatter look to the operating system but also more emphasis on black and white design elements.Sources have described iOS 7 as “black, white, and flat all over.” This refers to the dropping of heavy textures and the addition of several new black and white user interface elements. [...] For the upcoming operating system, which Apple says will be unveiled at its June Worldwide Developers Conference, Ive has not simply picked areas of the software design to tweak. He has essentially made his… -
AT&T's GoPhone Prepaid Brand to Gain iPhone and LTE/HSPA+ Support Tomorrow
23 May 2013 | 7:33 pmMacRumors has learned that AT&T's GoPhone prepaid wireless brand will be undertaking a significant expansion of its services starting tomorrow, offering support for AT&T's fastest LTE and HSPA+ data networks for the first time and also adding official support for the iPhone. Until now, GoPhone has allowed iPhone users to sign up for service, but without cellular data access. With the changes coming tomorrow, the iPhone will have access to the full range of AT&T services through GoPhone, including LTE data and Visual Voicemail. GoPhone will support three service plans for the iPhone, including…
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chrisbrogan.com
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Be Open to Inspiration
10 May 2013 | 8:41 amI’ve been in a bit of a fog the last week or so. Nothing worth talking about, really. Depression stuff. But then it lifted. What’s interesting to me is how I found my footing and how I got back on track, and so there are two items I want to share with you from this: the actual learning, and more importantly, the realization of what got me there. Be Open to Inspiration Humans have this way they deal with too much information. They discard tons of inputs and keep what they feel is important. This is necessary, by the way. Can you imagine how busy your brain would be if you thought… -
Do Local Businesses Deserve Your Money?
7 May 2013 | 1:38 pmI sat at the counter at my local restaurant the other day and waited for over 7 minutes without anyone bothering to acknowledge that I was there. And then I walked out. And so did my money. For good. In fact, I drove to McDonalds, got some scrambled eggs and an iced coffee, and was in and out of the system within the same 7 minutes. (You can save your comments with disdain for McDonalds. If you’re a parent, you go there, unless you don’t. Either way. It’s not the point.) Now, before you try to defend this other place, no, it wasn’t busy. Yes, at least two employees had seen me, and… -
Why Use These Outlier Social Media Tools?
30 Apr 2013 | 4:21 pmWhy should you bother using tools like Vine and Instagram, and the like? That question was asked to me by Pam Vitaz, and she asked it somewhat in this context (my words not hers): Vine’s interesting, but you basically just shot a funny video. Why do that? Here’s the video she meant: Can’t see the video? Click Here. Can’t hear sound? Hover over it and click the little sound thingy. On the surface, it’s the kind of question you can answer with “why not?” But that’s not good enough. Why Use These Outlier Social Media Tools? First, it’s your… -
Can You Work at Being Fearless?
29 Apr 2013 | 7:03 amFear is at the heart of most of our worst choices. I read this facebook post by James Altucher and it really punched me in the stomach. But that’s just one punch in a series, because every time I question how I ended up somewhere, the real answer (underneath all the bull answers) is fear. It’s why most stupid things happen, why all bad things happen (when humans are involved), and is even worse than you think. I’m afraid of a weird collection of things. I’m afraid of sharks (ever since seeing Jaws at a very young age – because I pestered my parents tirelessly til… -
Sponsored Post – Mobile Productivity and the Future
24 Apr 2013 | 4:53 amCan you be productive while on the road? I say yes. In fact, I’m writing this from a hotel room before heading off to a meeting with a client. The following is sponsored by Cloud Powered Work, which is a project with IDG, LinkedIn, and Microsoft’s Office365. Everything in this post is mine, and my opinions are my own. I just produced an episode of my radio show from my hotel room, because I realized that an episode was due and I hadn’t done the work before I took off for the day. Last night, while I waited for my slightly delayed airplane, I cracked open SkyDrive pulled down…
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Copyblogger
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Here’s How Austin Kleon Writes
24 May 2013 | 5:00 amSteve Jobs famously misquoted Picasso when he said, “Good artists copy; great artists steal.” What Picasso really said was, “Art is theft.” T.S. Eliot said something far closer, “Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal.” I learned all of this from Austin Kleon, bestselling author of Steal Like an Artist, a guide I recommend to all writers seeking insights for tapping into your endless reserves of creativity and innovation. As a noted speaker, and prolific blogger, Mr. Kleon offers timeless wisdom on the secrets of borrowing inspiration from your heroes… -
30 Quick Editing Tips Every Content Creator Needs to Know
23 May 2013 | 4:00 amInbox 0: in a bad way. Has your brilliant content still not scored you that dream writing position, lucrative business partnership, or sweet recognition among your peers and target audience? If you think your articles are top-notch, but there’s a lonely tumbleweed blowing through your barren website, it may be because you’re just a writer. You heard me, Gloria. If everybody wants you, why isn’t anybody calling? Once you create a blog or email newsletter, you need to also actively take part in its evolution. While keeping diligent focus on your content production, you must also review… -
How to Nail the Opening of Your Blog Post
22 May 2013 | 5:00 amThe opening four notes to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony are the most popular notes in Western music. Dun dun dun dum … They are stormy. Heroic. Disorienting. Short enough to be remembered. Portentous enough to be memorable. Today you’ll find those notes everywhere. In movies, commercials, and songs when the dramatic and foreboding are needed … And we hardly bat an eye. We recognize them, we know them, and we love those first four notes. Not so for Beethoven’s opening night at Vienna’s Theater an der Wien in 1808. One contemporary composer of Beethoven —… -
5 Things Every Copywriter Needs to Know About Their Prospects
21 May 2013 | 4:00 amWhat do you really know about your prospect? Their age range perhaps? Where they live? What they do for a living? Useful definitely, but not enough to create copy that rouses emotion and compels action. For that we need to take a journey much deeper into the dark recesses of our customers’ minds … Want to join me? Today’s article is inspired by someone who understood that in writing, how well you knew your ‘characters’ made the difference between captivating an audience, or boring them. In 1946 The Art of Dramatic Writing, (now regarded as one of the best works… -
14 Free Ebooks and an Updated 20-Part Internet Marketing Course
20 May 2013 | 5:00 amCan’t see the video? Click here. Free Registration About the Author: Brian Clark is founder of Copyblogger and CEO of Copyblogger Media. Get more from Brian on Google+. Related StoriesWhy We Still Need to Write, Even When We’re Scared5 Ways to Bond with Your Blog’s Audience11 Compound Word Errors that Might Make You Look like a Numbskull
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Macworld
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The Week in iOS Apps: Music all around you!
24 May 2013 | 9:30 amLike music? Like making it? Discovering new artists? Figuring out who the heck is singing that song on the TV commercial? We’ve got you covered in this week’s roundup of new and updated iOS apps. The Doors Father! Yes son? I want to buy the $5 The Doors app for iPad, which features more than 700 images and over 100 music and sound clips featuring Oliver Stone’s favorite band. There are also a half-dozen short films—we call them videos now—featuring some of the band’s most beloved songs. C’mon baby, take a chance with us. Guitar! by Smule To read this article in full or to leave… -
Horace Dediu's four questions for Tim Cook
24 May 2013 | 7:38 amThe ever sharp tech analyst has four incisive questions for the Apple CEO ahead of Cook's appearance at next week's D11 conference. (asymco.com) -
Bugs & Fixes: iTunes 11.0.3 update improves app updating
24 May 2013 | 6:00 amAlong with the usual bug fixes and performance improvements, the recently updated iTunes 11.0.3 introduces several interface tweaks. For my money, the most welcome addition is one that Apple doesn’t even mention on its “About iTunes 11.0.3” page: a redesigned interface for checking on and downloading updated iOS apps. On the downside, if you’re among the unlucky minority, the new iTunes version may crash on a regular basis. Updating apps gets a welcome makeover Back in 2010, I detailed several problems with how the app update process worked in iTunes — and how it could be improved. -
Review: Battle with comic legends in Injustice: Gods Among Us for iOS
24 May 2013 | 5:30 amComic book characters have so far struggled to score a smash hit on a mobile platform, with few titles proving worthy of the Marvel and DC Comics' names. But Injustice: Gods Among Us for iOS hopes to change all that with a huge cast of iconic characters, a savvy trading card game mechanic, and an enticing price of free. While Injustice still feels like a cheapened version of the console game it's based off of, Warner Brothers has at least produced an addictive and fun title that will appeal to its younger fan base. The game is billed as a collectable card game first and a fighting game… -
Mac Gems: Eye-Friendly is a handy resolution switcher for Retina MacBooks
24 May 2013 | 4:05 amJörg Jacobsen’s $5 Eye-Friendly (Mac App Store link) is the third resolution-switching utility for the Retina MacBook Pro that I’ve looked at, after Pupil () and QuickRes (). In my quest to find the ideal resolution-switching app for my Retina MacBook Pro, is the third app the charm? Eye-Friendly’s menu on a 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro Like the other two apps, Eye-Friendly appears only in the menu bar. When you want to change your display’s resolution, you click the Eye-Friendly icon and mouse over your display (the menu lists your laptop’s built-in display, as well as any external…
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ReadWrite
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Marissa Mayer Has Already Made One Big Mistake With Tumblr
24 May 2013 | 2:30 pmYahoo's $1.1 billion acquisition of Tumblr is already being hailed as a brilliant move, securing a younger Internet demographic and a fertile field for native advertising, an innovative business model where content from brands lives side by side with users' contributions. In buying Tumblr, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer made a nod to the company's past missteps in promising to "not screw it up." But in one crucial way, she already has. That $1.1 billion is a lot of shareholder cash. And so Yahoo is promising investors that Tumblr will contribute to the bottom line next year. An understandable… -
Google Planning Wireless Networks To Connect The Next 1B People - WSJ
24 May 2013 | 1:25 pmIf Google had its way, everyone in the world would be on the Internet, using Google services. To bring that goal to fruition, Google is reportedly working to build cellular networks in Africa and Southeast Asia to help bring hundreds of millions of people online for the first time. According to The Wall Street Journal, Google is in talks with countries like Kenya and South Africa to fund and deploy cellular networks in those countries, using wireless spectrum reserved for television broadcasts. Bone deep in Google’s business strategy is that the more people that use the Web, the more… -
Microsoft And Google Declare A Truce In Their YouTube Fight
24 May 2013 | 1:03 pmGoogle and Microsoft are finally shaking hands and agreeing to work together over Microsoft's controversial YouTube app for Windows Phone devices. "Microsoft and YouTube are working together to update the new YouTube for Windows Phone app to enable compliance with YouTube’s API terms of service, including enabling ads, in the coming weeks. Microsoft will replace the existing YouTube app in Windows Phone Store with the previous version during this time," Microsoft and YouTube said in a joint statement sent to ReadWrite. Microsoft will take down the current YouTube app from the Windows… -
iOS 7 Rumor Watch: 'Black, White and Flat All Over'
24 May 2013 | 12:11 pmIt's widely rumored that Apple's new iOS 7, to be unveiled at WWDC next month, will ditch the company's ill-fated love affair with "heavy textures," also known as skeuomorphic design, for a more flattened take on the user interface. A new report from 9to5mac on Friday suggests that this new flat design will also incorporate lots of black and white, though it's unclear just how far this simplified color scheme will permeate the new OS. (See also: iOS Users Beg Apple: Set Our iPhones & iPads Free!) Other updates will reportedly include changes to the longstanding lock screen, new… -
Google Has A Trojan Horse To Disrupt TV: Really, Really Big Data
24 May 2013 | 10:08 amIt's a huge year for TV's future. Yet for all the excitement about Web-first soap operas, data-driven programming and the disruption of broadcast, the Internet TV "inflection point" that 2013 has become is just the beginning. A Trojan horse is slowly rolling into town, and it's bursting at the seams with data. Wheeling it along is none other than Google. Indeed, if the data-fueled success of Netflix's House of Cards is as crucial to TV's future as many believe, what Google is most likely planning will make the transformation we've witnessed so far look like early innings in a very long…
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Smashing Magazine Feed
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Beyond The Button: Embracing The Gesture-Driven Interface
24 May 2013 | 2:09 amAs a mobile UI or UX designer, you probably remember the launch of Apple’s first iPhone as if it was yesterday. Among other things, it introduced a completely touchscreen-centered interaction to a individual’s most private and personal device. It was a game-changer. Today, kids grow up with touchscreen experiences like it’s the most natural thing. Parents are amazed by how fast their children understand how a tablet or smartphone works. This shows that touch and gesture interactions have a lot of potential to make mobile experiences easier and more fun to use. Challenging… -
Building The New Financial Times Web App (A Case Study)
23 May 2013 | 2:52 amWhen the mockups for the new Financial Times application hit our desks in mid-2012, we knew we had a real challenge on our hands. Many of us on the team (including me) swore that parts of interface would not be possible in HTML5. Given the product team’s passion for the new UI, we rolled up our sleeves and gave it our best shot. We were tasked with implementing a far more challenging product, without compromising the reliable, performant experience that made the first app so successful. We didn’t just want to build a product that fulfilled its current requirements; we… -
Designing CSS Layouts With Flexbox Is As Easy As Pie
22 May 2013 | 5:31 amFlexible box layout (or flexbox) is a new box model optimized for UI layout. As one of the first CSS modules designed for actual layout (floats were really meant mostly for things such as wrapping text around images), it makes a lot of tasks much easier, or even possible at all. Flexbox’s repertoire includes the simple centering of elements (both horizontally and vertically), the expansion and contraction of elements to fill available space, and source-code independent layout, among others abilities. Flexbox has lived a storied existence. It started as a feature of Mozilla’s… -
Mobile UX Research: Exploring Ten Fundamental Aspects Of M-Commerce Usability
21 May 2013 | 6:30 amEveryone is talking about mobile. Some e-commerce websites are venturing into it. Mobile commerce (also known as “m-commerce”) has immense potential, exhibiting a 86% growth rate and hitting $25 billion in 2012 (set to reach $86 billion by 2016, according to eMarketer). It’s also a whole new platform, with new interaction methods and usage contexts that introduce a host of limitations and pitfalls to watch out for when designing and running an m-commerce website. With few best practices yet established, m-commerce is, to a large degree, unchartered territory when it… -
Case Study: Typographic Design Patterns And Current Practices (2013 Edition)
16 May 2013 | 7:25 pmGood typography has always been a defining aspect of effective Web design, and this holds true especially for websites in which the emphasis is on presenting a large amount of content — specifically, articles, news and stories. Whether for a magazine or international newspaper, the designer of any website that distributes a lot of content has always had to consider typographic details as seriously and thoroughly as a print designer would. In 2009, we conducted a survey of then current typographic practices. Since then, responsive design techniques have clearly gained…
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CNN.com - Top Stories
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Get back to the negotiating table, Pyongyang told
24 May 2013 | 11:32 pmChina's leader urged new talks, and a Chinese general told Kim Jong Un's government that recent tensions have "jeopardized the peace and stability of the peninsula." FULL STORY -
Amanda Bynes busted
24 May 2013 | 10:57 pmAdding to what's becoming a lengthy list of run-ins with the law, New York police arrested actress Amanda Bynes on Thursday night after she allegedly tossed drug paraphernalia out the window of her 36th floor Manhattan apartment. -
Principals: School day started out good
24 May 2013 | 10:52 pmIt was like any other day. If anything, it might have been a little better than usual -- with more deserved honors for the kids, more jokes and songs, more smiles. Even Mother Nature, after storms the previous day, seemed at first to cooperate as the sun shone brightly. -
Photos: North Korea's military
24 May 2013 | 9:51 pm -
Life in the cross hairs
24 May 2013 | 9:47 pmTwo devastating tornadoes, one in 1999 and one on Monday. Where the paths cross, that's where these folks live. "We are the epicenter," said one resident. FULL STORY
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Scott Kelby's Photoshop Insider
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Today Triple Scoop Music is launching my Signature Music Collection for Landscape & Travel
23 May 2013 | 9:01 pmI’ve been a fan of Triple Scoop Music even since I heard some of the instructors at Photoshop World using their royalty-free music tracks in their photo slideshow presentations. As a musician myself, I am just so impressed with the quality of their tracks — their stuff is “the real deal.” That’s why I was so psyched when they asked me to put together a Signature Collection of their music tracks that I thought would be perfect for landscape and travel photography slideshows and videos.The “Scott Kelby Signature Series Vol 1 – Landscape and Travel… -
It’s Free Stuff Thursday!
22 May 2013 | 10:13 pmThe Digital Photography Book Part 1 – Second Edition Okay, Scott already announced the release of the new version of his best-selling book, The Digital Photography Book Part 1 – Second Edition. But since today is Free Stuff Thursday, I figured we would give away FIVE FREE copies to some lucky commenters! Whether you already have the first edition and just want the latest version, or if you want to give a copy to a friend, or if you just don’t have any version of this book and want it, leave a comment for your chance to win! Or, you can head over to KelbyTraining.com, Amazon,… -
It’s Guest Blog Wednesday featuring Vincent Versace!
21 May 2013 | 9:01 pmPhoto by Douglas DublerA Tale of Two PhotosOnce a year, on the anniversary of Guest Blog Wednesday, Scott affords me the opportunity to share some thoughts. All I can say is that it is a good thing that he gives me a year between these guest blog posts. Once again, thank you, Scott, for your gracious generosity.Tale 1Of all of the images I have or will take in my life, I suspect “Paris in Snow” will be by far my most iconic. It is the cover of my book From Oz to Kansas, and Epson uses it as the image on their worldwide packaging of Cold Press Natural paper. So the image has received some… -
Motorcycle Shoot (behind-the-scenes)
21 May 2013 | 4:22 am(Above) Here’s a behind-the-scene shot from Friday’s shoot. This is a three-light shoot: Two 4-foot strip banks above (with Elinchrom strobes), and there’s one additional softbox in front (you can see the light-stand right behind my laptop) that’s putting some extra light on the engine — it was a little dark in there with just the two strobe directly above the bike.I asked my Creative Director Felix Nelson if I could shoot his Harley, but he was doing some serious tinkering with it at home and it wouldn’t be ready for days, so he suggested calling our… -
The 2nd Edition “Refresh” of my “Digital Photography Book, Part One” is here
19 May 2013 | 9:01 pmOK, if you already have the first edition of the book, DON’T BUY THIS ONE!!!! That’s because it’s a “refresh” and not a “rewrite.”The original book was published back in 2006, so I brought the book up-to-date with a pretty significant refresh using today’s latest cameras, updates and changes in gear; plus I added a short chapter with some advice I’ve learned since then; I went through and updated all the photos (man, it’s excruciating to look back at the images you were taking seven years ago), and techniques where needed…
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Digital Photography School
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Spirit: Weekly Photography Challenge
24 May 2013 | 12:31 pmYesterday we published a post from Hailey Bartholomew with Tips for Taking Portraits that Reflect the Character and Spirit of Your Subject that gave me the theme of this weeks challenge. Your challenge is to take and share an image on the theme of ‘Spirit’. Feel free to approach the theme in any way that you wish – you might want to take a portrait that shows someones true spirit or you could photograph something that is ‘Spiritual’ or even photograph something that represents your spirit. Be as creative as you’d like! Once you’ve taken your… -
Home Is Where The Heart Is: How To Take Portraits In It
24 May 2013 | 8:52 amby Lynsey Peterson. I hate nature. There. I said it. It’s like glitter—it seems like such a fun idea but no matter how careful you are, it gets all over you and 7 showers later you still find it in your hair. This is further complicated by the fact that I live in what is known around the planet as one of the most beautiful places in the world. As a photographer, it’s dreamy situation; I could photograph a family in a parking lot (and I have) and the surroundings are more beautiful than many conventional parks in the world. So most of the time I have to suck it up and schedule an… -
The Sony RX100 at Dublin Zoo [USER REVIEW]
23 May 2013 | 1:16 pmby Sarah Hipwell It’s been about four years since my last visit to the zoo. Last week my two girls had a break from school so I decided to take them along with my Mum for a day out to visit the animals at Dublin Zoo. I brought my trusty new Sony RX100 and as a backup I brought my Nikon D300 DSLR. In the end the D300 camera didn’t come out of my bag! I really wanted to test out the RX100 and see how well this compact camera performed in the wild! Actually, I had been interested in purchasing a compact camera for a while now. My husband has taken some great shots with his Retina iPhone. But… -
3 Tips for Taking Portraits that Reflect the Character and Spirit of your Subject
23 May 2013 | 7:57 amA Guest contribution by Hailey Bartholomew from You Can’t Be Serious. 1. Do Something Who are you photographing? If you don’t know them well, find out what they love to do and where they relax the most. Maybe they love to row boats or take picnics at their favourite park every Sunday. Maybe you are photographing your grandmother who loves to be out in her garden. Go and do that with them. Whatever they love to do to relax, tag along with your camera. But don’t sit back on the sidelines hoping to catch a moment from far away – get down and into whatever they are doing. -
Learn How to Use the Sharpening Tools in Lightroom
22 May 2013 | 12:23 pmThere’s no question that Lightroom is a powerful piece of photo processing software, but due to that power sometimes it’s not as easy to wrap our heads around everything it has to offer, that’s in part why I started my Let’s Edit YouTube series a weekly segment in which I share my own editing workflow for viewers to learn from. After starting this series one of the most commonly asked questions was to go into more detail on how the sharpening tools in Lightroom work. Sharpening in Lightroom is broken down into four different sliders – Amount, Radius, Detail and…
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TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog
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PureShot is a full featured iOS camera app
24 May 2013 | 5:00 pmPureShot, a US$1.99 universal app, takes a very shooting-oriented approach to photography on iOS. You don't process your images here, or add filters. Instead, you just use the tools provided to take the very best picture you can, then process it on your iOS device, or get it onto your Mac or PC and use a dedicated image editor. I like that approach, because most do-it-all apps aren't strong in every feature. PureShot is dedicated to taking good pictures, and I think it succeeds at that goal. The app features 2 quality levels for JPEG images, and even something called dRAW TIFF output, which… -
Daily iPhone App: Combo Crew does beat-em-up on a touchscreen
24 May 2013 | 4:30 pmCombo Crew is an interesting experiment that just showed up this week on iOS. Beat-em-ups and fighting games are great on consoles, where you've got plenty of buttons and d-pads to pull off various moves with. But while they've appeared on iOS a few times (Capcom's Street Fighter IV has done fairly well on the App Store), usually these games on a touchscreen tend to just fall back on virtual buttons, which are generally way more clunky and less precise than physical moving parts. Combo Crew, however, is an attempt to make a beat-em-up redesigned from scratch for the iOS touchscreen. It's a… -
Memorial Day brings lots of great sales on iOS games
24 May 2013 | 4:00 pmHappy Memorial Day Weekend! Here in the US, most of us are celebrating a three-day weekend that also serves as the start of summer, which means BBQs, poolside hangouts and lots and lots of time in the sun. Oh, and it means one more thing these days: iOS game sales (all prices USD)! Card game maker Playdek has an awesome sale on, including Ascension (and its IAP), Nightfall (and its IAP), Penny Arcade: The Card Game and Fluxx all for just 99 cents each. You should definitely pick up one or all of those -- Nightfall is complicated, but it's probably my favorite. Puzzlejuice is on sale for 99… -
Daily Update for May 24, 2013
24 May 2013 | 3:50 pmIt's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSSDaily Update for May 24, 2013 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 24 May 2013 17:50:00 EST. Please see our… -
Propellerhead to stop selling ReBirth for iPhone
24 May 2013 | 3:30 pmAct quickly mobile music producers. Propellerhead, makers of the recording software Reason, have announced that they will stop selling and supporting the iPhone app ReBirth on June 1. ReBirth is an iOS version of the company's Techno Micro Composer that started as a Mac program. The app emulates a Roland TB-303 bass synth and TR-808 and 909 drum machines. Using FX and sequencers, the app allows users to create whole songs. The more expensive iPad version of ReBirth isn't going anywhere, so home producers will still have that option. Ultimately, the iPad version of the program is the strongest…
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Strobist
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Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters is Now Available on DVD, and Netflix Streaming
22 May 2013 | 9:00 pm©Gregory Crewdson Netflix have acquired the rights to stream Ben Shapiro's excellent 77-minute documentary, Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters. You can also buy it outright on DVD for $24. Sadly, the Netflix access this is US-only (maybe Canada? nope!) and only for Netflix streaming subscribers. But this is still far and away the biggest audience to have had access to the film. There's no telling how long it will be up to stream. Netflix is notorious for having, then not having, the rights to a movie. So just in case, don't wait too long. You can stream it here. (Many thanks to reader Tim… -
On Assignment: Back to the Well
21 May 2013 | 9:00 pmTian Lu (left) and Yuri Shadrin are both accomplished pianists in their own right. But when they play as a duet (on the same piano) they produce an intuitive mix of music and banter that could only come from the married couple that they are. He is Russian, she is Chinese. Which made them the perfect choice to perform in China later this month in commemoration of an upcoming regional trade partnership between China and Russia. So I shot their publicity portraits in one of my favorite little environmental portrait nooks in Howard County—under the fountain downtown at the lakefront. I have… -
Q&A: Photek Softlighter II or Paul Buff PLM?
17 May 2013 | 3:00 amSydney, Australia-based photo assistant Diego asks: You seem to use the Photek Softlighter a lot. How would this compare to the Paul Buff PML Soft-Silver with the White Diffuser? While they are similar (both sub-$100 Octa killers) they are pretty different under the skin, So which model you'll prefer depends on how you'll use it… Read more » -
Readers Shoot Back: Vivian Chung
13 May 2013 | 8:11 amDontcha hate it when your bride-and-groom portrait gets photo-bombed? Okay, maybe not if it's by a Beluga whale. And for Vancouver wedding photographer (and Strobist reader) Vivian Chung, this well-planned cameo was no accident. Complicating things, she only had a little time—and a key technical restriction—to make this shot. Read more » -
Lighting In Layers on Lynda.com
13 May 2013 | 8:00 amI am happy to announce that Strobist's video series, Lighting in Layers, has by special arrangement been adapted for the video tutorial site Lynda.com. Those of you who are Lynda subscribers can now view the videos there. (This includes Lynda's many corporate subs, so check with your company.) Last week saw the launch of the first segments, which are primarily aimed at beginners. Additional sessions will be released each week. So even if you are not a newb, stick around. It'll get more complex soon enough… -30-
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News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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What The Duck #1390
24 May 2013 | 5:56 pmWe've been fans of Aaron Johnson's comic strip 'What the Duck' for years. 'WTD' is one of the best satirical comic strips in the world, and it's published here every week, as well as being included in our weekly newsletter. Barbed, topical and always amusing, we hope you enjoy WTD as much as we do. Click through for this week's strip. -
Accessory Review: Phottix BG-5D III Battery Grip for Canon 5D Mark III
24 May 2013 | 5:16 pmThe Phottix BG-5DIII battery grip is a budget-friendly alternative to Canon's BG-E11 battery grip for the EOS 5D Mark III, allowing you to double the battery life and enhance handling when shooting vertical format images. Can it do the same job for less cash, or should you save up for the Canon-branded accessory? Find out in our review. -
Sign up for the DPReview newsletter today!
24 May 2013 | 1:08 pmJust a reminder - you can get a weekly update of all that's new in the digital photography world by subscribing to the Digital Photography Review Newsletter! As well as updates on what we've published, we'll also be sharing sneak peeks at what we've got in the pipeline, as well as a weekly cartoon strip, and occasionally also readers' polls, (bad) jokes, suggestions for photo projects and more. Click through for more details. -
Vine enthusiast Jethro Ames explains the art of 6-second storytelling
24 May 2013 | 11:54 amVideo sharing service Vine has generated a lot of buzz in recent months. Vine allows you to share videos of up to six seconds in length as either a single continuous take or as a 'collage' of short duration clips. Art Director Jethro Ames saw Vine as a challenge and decided to push his limits to see what he could do with the app. The result is a series of imaginative timelapse videos that are perfectly executed down to the last detail. Click through to see his work, and our interview on connect.dpreview.com. -
Sigma announces availability of 35mm F1.4 DG HSM for Sony and Pentax
24 May 2013 | 3:00 amIn a brief note on its Japanese website, Sigma has announced that the Sony and Pentax mount versions of its highly-regarded 35mm F1.4 DG HSM 'Art' lens will go on sale on 31st May. It's also announced that the Nikon-mount version of its 120-300mm F2.8 DG OS HSM 'Sports' telephoto zoom will be available at the same time. We gave the 35mm F1.4 our Gold Award when we reviewed it back in December, for its combination of exceptionally good optics and solid build at a price rather lower than the camera manufacturers' equivalents.
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Lightroom Killer Tips
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Should You Create Multiple Catalogs In Lightroom?
20 May 2013 | 11:01 pmFor years, catalog questions tend to be the most popular questions I get at my Lightroom seminars. One of those questions is whether or not to create multiple catalogs in Lightroom. See, back in Lightroom 1, it became fairly common knowledge that when your catalog grew to a certain size in photos (say 20,000) that it would slow down and you should create a new catalog so Lightroom would keep running quickly. But that’s not the case anymore. Lightroom doesn’t have a photo limit that anyone has hit. Adobe doesn’t even recommend creating multiple catalogs anymore. So the first… -
Lightroom And WPPI Coming Your Way (Chicago, Atlantic City, Vegas and LA)
15 May 2013 | 9:00 amIf you live in Chicago, Atlantic City, LA or Las Vegas then you’ve got a WPPI “On the Road” stop coming your way. NAPP and WPPI are teaming up to provide you with some killer Photoshop and Lightroom training at each event. RC Concepcion, Pete Collins and I will be teaching along side plenty of other great instructors in each city. Here’s the link to WPPI’s website if you want to find out more and below is the list of cities and dates. Hope to see you there! • Chicago: May 21-22 • Atlantic City: June 3-4 • Los Angeles: July 15-16 • Las Vegas: August… -
A Super Quick Way To Convert Your Photo To Black And White
9 May 2013 | 11:01 pmHey everyone. Here’s a great little tip for you if you want to see quickly see what your photo looks like as a black and white, without going to a different panel and messing with sliders. Ready… just go to the Develop module and press the V key. Yup… that’s it. It does the default black and white conversion, and gives you a good idea of whether you’d want to process the photo any further as a B&W. If you like it, then head down to the B&W panel and make some more adjustments. If not, just press the V key again and it’ll take you back to the color… -
What Photoshop CC (Creative Cloud) Means For Lightroom Users?
6 May 2013 | 11:01 pmThere’s obviously lots of feedback, buzz, interest, and excitement, from Adobe’s announcement yesterday. If you missed it, in a nutshell, Photoshop as we know it is going totally subscription based. So basically, you can’t buy a stand alone boxed or download copy of it anymore. You have to subscribe to the Adobe Creative Cloud to get Photoshop CC (CC means Creative Cloud). However, for now you’ll still be able to buy Lightroom standalone without subscribing (even though it’s also included in the CC). By the way, if you hadn’t noticed Photoshop CS is no… -
Lightroom Tip: Hiding Panels
2 May 2013 | 11:01 pmDid you know that you can hide specific panels in Lightroom? You probably knew that you can collapse a panel just by clicking the tiny arrow next to the name of the panel. But you can also hide them so they simply don’t show up. For example, personally I don’t use the Split Toning panel, so why even have it show up there anymore? To hide it (or any other panel) right click under the Histogram in the dark gray empty area in the Develop module (just to the left of the word Basic in the Basic panel). The panels that are visible will be checked. To hide one or more just click on it.
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MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - iOS Blog
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Automatic Connected Car System Delayed Until August
24 May 2013 | 2:52 pmAutomatic introduced its Automatic Link connected car system in March of this year, promising to ship out the app and the Bluetooth adapter beginning in May. The system includes a plug-in adapter that is designed to read data from a car's onboard diagnostics, turning nearly any car manufactured after 1996 into a connected car. The adapter utilizes an accompanying iPhone app to provide detailed information on driving habits and car health. Unfortunately, Automatic has experienced some problems with the aforementioned iPhone app and as a result, it has decided to delay (via Engadget) the final… -
Best Buy to Discount iPhone by $50 Beginning Sunday
24 May 2013 | 9:47 amBest Buy is launching a new four week promotion that will drop the price of new iPhone purchases by $50. According to AllThingsD, the sale will apply to the iPhone 4, the iPhone 4S, and the iPhone 5, when purchased with a two-year contract from Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint. An iPhone with two-year contract typically costs $200 for the 16GB entry level phone, so with the sale, the price will drop to $150. The discount applies to all phone models. Best Buy has offered similar sales in the past, most recently discounting the iPhone 5 by $50 during the holiday season. Other retailers… -
Skycore Creates Platform for Passbook Delivery Via MMS
24 May 2013 | 9:03 amSkycore, a marketing and developer support firm, has introduced a new feature to its services platform to allow developers to send Passbook passes to users via MMS. The feature should allow more companies to use Passbook because they won't need users to download a dedicated iOS app. Passbook was a new feature in iOS 6 that allows users to store frequently used items like gift cards or frequent shopper cards, as well as single use items like movie and airline tickets. Developers can have those cards appear right on the lock screen, targeted by time or location. "As with SMS, the recipient of… -
Letter to Brazilian Apple Repair Centers Suggests June 2013 Policy Changes?
23 May 2013 | 4:18 pmAppleInsider has obtained a letter supposedly sent to Brazilian Apple Authorized Service Providers suggesting that new policies regarding iPhone and iPad repairs will begin soon. Though the letter is taken out of context and has been roughly translated via Google Translate, it suggests that AASP's in Brazil will soon begin repairing broken iPad glass panels and performing more in-depth repairs on iPhones with details of that plan being sent in June 2013. 2. iPad Repair - We will soon begin to repair iPad glass. Further details will be sent next week. 3. iPhone Repair - The Changing Patterns… -
Angry Birds Space Named App of the Week, Available for Free
23 May 2013 | 10:03 amRovio's Angry Birds Space has been named Apple's App of the Week, and as a result, both the full iPhone and the iPad version of the game can be downloaded for free for the first time ever. Angry Birds Space features the same bird flinging gameplay found in other Rovio titles, but it incorporates new zero gravity game mechanics and space-themed level design.Angry Birds Space features over 160 interstellar levels on planets and in zero gravity, resulting in spectacular gameplay ranging from slow-motion puzzles to lightspeed destruction. With regular free updates, new in-app purchases, brand new…
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CNN Travel
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Ultimate guide to Chinese dumplings
24 May 2013 | 9:30 amNeed a bite? Try this roundup of the tasty, fun-sized "firecrackers" that fuel 1.3 billion (and counting) stomachsRice is nice, noodles are great, but if an online poll were to solicit votes for China's most rational national food, dumplings would come out way ahead. Dumplings great and small enjoy unique names, traditions and areas where they're scarfed by the bucket-load. Here's a thoughtfully chosen buffet of the most iconic dumplings China has to offer. Chinese dumplings, pure and simple. Shui jiao (水饺) Shui jiao, or boiled dumpling, is a staple food, especially in northern… -
The cat that saved a Japanese train station
23 May 2013 | 7:00 pmMeet Tama, Japan's cutest stationmaster, and her adorable cat-shaped station homeSome 30 minutes from central Wakayama City in southeast Japan is the quiet, rural neighborhood of Kinokawa. Despite the area's un-remarkableness, its train station attracts no shortage of visitors, most under the age of 12. Tama, the hero of Kishi Station. These tourists may not know what there is to see or do in wider Kinokawa, nor do they seem particularly interested -- all they want to do is visit Kishi train station, which serves Kinokawa. They come seeking time, and hopefully a photo, with Kishi's… -
Healthy Beijing: A wellness guide to the city
23 May 2013 | 3:00 pmDespite legendary pollution, Beijing offers access to nature, healthy restaurants and eco-friendly retreatsBeijing has historic attractions, a vibrant culture and, of course, delicious Chinese food. But with its notorious pollution and regular food scandals, it's not a city one equates with health and wellness. But maintaining a healthy lifestyle while visiting Beijing isn't as challenging as you might think. Here's an insider list of nature-friendly spots, wholesome restaurants, organic stores and green escapes in and around Beijing. iReport assignment: What are your favorite spots in… -
Barcelona officials: 'Space hotel' a concept far, far away
23 May 2013 | 7:00 amWe’ll believe it when we see it, but we kind of want to see itGiant ray gun or futuristic hotel? In terms of new architecture, some cities embrace the shiny, the bold, the outrageous. Dubai, for instance, or Shanghai, or even Seoul these days. One city, however, is turning up its nose at one in-your-face building. Plans for a massive man-made island off the coast of Barcelona featuring a 2,000-suite “space hotel,” a covered marina, “zero-gravity” spa and 24-hour mall have been met with something less than enthusiasm from city officials. More on CNN: Insider Guide: What to do in… -
Opinion: Why I hate the beverage cart
22 May 2013 | 7:51 pmResponsible for more crushed knees than MMA, it’s time to protect ourselves from the airline drinks trolley Unless they’ve signed up for a gym membership, people don’t typically pay for experiences that come with a high probability of physical trauma. That’s why it’s odd to me that when you book an aisle seat on an airplane, there’s no disclaimer mentioning there’s about a 30% chance that you’re going to get hit with a moving filing cabinet. Because, basically, that’s an accurate description of an airplane’s beverage cart (galley cart, drinks trolley, mobile foot smasher,…
