Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Specktone Speaker Deal!
Hey y'all - check out this deal - go to the Specktone. website, choose your color (I got green!) and when you get to the checkout enter 'specktone' in the coupon field and get 50% off!
That's Right, 50%! As if that ain't sweet enough, you also bag 2 Free Matching Skins (video & nano) and they ship it free!
The SpeckTone Retro features a built-in iPod dock, a 4” subwoofer and two 3” drivers, and a vintage-style all-wood speaker cabinet. The system comes in three lacquered finishes—green, black, and white. The half-off discount is valid through October 6th. (Mine ships on my birthday, Rocktober 2, perfect!)
What are you waiting for? Get it at Specktone Retro! just in time to check out my new I.F.09.06 Podcast!
And as usual, your comments, complaints and requests are totally welcome.
Make It Louder,
Migwell
That's Right!
HMK
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
The Long Tail
I just started reading The Long Tail last night (thanks to an early birthday gift from my friend and former business partner Scott Ensley).
I remember reading portions from Wired magazine and thinking that what's really happening (other than the fact that this Chris Anderson dude is finally articulating what I've been thinking since 1999) is that finally, all the excuses I've had for not launching my own products or ideas are slowly being eliminated by today's technology enabling anyone with a little ambition and a few good ideas, to capitalize on them.
The theory of the Long Tail is that our culture and economy is increasingly shifting away from a focus on a relatively small number of "hits" (mainstream products and markets) at the head of the demand curve and toward a huge number of niches in the tail. As the costs of production and distribution fall, especially online, there is now less need to lump products and consumers into one-size-fits-all containers. In an era without the constraints of physical shelf space and other bottlenecks of distribution, narrowly-target goods and services can be as economically attractive as mainstream fare.
One example of this is the theory's prediction that demand for products not available in traditional bricks and mortar stores is potentially as big as for those that are. But the same is true for video not available on broadcast TV on any given day, and songs not played on radio. In other words, the potential aggregate size of the many small markets in goods that don't individually sell well enough for traditional retail and broadcast distribution may someday rival that of the existing large market in goods that do cross that economic bar.
The term refers specifically to the orange part of the sales chart above, which shows a standard demand curve that could apply to any industry, from entertainment to hard goods. The vertical axis is sales; the horizontal is products. The red part of the curve is the hits, which have dominated our markets and culture for most of the last century. The orange part is the non-hits, or niches, which is where the new growth is coming from now and in the future.
CONTINUE READINGE >> The Long Tail.
Thanks again for the book Scott!
That's Right!
HMK
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Death 'N' Stuff
It is early winter, 1894, and a young woman, a servant to a prosperous New York family, finds herself in need of immediate medical attention. Poor and illiterate, she takes it upon herself to seek a remedy for her discomfort by scanning the shelves of her employers’ pantry, where she spies a bottle whose label features a skull and crossbones. Unknowingly, she downs a swig or two, whereupon she collapses in agony and is rushed to the hospital. Miraculously, she survives, later telling the police that she selected this particular bottle because of the picture on the label — a picture of bones. “I thought it would heal my aching limbs,” she confesses. “I had no idea it was poison.”
A true story. And blessedly, we've come a long way since then. But the notion of truth-telling on a label remains a tricky enterprise. In the United States, regulatory commissions like the Food and Drug Administration require warnings and printed counterindications to alert consumers not only to potential sources of poison, but to other possible dangers related to food, medicine and cosmetics, among other things. There's a no-nonsense specificity to such literature, leaving no wiggle room, no space for interpretation.
In this context, the role for design — and by this I mean the introduction of what might well be more persuasive visual and verbal solutions for critical warning information — remains fundamentally restricted by what is, in the end, legally permissable.
CONTINUE READING THIS ARTICLE >>
Thanks to Jessica Helfand at The Design Observer.
Reading Jessica Helfand's article reminded me of a little blurb I read in Readers Digest back in the 80's. It was about an Asian family that had just moved to the US and were grocery shopping for the first time.
They were suprised to find that the big can of Crisco they purchased did not contain the 10+ peices of fried chicken that were pictured on the lable.
Hardly.
That's Right,
HMK
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Ultimate Halloween Candy Guide 2006
I-Mockery's got this cool little blog to keep us all up to date on what'll be landing in the kids bags this Halloween.
That's Right!
HMK
Friday, September 22, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Wicked Trippy!
Want to start off your weekend by getting away from it all?
Go here to experiecnce: Trippy Zoom!.
Have a nice trip!
That's Right!
HMK
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Super Freaky!
Ok, Halloween is right around the bend.
Check out this amazing little guessing game.
How the hell does it know?
If you can't see it try another browser... Sorry.
That's Right,
HMK
Check out this amazing little guessing game.
How the hell does it know?
If you can't see it try another browser... Sorry.
That's Right,
HMK
Monday, September 18, 2006
Truth Beats Bulls#@*!
Rube Goldberg, Device to Keep You From Forgetting To Mail Your Wife's Letter.
Beacuse honsestly, the sooner we get past the bullshit the sooner we can get back to doing the real, important work.
"As you walk past cobbler shop, hook (A) strikes suspended boot (B), causing it to kick football (C) through goal posts (D). Football drops into basket (E) and string (F) tilts sprinkling can, (G) causing water to soak coat tails (H). As coat shrinks, cord (I) opens door (J) of cage, allowing bird (K) to walk out on perch (L) and grab worm (M) which is attached to string (N). This pulls down window shade (O) on which is written, 'YOU SAP, MAIL THAT LETTER.'"
This is My Process by Michael Bierut
For over twenty years, I've been writing proposals for projects. And almost every one of them has a passage somewhere that begins something like this: "This project will be divided in four phases: Orientation and Analysis, Conceptual Design, Design Development, and Implementation." All clients want this. Sometimes there are five phases, sometimes six. Sometimes they have different names. But it's always an attempt to answer a potential client's unavoidable question: can you describe the process you use to create a design solution that’s right for us?
The other day I was looking at a proposal for a project I finished a few months ago. The result, by my measure and by the client's, was successful. But guess what? The process I so reassuringly put forward at the outset had almost nothing to do with the way the project actually went. What would happen, I wonder, if I actually told the truth about what happens in a design process?
CONTINUE READING THIS ARTICLE >> Design Observer.
That's Right!
HMK
Beacuse honsestly, the sooner we get past the bullshit the sooner we can get back to doing the real, important work.
"As you walk past cobbler shop, hook (A) strikes suspended boot (B), causing it to kick football (C) through goal posts (D). Football drops into basket (E) and string (F) tilts sprinkling can, (G) causing water to soak coat tails (H). As coat shrinks, cord (I) opens door (J) of cage, allowing bird (K) to walk out on perch (L) and grab worm (M) which is attached to string (N). This pulls down window shade (O) on which is written, 'YOU SAP, MAIL THAT LETTER.'"
This is My Process by Michael Bierut
For over twenty years, I've been writing proposals for projects. And almost every one of them has a passage somewhere that begins something like this: "This project will be divided in four phases: Orientation and Analysis, Conceptual Design, Design Development, and Implementation." All clients want this. Sometimes there are five phases, sometimes six. Sometimes they have different names. But it's always an attempt to answer a potential client's unavoidable question: can you describe the process you use to create a design solution that’s right for us?
The other day I was looking at a proposal for a project I finished a few months ago. The result, by my measure and by the client's, was successful. But guess what? The process I so reassuringly put forward at the outset had almost nothing to do with the way the project actually went. What would happen, I wonder, if I actually told the truth about what happens in a design process?
CONTINUE READING THIS ARTICLE >> Design Observer.
That's Right!
HMK
Good Morning Sweetheart Pillow
As you rest your head on the pillow for those valuable last few moments before you wake the words Good Morning Sweetheart are gently pressed onto your cheek.
Even though you may feel tired and drowsy your loved one can see how you feel.
Material: 100% cotton sheeting with embroidered text.
Concept: 100% Genius.
Thanks to James McAdam.
Remainds me of that funny old line - Making more headlines than a corduroy pillow!
That's Right!
HMK
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Friday, September 15, 2006
A-Z Retail Tricks
A-Z Retail Tricks To Make You Shop
"If we went into shops only when we needed to buy something, and if once in there we bought only what we needed, the economy would collapse, boom." Paco Underhill, CEO Envirosell
Ever wandered into a shop looking to buy a few things on your list, only to find yourself coming out with twice as much? You may not be aware, but the reason for this is not sheer chance, or that you were just feeling frivolous. The retail industry spends hard time and money into creating all sorts of devious little means to make you shop that bit extra. Every penny you spend in their shop is not being spent at their rivals, and in the high stakes of today’s competitive market, every penny counts.
Below is an A-Z of retail tricks that we have compiled to empower you before you go out shopping, so that you can buy what you need and collapse our economy! More will be added as we root them out.
A
Aisle Order – Some customers, particularly men, tend to simply shop for what they want, walking down an aisle grabbing what they want, turning back and walking the way they came, this is called the 'Boomerang Effect'. In order to maximise shopper and produce contact time, shops therefore place major items and brands in the middle of aisles ensuring that from any direction the customer has to walk the furthest to reach them.
B
Baby Powder – Some UK baby shops now add Baby Powder to the air conditioning to remind people of new-born’s and relax them.
Baskets – Shops will actively hand out baskets and trolleys to customers, as people then feel embarrassed taking a basket with one item to the counter, and it increases the chances of multiple purchases. You will often find baskets to the right just after the Transition Zone.
C
Canned Smell – Most Supermarkets bake their bread early in the morning, however to entice more custom some have resorted to pumping out the smell of fresh baking bread to add to the illusion that it is constantly baked through the day. Go into Niketown on Oxford Street and smell the deodorant like pong they pump into the air!
Curved Aisle Ends – A lot of supermarkets now curve the ends of their aisles, this is to ensure your eye never strays from the goods on display.
Check out the rest at Space Hijackers.
That's Right!
HMK
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Happy Trails Ann Richards
Sad day here in Texas.
Ann Richards, the 45th governor our great state of Texas back in 1990, died Wednesday after a six-month battle with cancer.
She was 73.
She was a wicked funny lady with a sassy homespun charm and a tough, positive, pioneer spirit and truly one of the best things about Texas.
With her bright silver hair, a weathered face and an affinity for cobalt blue suits and pearls, Richards was also the quintessential Texas woman.
On then-Vice President George Bush: "Poor George, he can't help it. He was born with a silver foot in his mouth."
She won cheers at the 1988 Democratic National Convention when she reminded everyone that Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did: "She just did it backwards and in high heels."
Rest in Peace Ann.
I miss you already!
HMK
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Wow.
NYC #1
Monday, September 11, 2006
Sunday, September 10, 2006
The Original Vapor Product?
Back between 1938-1942 Fox comic book titles were published as Fantastic Comics, Green Mask, among others.
During the summer of 1941 all the Fox comic book titles were full of ads for a drink called Kooba Cola, which was apparently never made. It seems it was all a Victor Fox (Fox publisher) scheme to create a demand before the product even existed.
Stay tuned, I'm gonna get mor info on this one.
Peace and try and have a great week,
HMK
Friday, September 08, 2006
The Art of War
UNUSUAL TECHNICAL IMAGES OF EQUIPMENT USED IN WORLD WAR II
The site features awesome technical cutaway drawings of submarines, ships, aircraft and arms.
That's Right!
HMK
Thursday, September 07, 2006
FAQ: The Original Energizer Bunny
The rabbit was so well known that in 1959 a New York reader was able to send Playboy a letter with the rabbit head as the only address. (And I thought Santa at the North Pole was easy....)
A shrewd marketing strategy had transformed the original bunny icon
from a dopey adolescent idea (rabbits, see, they like sex - lots of it)
to an immediately recognizable symbol of sophistication and style.
Hop on over to Design Boom for more.
That's Right!
HMK
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Jackie Earle Haley is Back!
Welcome Back Jackie!
The first of two new movies featuring the return of Jackie Earle Haley opened this weekend to some awesome reviews at the Telluride Film Festival in Colorado.
The premier of Little Children opened Friday September 2nd with an official release date of October 6th.
And September 22nd is the official opening of All The King's Men.
Go Jackie! Best of luck dude!
That's Right!
HMK
Monday, September 04, 2006
Stop Smoking!
Agency Full Jazz of Brazil created these adhesives on poles In São Paulo. August 29th is National Day of fighting against smoking in Brazil.
That's Right!
HMK
Friday, September 01, 2006
I'm in the Cult of iPod Book!
Hey, in cased you missed it, my HMK iPod Speakers got a double page spread in Leander Kahney's Cult of iPod book.
As a result, I've recieved a fair amount of inquiries from individuals and businesses and I've got orders for more! Not quite enough to quit my day job yet, but pretty decent considering I've yet to make any kind of a real push to market them.
If you're at all interested, there's a cool Cult Of iPod interview with Leander as well as this:
Cult Of iPod Wins Design Award!
If you dig the iPod you'll dig the book' - it's pretty sweet!
That's Right!
HMK
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