Rhymes with Leopard

I promised something more intuitive than Mac, and that thing is Linux. If you have passed the stage of computer use bordering on complete ineptitude maybe its time to take off your white plastic training wheels and admit that you know what an executable is, and how many mega's fit in a giga. Step up to GNOME or KDE, pick a flavour.

Many Mac fans will argue that Vista is a clear attempt by Micro$oft to be more like Mac, I won't argue this, it's really obvious. And many PC users argue that Mac is trying to be more PC, and admit it, Pentium? Exchangeable hardware? Kinda smells like a PC in here. But let's take it back a step.


Holy Keokuk, was that Windows? No, I think it may have been Mac OS. Or was it, possibly? GNOME? An old version of GNOME? Hmmm, looks kinda familiar. GNOME, and indeed every major flavour (isn't that trendy? They call them "Flavours" is Mac STILL stuck on "Versions"?) of Linux has a sleek, stream lined user interface, with near limitless customization (Have I got the designers attention yet?) and visual options.

And you want "It just works"? How about the most stable operating system to date. Has your Mac ever crashed? I mean ever, even once? Linux can recover from a crash without restarting, because of its structure it has a kind of super-powered Task Manager. This means the most stable operating system to date can't even be slowed down by anything short of a power outage. Or intense system manipulation by trained programmers, which is what it was originally designed for.

So in both the "Interface made for designers" and the "It just works" fields Linux wins. And guess what, you can install it on the m15x from last post. Now THAT is a good designer's computer.

Like going to a candy store and only buying Jujubes

As one of the only defenders of the forgotten PC in the class I feel it is my duty to post a sleek and sexy PC, something cool enough to compete with Mac. And here, ladies and gentlemen, is my offering. The Alienware Area 51 m15x.


Isn't that pretty? In a smooth gunmetal case with minimal ports and buttons cluttering its appearance the m15x from Alienware is super-modern and leaves a strong impression. Not only that, this beast has more power than any Mac book in the class (I will challenge you on that) crammed into a $2000 box. I won't get into the details but needless to say, this is a gaming laptop.

The system has the coordinated, minimalist look so far the domain of Mac, with the sheer powerhouse components of a PC aficionado. No, it isn't perfect, but come on people, there are options other than Mac, it's not the be all and end all, there's always something better.

And yes, that means there is something out there smoother and more intuitive than a Mac, more on that later.

Floppy Compact Disk and other erectile difficulties

Hey kids, today we have an old invention, a floppy disk, but wait ...

It's actually a CD! Cool!



This excessive waste of technology and resources is exactly why I love design. A few months ago Black was the new Black, I made alot of jokes that day, but now Old is the new Black. And these disks are so very black, with a variety of label colours available.

Sometimes you Wanna Go Where Everybody has Taken a Life

A classic of cinematographic mastery, Oliver Stones controversial opus Natural Born Killers was filmed and cut with the speed and fury of a jet engine hitting a bird. The film has a cuts per minute equal to a Pantera music video. It has revolutionary colour use to identify and foretell story elements. And most importantly of all, Woody God-Damn Herralson.



It was originally supposed to be Michael Madson, but they said he was too crazy. Well, the tame, innocent Woody showed us all that he would wear Madsons face as a strange mask given half a chance. Woody's performance as an unstable psychopath is immaculate, amplified by his childish looks and innocent patina.

A classic of colour and design, the manic tempo never lets up till the end montage. Love it or hate it, there is nothing quite like Natural Born Killers.

Fist Full of Peanuts

While I'm not a big fan of Peanuts, I do love the old fixed panel comics from the newspapers, which where practically invented by Charles Schulz. So today, I present this entry on the fundamental design elements of Snoopy.

And his lil' buddy Woodstock. Snoopy has a fantastically simple and elegant design. His weighted ears and nose help to balance his face, bordered with a smooth curve that brings the eye up over his head and down his nose. The simple cross hatching on his feet create enough noise with the dirt to partially frame the panel without drawing attention. The heavy variation in the line work gives all the shading and depth the image needs.

Woodstock, the small yellow bird, being much smaller has reduced detail to maintain an even weighting. Notice again his foot detail generates background noise to fill in detail without dominating the image.

Plus he sleeps on his dog house, which is funny.

How do you Define Art Deco?

Ever had a conversation with not-artsy person about art? Ever sound like this?

"It's got a strong Art Deco influence" "What's Art Deco?"

Being a big fan of Art Deco I've run into this question alot. And it's an annoying one because how do you define style? Well, luckily 77 years ago someone decided to build a 102 story tall answer to just that question.



The Empire State Building. The coolest building ever. The only building so smooth, Sammy Davis Jr. was once reported to have said "Wow, that's smooth!" about it. And, my favourite example of design.

The empire state building is the very definition of Art Deco. It's vertical lines, geometric elements, triangles and trapezoids all reek of class and 3 piece pin strip suit.

Let's do the Time-Warp Level Again

Well hello plebians. Today I bring you an offering in the shape of Portal, the latest sleeper hit from Valve Software.
Pictured above is the adorable Weighted Companion Cube, unofficial mascot for Portal. Portal features the innovative game mechanic of portals, doorways that allow a player to move from one point to another instantly. The beauty of the game is its simple and elegant design.

You can make two portals with a portal gun, one with the left mouse button, one with the right. One is blue, the other is orange. They stick to white walls, they don't stick to black walls. That's it, that's everything. The elegant and consistent visuals make the game so intuitive and automatic you can focus on understanding the peculiar concept of bending space and time.

Not to mention the gun turrets look like Mac products. Heh heh, iTurret.

The Ways of Dan

Mr. Mitchell is a man who wears his opinions on his head ... literally. The most defining factor of Dan's communication is his trademark toque. The black knit cap emblazoned with the red "Slayer" logo. This toque proudly proclaims Dan as a metal head.

This gets pulled over into his sound. The anthem of the man from Dan is obviously Rock-them but is this really a part of his dialogue? The Dannster has his background music in tow with enough regularity it has become a part of his communication, whether intended or not. I can't actually imagine what Dan sounds like without a bromdignagian git-tar solo in the background.

Which brings us finally to the gesticulation. Danery can't talk without his hands. Though his gestures vague and general, he can't explain without them. I've seen him gesticulate for hours without tiring.

Perfectly unoriginal

Oh my god, guys, oh my god. If you've ever used live-trace, and I know you've used live-trace, then you know it sucks. Artifacting and low resolutions leave little jagged points all over the place.

Not anymore. A research group at Stanford University has created an AI for the purpose of converting images into vector elements. Think of it as an intelligent live-trace.

With more precise settings and alot more processing time this site can spit out fantastic vector conversions. No jagged edges, smooth curves around the dirtiest resolutions.

Tomer Hanuka, and other forign swear words

I recently found the work of a comic artist named Tomer Hanuka in a copy of Juxtapoz (Cover, Jan 08) and was quite struck by it.

His surprising colour choices are always striking. He does all his line work with a brush and ink, you can see the benefits of this in all his work. His simple line work belies the amount of information conveyed by its heavy variation.

He then scans his work and does the colour digitally. The colour is something in and of itself dramatic and unconventional. Cell is one of my favourtie pieces, it uses bright, cotton candy colours to show a zombie rampage. The odd dichotomy is fun.