Sue-Point-Oh!

A co-worker let me borrow the beautifully written book by Tufte called Envisioning Information. Flipping through the beautiful illustrations and explanations of ways to present information feels very dedadent. Everytime I open the book it feels like a special treat. Not only is the book critical for information architects, but it also presents an anthropological history of information - presenting models from around the world. My favorite is the elaborate Chinese train timetable which presents so much information in a such a small space.

I just used Camtasia - Screen Recording and Presentation Software for the first time to create a demo video about using the BlackBerry 8700c speed dial feature. It only took a couple hours to record the screen, add some captions, record a voice narration and presto change - I had a professional flooking flash presentation! This blog entry is not an endorsement of Camtasia, it’s just a reflection on how quickly things change. Just a couple years ago I would have had to hire a professional Flash designer to make this kind of simulation. Now the software is almost as easy to use as PowerPoint. I think this upholds the theory in the “Future Worker 2015: Extreme Individualism” article that the future worker will creating all of his or her own multimedia as a way to publish and express their work.

Have you seen that commericial where the Mac and PC are personified - the Mac beign the hip young guy and PC being the uptight guy in the suit. What about this video advertising Firefox?

Mac vs. Pc Video

Firefox Video

I think it’s interesting that as a culture we have begun personifying hardware, websites, and applications. What is more outstanding is that we not only do this but the general Internet/Computer using public understand and embrace this. Is this a way for us to humanize the news tools that we spend so much time with? If “My Space” was a person, what would he be like? Do you think you would want to be friends with him?

This title was inspired by the topic of an instructional website I created called “The Art of Eating a Pomegranate.” Check out the site if you want to learn a quick and beautiful way to open up a pomegrante without spattering blood colored juice all over your pre-labor day white pants. This title is obscure and quirky but the content of the site is quality. I think that same set of themes will apply to this blog. I hope you enjoy and please take part in the blog experience and leave a comment!