proofHQ

poofHQ is an online proofing tool that allows you to manage feedback and approval of design work.

proofHQ recently extended the functionality to allow proofing of audio visual files, which is a huge step forwards and makes it one of a kind in the market. This means that any agencies or freelancers creating short website movies or interactive ads can now get feedback online from their clients with comments displayed at the relevant time within the file.

I am currently on a one-year-client-work-sabbatical, otherwise I would give proofHQ a try. Watch the demo below:

ProofHQ Demo from ProofHQ on Vimeo.

♥ / PopSlice

A big thank you to SemiBig Creative Industries for yet again sponsoring another week of our RSS Feed.

PopSlice is a visually tasty website maker. No coding necessary. You’ll be on the web in minutes. Think of it as a well-designed gallery that’s ready to hang your best work.

Start with one of the clean and minimal designs as the foundation – then personalize it to the hilt. Easily switch between different layouts and fonts. Quickly add images and video. Choose from three different gallery types.

They’re serious about reliability and security. They’re on the Rackspace Cloud – the same peace of mind cloud-hosting that I use.

PopSlice is offering a semi-sweet deal to Swiss-Miss readers: mention that you saw them here and get 50% off your first month of PopSlice. (Code: SWISSMISS2010)

PopSlice. They’re going to pretty up your pixels. Your visually tasty website. Up and running in minutes.

Take PopSlice out for a free spin for 15 days. Fully featured.

iPhone/iPod Stands

The iPhone Wings Stand is a refreshingly playful take on iPhone stands.

The iPLUNGE™ made me laugh.

The Whole Story



This photo album by Debra Folz stands on its own corner due to a reinforced front and back cover, which gives it a magic sort of ‘objet d’art’ feel. Lovely.

DIY Goody Bags

What a refreshing new take on Birthday Party Goodie Bags. Use pages from an old magazine with imagery you like, cut out squares about 15×15 cm (6″x6″) and glue the outer ends together to make a tube. Then sew together one end, fill it with a surprise, turn it 90 degrees and sew together the other end. Presto!

About complaining

“The best way to complain is to make things.”

– James Murphy

Best Inventions of 2010

Time gathered The 50 Best Inventions of 2010. Includes Flipboard, a Lifeguard Robot, Sarcasm Detection and a Plastic Bottle Boat.

Music by Andrew Zuckerman

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Music is the latest work by much admired, NYC based photographer and film maker, Andrew Zuckerman. (Who happens to be our NYC/CreativeMornings speaker tomorrow!)

The Music project features dynamic portraits of over fifty musicians of all ages, from across genres, who provide their perspectives on one of the most universal and yet unexplainable art forms. Music is available as a book, which includes portraits and interviews as well as access to a feature-length film; it is also available as an iPad app, with text and portraits from the book as well as individual films for each contributor exclusive to the app.

Check out the Behind The Scenes Clip.

Fore more info visit: musicthebook.com

MakeDo

Makedo is a reusable connector system that enables materials including cardboard, plastic and fabric to easily join together to form new objects or structures. How did I not come across this earlier? Think of the possibilities!

Cuttingboards

I think I have found a new love: cutting boards:

Cloud Cutting Board. Made me smile.

The Transfer cutting board shows a simple and effective solution to the old problem of transferring food from the cutting board to the pan. Thanks to a simple cutout it allows you to insert a plate, so that you can just slide your freshly cut ingredients onto it.

Autocorrect

I just spent the last 5minutes laughing, reading through damnyouautorrect.com posts. Next time I have one of these funny autocorrect moments, I’ll make sure to screenshot it.

(via @jessema)

Time Flies

Time Flies is is an iPhone App that let’s you keep track of how long it has been since you did something. This is BRILLIANT! And I so need this. Brita water filter, do I need to say more?

(via @globalmoxie/@craigmod)

City Hall Subway Stop

Here’s a blog post that makes want to jump up and run to take the 6 train:

“New York’s famous City Hall subway station, one of the most gorgeous gems in the world of mass transit, has been closed for decades but now it can be viewed again by in-the-know riders of the 6 train.

Although it’s not open to the general public, there’s a way in-the-know New York subway riders can still see this famous and beautiful architectural glimpse at the city’s past. The 6 train used to make all passengers leave the train at the Brooklyn Bridge stop, but no longer.

If you have a little extra time, you can stay on the train and view the City Hall Station as the train makes its turnaround.”

I can’t wait. Can NOT wait to do this.

(via jalopnik and @HelenWalters)

Nuzzles

Nuzzles are custom designed wooden typographic puzzles handcrafted by John Christenson. Every Nuzzle is crafted from a single block of wood, and the characters interlock with each other in a way that creates a sense of harmony and integrity. Want one? YES!

(The word Nuzzle is awesome. I just want to keep saying it over and over. Nuzzle. Nuzzle. Nuzzle.)

(Thank you Katherine)

DailyLit – Read books by email or RSS


My days are hectic. Running my studio/blog/speaker series and putting the mommy hat on the minute I come home means that I barely find a quiet moment to read books. (I sometimes wish for a subway commute that allows for some quality reading.) So, to me, DailyLit, a service that let’s you read books by email or RSS makes total sense. They make you read books in under 5 minutes a day, short installments sent via email or RSS. DailyLit’s titles include bestselling and award winning titles, from literary fiction and cooking to business and science fiction.

The beauty of this service is that I can set when I’ll get my installment. I have it set to arrive during the day, while I am at the office. That way, I can take a quick break from all my business and dive into a portion of my book. Or, if I am waiting in line somewhere, I can just pull it up on my iPhone and read it. Have a little bit more time and want to read more than just 5minutes? Simply download additional installments. Brilliant.

I am giving this a try. Join me?

A world of tweets

A World of Tweets shows you with a heat map visualization where people are tweeting at from the past hour. The more tweets there are from a specific region, the “hotter” or redder it becomes. This continuous collection of Twitter statuses shows in what an incredible tweeting world we live in. Check out the 3D view!

A project by Frog Design.

(thank you fabulous John Ford)

Minka

The Minka post over at Subtraction caught my attention: Khoi points us to a very promising trailer for a documentary about a 250-year-old farmhouse in Japan that was restored by an American journalist and his adopted Japanese son.

“In Fall 2007, Princeton Architectural Press published ‘Minka: My Farmhouse in Japan,” the memoir of retired AP foreign correspondent John Roderick. Moved by the story of this remarkable house and the memories it contained, and with seed funding from the Graham Foundation, we began work on a documentary film about John, his adopted son architect Yoshihiro Takishita, and the 250-year old house they shared. John died in March 2008 at the age of 93. ‘Minka’ is a meditation on place, architecture, memory and the meanings of home.”

The filmmakers have launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds to complete the movie. With your help, they can finish the film! No donation is too small, and they’re offering some great rewards. Please check it out here.

I just pledged $50 over at Kickstarter. If they reach their goal, and finish the movie, my name will be on the film’s website and I’ll receive a digital download of the film.

(Is Kickstarter simply the best thing that has come out of the web in the past few years? YES!)

Changing Education Paradigms

This animate was adapted from a talk given at the RSA by Sir Ken Robinson, world-renowned education and creativity expert and recipient of the RSA’s Benjamin Franklin award.

Also remarkable: Sir Ken Robinson’s TED Talk on How Schools Kill Creativity.

(thank you Larissa)

HashAlbum

Oh, I wish I would have known about Hashalbum.com the night of my blog birthday party, earlier this year. What a fun way to visually track an event, conference, party or topic! I found the site via this Brand New Conference Tweet pointing to pictures in tweets with the hashtag #bnconf.

The 20/20 Cure

I am a big fan of Maxwell, the force behind everything Apartment Therapy. I am especially fond of his 20/20 Cure Video Series. It’s a fun video series that helps you polish up your homes. I especially like the idea in the below video of setting up an ‘Outbox’ for things you haven’t used in a while.

Day 4 – 20/20 Home Cure – Fall 2010 from maxwell gillingham-ryan on Vimeo.

Fasten Seat Belts | Asia

Excited to see that Fasten Seat Belts now came out with a guide for Asia. (I posted about their Europe guide a while back.) Fasten Seat Belts is a lighthearted guide to avoid missunderstandings while travelling.

It’s an innovative (visual) way to learn languages and pick up cultural tips. The videos describe various “Dos and Don’ts” (gestures, traditions, manners…) relating to 6 countries of South Asia : Japan, China, Korea, India, Thailand and Vietnam. The videos offer a chance to learn some simple and useful expressions in the official languages of these 6 countries.

Did you know that in China people count to ten only using one hand? See below:

China 6_Count to 10 using only one hand. from 43 Films on Vimeo.

And the guides now even come as iPhone Applications. Nifty!

(thank you Barbara)

When ‘Best’ Isn’t Good Enough

Liz pointed me to an interesting article titled “When “Best’ Isn’t Good Enough” by Judith Newman.

In a medium where it is often oddly difficult to interpret tone, where the lines of friendship, love and business are easily muddied, and where people are sometimes a little too eager to shine brightly in the drab sludge of daily missives, something as seemingly trivial as an e-mail signoff can loom large. It can be a clue to both the personality of the sender and the standing that the recipient has in his or her social universe. It can enlighten, amuse and enrage — sometimes all at once.

How do you sign your emails?

Tweet Towel

Tweet Towel is a tea towel with a personal miniature message embroidered onto it. I just received one and it made me smile big time.

All Tweet Towel profits go to the We Are What We Do Charitable Foundation, funding their digital inclusion projects to get different generations talking more, sharing more and spending more time together.

Tweet Towel gets two swissmiss thumbs up!

(thank you Tori)

Felt Leaf Necklace

Felt Leaf Necklace. My love for felt and my preferred color-palette (red/black/gray/white) combined in one: I am in heaven. #wishlisted