Khoi Vinh's Blog, page 124

Sonos vs. AirPlay vs. Our House

At Christmas, we flirted with a

William Drenttel, 1953-2013

Bill was one of the leading lights of the design industry, a true intellectual who made a difference. He passed away this past Saturday after a year and a half-long battle with brain cancer. I only just heard a few moments ago; we became friends several years ago but I hadn’t spoken to him in two years or so. He was an incredible person and I’m deeply saddened.

More about Bill at the site he co-founded, Design Observer.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

Today’s Best Action Movie Directors Are Working in Direct-to-Video

Insightful essay from Ignatiy Vishnevetsky:

“Direct-to-video action may be an isolated genre, but its strengths go beyond mere niche appeal. It’s a vibrant, interconnected scene that is continuing the traditions of the classic action movie without being caught up in reverence. In the process, it’s produced some of the most purely entertaining movies of the last few years—movies that often outclass their big-budget counterparts.”

Read the full essay at The A.V. Club.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

The Windows of New York

A single idea, executed exceptionally well: graphic designer José Guízar has been illustrating various windows that have caught his eye in New York City. He thinks of it as an “ode to architecture,” and posts windows weekly.

The site he built for it is also exactly what it should be, no more and no less: Windowsofnewyork.com

To follow me on Twitter click here.

“Memorex” by Smash TV

This amazing super-cut video is a year old by now, but for those who missed it, it’s hypnotic and eerily wonderful.

“Sourced from over forty hours of 80s commercials pulled from warped VHS tapes, ‘Memorex’ is a deep exploration of nostalgia and the cultural values of an era of excess. It’s a re-contextualization of ads — cultural detritus, the lowest of the low — into something altogether more profound, humorous, and at times, even beautiful.

“Digging up long forgotten memories for a generation who spent their formative years glued to the boob tube, Memorex is a veritable nostalgia nuke for children of the 80s. Endless beach parties, Saturday morning cartoons, claymation everything, sleek cars, sexy babes, toys you forgot existed, station idents, primitive computer animation, all your favorite sugary cereal mascots, and so much more. An ode to the hyper consumerism and sleek veneer of a simpler time.”

As close to a trance mix as video has come so far. Watch all fifty minutes of it here.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

Cardboard Box Office

This young family recreates images from famous movies with mom, dad, baby Orson and cardboard boxes.

The whole project is charming as hell and, for me, exasperating too — I can only dream of the copious amounts of free time afforded to couples who have just one child to take care of. See more at Cardboard Box Office.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

Thoughts on Streaming Music, at Medium

It’s rare for me to be able to find the time to write at great length these days, but when I do, I’m stingy about posting that content anywhere but here, at Subtraction.com. Still, after turning over in my head an essay about streaming music for months and months, when I recently found the time to knock it out, I decided to give Medium.com a spin. The result is “What Streaming Music Can Be,” a rumination on the potential innovations that services like Spotify and Rdio have within their grasp, but have yet to achieve. Here is an excerpt:

“The interesting thing about a copy of an album on a streaming service is that you don’t have to think about it as a copy of an album at all. It can be the canonical version of the album, a centralized, networked experience that pulls together its own audience, a gateway into supplemental experiences. Through that lens, all sorts of DVD extras-style content starts to make sense: music videos, remixes, alternate takes, commentary, and more, all housed exactly where the album ‘lives’ in the cloud. Even better, the album can become a hub for those listening. It can host blogs, tweets, photos, discussions between fans and artists — and between fans and other fans. The centralized album can show us who is listening, and where, when and what else they’re listening to.”

The experience of writing on Medium itself was fascinating; its emphasis on simplicity is something that lots of publishing systems aspire to, but that Medium has somehow obtained. Like a lot of folks, I’m still not sure what Medium actually is, but after having used it, and after having read this insightful post about the service by my friend Anil Dash, I feel myself warming up to it considerably. (Full disclosure: I’m friendly with some of the Medium team here in New York, and I got a little special attention from Kate Lee, who kindly edited my essay.)

In any event, I invite you to read “What Streaming Music Can Be” and let me know what you think.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

Fénix

A handsome, vaguely calligraphic free typeface from Uruguayan designer Fernando Diíaz. At first glance Fénix’s “strong serifs and rough strokes” suggest it’s well suited only for display purposes, but in the samples shown here, at least, it’s surprisingly effective for setting text as well.

The fact that it’s free is the good news. The better news is that it’s available as a web font at Google Fonts. The bad news is that there’s only the one weight right now; no bold, light, medium, italic, etc. See the font in greater detail at Díaz’s Behance project.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

“Thief’ Comes to Criterion Collection

Michael Mann’s 1981 masterpiece “Thief” comes to The Criterion Collection in March of next year. This is good news.

I wrote a little about “Thief” two years ago when I posted some thoughts about Nicholas Winding Refn’s “Drive”. Where many hailed “Drive” as an original auteurist work, I saw it more as a superb homage to “Thief.” Both are worth viewing.

As usual, Criterion’s release looks lavish; it’s mastered from a new 4K transfer, with a 5.1 surround soundtrack; it comes with interviews and audio commentary from the director and his star; and it includes a companion booklet by critic Nick James. (Who doesn’t love a good booklet?)

It also features new cover art, designed by Fred Davis, that mercifully improves on the DVD cover issued by MGM some years ago.

The designers at Criterion justly get a lot of praise for the often extensive liberties they take in packaging their reissues, but I think the best thing that can be said about their art direction is that it is almost unfailingly appropriate. The artwork for this version of “Thief,” is wholly more true to the film, even if it uses the exact same visual assets that would have been available to MGM; it just benefits from having much, much better taste. That’s the difference-maker.

More about “Thief” on Criterion here.

To follow me on Twitter click here.

Atlassian Feed Sponsorship

What’s the point of an agile standup meeting?

Gone are the days of 30-minute status meetings where most people are half-asleep or pecking away on their laptops, oblivious to what’s being said. Agile standups are the leaner, more efficient cousin of status meetings where attendees actually stand up. On our feet, we’re more focused, attentive, and concise. It’s science!

Whether you need robust tools for planning and tracking projects, communicating with coworkers, deploying products, or just some general tips on how to run an agile shop (and how to run them Rong?), Atlassian is here to offer you the tools and advice you need to get the most out of your agile practice.

Sponsorship by The Syndicate. Sponsor Subtraction.com today.