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If you sell products to consumers (I guess that takes in a few people), you’ll be interested in Street Peeper (via PSFK). Street Peeper posts pictures of mostly young people and their clothes (despite the name) from the streets of, New York, Miami, Berlin, Seoul, Paris, and Chicago (with more coming). The photos are Continue reading more A little while ago I posted on desktop fabricators, many of which are user or kit built. Sears is selling a “desktop” woodworking system called the Craftsman Compucarve. From the Web site: Compact, computer-controlled, 3-dimensional woodworking machine with an easy-to-use interface. It allows a novice to make a complete project without a shop full Continue reading more Business Week has an article about collaboration in the workplace, which focuses mostly on wikis. The article begins with an anecdote about the founder of Geek Squad wondering how a member of his staff stayed in touch with employees in Anchorage. Prodded for details, he sheepishly told Stevens that they all play Battlefield 2 Continue reading more The debate over the death of newspapers reached another crescendo this weekend. It’s not exactly clear why now, although it was probably prompted by Tim O’Reilly writing that the San Francisco Chronicle is in trouble. Apparently, Phil Bronstein, the editor-in-chief, told staff in a recent “emergency meeting” that the news business “is broken, and Continue reading more Several months ago, Malcolm Gladwell wrote an article for the New Yorker in which he explored the difference between puzzles and mysteries. It’s a fairly long article, but full of excellent insights. Gladwell, noting Gregory Trevington’s distinction between puzzles and mysteries, described the location of Osama bin Laden as a puzzle, while what would Continue reading more From Agenda comes some stories that should provide clues to mainstream media players about how they can serve their advertisers better. First is a story in USA Today about how teens are being targeted with cell phone marketing. Cell phone marketing isn’t particularly new, especially if you’ve ever driven into mainland China (where your Continue reading more If you’re a fruit marketer, you probably feel pretty good about the health and exercise trend we’ve been living through for some time now. Unless, that is, you’re Chiquita. While the company was happy to ride along as consumers paid more and more attention to what they eat, it also realized that because ripe Continue reading more Some time ago I noted Don Norman’s article discussing consumers’ desire for more complex products. Shortly after that I pointed out a New York Times article that discussed research showing that if a multi-attribute product is priced too low, consumers suspect its quality. The Times is back again with an article discussing a paper Continue reading more Grant McCracken writes that he believes that the days of accidental friends may be numbered: In the “old world” model, we make friends by accident. Our family is from Seattle, so that’s where we were born. Or, our Dad got a job in Chicago, so that’s where we went to school. We like to Continue reading more For years now we’ve been hearing greeting card manufacturers and the Greeting Card Association talking about the enduring values of sending paper cards for holidays, birthdays, and just about any other special occasion. Fine stationary manufacturers also tout the beauty and feel of their products as a perfect antidote to the over-digitization of our Continue reading more Last Friday’s Wall Street Journal carried an article by Amy Chozick, explaining how Japan has become “‘Disneyland’ for trends.” The article goes through an exhausting array of trends, including bejeweled sneakers, Jesus-themed restaurants, and robotic baby seals the keep the elderly company. Chozick traces this explosion of innovation to Japan’s recent economic woes: Japan’s Continue reading more Any day now, China’s National People’s Congress is expected to pass a private property law that gives the property of individuals the same protection as that of the state. The New York Times notes that, Approval of the property law was expected last year, but party leaders tabled the proposal after an unusually public Continue reading more If you still need evidence of the mainstreaming of the formerly underground worlds of comics and video games, go see 300. The genesis of the movie, just released on Friday, is explained well in this Time article. As Time states: It was made by a young director, stars nobody in particular, and it looks Continue reading more A few other noteworthy nuggets that came out of the PSFK conference on Tuesday were from the panel discussion titled “Eco Shift or Greenwash.” The panel was comprised of Tamara Giltsoff, Hemal Vasavada-Gill, Jill Fehrenbacher, and Marc Alt. The first few people to speak, Marc and Jill, both noted companies that they felt hadn’t Continue reading more The New York Times reports today on a new Internet start-up. Next New Networks, a New York-based Internet start-up run and backed by former executives of MTV and Nickelodeon, will announce plans today to begin a series of video-oriented Web sites — what the company calls micro-networks — on niche topics like do-it-yourself fashion, Continue reading more |
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