Fewer, Better

There's a video store just a few miles from work and home called Videodrome. A tiny shop, it can't quite compete with Blockbuster (who now can't compete with Netflix). But it doesn't try to.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on March 11th, 2010

Linchpin

We like to pick a book out every couple months to read as a group here. It serves as a nice platform to start conversation about new ideas and how they might apply to what we do. We're currently about half way through with Linchpin, the new book from author Seth Godin. The basic premise is this: How to be remarkable. That is, the future is in ideas -- the ones who will succeed are the visionaries. Those who create the kind of value that can't always be measured by numbers. The Jobses, the Dylans, the Bransons.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on March 4th, 2010

Film Is Not Dead

As print and film continue to fade away, A Bryan Photo is turning what seems to be something negative into a competitive advantage. The medium has become more valuable, more niche. They've embraced it. It's a stubborn nod to authenticity. And it's exactly what we need more of.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on February 25th, 2010

A Small Impact

In 1907 Dixie designed the disposable paper cup as a solution to health concerns caused by the then-common use of shared glasses in schools and on railways. A century later, we now have to figure out how to curb our addiction to not only paper cups, but all the other disposable things we use in the day to day.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on February 11th, 2010

The Popularity Contest

A good brand doesn’t “give people what they want”; a designer’s job isn’t to find out what makes the customer happy and thus continue doing it.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on February 4th, 2010

Do You Believe in Magic?

It's become apparent that the iPad isn't really meant to be a device of creation, but rather of consumption. Where would the Pad fit in your life? Does it fill a necessary niche, or will it just turn into an extra gadget to haul around?

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on January 28th, 2010

Don’t Recycle. Repair.

My first printer was an old HP LaserJet that was built like a tank and weighed about the same. It worked flawlessly for almost ten years before being replaced by a far more advanced model that was twice as fast and half as durable.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on January 21st, 2010

Pretty in Green

I have a dilemma. You see, as a rational, Earth-dwelling person, I care about the environment. But I also love cars. Put those two together and what you get are depressing visions of a world filled with soft, bubbly hybrids and electrics.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on January 13th, 2010

No Brand Quality Goods

We live in a brand-obsessed culture, where we are often defined by the labels to which we are loyal. But for over two decades now, there's been one company that has built quite a devoted following despite flying under the radar and more or less avoiding the turbulent brand wars.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on January 7th, 2010

Your Designer’s Bookshelf

In closing out 2009 and the decade before, we talk about what has inspired us. Blake set things off with a nice list of "best practices". We are often inspired (and humbled) by great work produced by our fellow designers -- especially those with different backgrounds, skill-sets, and styles.

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Posted by: Alvin Diec on December 31st, 2009