News in Detail

Microsoft scheme pays users to search

Microsoft's latest effort to encourage people to use its search service is called SearchPerks, which gives people points for using the search engine that can later be redeemed for prizes.

Users who agree to download a small program to track their usage get one 'ticket' per day for every Live Search query, up to 25 per day. The program runs through April, at which point users can 'cash in' the tickets they get and trade them in for prizes or donate them to a charity.

It is the latest in a series of financial incentive-related projects from Microsoft, joining efforts such as Live Search Club, Search and Give, and Live Search Cashback, a program Microsoft introduced in May.

The latest project does not just require a person to use Microsoft's search engine, however. At least for now, it also requires Microsoft's browser (Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher) as well as a Windows PC. Microsoft said those latter restrictions are not necessarily permanent.

"At this time, SearchPerks is a limited promotion, though we remain open to expending availability of the promotion to different browsers and operating systems based on consumer interest," Microsoft said.

In an interview, Live Search senior director Frederick Savoye said the new business models are just one part of a three-prong strategy that includes continued improvements in core search as well as in vertical search, or "simplifying key tasks".

Microsoft has seen mixed results with its incentive programs. Live Search Club, for example, gave Microsoft an initial boost, but its gains appear to be directly tied to its level of incentives. With Live Search Cashback, Microsoft said it has seen some advertisers boost their Live Search spend. eBay, in particular, is spending 50 percent more on Live Search thanks to Cashback, which Microsoft says offers significantly higher conversion rates than traditional search.

On the broader goal of boosting Microsoft's share of the commercial search business, Savoye said Cashback has yet to make a meaningful shift in share. "We haven't seen it move significantly yet," he said.

PR director Whitney Burk said programs such as SearchPerks are still needed to introduce people to Microsoft's search product.

"We know we have some challenges with the brand and perception," Burk said. "Simple awareness is still a challenge for us."

People can sign up for SearchPerks until the end of the year, or until Microsoft reaches its target of 250,000 participants. Rewards can be earned until April, although Microsoft may decide to extend or expand the program.

In pilot testing, Microsoft said it saw those in the program perform three times the number of searches they had been doing. Savoye noted that in the airline industry, for example, loyalty programs have become a standard part of doing business.

"Over the long-term these programs have changed people's behavior," he said.

Adobe Unveils CS4 Suite

Adobe unveiled Creative Suite 4 (CS4), the latest update to the its suite of high-end applications for print, Web, and video professionals. Available in October, the suite consists of 13 products, 14 integrated technologies, and seven services.

One of the biggest changes users will notice right away is the new tabbed interface for applications in CS4. Adobe has given all of its applications the ability to use tabs, so you can have multiple tabs open at the same time, but still be in one window.

Files and objects can be shared across tabs by clicking and dragging them and holding them on a new tab. Of course, if you prefer the multiple window interface of the old Adobe products, you can still use that too.

Major standalone products released as part of CS4 include Photoshop, Photoshop Extended, InDesign, Illustrator, Flash Professional, Dreamweaver, After Effects, and Adobe Premiere.

If there is a consistent theme in Creative Suite 4, it's integration. Adobe integrated its Flash multimedia application across the CS4 applications. The company also focused on integrating common functions in other apps, too, as part of an effort to make pro users more efficient.

"One of the things we are really committed to is helping customers express their ideas," Chad Siegel, group product manager for Adobe Creative Solutions, said. "We aren't just about providing the tools, we are about making a platform to help them express themselves in engaging ways."

Trying to come up with solutions to challenges for one product the size of Photoshop is a daunting task for any company, but coming up with solutions for eight or 10 products can seem almost impossible.

Siegel said Adobe spent a lot of time with its customers, watching what they were doing on a daily basis. Isolating the workflow issues of a variety of pro users helped the company narrow the focus of where CS4 needed to go.

According to Siegel, Adobe focused on four key challenges across the suite of applications--effective collaboration between designers, developers, specialists within workflows, creative pros and clients; support for mobile devices and new media; the embrace of new media; and tracking, managing, automating and deriving value from assets.

To allow collaboration Adobe now offers a set of online services on Acrobat.com to allow designers and clients to create and share documents. Groups can also use Adobe ConnectNow to meet live over the Web and share a computer screen. This gives designers the opportunity to get immediate feedback and make any necessary changes to a design without sending documents to clients and waiting for them to be returned.

Focusing on the mobile platform, applications across the suite are now more tightly integrated with Adobe Flash, which allows designers to use the SWF format for mobile devices.

Being able to use new media was a major factor for many companies that Adobe spoke with since the last Creative Suite release. When building the new video tools, for example, Adobe had to consider that while broadcast revenue is an understandable business model, businesses are looking beyond that now. To help them, Adobe worked to help them understand their assets and how they could be used.

CS4 includes an expanded version of Dynamic Link in the Production Premium suite that enables users to move content between After Effects CS4, Adobe Premiere Pro CS4, Soundbooth, and Encore, so updates can be seen instantly without rendering.

Other new tools like Photoshop's Content-Aware Scaling automatically recomposes an image as it is resized, preserving vital areas as it adapts to new dimensions.

Adobe made some big changes with sharing and collaboration in CS4. Adobe ConnectNow, can be accessed from InDesign CS4, Illustrator CS4, Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop Extended CS4, Flash CS4 Professional, Dreamweaver CS4, Fireworks CS4, and Acrobat 9 Pro, allowing real-time collaboration with two colleagues or clients.

Adobe Kuler, a Web-hosted application for generating color themes, is now accessible from within InDesign CS4, Illustrator CS4, Photoshop CS4, Photoshop Extended CS4, Flash CS4 and Fireworks CS4, and can be shared by designers. Kuler is available for owners of the individual applications or the suites.

Adobe Creative Suite 4 will be available in October. Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium will cost $1799 and includes InDesign, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Acrobat, Dreamweaver, Flash Professional and Fireworks; Adobe Creative Suite 4 Web Premium will be $1699 and includes Dreamweaver, Flash Professional, Fireworks, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Soundbooth, Acrobat and Contribute; and Adobe Creative Suite 4 Production Premium is $1699 and includes After Effects, Premiere Pro, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Flash Professional, Soundbooth, OnLocation and Encore.

Adobe Creative Suite 4 Master Collection costs $2499 and includes InDesign, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Acrobat, Dreamweaver, Flash Professional, Fireworks, Contribute, After Effects, Premiere Pro, Soundbooth, OnLocation and Encore.

Adobe will offer tiered upgrade pricing from previous versions depending on the applications you own. Details of the upgrades are available from Adobe's Web site.

America's 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies Revealed: Design Reactor Ranks 2566

Inc. today ranked Design Reactor 2566 on its annual ranking of the 5000 fastest-growing private companies in the country.

The list is the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy - America's independent-minded entrepreneurs.

Taken as a whole, these companies represent the backbone of the U.S. economy.

Our second annual Inc. 5000 continues the most ambitious project in business journalism," said Inc. 5000 Project Manager Jim Melloan.

"The Inc. 5000 gives an unrivalled portrait of young, underreported companies across all industries doing fascinating things with cutting-edge business models, as well as older companies that are still showing impressive growth."

Design Reactor provides integrated digital marketing services by combining intelligence, strategic planning, and proven creative and technology innovation to deliver effective, results-driven marketing communications.

The agency services industry leaders such as AMD, Cisco, Disney, HP and Motorola.

For over 11 years, the agency has developed award-winning digital marketing solutions that have been at the forefront of technology development, setting precedent by establishing emerging digital communications channels and platforms.

http://www.inc.com/inc5000/

Dulux Colour Awards 2009 Entries Now Open

Now in their 23rd consecutive year, the Dulux Colour Awards (DCA) has achieved an inimitable industry status as a channel for creating and showcasing some of the country's most inspiring and thoughtful applications of colour in design.

The 2009 programme promises to be no exception, with architects and interior designers encouraged to "show their colour touch."

The prestigious Awards have traditionally attracted some of Australia's most brilliant and lauded design professionals, including John Wardle, McBride Charles Ryan, Kerstin Thompson, Nonda Katsalidis and, more recently, '08 Grand Prix winner the Carr Design Group.

However, DCA draws considerable praise for its commitment to fostering emerging talent, as spokesperson and first-round DCA judge Andrea Lucena-Orr explains.

"Dulux understands the importance of nurturing a respectful and creative attitude towards colour early on, and our DCA tertiary category is an exceptional opportunity for developing specifiers to show their colour touch.

This is also a great opportunity to be exposed to industry circles and aspirational peers," said Lucena-Orr.

The 2009 programme is set to continue to motivate all levels of the industry, with fresh additions to prize incentives.

http://www.dulux.com.au/colourawards/

The Peugeot RC Hybrid Concept Car

Legendary Designer Yves Saint Laurent Dies at 71

Yves Saint Laurent, one of the most influential and enduring designers of the 20th century, will be remembered for empowering women through his fashion, a longtime friend and associate said.

Saint Laurent died Sunday at his Paris home after a yearlong battle with brain cancer, said Pierre Berge, Saint Laurent's business partner for four decades. He was 71.

"Chanel gave women freedom" and Saint Laurent "gave them power," Berge said on France-Info radio. Saint Laurent was a "true creator," going beyond the aesthetic to make a social statement, Berge said. "In this sense he was a libertarian, an anarchist and he threw bombs at the legs of society. That's how he transformed society and that's how he transformed women." In his own words, Saint Laurent once said he felt "fashion was not only supposed to make women beautiful, but to reassure them, to give them confidence, to allow them to come to terms with themselves."

Saint Laurent was widely considered the last of a generation that included Christian Dior and Coco Chanel and made Paris the fashion capital of the world, with the Rive Gauche, or Left Bank, as its elegant headquarters.

7th Conference on Interaction Design for Children

Each day, we interact with hundreds of technological devices that help us organize our lives, achieve our goals, and indulge in our passions.

For children today, technology is especially pervasive in all aspects of life.

They learn and play using computers and other technological devices; as they grow, they build and maintain friendships using computers and mobile phones; they interact with one another virtually; and even find critical interpersonal support and therapy using computers, the internet and other technology-enhanced products.

Given the ubiquity of technology in children's lives, it is surprising that so few venues bring together those who are concerned with designing the technologies and the interactions with technology that are so important to children's lives.

For this reason, IDC 2008 will bring together, in the diverse city of Chicago, an international community of researchers, educators, and industry professionals concerned with interaction design for children, in order to think outside the toybox.

Learn More

Panasonic to release 32GB SDHC Memory Card

The options for consumers looking to boost storage capacity for their increasingly sophisticated Camcorders just keep getting better. In the latest development, Panasonic has announced it will release a 32 Gigabyte SD High Capacity (SDHC) Memory Card with Class 6 speed specification in April 2008.

The new USD$699 RP-SDV32GU1K SDHC Memory Card can record up to 12 hours of 1440 x 1080i High Definition video (based on the use of the company's HDC-SD9 Camcorder in HE mode) and like existing Panasonic Cards, can operate in temperatures ranging from -13°F to +185°F (-25°C to +85°C).

Class 6 speed specification means that the cards have a maximum data transfer speed up to 20MB/s. The card also incorporates a new user-friendly labeling feature, which allows users to write titles or comments directly onto labels on the front and back of the card.

Specifications

• Memory Capacity: 32 GB
• Usable Capacity: 30,979 MB
• Physical Specification: Version 2.0
• Data Transfer Rate: Up to 20MB/s
• Speed Class: Class 6

A quick look at Voxan’s French V-twin range and the Starck Super Naked concept

French manufacturer Voxan has a stable full of nice 1000cc V-twins that we don’t get to see a lot of in other parts of the world. The Voxan rage was looking very delectable at the Paris bike show, so we thought we’d run a quick overview of the current range and a couple of upcoming and custom bikes like the Starck Super Naked above to show you what you’re missing out on if Voxan’s not sold in your area.

At the heart of most of the range is Voxan’s own 998cc, 72-degree liquid-cooled V-twin, fed by Magnetti Marelli injection. France imposes a frankly disgraceful 100-horsepower limit on all roadbikes, so that’s what the French retail versions of all Voxan bikes put out. Certainly the engine is capable of plenty more, and I’d imagine there’s a thriving derestriction industry ready to juice them up fresh from the showroom.

First up, there’s the Black Classic about, with lines not dissimilar to Ducati’s 1000 Sport:

Creative takes 18% stake in Soundbuzz.com

The investment is "a watershed for Creative to move into the content area," said Sim Wong Hoo, Creative CEO, who declined to reveal the investment figure.

He added that the stake in Soundbuzz.com will add "significant synergy" to Creative's personal digital entertainment (PDE) strategy.

Creative has invested in numerous Internet start-ups including artificial intelligence company MindMaker, voice conferencing companies AudioTalk and MediaRing.com, and broadband company Centillium Technology.

Creative launched a US$100 million investment fund early last year to help transform the company from a traditional manufacturer of graphics cards and speakers, to an Internet dotcom investor.

Part of the investment from Creative will be used for expanding Soundbuzz.com's operations in Asia, Soundbuzz.com said.

"Creative's range of PDEs like its family of NOMAD digital audio players, will certainly complement Soundbuzz.com's current and future music entertainment offerings," said Soundbuzz.com head and co-founder Sudhanshu Sarronwala.

Soundbuzz.com already has content, advertising and marketing partnerships in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, Hong Kong Thailand and India.

Music distribution services will be launched in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia on April 30, said Soundbuzz co-founder and director Shabnam Melwani. Its Web site will allow users to sample, buy and download (legally) distributed digital music.

Sites for the Taiwan and India markets will be launched by May and June respectively, Melwani added.

According to a Goldman Sachs survey conducted in 1999, worldwide online music sales is expected to increase to US$3.3 billion by 2004 from US$29 million last year.

In January, Soundbuzz.com secured US$1.6 million in its first round of financing from several investors including the National Science and Technology Board, a US-based venture capitalist and SingTel chairman Koh Boon Hwee.

In February, Soundbuzz partnered regional Internet player Lycos Asia--a US$50 million joint venture between Lycos Inc and Singapore Telecommunications--to provide the Lycos Asia portal with downloadable digital music.

New Digital Team for Saatchi & Saatchi Singapore

The Designer's Desktop Manual

The Designer's Desktop Manual unravels the essential technical aspects of key areas of print - and screen - based design - type and typography; colour; imaging; layout; and printing - via step-by-step projects and inspirational examples.

Each section focuses on technological issues - from the most basic, introductory techniques and principles, to more advanced practices - and the skills needed to work within each area of design.

This book also puts the most up-to-date digital and hand-made techniques into the context of the evolution of design.

more: http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/2940361762/ref=nosim/dexigner-21

Artvertising : Aka the Million Dollar Building

Artvertising is a project exploring the relationship between commerce and art, society and the workings of the market, and between the private and public domain.

A large façade in Amsterdam, consisting of some 23.000 tiles, was replaced by images, mostly of corporate and organizational logos, but also messages and art works - that were purchased at a cheap and accessible price.

The result of the project and the wide-ranging reactions are explored in this book.

more: http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/9081165518/ref=nosim/dexigner-21

Third Eye Design Appointed Consultants for Victor Alfaro

Troika Design Group Helps Unveil truTV

FUSE : Brand Identity & Package Design

Gnomon Hosts Craft Animations

BIO 21 : The Biennial of Industrial Design

Asia's Design Event Attracts 100 World Class Designers to Hong Kong

Business of Design Week (BODW) 2007, the word's largest international design event, closed on 15 December, bringing to an end a week which collected together the world's most influential designers and participants from government, business and academia with the aim of championing good design for business success.

Organised by Hong Kong Design Centre and supported by the Government, BODW attracted nearly 50,000 participants and more than 100 of the world's top creative minds.

The year's BODW Forum featured over 30 top design masters.

Speakers included architectural legend Zaha Hadid, venerated designers Tom Dixon and Marc Newson, Italian maestros Mario Bellini, Michele De Lucchi, groundbreaking Asian innovators Fumie Shibata and Tony Suppattranont as well as Chinese antiquities expert Tian Jia Qing.

Design experts from companies including automotive leaders Stile Bertone, Nissan and Ducati, trend-setters Missoni and Kartell, and electronics innovators TCL and Philips also shared their insights during the three-day design extravaganza.

"Design has never been more important for forging new solutions, whether they be taking business to new dimensions, addressing environmental concerns, preserving local cultures in light of rapidly globalising society, or meeting the demands of new and exciting technologies," said Victor Lo, Chairman, Board of Directors, Hong Kong Design Centre.

Ford's New Powerwall Capability Accelerates Product Design and Quality

Businesses Have Designs for the Poor

Aston Martin to Unveil New Design Centre

Luxury car maker Aston Martin will unveil its new design studio in Gaydon on Tuesday, just nine months after the firm was sold by Ford for £479m.

The building is central to Aston's plan to expand production at the Gaydon site under its new owners, a consortium headed by racing guru David Richards.

Chief executive Ulrich Bez wants to raise output from 7,000 cars per year to cut waiting lists.

"I would like to supply cars to customers in a decent time," he says.

more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7126796.stm

Design Management Europe Award to Nurus

Design Management Europe Awards, a project of the European Union, have been announced.

From among the 230 companies from 18 countries, Nurus was one of the nominees selected for the award.

Being a worldwide recognized brand with its design management strategy, Nurus has now added another one to its international awards.

Launched with the idea that the contribution of design to commercial success is undervalued, the DME Award aims at strengthening "innovation in design management" through the organization developed by it under the name of ADMIRE under the 6th Framework Project of the European Union.

DME announced at the award ceremony held on November 22 the results of the competition it held this year for the first time to select the best ones of those companies creating difference through their design management strategies.

The competing companies were evaluated under six categories: micro, small, medium and large scale businesses in terms of turnover and the number of employees; non-profit organizations and "newcomers." Nurus, a company in the furniture sector, was nominated by ABIGEM Izmir (the European Union Business Development Center) from Turkey and competed in the "Medium-Scale Businesses" category.

"Nowadays, everybody thinks the keyword is design.

However, at Nurus, the magic word is 'marketing'.

Marketing offers a problem definition to design."

Pantone Selects Color of the Year for 2008

GM Dedicates Design Studio to Electric Vehicles

More: http://www.wired.com/cars/futuretransport/news/2007/12/eflex

FUSE : Brand Identity & Package Design

Annual Webby Awards

Vancouver 2010 Mascots Introduced to the World

New Fiat Fiorino Van Revealed

Fiat has released details on its new Fiorino compact transport van, an important vehicle for the company because the Europeans have to get their crepes and bagels from the bakery to the restaurant somehow. Designed in cahoots with Peugeot-Citroen, the Fiorino will scoot about courtesy of a 1.4L gas engine producing 73 horsepower or a 75 horsepower 1.3L Multijet Turbodiesel. So that delivery drivers and maintenance crews stay comfortable on their long trips, the vehicle will include a climate control system with both temperature and humidity control, as well as a rapid de-misting system. Press release below the jump.

To meet the latest demands in urban goods transport, Fiat Professional presents the new Fiorino, the newest addition to its new-look range that is expected to achieve great things over the next few years.

Developed from a joint venture between Fiat and PSA, this original commercial vehicle is produced at the Tofas plant in Bursa, Turkey, and will be sold in 80 countries worldwide from the end of this year. It has now been presented in the cargo version, while the passenger versions will also be launched next year.

The new Fiorino combines performance, good handling and the type of comfort you would expect from a car with the capacity, ease of loading, reliability and value for money you would expect from a commercial vehicle. It is the perfect solution for people who have to spend long hours driving or need to make deliveries, such as craftsmen, maintenance workers, service companies and couriers.

The design is based on an innovative idea: to create a vehicle whose external dimensions are more compact than those of commercial vehicles in the 1B "small van" segment, but that is equally spacious and functional, inexpensive to run and attractively priced. With an original, dynamic style, the Fiat Fiorino is 3.86 metres long, 1.72 m high and 1.71 m wide. Thanks to these compact external dimensions it can handle any city centre with ease, partly because of its turning circle of just 9.95 metres.

It has a sturdy front end with a distinctive personality, blending harmoniously into the rear section with square lines that accentuate the idea of a solid, robust vehicle. The van also has a large cargo bed and is easy to load. The racy lateral lines make for very dynamic styling (the panel versions have completely smooth sides, ideal for customising with advertising stickers). The large, rounded bumpers and side strips ensure maximum protection for the vehicle, especially against impacts at low speed.

Particular attention has been devoted to the loading area, with a volume of 2.5 cubic metres (2.8 if the passenger seat is folded down). The internal length is over 1.5 metres (almost 2.5 m with the passenger seat folded down): amazing, if we consider that the vehicle's external length is less than 3.9 metres. With a load capacity of up to 610 kg (including the driver), the new Fiorino is a revolution in the small van segment. Loading and unloading is made easier with a very low loading sill (527 mm), sliding side doors and very large double doors at the rear. The Fiorino also features six practical rings to secure goods during transport, as well as partitions to protect the driver from loads spilling over into the cab.

The same attention to detail has been devotedto the cab, which is light, comfortable and has a driving position similar to a car, to keep the driver in top form behind the wheel. There is also lots of space to store personal effects, in drawers, compartments and shelves. Everything has been designed with a great emphasis on ergonomics, acoustic comfort, temperature and vibration control. It is well-known that onboard comfort is a priority for drivers of commercial vehicles, who spend long hours at the wheel, often in demanding conditions.

For example, the driving seat is both comfortable and practical thanks to the symmetrical, modular "T" shaped dashboard - so that the controls and elaborate instrument panel are always within easy reach. Driving comfort also means having a climate control system that maintains the right temperature and humidity inside the vehicle, capable of rapid de-misting (thanks to no fewer than eight vents with an airflow capacity of 400 m3 per hour). Still on the theme of onboard comfort, the new Fiorino also has a modern audio-telematic system consisting of a car radio with CD or Mp3 player, a stereo system with four loudspeakers, and Bluetooth hands-free kit.

The new Fiorino is also synonymous with efficiency and productivity. For the customer, this translates into very low running costs (fuel consumption, servicing intervals and repair costs), and excellent pickup and elasticity at low speeds even with a full load - thanks to the two Euro 4-compliant engines: the 1.4 petrol engine (73 bhp) and the turbodiesel 1.3 Multijet (75 bhp).

Combined with a manual 5-speed or an automatic 6-speed gear box, the 1.3 Multijet represents a real technological advance. In practical terms, this means reduced consumption (4.5 l per 100 km in the combined cycle, which translates into 1000 km travelled on a full tank); emissions (the CO2 value is just 119 g per km, and a particulate filter will also be available early in 2008); improved noise level (thanks to multi-injection); reduced vibration and excellent performance (top speed 157 km/h).

When it comes to safety, the new Fiorino is at the top of its class. This can be seen, for example, in the bodyshell with differential stiffness, the powerful, effective braking system, the ABS complete with EBD, the 3-point seatbelts with pre-tensioner and load limiter, the hydraulic power steering and driver's airbag (passenger airbags, side airbags and rear parking sensors are available on request).

The new Fiorino is dynamic to drive and has excellent roadhold: mostly thanks to the reliable, extensively-tested suspension system (Mc Pherson independent wheel suspension at the front and torsion bar suspension at the rear) and the high torsional stiffness of the body: 133,000 Nm/rad on the final vehicle (body, windscreen, front doors, and hinged doors with no sliding side doors). Last but not least, to protect the load against the possibility of theft, the new van has separate locking of front and rear doors (so the loading compartment can be used even when the cab is closed) and a deadlock, the central locking system that protects against attempted break-ins by disabling the door handle and lock mechanisms.

The extensive and varied range of new Fiorino Cargo vans is available in two trim levels (basic and SX), ten colours - not to mention a long list of non-standard colours mainly destined for specific clients - two types of upholstery and no fewer than nine body configurations with single, double or no sliding doors, panel or glazed sides and asymmetrical double rear doors (60/40) also available in panel or glazed versions. Not forgetting that specialised converters can transform the new Fiorino in various ways, by adding refrigeration units, mobile workshops etc.

Finally, early in 2008 a special new version will be launched - the Adventure - expanding the versatility of the Fiorino Cargo. Not only is the Fiorino eminently suited to urban environments, but now there will also be a series designed specifically for use in rural areas or driving on rough or unsurfaced roads (building sides, construction of roads and railways etc.). The Fiorino Cargo Adventure has raised suspension, 15" tyres, an engine guard built into the front bumpers and more extensive bodywork protection.

In tandem with this, the Combi range will be launched, designed for passenger or cargo transport (up to 5 passengers plus 270 kg). Two models will be available (Combi and Combi Adventure). A direct descendant of the Cargo family, the Combi offer is designed for specific applications and customers, combining comfort and style with convenience and rationality. The strengths of this model are its linear finish and extremely versatile rear compartment, perfect for mixed use (transporting teams of workers, tools and materials, or materials only). The 3-seater rear bench can also be folded down, packaged up and even removed, giving the Combi almost the same capacity as the Cargo. The "Adventure" package is also available for the Combi range, with the same aesthetic and mechanical features as the Cargo Adventure. All this makes the Combi Adventure perfect for the most arduous, difficult jobs such as driving on building sites, in rural areas or in areas with rough or unsurfaced roads.

Both versions of the Combi can also be supplied with category N1 certification (4 people + 338 kg), which can be useful for tax concessions, depending on the country. [Fiat via World Car Fans]

RhinoFX Opens Connecticut Office to Support Film Effects Efforts

Widescreen Issue 2 Now Available From Brandwidth

D&AD Exhibition : the Best Design and Advertising in the World

Futurism & Sport Design

Results of the UNESCO Urban Design Workshop

Designism : Design for Social Change

European Design Awards : Call for Entry 2008

IDEA 2008 : The Industrial Design Excellence Awards

Volvo Sports Design Award 2008 : EcoDesign

For the fourth year running, the VOLVO Car Corporation Gothenburg is staging the VOLVO SportsDesign AWARD in cooperation with ispo, the international sports goods trade fair set to take place in Munich from January 27-30, 2008 . The theme of ispo winter 08 is EcoDesign: Form Follows Sustainability .

In this time of climate change and efforts to protect our global resources, sustainability in design is a more vital topic than ever. Environmental issues and the availability of resources are changing the way we design, the materials we choose and the manufacturing strategies we adopt. With every passing day, these concerns become more relevant to companies and customers alike.

"There's no business to be done on a dead planet!" This forward-thinking statement voiced by Patagonia Vice President Rick Ridgeway at the VOLVO SportsDesign FORUM 2007 illustrates just how important it is to push forward on issues such as sustainable development and the production of goods and services in a manner that is both environmentally and socially aware. Bringing together ecology, economy and social factors is one of the great challenges of our day: Tomorrow's products must be designed and produced in a way that is health-conscious, longlasting, reparable, re-usable, easy to dismantle, recyclable and discardable without causing harm.

That's why "EcoDesign: Form Follows Sustainability" is the theme for the VOLVO SportsDesign Award 2008. Now in its fourth year, the award honors top-notch design concepts and new, future-oriented ideas following a common goal: the development of an approach to SportsDesign that is as eco- and resource-friendly as it is cutting-edge and functional.

Eligible participants include members of the sporting goods industry, designers and students in the following categories: ski equipment, outdoor equipment, apparel, wheelers, accessories and concepts. The jury presents awards and distinctions in all six major categories and will also issue a special prize for students.

Special Prize for Young Designers and Material Developers
The Concepts category is open exclusively to students and young designers in their first two years of professional work. It's a platform for outstanding and innovative concepts; entries for the €5,000 prize may be turned in as prototypes or drawings.

And for the first time, designers, industry players and developers will compete for a prize in the category Material Technology / Radical Solutions for a concept that brings together environmentally sustainable or new materials with the demands of EcoDesign.

The Categories
1 . Ski Equipment (skis, ski boots, ski bindings, ski accessories, etc)
2 . Board equipment (snowboards, surfboards, kiteboards, boots, bindings, boardaccessories, etc)
3 . Outdoor equipment (climbing hardware and gear, backpacks, footwear and equipment for trekking, running, Nordic sports, etc)
4 . Apparel (jackets, pants, shorts, shirts, etc)
5 . Wheelers (bikes, skateboards, inline skates, electronic vehicles and all variants)
6 . Accessories (helmets and hats, glasses and goggles, gloves, protection accessories, watches, electronic devices, bags, etc)
7 . Concepts (students only)
8 . Special Category Material Technology / Radical Solutions

International Jury for the Volvo SportsDesign Award 2008 EcoDesign
In January 2008, the special independent jury will gather in private - along with experts from the fields of science, industry, design and sports - to pick their favorites. The jury's criteria are functionality, graphic composition, innovation, ergonomics, form and fabrication. Regarding ecological and sustainable design, the jury will be considering each product's materials, production, distribution, lifecycle, re-usability and its application.

Winning entries will be showcased at a specially designed exhibition at the VOLVO SportsDesign FORUM in Munich on January 1, 2008 as part of the ispo sports goods fair.

And the VOLVO SportsDesign AWARD 2008 goes to...
On January 29, 2008, winners will be honored at a special award ceremony as part of the VOLVO SportsDesign FORUM. Handpicked guests will be drawn from the fields of design, sports, economy, science, environment and the media as well as participants and speakers from the VOLVO SportsDesign FORUM. Tickets for the event at ICM in Munich on January 29, 2008, are available online at http://www.ispo-sportsdesign.com

Every winner will receive a specially designed award sculpture on the occasion of ispo winter 08 and ispo sport & style 08. Each winning product will also be featured in a two-page spread in the VOLVO SportsDesign Award Yearbook.

All nominees will also be showcased during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

In January 2005, the VOLVO Car Corporation Gothenburg and ispo Munich, the world's largest sports goods and fashion fair, brought to life the VOLVO SportsDesign AWARD. The competition honors outstanding sports products with an innovative edge or notable design. The VOLVO SportsDesign AWARD has become one of the most sought-after distinctions for industry representatives, designers and students.

2008 SDC Colour Innovation Award

Innovative products and innovative ways of thinking are imperative to driving markets forward.

With this in mind, the Society is pleased to launch the 2008 Colour Innovation Award - open to entries that break new ground and alter the way in which people think, act, use and respond to colour.

What do we mean by innovation? It can be anything that demonstrates a novel and distinct use of colour; introduces a new colour process; adds to our knowledge of colour; improves the performance of colour; is environmentally conscious; challenges existing conventions; solves a key problem; etc.

The judges will be looking for a unique contribution to colour.

Any company, educational establishment or other organisation with a qualifying innovation introduced between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2007 can enter.

In addition to a specially commissioned trophy, a prize of £1500 is on offer plus two years' free membership of the Society's Patron Supporter Scheme.

Deadline for submissions is 31 January 2008.

The five finalists will be notified by 29 February 2008 and the winner will be announced at the Society's Day of Celebration in April 2008.

Details of the finalists' entries will be on display during the course of the evening.

Source: www.sdc...

New Yahoo Widget Engine coming soon

On Wednesday or Thursday, Yahoo is going to revamp its directory of desktop widgets for the Yahoo Widget Engine. This is warm-up for a new version of the Engine itself, Yahoo Widget Engine 4.5, that arrives the week of November 27.

End users won't see much that's new in the Engine itself, but they'll see a shift in how it is pitched. The new directory should be easier to navigate and more approachable. Yahoo, instead of trying to sell end-users on the Engine and then pushing the widgets, will instead begin to pitch the utility and entertainment values of the widgets primarily, and aim to slip the download and installation of the Engine onto their coattails.

The strategy makes sense for the product and for consumers, many of whom have a widget engine of some sort on their computers already -- Windows Vista and Apple's OS X both run desktop gadgets. Adobe's AIR platform is also impinging on Yahoo's engine.

Later this year, Yahoo will begin to push widgets on various mega-sites that it runs, which will be necessary to get the engine onto enough desktops so that developers are attracted to working in it.

Speaking of developers, Yahoo's SVP of Widgets, Jonathan Strauss, in a frustratingly elliptical interview, let on that the new Engine will have "new ways to exploit the power of the desktop." He was referring to new tools for creating widgets. I think the best thing Yahoo could do would be to make it possible to use Yahoo Pipes as a development platform for Widgets, but Strauss told me I "might be reading too much into" his statements.

I like the Yahoo Widget Engine, but it is product from a previous era -- before Vista and its Sidebar, Google Gadgets, OS X Gadgets, Netvibes' Universal Widget Architecture, and Adobe AIR. I don't think running a discrete, desktop-only widget engine is a solid business today. Fortunately, another thing we'll hear about in a few weeks is Yahoo's plans for widgets on platforms other than the desktop -- the browser and mobile devices. We might see a Yahoo partnership announcement with Web widget platform ClearSpring. It would make sense. The two companies' platforms are complimentary. Also, Strauss told me he went to college with ClearSpring CEO Hooman Rafdar. Putting their products together could be a happy reunion.

Adobe: Online Photoshop coming this year

MONTEREY, Calif.--Adobe Systems has committed to shipping a beta version of its online image-editing tool, Photoshop Express , this year, and said it will be complete in 2008.

"By late this year, we anticipate having a beta version," said John Loiacono, senior vice president for Adobe Creative Solutions, speaking at the 6sight digital imaging conference here. And next year, the online service will be "available to anyone," he said.

Loiacono showed Photoshop Express running on an Adobe server connected over the Internet, he said. But when the average person experiences the software, it likely will be through partners such as Shutterfly or Photobucket , he said.

Unsurprisingly, Loiacono left unmentioned Flickr, which said in October it will use Picnik's online photo-editing tools .

Photoshop Express is a profoundly important project, and Adobe's schedule indicates that its repercussions are near-term and not academic.

For Adobe, the project is the spearhead of a transformation from a seller of boxed software to a provider of services in an increasingly rich Internet experience. And for the industry overall, it signals that Internet technology is maturing enough that companies are willing risk extending the brand of respected PC software to the network.

Photoshop Express, as its name suggests, isn't a full-fledged version of Photoshop proper or even of its hobbyist-oriented sibling, Photoshop Elements . The intent is to reach a much larger audience than the company currently reaches with its higher-end boxed software products.

This sports car used to be red.

A look at Photoshop Express
Loiacono demonstrated several features of Photoshop Express, hampered only fleetingly by a couple Flash error messages. He selected photos to edit from a group, removed red-eye, cropped, adjusted color tones, used a healing brush to erase a skin blemish, and replaced the color of a red sports car with various other hues.

The demonstration showed the relatively limited set of features available in Photoshop Express. There were three top-level menu options: quick fix, tuning, and fun.

"Fun" options include replace color, which Loiacono showed to change a red sports car into blue, purple and green. Other options are huge, black-and-white, distort, sketch, and tint.

"Quick fix" options were crop and rotate, blemish removal, red-eye removal, auto correct, and sharpen. Tuning options were white balance, exposure, highlight, fill light, saturation, and soft focus.

Photoshop Express offers a blemish-fixing tool similar to full-fledged Photoshop's healing brush.

If you want another look, my comrade Martin LaMonica--who had the online Photoshop scoop in February --last month posted a video of an earlier Photoshop Express demonstration .

Computational photography
Loiacono also offered a glimpse into what Adobe and others call computational photography--the achieving through the combination of photography and computers what can't be achieved with either alone.

With digital cameras, some computation already happens in cameras themselves, but Loiacono predicted more.

For example, today people can combine two photos that are exposed differently--one for a subject in the foreground illuminated by a flash and another with natural light in the background. Merging those two photos could happen earlier in the process so people don't have to futz with processing the photos afterward, he said.

"What we're moving to is an environment when your camera will be able to take two shots, process them in the camera, and give you the desirable output," Loiacono said.

He also demonstrated a video variation of stitching still images together into a single panorama. A video taken panning across a view of an African waterfall was converted into a wide panoramic pan of the same waterfall, with the water flowing across the full scene even though it was taken from different frames of the video.

He also showed a view of Adobe's light-field camera work, which processes multiple images taken simultaneously so the computer can effectively construct a three-dimensional model of the scene .

Asus To Introduce EEE PC Desktop Next Year

Asus who has recently tasted success with its EEE PC based small laptop, has now indicated that it will be introducing a desktop version of its small Linux-based laptop. This revelation came from Jonathan Tseng, Asus' President of Marketing who told Digitimes that the company intends to get the new mini-machine into shops by sometime next year. He went on to add that the new desktop unit will not have a viewing unit (monitor) and that price and specifications are yet to be decided.

This announcement raises a number of interesting questions. Though Asus managed to make a success of its mini laptop, the desktop market is an entirely different beast. For starters, the processing power available in comparison is far more than that available in budget laptops. Secondly this is not a new idea. Quite a few manufacturers like Shuttle and Apple itself have been retailing SFF PCs for quite a few years. Keeping these factors in mind, it's going to be difficult for Asus to penetrate this market.

2008 IAC Awards Call for Entries

The Web Marketing Association announces the launched of its sixth annual Internet Advertising Competition (IAC) Awards. The IAC Awards are the first and only industry-based advertising award competition dedicated exclusively to online advertising. The Competition Web site is located at www.iacaward.org and the deadline for entry is January 31, 2008

The Internet Advertising Competition Awards are open to all organizations and individuals (advertising and interactive agencies, corporate marketing departments, etc.) involved in the process of developing Internet advertising. Entries may be submitted online at www.iacaward.org. The deadline for entry is January 31, 2008 and will be judged on creativity, innovation, impact, design, copywriting, and use of the medium.

Awards will be presented within each of the industry categories and advertising formats such as:

online ad (including banner, pop-up or interstitial)
rich media online ad
email message
online newsletter campaign
microsite/landing page
integrated ad campaign
ads the client did not choose

Best of show award for each medium will be selected from among the industry winners. Ads eligible for entry in the competition must have run during the period from January 1, 2007 through January 31, 2008.

Judging for the IAC Awards will take place in February, 2007, and winners will be notified by e-mail one week prior to the general announcement of winners in March, 2008. Judges will consist of a select group of Internet advertising professionals with an in-depth understanding of the current state-of-the-art in Web advertising. Past competition judges have included top executives from leading corporations, institutions and media organizations such as Ogilvy Interactive, Saatchi & Saatchi, Blattner Brunner, Comedy Central, Sun Microsystems, National Cable & Telecom Association, Refinery, Euro RSCG, EPB Interactive, New York Post Interactive, The Cincinnati Enquirer, J. Walter Thompson, Xerox, Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Modem Media, and Answerthink.

For a complete list of past wiiners, please go to www.iacaward.org

Are you going to be the next winner? Now is the time to find out. Enter your best online advertising into the 2008 IAC Awards and win the recognition you deserve! Enter today at www.iacaward.org

ADC Design Sphere Award

The new ADC Design Sphere Award will honor the most outstanding body of work featuring design innovation in a sustained program of design for a single client by a single design firm.

The winner of the ADC Design Sphere Award will set the standard for excellence in design communications.

This award will be given to design solutions that combine and convey brand relevance with consistent, impactful and emotional connections across a variety of touch points and will also inspire the next generation of designers.

Entries need to be time bound.

Chairing the new ADC Design Sphere Award Jury for the 87th Annual Awards is Marc Gobé, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Creative Director of DesGrippes Gobé, a thirty-year design and branding consultancy with offices around the world in New York, Paris, Brussels, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo.

"With Gobé at the helm, the inaugural ADC Design Sphere Jury will seek out a body of work that synthesizes strategic insight into creative executions that are viscerally distinct and compelling ­ and that, when viewed collectively, represent some of the most successful initiatives in the world," says Ami Brophy, Executive Director of ADC.

ADC Design Sphere entries will be separated into two categories - General and Non-Profit.

The jury will evaluate work submitted by design firms from around the world.

What Should I Charge? : Smart Pricing Strategies for Designers

Are you charging enough?

Worried that clients think it's too much?

Do you dread every financial conversation you have with a new prospect?

Relax. There are ways you can comfortably, professionally talk dollars and cents.

Join the How Webinar at November 15 for What Should I Charge?, presented by Ilise Benun and Peleg Top of Marketing Mentor, and you'll learn how to estimate a project in less than 20 minutes, get clients to divulge their budgets, and-most importantly - talk about money matters with confidence.

Colour: Design & Creativity

The inaugural issue of Colour: Design & Creativity, officially launched today at an event in London, is now online.

This first issue is representative of the aims of the journal: items that blend elements of science, technology, art, crafts, psychology and commerce.

Colour: Design & Creativity, the new online journal from the Society of Dyers and Colourists (SDC), is intended to serve a gap in the marketplace by appealing to a multidisciplinary audience seeking a better understanding of colour and its application in design, theory and practice.

In particular the journal will emphasise the synergy between colour and design, as opposed to their individual importance.

Among the topics covered in the inaugural issue are colour and emotions, analysis of colours in branding, design concepts using thermochromic colour change, colour forecasting and preference in the fashion industry, and an article that describes what the author calls "a new colour form".

Louis Simeone Wins National Design Award from Graphic Design USA

Illustrator Louis Simeone has recently been awarded the prestigious American Graphic Design Award in the 2007 Graphic Design:usa competition.

The logo Simeone created for his online gallery site, samalou.com, was among the winning entries selected from a remarkable 10,000 entries nationwide.

Simeone's award winning logo will be published in the Graphic Design:usa Design Annual scheduled to be released in December.

Louis Simeone is a professional illustrator known for his vibrant, energetic and oftentimes humorous imagery.

He brings a dynamic flair to his illustration work through his fluid use of line and skillful handling of color.

Bak Magazine 10

10th issue of the international visual arts e-magazine is online.

Special interviews with 10 talented artists; Kent Williams, Heimo Schmidt, Bernd Preiml, Quentin Shih, Emil Kozak, Zena Holloway, Mike Harrison, Nicoletta Ceccoli, Nelson Balaban and Sharad Haksar will accompany readers during their 10th Bak journeys.

Next theme of the Bak Magazine is "Contrast" and the submission deadline is December 20, 2007.

Ramp Creative Letterhead is Honored by Graphis

Los Angeles-based design studio Ramp Creative won two gold awards in the Graphis Letterhead7 competition.

The bi-annual international design competition evaluates identity systems design and publishes winners in a large volume known in the industry as the most comprehensive resource in letterhead design.

The publication Graphis Letterhead7 will be available in December 2007.

Ramp Creative stationery and the Casablanca International Events stationery systems were both honored in the competition.

"An effective company identity system solves many functions within an organization.

A well-designed stationery system has a strong visual presence and is easy to use.

It solves communication needs in correspondence, marketing, sales and press," said Rachel Elnar, Partner at Ramp Creative.

"We design letterhead systems to express a company's values through its form and function."

Visible Theory Wins Four 2007 American Graphic Design Awards

Visible Theory, a full service graphic design firm, has been selected by a nationwide panel of judges as a multiple winner in the 2007 American Graphic Design Awards, honoring excellence in communication and graphic design.

For over three decades, the awards program, sponsored by Graphic Design USA, has acknowledged the outstanding work of creative professionals. This is the fourth consecutive year that Visible Theory has been acknowledged by this prestigious awards program.

Visible Theory was recognized for: Web Site Design & Development: DH Krahn Gin; Web Site Design & Development: Baxter of California; Web Site Design & Development: Visible Theory and Branding & POS Material Design: DH Krahn Gin.

Visible Theory's winning projects will be featured in the December Annual issue of Graphic Design USA magazine.

Gottschalk+Ash International, Unveils a Unique, Glass Signage System

As the fifth largest museum in North America, the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) and the collections displayed within are world-renowned.

The expansive museum space was recently transformed when celebrated architect Daniel Libeskind's addition, aptly named the Crystal, was opened this summer.

An important objective of the redesign of the ROM has been to create a wondrous and delightful visitors' experience.

Understanding that signage is an important component of this experience, the ROM enlisted the services of the renowned design firm, Gottschalk+Ash International to develop a wayfinding system that would contribute to this objective.

G+A's solution was to create an environmental design program that is functional and clear, yet maintaining an elegance that would contribute to the unique architecture of the ROM.

Two key issues were at the forefront.

The first was to link very separate and distinct architectural styles.

Design director, Udo Schliemann solved this by introducing glass as the primary material.

Intuitively, Schliemann understood that glass is a material that is elegant and forgiving and would blend well with the many backgrounds of the museum.

His choice was also influenced by the already existing presence of glass in the architecture of the ROM (such as the casings), adding consistency to the result.

The outcome is a system that aesthetically fits perfectly within two styles.

More:
Gottschalk+Ash International, Unveils a Unique, Glass Signage System

Design a Truck Contest

FREITAG announces an international contest for designing truck tarpaulins.

The best tarp design will be selected and awarded by a jury made up of well-known designers.

In 2008 the winning tarpaulin will be fitted onto one of the trucks from our longstanding partner, the Swiss transport company PLANZER.

The designer tarpaulin will spend five years hard at work on the roads.

Thereafter the well-worn winning tarpaulin will be carefully cut to pieces to end up as special edition bags.

The drafts must be submitted as PDF files by 31.01.2008.

First prize is 2.000 Euros in cash.

The winning tarpaulin will be printed and visible on a truck for 365 days a year on a trans-regional basis far beyond protective museum walls.

Colour: Design & Creativity

The inaugural issue of Colour: Design & Creativity, officially launched today at an event in London, is now online.

This first issue is representative of the aims of the journal: items that blend elements of science, technology, art, crafts, psychology and commerce.

Colour: Design & Creativity, the new online journal from the Society of Dyers and Colourists (SDC), is intended to serve a gap in the marketplace by appealing to a multidisciplinary audience seeking a better understanding of colour and its application in design, theory and practice.

In particular the journal will emphasise the synergy between colour and design, as opposed to their individual importance.

Among the topics covered in the inaugural issue are colour and emotions, analysis of colours in branding, design concepts using thermochromic colour change, colour forecasting and preference in the fashion industry, and an article that describes what the author calls "a new colour form".

Source: www.colour-journal.org/2007/1/071cont...

Hoet on Showcase at SILMO

Hoet Design Studio will be participating for the first time in the international optics fair SILMO in Paris.

In addition to the Hoet furniture collection and designing optics shops, the creative studio also designs a series of accessories that fit in with the world of optics: mirrors, displays, jewellery and more.

As a design studio for THEO eye-wear the link between Hoet and the world of optics was established quite quickly, not to mention very naturally.

During his entire career, founder Patrick Hoet has been active in the optics sector, first as an optician and later as a designer of eyeglass fashion.

Hoet is acquainted with all aspects of this world and he is aware of the special needs of an optician.

Together with his team he develops accessories, eyeglasses and design furniture.

The new collection consists of a number of "handy" little mirrors that can be placed on sales counters and used comfortably.

The collection also contains jewellery in various forms that are inspired by a lace pattern, a wall mirror and an original cap with a tinted lens fixed to it.

By using the channel of the optics fair Hoet would also like to promote his services in the area of interior design.

Source: www.hoet.eu/...

New Work by New York Sculptor Forrest Myers at Friedman Benda

Mrs. K Hunts Down Gasket for Cougar Tales

The Next-Gen Design Competition

The Pentawards 2007 Winners Announced

CITIZEN:Citizen Launches ccPhone

Winner of the European Fashion Labs Award

Sustainable Innovation 2008

Undesignable : Design Market

The Undesignable Markets are dedicated to post-war Design and Optical Art.

After the good success of the first edition, we start the second edition in one of the most attractive cities in Europe.

The next Undesignable Market will take place in a former hangar at Berlin's Tempelhof Airport, where a total area of approximatly 1800 sqm will be the fantastic stage for design shops, design galleries and private collectors from all over Europe.

The former hangar at Berlin's Tempelhof Airport, as unique in its architecture as in its history, is the perfect place to show and see Design Classics, High Class Objects, Vintage Objects and Furniture, Objects from Private Collections, etc.

On this fall day, Hangar2 will gather numerous dealers, collectors and design lovers from all over Europe.

The new Undesignable Market - Berlin edition - offers a good opportunity to get icons or design furniture from the 20th century : Design and Architect Furniture, decorative furniture of the 20th, lighting, metal, ceramics, glass, jewellery, accessories and litterature, etc.

Easy to reach by private as well as by public transport, the location is also close to the galleries and designs shop of the Keithstrasse, Motzstrasse, Auguststrasse, Schwedterstrasse, as well as the well-known Bergmannstrasse, in Berlin's Kreuzberg district..

The Undesignable Market Berlin edition, will open for the public on 11th of November 2007, from 11am to 5pm (11h-17h).

Source: www.undesignable.eu/...

Contemporary Jewish Museum Opens New Libeskind Designed Building on June 8, 2008

Craft Animations in the USA

Findings From the Web Design Survey

Trollback + Company Brands 11th Annual Pop!tech Conference