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Social Media Wins: Instagram and Pinterest

By jenn on April 14, 2012 9:00 AM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

Facebook purchased the photo-editing application, Instagram, for one billion dollars earlier this week. Instagram is a photo-sharing tool that allows users to add filters to their photographs without an in-depth knowledge of photo-editing software. Instagram allows every-day photographs to be edited into works of art. It allows the general computer user to create works of art with simple photographs without knowledge or ownership of photo editing tools, such as Adobe Photoshop.

I remember the first time (circa October of 2011) that I saw a photo edited and shared by one of my friends on Facebook using Instagram. The photograph stood out because it looked artistic (with a fashionable old-style saturated filter and clouded edges), and I left a comment on how great I thought the photograph was and asked how the user managed to capture it. It was then that I was told of the Apple app.

With the news this week, I decided to look into how users have reacted. The feedback on Twitter was mainly neutral, with 52% not that bothered. Thirty-five percent were negative about Facebook purchasing Instagram (1). However, the buy-out and recent launch of the Android app prompted many more users to download the software, and there are currently 40 million users signed up with Instagram (2).

With the acquisition of Instagram, I am surprised that Facebook have yet to try to do the same with Pinterest, an increasingly-popular web tool that allows users to 'pin' and store several images from websites to refer to later, with the images arranged in a grid layout on the website. (Pinterest's users can connect to the application via Facebook, and I've read about the demographics of the users of this website mainly being middle-aged females with some college education and low-to-middle income. In fact, 80% of its U.S. users are female, and over half of the users are above 35 years of age (3). Apparently, the demographics of this website are different in the U.K., with more male users and higher wage-earners (4).)

I, and many other bloggers, enjoy using Pinterest as it allows us to quickly view a series of photographs arranged by different categories. It's easy to browse these images, scattered across the interface, and to click to view the larger image and the source of the image. It helps that there's already a user-base established to share these images with. (Recipes, crafts, beauty, fashion, and photographs are all important and popular categories.)

In addition to the popularity among general users, I have noticed that some companies have been advertising their products on Pinterest for a while. Social media websites and products are definitely making some leaps and bounds in profitable business ventures as of late, and there's no doubt in my mind that Pinterest will continue to grow in popularity and obtain space for companies and brands to sell their products through this platform and imagery.

1) Bennett, Shea. Facebook's Instagram Purchase Given A 12% Approval Rating By Twitter [Study].

http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/twitter-facebook-instagram_b20837 [2012, April 11].

2) Rue, Liu, Instagram Hits 40 Million Users after Facebook Deal. http://www.slashgear.com/instagram-hits-40-million-users-after-facebook-deal-13222832/ [2012, April 13].

3) Ledbetter, Erin. Pinterest Demographic Data. http://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/social-networks/pinterest-demographic-data/ [2012, 24 January].

4) Komarketing Associates. Pinterest demographics different in U.K. http://www.komarketingassociates.com/industry-news/pinterest-demographics-different-in-u-k-904/ [2012, April 3].

The Gaucho International Polo at O2 Arena

By jenn on March 29, 2012 9:25 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

The HPA Gaucho International Polo tournament was held in the O2 arena in London on Wednesday, March 21st. I won a free ticket to the event through my employer, IG Group, as they were sponsoring the event. The evening consisted of VIP access to the Indigo lounge, where I had free champagne and met a couple of nice clients. Afterwards, I went into the main arena to sip some free Argentina wine (an Argentinian wine-tasting) before the show. There were two tournaments on the evening - Scotland vs Ireland and England vs Argentina. Unfortunately, I was very tired and did not stay until the end of the England vs Argentina match. Photographs of both matches are below.

Microsoft, A Victim of its Own Success

By jenn on March 18, 2012 1:54 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

I've recently been having some "Microsoft verses Apple" discussions with friends and colleagues. I don't hold strong opinions about either operating system, but I may have a slight preference for Apple as I have been using a MacBook/MacBook Pro for the past twenty-seven months at home, though I use Windows at work and also have a largely-neglected Windows computer at home as well.

I first became a user of a Mac computer in 1999 (not including using them when I was very young and we had a family Apple computer), as the School of Visual Communications used them. However, as my specialisation was in Web and Interactive Multimedia design and development, I made a conscious decision to build and design websites on my Windows computer and test on the Mac. The decision was made due to the fact that Windows computers owned the majority of users.

In those days, the Mac was a little more incompatible, and most of the software that I had bought was for Windows. Saving files was difficult, and files created on the Mac could not be opened and read on the Windows computer. These days, it's not such of an issue. Apple has come a long way, and I know many who have adopted Apple technology over Microsoft. These days, it seems that many have fallen out of love with Microsoft.

Microsoft is, in many ways, a victim of its own success. Microsoft brought computers to a wide audience. With this innovation and high levels of adoption, there were inevitable issues with some of its operating systems, particularly when new operating systems came on the market. Also, consider the popular browser, Internet Explorer (IE). In the early days, IE became the most popular browser and was superior to the likes of Netscape. With this popularity, IE has had a difficult time in disappearing. There was a time when IE6 was widely-used and respected, but those days are long gone, and the success of IE6 has made it difficult for this browser to go away, much to the dislike of developers. However, IE led the way for other browsers, better standards and automatic browser updates.

In conclusion, the world does owe much to Microsoft's beginnings and noting Microsoft's mistakes. Other companies are building upon the good of Microsoft and noting the mistakes of the company by setting and developing standards and producing usable software and applications. Microsoft should continue on trying to compete by developing high-level, usable, and standards-compliant software and applications. Failing this will allow other companies to take more of a market share.

Hopefully, these mistakes and less-than-popular operating systems and browsers can be forgotten to pave a new future.

Fabergé Big Egg Hunt Technology

By jenn on March 15, 2012 12:59 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

The Big Egg Hunt in London (Fabergé) was launched on Shrove Tuesday, which fell toward the end of February this year, and over 200 eggs will be on display for forty days and forty nights in various areas across the city. The event is attempting to break world record for the largest egg hunt as well as to raise money for charity; the Elephant Family are one of the charities (Action for Children is another), and the Elephant Family charity did work for London a couple of years ago with elephant sculptures, which I blogged about on this website here: Parading Artistic Elephants in London.

I've been looking forward to this event since I first read about it in the middle of February. This time, the event is more interactive than the elephant event, although I felt that the Bristol Gorillas had a much better application to allow you to discover the gorillas on maps and post images/mark them off if you were in range.

The London "Big Egg Hunt" seems geared more at hiding the eggs, and rough clues are given to pinpoint the rough location of each egg. This also includes a 'roaming' egg, which is designed and painted to look like the Where's Wally (in America, Where's Waldo) character. The event seems to be very popular with many other families and friends out and about in London, loaded with maps and cameras to discover the eggs. This event has been well-received, although a few of the eggs have been damaged and stolen.

Finders can scan QR Codes at the egg's location across twelve various 'zones' or areas in London, which sends a donation to the charities. The text message enters the finder into a drawing to have a chance to win a golden egg as a prize. As the eggs have been designed by local artists and companies, this is a perfect way to get the majority interested in the arts, culture, and charity.

The company Fallon (http://www.fallon.co.uk/) have created the zone maps, which I think look very well-designed. There was also supposed to be a mobile application, but this has not been released due to technical issues (29 February). However, there is a 'cheatsheet' map that can be viewed in case you get stuck, but some of the eggs aren't in the correct positions, and you're unable to zoom in too far. Below is a screen shot of one of the 'zone' maps.

I love the combination of art and technology used in events, such as The Big Egg Hunt. In addition, there is an egg to locate, known as the "Social Egg" in Selfridges, and this egg displays a screen with faces of finders on it. The egg has been created by 'faceboarding', and it allows users to 'check in' to the device, and the device displays the images on its screen. (Pretty cool.) I've posted the "Social Egg" below.

I have been spending the past few weeks tracking down the eggs, and I have found most of them now. Another post will be added soon to display some of the most beautiful eggs. For those of you that I have seen and spoken to during my London egg hunting, I want to say "hello" and "happy hunting".

Tweenbots Roaming

By jenn on March 12, 2012 12:00 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Tweenbots is a project developed by Kacie Kinzer to see how people interact when met with a small, cardboard robot along a busy New York City street. A tweenbot is a small cardboard robot with wheels that rolls along in a straight line with a flag attached to it, stating the destination in the city that it wants to go. Kacie developed the project to see how people would interact with and if they would help the tweenbot on its way toward its destination and rescue it if it got trapped. As stated on her Tweenbot website (1), "Tweenbots create an unexpected interaction, disrupting the narratives of our everyday experience, and offering a fleeting and playful connection in the context of the city street."

All tweenbots made it to their final destination unharmed, showing that people are empathetic and willing to help.

Another similar project by Kinzer was leaving a stationary robot in one place, with card attached to it to ring a phone number to let the tweenbot's family know that it was okay and where it was located at.

In the article by Jenny Williams on Wired (2), she wonders if people would still be willing to help if the tweenbot was not cute (with its big smile). In a marketing design and technology sense, this project shows that simplicity (and cuteness/vulnerability) helps the audience to understand the objective and shows that people willing to participate to help achieve the goal.

(1) Kinzer, Kacie. Tweenbots. http://www.tweenbots.com/ [2009]

(2) Williams, Jenny. Tweenbots: Help a Lost Robot Find its Way. http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2009/04/tweenbots-help/ [April 13, 2009].

Gail's Bakery - Kensington, London

By jenn on March 8, 2012 1:52 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Gail's is a bakery located in several spots throughout London (including Notting Hill, Kensington, Battersea, Chiswick, Soho). Gail's offers everything from sandwiches to snacks to desserts (cupcakes, cookies, cake, brownies, and many other goodies for those who have a sweet tooth). I recently visited the South Kensington branch (just outside the tube station) and tried a couple of different types of sandwiches, and I also tried the cupcakes, brownie, and a Valentine's Day heart-shaped cookie. Unfortunately, I was not too keen on the sandwiches. They were a little too 'heavy' for my liking, and I was not too keen on the fillings or the bread. However, I really recommend the brownies and the cupcakes. I had a vanilla cupcake (like the ones pictured below), and it was delicious.

I loved the thought that went into the brownies. As it was near to Valentine's Day, the brownies were lightly dusted with a letter on them, spelling out the word "LOVE X" when placed side-by-side. The South Kensington shop is very small, and it is quite popular because of the prime location and the large windows featuring the snacks. There are a few tables outside for those who want to brave the weather; I am sure it's lovely in the summer.

Not only does the company pride itself in making attractive and speciality products and breads, but they also have some well-designed packaging. I love the packaging and the use of geometric shapes, with a feature on the lower-case 'g', which is outlined and part of the branding. (On the company's website, some of the products - bread - feature a lightly-powdered lower-case 'g'.) The following image is the top of the cake box that my items were packaged up in following a trip to their South Kensington shop.

For more information about this company and their locations throughout London, visit their website at http://www.gailsbread.co.uk/.

A Visit to Primrose Bakery in London

By jenn on February 19, 2012 9:18 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

I've been wanting to try cupcakes at Primrose Bakery since I discovered it existed when looking at maps of London online (near where I used to work) and discovering many fantastic reviews. Primrose Bakery is located on one of the side streets running parallel behind Covent Garden (on Tavistock Street). Although I was based near to Covent Garden for approximately two months, I never tried the cupcakes.

I had visitors at the end of November (my parents), and we ended up deciding to make an extra trip to London on one Monday, so I decided to make a trip to Primrose Bakery to try the cupcakes. I must say that I was impressed. The bakery itself is a tiny shop at the corner of the street, and there are only a handful of tables to sit on and enjoy the cupcakes. As it was a quiet Monday morning (nearly mid-day), we were able to sit at one of these tables to enjoy our cupcakes. I loved the cute and cozy shop, and it is perfectly-positioned for some fantastic people-watching with its large windows.

The cupcakes are among the best that I have had in London; I loved the texture, and the icing was not too sweet. (Hummingbird Bakery cupcakes are too rich/sweet for me, and the icing is too sugary and sickening for my taste.) I had a pumpkin cupcake, and I also tried the chocolate and the vanilla one. All were equally delicious. I am looking forward to my next visit.

The Best SuperBowl Commercials of 2012

By jenn on February 10, 2012 5:37 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

SuperBowl XLVI was aired last Sunday, and it cost approximately $3.5 million for a 30-second slot. There were a couple of good commercials, but the majority were not as impressive as last year's, and many were average at best. This year, many of the advertisements features cars and technology. There were far less food items, beer, and some brands produced less commercials this year. (I think GoDaddy and Doritos featured more last year.)

My favourite advertisements this year were those by Chevy, Samsung, and the Coca Cola Polar Bears. The Volkswagen, Doritos, and Acura slots were a disappointment. I've listed my least favourite commercials at the end of this article. Directly below are a few of the commercials that were average or good.

Chevy:

Chevy aired a few commercials during the SuperBowl. Two were Chevy stunt commercials, and they also aired two additional ones. In one, the Chevy pick-up is the only vehicle to survive the end of the world with references to other end-of-the-world and zombie films. In the other, a graduate's parents reveal a gift car, but the prank is on him as the car belongs to the neighbour.

Chrysler:

Clint Eastwood narrates "It's Haftime in America", which parallels the difficult economic times with the Chrysler company to give a message of hope and strength. (This is similar in format to the Eminem commercial from last year.) However, I was not the only one to think that the message sounds very much presidential-campaign. Many feel that president Obama and Chrysler were working together in order to produce this advertisement. It was a little bit too patronising and political for me, but it was emotional and consisted of a good use of imagery.

Doritos:

The brand follows up with the popular pet commercials from last year and produced a few different commercials for the SuperBowl. One depicts blackmail (in the form of Doritos) by covering up the missing pet cat. Another features a young child and a baby who takes the Doritos with his grandmother's help.

Volkswagen:

The company were responsible for the Star Wars theme in last year's SuperBowl, and this year's features a Golden Retriever losing weight to chase after a Volkswagen, then a cut to the Star Wars Cantina where we see shots of the Darth Vader and the Cantina characters discussing the commercial. Not as good as last year's, and the cut between the different scenes is awkward. (They mention last year's successful commercial at the end.)

Bud Light:

The slot features a Rescue Dog (Weego) that knows how to fetch beer on demand.

Budweiser:

The company use the prohibition era to advertise their beer.

Coca Cola:

Coca Cola produced a series of animated commercials featuring the Polar Bears. The Polar Bears acts like football players with the Cola bottle as the football.

Samsung:

Samsung's commercial for their new mobile phone ridicules queues standing outside of stores (Apple, anyone?) to grab the latest technology. The commercial kicks off further with The Darkness singing to the crowd on the street with shots of the product's features.

Acura:

This advertisement features Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, and other characters from Seinfeld. There's not too much advertising for the product, though, so it's not really memorable product placement. The advertisement features Jerry attempting to cut the queue by bribing another customer (George from Seinfeld) in the showroom.

Pepsi:

This commercial features Elton John as a king, and he watches auditions and provides the soft drink for those he likes.

H&M:

David Beckham sells clothes for the brand, but he's nearly naked. I do not feel that this was good product placement.

There were a few commercials that I found particularly annoying: Cars.com, Honda, M&Ms, and the Kia sandman commercial.

Cars.com:

A man walks into a showroom with his conscious, who sings about how much he wants the car. I found this commercial to be highly annoying with the signing.

M&Ms:

The commercial features a female-voiced brown M&M, and others think that she is naked. It features the red male M&M stripping off the red coat and dancing. If this was meant to be funny, it did not get any laughs from me.

Kia:

This commercial's message is 'the dream car', following the dreams of a couple to dream of the Kia when the sandman visits. I just found this commercial to be a little bit dull and the pacing to be off.

Honda:

This commercial stars the actor of Ferris Bueller's Day Off. In the commercial, he pulls a sickie and ends up driving around town and enjoying himself, in a parody of the movie. Perhaps if I was a fan of the movie, I would have found it funny, but I've never liked the film, and I found the character to be a little too annoying.

Wikipedia Protests SOPA and PIPA with Blackout

By jenn on February 9, 2012 9:31 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

To protest SOPA ('Stop Online Piracy Act') and PIPA ('Protect IP Act'), two bills in the United States Senate and House of Representatives, Wikipedia have blacked out the English version of their website and have asked visitors to spread the word onto social media websites, such as Twitter and Facebook. To be brief, these bills seek to stop copyright infringement committed by non-foreign and foreign websites.

The PIPA bill calls for making websites that show 'illegal' material to be unresolved, and if a website links to them, the link will be unresolved. This would ban websites from displaying a significant amount of content, and is probably partly-created for the benefit of the media industry (to avoid copyright infringement on many websites hosting illegal copies of films, music, and media.) SOPA (Stop Online Privacy Act) is a similar bill, and it forces websites that show infringing websites off the web and calls for them to be blocked in search engines.

For me, this is not acceptable because it gives the government the ability to control what can and cannot be displayed on the Internet and takes away these freedoms. As an artist and one who appreciates the arts, I do not agree with people infringing on copyright. If passed, this bill would allow the government to monitor what you can and cannot do on the Internet, and I believe that the government should play less of a part in peoples' lives.

Also, if someone wants to illegally download content or infringe on copyright, they will find a way to do this. In many countries, it is not frowned upon, and illegal copies of DVDs and music CDs are made. If someone wants something and does not want to pay for it or pay a smaller cost for it, they will find a way to get it for less or to get it for free.

I also believe that if this bill is passed, then the government will gradually begin to control and monitor more and more aspects of our lives. I would rather the government play a much lesser part in our lives.

To protest these two bills, Wikipedia have decided to black out their website as they feel that they prohibit access to online information, and Wikipedia state,

"Small sites won't have sufficient resources to defend themselves. Big media companies may seek to cut off funding sources for their foreign competitors, even if copyright isn't being infringed. Foreign sites will be blacklisted, which means they won't show up in major search engines. And, SOPA and PIPA build a framework for future restrictions and suppression." (1)

The blackout consisted of using Javascript to hide the page and display a message.

The content of the page flashes up for a few seconds before slowly being replaced by the blackout graphic, which is set using Javascript. To access the content and not see the blackout message, the user could simply disable Javascript in their browser.

I hope that these bills will not be passed. I do not wish the government to play a role in what I search for online or be concerned about what I search for. I do condone copyright infringement, but I feel that these bills will not solve the issues that they portray and will affect everyone.

1) Wikipedia. SOPA Initiative Learn More. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:SOPA_initiative/Learn_more [24 January 2012].

An Evening out at Proud Cabaret

By jenn on January 26, 2012 12:33 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

We went out to Proud Cabaret recently to watch the cabaret and enjoy a meal. Proud Cabaret is a chain of cabaret entertainment centres in London, and we had a voucher to visit the one in the City of London. This was handy considering we work in the City, and we went to Leadenhall Market beforehand to have some drinks before making our way to the venue.

The voucher included a meal, which we selected beforehand. I had a goat's cheese starter with beetroot, which I did not like as it was too heavy. However, the main dish and the dessert made up for it. We ordered wine, and the wine list is extensive and good quality. However, vegetable side orders needed to be ordered with the main course, and the wine and service charge was not included, so that was an extra cost on top of the voucher. The dessert I had was chocolate mousse, and it was the most delicious.

Proud Cabaret captures the feeling of the swinging 1920s with jazz and smoke machines to create the hazy atmosphere inside the venue. The girls were all dressed as a part of the show, and we had a friendly waitress. The acts were fairly good, but I felt that it could have been better, and some of them seemed to be quite short acts. The more interesting ones seemed to be shorter acts. A Saturday is probably a better day to go.

We also had amazing seats near the front of the stage, and it was a good night watching the acts and enjoying the food and entertainment.

« design | Main Index | Archives | photography »

Recently in general Category

Social Media Wins: Instagram and Pinterest

The Gaucho International Polo at O2 Arena

Microsoft, A Victim of its Own Success

Fabergé Big Egg Hunt Technology

Tweenbots Roaming

Gail's Bakery - Kensington, London

A Visit to Primrose Bakery in London

The Best SuperBowl Commercials of 2012

Wikipedia Protests SOPA and PIPA with Blackout

An Evening out at Proud Cabaret

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