Have you used kuler? It's a color selection tool that helps you create harmonizing (or clashing, if you prefer) color schemes for your video projects, print work, web sites, bathroom, etc. You browse themes that others have created or you can share your colors with others on the site, in your work group, or keep them to yourself.

Now, you can save them directly to Illustrator, Photoshop or InDesign, so no more screenshots!

Download kuler desktop

Just an observation, but are capital letters moving out of the English language? kuler desktop is lower case although it's a name. I've been seeing this a lot lately. The capital letter in the middle of two words smashed together is still going strong (iTunes, MySpace, LeapFrog. Note: Toolfarm has NEVER had a captial F in the middle).

You probably don't know this, but I have a fascination with languages. I studied Spanish for 6 years and I know a bit of Japanese (my husband is from Japan) and I have dabbled in German and some French and Italian during travel, which were surprisingly easy to pick up due to the shared Latin roots with Spanish. I find the roots of languages very interesting, as well as how they have diverged over the centuries. Thanks to globalization, the pace of language evolution is going to be even more pronounced.

I was reading a very interesting article this week in Wired Magazine, How English Is Evolving Into a Language We May Not Even Understand. It's an English as a Second Language world, not Esperanto. "By 2020, native speakers will make up only 15 percent of the estimated 2 billion people who will be using or learning the language." The article focuses mainly on China and how many Chinese are learning English but have no one to speak it with. They pronounce things differently than a native speaker would and add words from their own dialect. It's known as Chinglish.

Computer jargon and the English language is having a similar effect. It already is to a huge extent - Google is now a verb, blog is in common usage and even the term globalization is fairly new. The mouse as we know it is not the mouse of 100 years ago. Other terms that are in constant use: browser, laser, internet, cyberspace, terabytes... you get the idea.

Could this happen to English grammar due to our highly technological lifestyle? Will we stop using capital letters like e.e. cummings? It has become common place for IMs and emails to be sent without capitalization or proper punctuation. cummings may have intended it as a gesture of humility, but most computer users are most likely doing it out of laziness, indiscretion or we've just become accustomed to being so casual with the language. Now products are named in lower case!

Your thoughts?

Labels: internet, Opinion

Ok, what's going on? Really? Avid drops out of the NAB 2008 show floor, and now Apple's done the same. I suppose some will say it'll be a quieter NAB... but what's behind these decisions? I think it's likely that if you don't have anything significant to show at NAB, you'll want to save your pennies for the time you've got mindblowing new products (like last year's FCS 2). But Avid's supposed to have some significant news any day now (they missed their Feb. deadline), and they have a lot to make up for over the years; they don't have to have the biggest booth, in the most trafficked spot in the South Hall. Many smaller spaces do just fine. Avid is emphasizing one-on-one communication with its customers, but the kind of traffic you can handle in a big hotel room screams to me that only large broadcasters are being defined as "customers". Doesn't that leave out the individual/boutique/post house editors?

Is this a commentary on the management and pricing of NAB participation? Apple has proven it can fully manage its announcements under it's own timetable, but no presence is "highly" predictive that the replacement to Shake (codename Phenomenon) isn't coming soon. I'll tell you the successor to Shake has a lot of expectations to fulfill. Apple usually hits home runs, but this needs to be a grand slam.



Now... supposedly I saw an invite/posting for an early breakfast meeting the Monday of NAB for Apple at one of the neighboring hotels. Other vendors and partners very likely will have Apple reps at their booths. Avid's off-the-floor presence will hopefully not disappoint show-goers who want to visit. But I have to admit, a cool wind blows....

Labels: Opinion

I saw this posted at Ko Maruyama's Ninja Crayon blog and thought it was humorous. I think you might enjoy it.

Labels: Humor

I don't work in a cubicle and I honestly never have. I guess I've been lucky. I work out of a home office now. The room was previously my daughter's room when she was a baby so I have pretty pink and green walls with a band of cute ladybugs, butterflies and fireflies. Then there are my piles of papers and wall of CDs and software, the box of cables. The closet is loaded with old clothes and unwrapped Christmas gifts. It's not a great office and it's in dire need of a good cleaning. I do have a really awesome cube shelving unit in black from IKEA that covers a full wall, and I also have terrific wood floors.

This morning I saw these cool offices. I like the bamboo one a lot. I may be redecorating soon. There are some paint color tips for home offices on the Behr website. I like the green. "Natural, restful, yet rejuvenating, the color green is perhaps one of the best colors to use in spaces where the main goals are thinking and creativity - one reason this color is often chosen for classrooms and study areas."

Do you have a cool office? I could use some tips! Feel free to post a link to a pic of your office.

Labels: Creativity, Environment

Robert Sharp of Digieffects sent me this article, Editing on Big Films Is Now Being Done On Small Computers by Lee Gomes, published today in the Wall Street Journal. Note, the article is posted to a forum because you need a subscription to the WSJ to read the article.

For most of us, this is a Ric Romero sort of headline. I thought it was worth mentioning though because Phillip Hodgetts and Red Giant's "plug-ins" are mentioned in the article.

Avid software does just about anything you could ask -- for a price. The company's flagship Media Creator package runs $5,000. Philip Hodgetts, who follows the industry for Creative Planet, says Avid has an epic fight on its hands from newer, lower-cost alternatives. Apple sells Final Cut Studio for $1,300, while Adobe's Premiere Pro is just $800.

Thanks to cheap computers, a similar sort of creative destruction is happening everywhere in the industry. Color adjustment used to require expensive oscilloscope-like monitors. It first moved to specialized -- and expensive -- software, but lately it's done with relatively low-cost (say, $200) "plug-ins" by companies like Red Giant Software.

Plus, hell, it's the Wall Street Journal! Doesn't that make you feel warm and fuzzy all over.

Labels: internet

I saw this cool article on 50 Practical Home Office Feng Shui Tips. I tell ya, it does make a difference whether you're facing the door. Let the chi flow!

Labels: Environment, Tips

I saw this article at Livehack, How To Negotiate Freelance Pay For Non-Negotiators, and it struck a bit of a nerve. I hate asking for money, but I LOVE getting the check!

Another article that has been going around (and linked at the Lifehack story) Earn More Money by Demanding It. The article, written by Andrea Dickson, is especially pertinent to women, but you all can learn something from it.

I finally have decided on my hourly rate after trying a few and although my rate is a bit high for the smaller town that I'm in, I've found people are willing to pay it. I've found that underselling myself leads to problems. Clients expect you to work at that rate forever. The client not only gets my skills and experience, but also my guarantee. The project will be done on time and it will meet or exceed their standards. Well, that's the plan anyway.

What are your negotiating techniques? Do you demand what you deserve? Have you ever been laughed at? Tell us about your experiences and your tactics!

It's an open thread. Please leave your comments below.

Labels: jobs

I was slouching as I came across this article from LifeHack.org, 7 Habit's to Improve Posture. Surprisingly, having a cat on your lap is not one of their tips.

Labels: Health, Tips

I dig Lush products, which most of you probably haven't used because your MEN! But, if you have, you know what I'm talking about.

I digress, Lush is having a Video Contest that sounds like fun.... why you want Lush in the shower for you.

They don't have any submissions yet, but the prizes are awesome (if you're into shower gels). Geez, I should enter just to get that prize kitty ;-)

Frank Zappa had a great quote, "Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid." He speaks the truth. The trick is not to be a passive listener.

Turn off your Fergie Ferg and try some Bach! The 'Mozart Effect' was the result of a study that revealed that classical music stimulates the right-brain and makes the listener more intellectual. We all want to be intellectual, don't we?

If you don't own any classical music, you can tune into one of the many classical music stations that stream online.

Music really stimulates my creativity. I love listening to something completely different - some sitar music or some gypsy guitar or something avant garde from the 80s.

One of my favorites is the song "Chocolate Cake" by Crowded House (You know I'm a Crowded House mega-fan, if you frequent our Inspirations blog). The song is filled with strange sound effects and has an incredible stereo mix. Once, I was at the dentist and they gave me some nitrous oxide, aka laughing gas. I had my headphones on with Chocolate Cake on my iPod and, boy, that makes the song sound really different! There's a whole other layer of the cake I never knew existed!

I digress, pop on some good quality headphones and sit back and really listen to the music. Focus on one single instrument or how the left and right channels play off each other. Listen for sounds you've never heard. Trust me, it's there.

Around here, there are lunchtime pops concerts at a music hall that are free. You just bring a sack lunch. If you can't leave your office, you can always close your office door and get up and dance. Moving your body will release some tension and get the blood flowing back to your brain. Plus, it's fun.

Or, how about making some noise? Get your office mates together for an impromptu drum circle. You can beat on your desks, laps, whatever you might have around. Beat out patterns and imitate each other. "This game strengthens your child audio memory, improves the brain connectivity and improves pattern recognition.", according to Parenting Ideas.org. Yeah, I'm a parent, I read that kind of stuff, but if it works for kids, why not try it out? You think I'm lying? Check out this Right Brain Tests for artists which is a live drum lecture. The rhythmical break is not only satisfying but will hopefully inspire you.

Or, take it to the extreme. I never knew the magic you can create with a leek.

Labels: Creativity