The Blogosphere got in a tizzy recently after Google decided to change its favicon (the little icon in your address bar that’s unique to each site).
To address those that demanded answers from the big G, Google has written a post about the new favicon, and explained that “the reason is that we wanted to develop a set of icons that would scale better to some new platforms like the iPhone and other mobile devices”.
Personally, I’m not a fan of the little G, and would have preferred that they stick with the big G, but apparently they’ve got some goals in mind, since they “tried in total more than 300 permutations”.
Apparently they wanted something distinctive and noticeable, as well as something that embraced the colorfulness of the logo, yet wouldn’t date itself, and considering the amount of feedback they received from people who noticed the change, I think they succeeded.
Rest assured though, if you can’t stand the new favicon, let them know, because they “really value feedback form users and want to hear your ideas”.
[Official Google Blog]
A few bits of news from around the Blogosphere:
- The always beautiful Kineda has just undergone a drastic redesign, switching over from the lovely Shoryuken black design to a clean-airy Chun Li design. If you’re looking for insight into the fabulous lifestyle only bling can bring, then check Kineda out.
- Webomatica has just passed the 1,000 post mark. If you’re looking for great insight into the world of tech, movies, music…and bottle caps, then check Webomatica out as well, since I’m sure the next 1,000 are going to be just as good as the first.
[Kineda]
[Webomatica]
Though human beings are “information omnivores”, constantly collecting, labeling, and organizing data, the shift from physical to digital is “mixing, burning, and ripping lives apart”. David Weinberger’s book, Everything Is Miscellaneous, examines this shift in the way we look at the world, and shows why categories are a thing of the past.
In Everything Is Miscellaneous, David Weinberger charts the new principles of digital order that are remaking business, education, politics, science, and culture. In his rollicking tour of the rise of the miscellaneous, he examines why the Dewey decimal system is stretched to the breaking point, how Rand McNally decides what information not to include in a physical map (and why Google Earth is winning that battle), how Staples stores emulate online shopping to increase sales, why your children’s teachers will stop having them memorize facts, and how the shift to digital music stands as the model for the future in virtually every industry. Finally, he shows how by “going miscellaneous,” anyone can reap rewards from the deluge of information in modern work and life.
From A to Z, Everything Is Miscellaneous will completely reshape the way you think–and what you know–about the world.
This one is definitely on my “To Read” list, and has gotten quite a bit of buzz around the blogosphere (and even the realworldosphere) as a new way of looking at the world. Are you ready?
Question: What section are you supposed to find this book on the shelves?
[Everything Is Miscellaneous]
Joggling, another sport introduced to me by the blogosphere, is a combination of juggling while jogging (hence the name). Apparently, jogglers say “the rhythm of juggling with three objects corresponds perfectly with the action and pace of running”. Corresponding or not, it’s got to be funny watching someone try to run and learn to juggle at the same time, and I’m sure it’s worth a few giggles. (Random thought: From now on, DYH has trademarked the word Gigging, a combination of giggling while jogging.) Just Your Average Joggler is “a blog about running marathons while juggling or joggling” and features “training tips and running/joggling advice” for any would be jogglers, so put on your joggling shoes and get out there, the would is in need of a few more jogglers.
[Just Your Average Joggler]
[Wikipedia - Joggling]
[Via: Neatorama]
If I (or anyone else for that matter) happen to use one of the many blogging clichés listed on Gawker in one of my posts, feel free to chastise me (or anyone else for that matter) in the comments to your heart’s content (or until you feel retribution has been paid). Their “annotated list of words, phrases, and terms that have long overstayed their welcome in the media-blogosphere” is actually pretty good (and thorough), and as an avid blog reader myself, the elimination of many of these would open up a whole new world of possibilities for the newly forced creativity the blogosphere would need, and that’s definitely a good thing. FTW
[Gawker - Bad Lingo: Blog-Media Clichés]
Backlash on the blogosphere is swift and brutal, and memories die hard. Sony’s fake blog alliwantforxmasisaPSP.com is currently taking the brunt of the beating, including this mock site, allIwantforxmasisaPS3.com. Enjoy.
[alliwantforxmasisaPS3.com]
[Via: adfreak]
Gizmodo stirred the blogosphere into a tizzy recently with iPhoneyGate, a false report of Apple’s iPhone being introduced well before anyone expected it to be. It turned out Gizmodo was fed some misleading information, as the iPhone was released when they said it would be, but as a Linksys VOIP phone (apparently Linksys owned the trademark on the iPhone name all along, and no one knew). Tempers flared, and Brian Lam, the man behind this whole fiasco, explained his side of the story today for all to dissect and complain about in future blog posts. I remain ambivalent about the whole situation, considering it a giant case of mass miscommunication, but apparently, others feel a little more betrayed than I do. Who knew the truth could be so confusing?
[Gizmodo - iPhoneyGate]
MacHeist is My Dream App creator Phill Ryu’s newest pet project, and once again, it looks to be both an innovative and entertaining adventure for the Apple community. Though details are scarce (there’s only an e-mail sign up on the page currently), the blogosphere has, as always, pulled through with some “inside/secret” information about what’s going on. Apparently, MacHeist will be a five-week long event, culminating with the sale of an “uber bundle”, and including a bunch of free Mac apps along the way. Active users of the site will be able to save money on the final uber bundle by completing “heists”, or hacker/thief themed missions (such as “hacking” various Mac sites that are partnered with MacHeist). Also, according to TUAW, this encrypted message appeared on the MacHeist RSS feed (though I’m not quite sure how they managed to access this as yet unmentioned feed):
3><(||_|$1\/1+`/
\X/@|\|+ +|-|3 1|\|$1[)3 $(00|* @|\|[) @ |-|3@[) $+@|2+? 1|\|q|_|1|23 +|-||20|_|6|-| +|-|3 @|*|*|20|*|21@+3 (|-|@|\||\|3|$.
The project is going to be invite only for the first few weeks, with users drawn from the list of those who signed up through either the MacHeist or the My Dream App site, so head on over and reserve your spot, because you don’t want to be the 11th guy in a PS3 pre-order line now, do you?
[MacHeist]
[Via: Adam Betts]
[Via: Paul Stamatiou]
[Via: The Unofficial Apple Weblog]
[Via: Digg]
