As a developer of training materials, I come into contact with a lot of companies that also develop training content. I’m often involved in the process of trouble-shooting, integrating, and error checking the work of other teams. The image linked above (click it for a larger view) is a screenshot that was taken of the SharePoint directory for one of those companies (edited for privacy). Someone from their Training and Development team posted this, and it’s been there for months. I’m not sure if it’s gone unnoticed or if no one has taken the time to correct it. From a T&D standpoint this error signals a failure on three levels: knowledge, quality control, and ownership. For all I know, no one on that team actually knows how to spell “jeopardy”. I suppose it’s a little tricky; with that “eo” in the middle. Am I wrong in thinking that people responsible for training should be able to spell this word or at least use spell-check?

Conversation I just had with Kelly about the “Weird” trailer:
Me: “My sister laughed when I told her Gary Cole played Weird Al’s dad.”
Kelly: “I always get him confused with Gary Coleman.”
Me: “Wha … What? Gary Coleman was the short black kid on ‘Diff’rent Strokes’.”
Kelly: “Well then, who was Commissioner what’s-his-name in Batman?”
Me (laughing): “That was Gary Oldman.”
Kelly: “Please don’t Blog this.”

This would be awesome. I would pay good money to see this movie.

I may need to upgrade my Wacom. Actually, I think I will. This MSNBC article reviews the new wireless Wacom tablet, and their review is quite positive. Dealing with cables can be a hassle, and this sounds like the perfect solution.

This is what some inventive and hard-working kids can do with off-the-shelf software. It’s a shot-for-shot Remake of a music number from Disney’s “A Goofy Movie” I am honestly impressed. Check out the video below! (Via)

Some of these links are old, some less old, but all were new to me when I received my Star Wars Search Results:

1. So much hate for the Gungans
2. Dead Taun-Taun wedding cake
3. Star Wars golf bags (I don’t golf, but if I did …)
4. Star Wars themed vehicles (the real, Earthly kind)
5. Ten Star Wars rip-offs
6. Merry Sithmas (yeah, it’s March, but I thought this was funny).
7. Star Wars stitchery (home made Star Wars awesomeness)

CNN Money and Fortune Magazine offer up this article discussing the severe state of the Icelandic economy. The article then draws some very uncomfortable parallels to the situation we are experiencing in the USA. The article ends with speculation that perhaps America should look at what’s happening to Iceland now, so that we know what situations we will soon be facing. Many well-educated and experienced economists, politicians, and analysts, such as those at CNN and Fortune, are voicing strong opinions and concerns about our nation’s economic future. No budget, regardless of scale, can spend more than it makes for long without accruing massive debt and sacrificing it’s own future stability. Health care may be in dire need of reform, but now is not the time to spend billions on a completely untested and questionable plan that will further stretch and endanger our nation’s economy. Risking the economic life of this nation and her people is unacceptable, even for a cause as worthy as reforming health care. Heath care for nearly all Americans will end anyway if the government goes bankrupt. We need to stabilize this nation’s finances first.

This ESPN article discusses the circumstances around a political strategy that “… could prohibit U.S. citizens from fishing some of the nation’s oceans, coastal areas, Great Lakes, and even inland waters.” If this article wasn’t on an ESPN website, I’m not sure I’d believe it. I can understand limiting commercial fishing access in order to prevent harmful depopulation of certain species, but to go so far as to prevent average citizens from fishing to feed their family or even for recreation? To me this seems like political meddling gone insane. It’s very discouraging to know that there are people in this world seeking to control the lives of others to such a degree, but I have trouble believing that something like this could actually happen. There are so many recreational anglers in this country that a strategy like this could never be implemented (I hope). Also, there are millions of jobs and businesses based on the recreational activity of fishing, so any act that would curtail the industry could have a powerfully negative effect on an already hurting economy.

The website, “underconsideration.com” offers a section titled, “Brand New”, featuring branding and identity related topics. Their article on The Most Relevant Identity Work of the Decade features some great (and not so great) identity work throughout the past ten years. Truly, some excellent design work is represented in that article. (via Drawn!)

I want one of these Star Wars X-Wing Weenie Roasters!

I’ve often admired the artwork used in WoW and MAGIC, and this morning I discovered a gallery of one of the artist’s work on DeviantArt. His name is Glen Rane and his profile states that he’s the Art Director for Blizzard Entertainment. He’s got some really attractive and fun work. Check him out:
Glen Rane on DeviantArt
Glen Rane on SonsOfTheStorm.com

The 2010 Winter Olympics just ended, but it wasn’t until tonight that I stumbled upon a showcase of the Vancouver designs. Did you know that the Olympic medals were made using bronze, silver, and gold reclaimed from old computer motherboards? I didn’t know either! Check out FastCompany’s slideshow of Olympic designs.

As a designer, I enjoy the odd variety of things on which I get to work. Above is a Flash interface that I created for an IT support center. The company had been receiving a lot of calls concerning the task of adding paper to their new multi-function devices, and they thought that a poster and interactive interface might help. So, I completed both. The interface above went onto their support website, and the poster shown below (small image) was printed and mailed so that it could be posted above each and every machine. It’s harder to see when it’s this small, but hover your cursor over the drawers and then click the darker text beneath the machine. It’s super simple programming, but it got the job done. I’m told that the call volume has dramatically decreased, which happily means that my design was successful. Same information, two very different formats. I created the illustrations and the poster in Adobe Illustrator. The interface was created in Adobe Flash.

I was contacted last week to create a “wheel of fortune” type Interface for the Kroger Company. They specifically requested that I use “really bright colors” and that I make it “super eye-catching”. So, to fulfill those requests I designed this to resemble a cross between a game show and a midway game. Lots of colors and lights. I created the illustration in Adobe Illustrator and then tweaked it in Flash as I programmed the interactivity. It’s really simple in it’s function, but I thought it turned out rather nice. The user pushes the “Spin” button and the wheel starts spinning, gradually coming to a stop on one of the pie slices. The arrow jumps up and down as if being met with resistance by the spinning wheel. The wheel spins a random speed and distance with every new spin. This interface will be used to give away gift cards at an event this weekend. Attendees will win something just for spinning, but anyone that lands on the gift card spaces will win one worth about $10 to $15. Please note that I’m not giving away anything except opinions and stories.

I get a kick out of “Man vs. Wild” and “Survivorman”, and I must admit that I chuckled to myself when I watched Les Stroud, the host of “Survivorman”, as he struggled to build a Figure 4 Deadfall trap in an attempt to acquire food during one of his outings. Snares and traps are a common topic for many people interested in outdoor adventures such as camping and bush-craft. I’ve been honing my outdoor skills lately in preparation for camping trips this summer, and in that process I’ve been watching a lot of very informative YouTube videos. One of those videos prompted me to create the illustration above. This illustration serves several purposes: allows me to practice my illustration and design skills, helps me better understand the form and function of this mechanism (I can now build one from memory), and allows me to make the transfer of knowledge from myself to others a little easier. The video below was my inspiration. Where Les Stroud struggled, Paul Scheiter succeeds. This rather well-crafted video was produced by Paul Scheiter, who owns and operates HedgehogLeatherWorks.com. Paul has performed a root-cause analysis of many problems related to blade sheaths and by applying Industrial Design principals to leather, he’s significantly improved the design of the leather sheath. I appreciate Paul’s approach and his dedication to excellence in his leather works and his videos. If you appreciate outdoor activities such as camping and hiking, or are interested in disaster preparedness or wilderness survival, then you may enjoy Paul Scheiter’s other video’s.