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eNews 06_06 |
Welcome to another e-mail newsletter from Interface. If you do not wish to receive these e-mails in future use the unsubscribe feature at the foot of the page.
/ 01. united_colours of rgb
Interface create interactive sketchbook.
You can now access the first interactive sketchbook from Interface New Media, featuring, visual experiments and explorations of themes, created away from the constraints of existing projects, but which may feed into and inform future creative work.
This sketchbook has been implemented in Flash, using a page-turning navigational device - an interesting visual metaphor for browsing that many users find more intuitive than scrolling or clicking.
The first issue is a meditation on the power of the pixel - the union of red, green and blue.
http://www.interface-newmedia.com/united_colours/01.html
/ 02. E-mail marketing.
Interface implement sophisticated e-mail marketing solution.
We have put the finishing touches to our e-mail marketing system, which we are now rolling out to clients for their e-mail newsletters and mass mailings, as well as the sending out of this e-mail.
The system, which is capable of sending clever, MIME-sensing plain-text and HTML mails, allows us to track when e-mails are opened, track bounces and unreceived messages, and also see which links within each e-mail have been clicked.
The system also allows features such as automated subscribe/unsubscribe mailing list management, and a forward o a friend feature.
We are a responsible e-mailer, and will not send unsolicited mass mailings on our clients behalf.
For more information, please contact Neil Jones.
/ 03. Interface present their credentials.
We have created a new credentials presentation, outlining our approach to new media, and showcasing a selection of recent projects.
We'd love to come and show it to you. If you'd like to see it, contact us to arrange an appointment.
/ 04. Blu-ray v HD-DVD.
It's just like Betamax versus VHS all over again.
There's a whole new format war going on, this time over the next generation of DVD drives, which can hold up to 50Gb of data. The increased capacity of these discs will enable High Definition movies to fit onto one disc, but, just like Betamax and VHS, there are two competing format vying for supremacy. Only one will prevail, but which?
Both the technologies, Blu-ray and HD-DVD use blue lasers in the drive units which enable data to be packed much smaller onto the surface of the CD, but subtle differences make the two systems incompatible.
First-up there is Blu-ray, created by Sony, and supported by a range of film companies such as Disney and Fox (and including it's own stable of MGM, Tristar and Columbia), plus technology companies including Panasonic, Philips, Apple and Dell.
Then in the opposite corner sits HD-DVD, developed by Toshiba, with entertainment giants Universal supporting it, as well as technology companies including NEC, Microsoft and Intel.
Who will win this format war? As ever, the consumer will ultimately decide. HD-DVD has the lead, and the cost of its drives, which have just been launched in the US, are cheaper than that of the Blu-ray drives, which are due to be launched in July. Microsoft are to release a HD-DVD player add-on for their Xbox 360 games console. HD-DVD media (ie the discs themselves) are also likely to be cheaper.
But our money would probably be on Blu-ray. This time around, Sony have ties with a number of media companies to ensure that there will a proliferation of Blu-ray discs, and they are set to include a Blu-ray player as an integral part of the PlayStation 3 games console. This, combined with a larger storage capacity (50Gb compared to HD-DVD's 30Gb) makes it a more long-term, future-proof option. But if HD-DVD can establish itself as the cheaper option and gain a foothold before Blu-ray catches on (and the launch of the PS3 could be the tipping point, as many users will delay purchasing until then), Sony could well be outmanoeuvred again by a cheaper, but technically inferior solution.
Currently, neither format has the region coding capabilities of DVD, but there is sure to be some kind of copy protection such as Macrovision built-in, to try and prevent ripping to hard drive.
As soon as DVD burners for Blu-ray or HD-DVD become commercially available in the UK, be sure that we'll be there; ready to create your 50Gb masterpiece.
/ 05. BumpTop and CoverFlow.
New forms of user interface design based on real-world browsing.
There's a fascinating video on the Gear Live web site, of a presentation by Anand Agarawala and Ravin Balakrishnam of the Dynamic Graphics Project at the University of Toronto, of a new approach to the concept of the computer desktop.
Christened the BumpTop, the prototype attempts to simulate the ordered chaos of our real desk, and translate the way that we shuffle, position and pile paper on our physical desks to the virtual desktop of the computer screen.
The presentation features some fascinating ways to gather, collate, and explore groups of documents, and how by giving documents 'physical' properties, important documents would have more weight and 'bump' lesser documents aside.
It's a fascinating presentation, but given that all the piles are little more than file type icons, eg pdf, quicktime, they contain no information about the actual contents of the files. However, I am sure that some of the ways of exploring and structuring file clusters may make it into conventional GUI design - in fact Windows Vista, if it ever appears, 'stacks' will enable users to order documents according to a specific attribute, such as author.
On a slightly more prosaic note, a great little application called CoverFlow, by Jonathan del Strother, currently a technology preview for Mac OS X only, provides a way to interact with your iTunes library, simulating the pleasurable activity of flicking through piles of records.
Coverflow presents the covers of all your albums alphabetically, and allows you to flick through them in a very smooth, naturalistic way. Coverflow also works in full-screen mode, making it potentially a great way of browsing music with a remote control for a media centre PC set-up. Given that so much of the digital music revolution has been about the death of the album and the cover sleeve, this is great way to revive it.
Links:
Dynamic Graphics Project: http://www.dgp.toronto.edu
BumpTop presentation:
http://www.gearlive.com/index.php/news/article/bumptop-alternative-desktop-interface-06210627
CoverFlow: http://www.steelskies.com/coverflow/
/ 06. Our contact details.
You can contact Interface New Media in a number of ways
By phone: +44 (0)207 416 0702
By e-mail: marty@interface-newmedia.com
Our website: www.interface-newmedia.com
© 2006 Interface New Media Ltd