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About the WiPad

May 31, 2010 in Buzzwords, ipad, technology | No comments

The Wired iPad app seems to be the first one that people are really taking seriously, following Popular Science‘s early foray into the arena.

The major sticking points against it so far seem to be based around its size (500mb), the fact that it’s made up of flat, exported PNGs, and how you aren’t sure when to scroll down, and when not, all of which are eminently fixable.

Oliver Reichenstein of Information Architects (who design news websites, among other things) however has spotted what he feels are more fundamental issues with the design. Over on the IA blog, he takes a much closer look at the grid and typography of the thing, and in doing so ends up in a fascinating conversation with the font designer of much of Wired‘s content, Jonathan Hoefler, and the creative director of NYT Online, Khoi Vinh.

What you get is a fascinating masterclass in some current design thinking (and disagreements) over designing for the iPad, and for screens in general. Essential reading, basically.

Why everybody needs to calm down

March 26, 2010 in ipad, Opinion, technology, Trend | 12 comments

Yes, I am excited to see what the iPad will bring in terms of new ideas surrounding interactivity, storytelling and location-based media.

That’s because I’m a consumer. From a publishing perspective, however, here are five reasons why it’s best not to get too carried away by the pre-release hype.

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Review: MyMag part 2, Hey Olivia!

January 22, 2010 in New launches, Opinion, Review, USA | 2 comments

This is the second MyMag review. The first is here.

Hey Olivia! is the curated selection of Olivia Munn, an American model and presenter of Attack Of The Show, a sort of gadget show with comedy sketches on cable channel G4. She’s the only woman in the initial MyMag selection, but her magazine’s intended audience seems firmly rooted towards a testosterone-heavy demographic. As with the other magazines, the cover contains a list of the publications inside, in this case handwritten by Olivia herself.

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The Davies Paradigm

November 20, 2009 in Death of print, technology, Trend, USA | No comments

The Awl has a rather good visualization of falling magazine revenues and ad pages, taken from figures by the Magazine Publishers of America.

All of which is another assertion of what I will, from now on, be referring to as The Davies Paradigm:

Something That’s Growing Is Not The Same As Something That’s Big.

Something That’s Declining Is Not The Same As Something That’s Small.

If you know of a style website that earns $20m a year from subscribers and casual readers, and also has annual sales of 300 premium ad slots, I’d be interested to hear about it.

Tree-free paper: an unscientific review

December 4, 2008 in Clever ideas, Review, technology, Trend | No comments

This morning via FedEx I received something that could be significant – a special edition of the new issue of Clear, created for Design Miami. And it’s 100% Tree Free.

It feels and looks like a normal print magazine, but it’s not made from paper at all. This is the world’s first pulpless printed magazine, produced on premium synthetic paper by YUPO – a kind of polypropylene plastic already used for detergent labels, maps and menus.

How is it? Mighty strange.

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First magazine for the iPhone: a review

October 30, 2008 in Opinion, Review, technology | 1 comment

After a big PR push and a long delay, PMc, the first magazine designed only for the iPhone, is now available for 99c in the iTunes store. Rather than a brand extension of an existing title, instead it’s a brand-new fashion and style magazine from photographer Patrick McMullan. A brave new world or a missed opportunity?
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