Now Gimme The Cypher

Part retail, part office, and 100% colorful fun. That's the type of tech studio I live to strive for, though Cypher has already beaten me to the punch. Oh well, there's always room for duplication in good design.

Edible Concepts, Apple Edition

Yep, it's prolly fake. But if the leak is true - a 10.4" Macbook Mini priced at $899 with LED backlighting, 1.83Ghz Atom processor, 2GB DDR3, 64GB SSD, and essential standard goodies (Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Wireless-N) - Apple might just have found its goldmine computer for students and traveling professionals looking to switch over to Mac. I dunno about you, but I got my fingers crossed.

Waltz With Bashir Review

Let me just be clear that this isn't a war movie. It's a movie that delivers insight on war and its effects on citizen-soldiers. While there tends to be no shortage of the terrible impacts of war covered today in the news, the psychological trauma of soldiers themselves are often overlooked since they are in no comparison to the massacre of civilians and the destruction of cities and homes. But it's clear, with a thorough watch through Waltz with Bashir, that young men sent to soldier for their country are victims, too. 7.9/10.

If You Hear Colors Like I Do

CFCF is just one of those bands that really know how to create emotion and beautiful, balanced, and atmospheric soundscapes without overstepping their boundaries. Their newest single, "You Hear Colours," is no different. Take a listen and watch the video directed by Arawa above.

Obey Giant Meets Minimal

There's something absolutely breathtaking about the sexy combination of grungy modern art, clean mid-century design, and tech in the kitchen. Kinda makes me want to dance with my socks off.

Like An Out of Body Experience

"Behavioral design is all about feeling in control. Includes: usability, understanding, but also the feel." - Don Norman

OnLive's Going On Cloud Overdrive

Okay, okay. I get it. Cloud's the next big step. But being able to play Crysis on a Macbook Air? That's f#@king nuts. If there's one thing these cloud phenomenon contributors need to get dead on starting day one is the price. Get that right and the fans will give you as much moneys as the content you're willing to put out.

In An Era of Top Notchness, Vans Comes Up On Top

These new Vans Vaults in the 2009 Fall/Winter collection are lookin' hotter and hotter the more I look at them everyday. Now I just gotta wait for August to come around.

Cities of Borja Bonaque

Oh my, this is going on my must-have list immediately. Spanish designer/illustrator, Borja Bonaque's city artwork really captures that urban landscape with a retro futuristic glow - and man. On skateboards?! Gimme, gimme now!

Stir-Fry Snow Peas with Shrimp Recipe

Nothing like an immaculate seafood dish to celebrate one of Asia's favorite veggies; the snow pea.

• 1/2 lb snow pea (washed, tips cut, and strings pulled)
• 1 carrot (peel and sliced)
• 10 pieces of large shrimp (clean and deviened)
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 3 cloves fresh garlic (peel and chopped)
• 1 tbsp oil

Cut the tip off the snow peas and pull out the tough string that runs along its side (this will take a while). After you're done, wash them and drain, and set it aside.

Heat a skillet or wok at high heat with oil. Add in chopped garlic, then clean fresh shrimp. Stir-fry the shrimp for 30 seconds or until it curls. Toss in thinly sliced carrots, snow peas, and mix in the oyster sauce.

Toss in and stir the snow peas with the shrimp. When the peas look start to look deep green, season a bit with white pepper, and serve immediately. Do not over cooked snow peas - it tends to lose the crunchiness and become soggy over time. Try to keep the stir-frying under 3 minutes.

Boy, How Alice Has Changed Over The Years

Smokin' on da dro, don't act like you don't know. Three 6 Mafia is where it's at, get down on your knees just like a top notch ho'.

Double True

I also like to walk around with a police baton and bang on fences while I am celebrating my tiny moments of victory.

Cue The Mariachi Band, It's Friday

And to celebrate, we have our wonderful model for Leo Luca Escobar's Etsy in a fun little Mexican mini print. Top it off with some burritos from the roach coach and you've got yourself an immaculate Friday afternoon.

Maria Adlersson's Flat

Homes like these make it hard for me to contain myself. No, really. These designers are going to give me a heart attack one of these days. Make them stop.

Pixel Theory Works In Home Design, Too

Of course it's awesome. It's from AT. Tastes like New York. And, as always, makes me want to move, again.

The Horizon, HCI, and Beyond

This along these lines are what I hope to achieve one day with the knowledge I am to obtain in the next few years of schooling.

FUN… F.U.N., but what is that… what makes something "fun"? How do you make something more fun, less fun, funner, funnest? (I know, I know - grammar is taking a back seat right now) But really - what makes a game fun?

Well, that's just one of the things I hope to perfect one day as a usability researcher for one of my favorite game companies of all time; Insomniac Games. Since I love dealing with people, I'll have to establish and refine the usability research process. Conducting usability tests, surveys, and gather information, I'll provide data to help in the design and development of games.

I truly want to identify areas of a game that would benefit from user research and conducts studies that provide accurate, timely and persuasive info to improve the ultimate end user experience of the game.

So, usability test and playtests on games and websites. Revision of design plans from specifications to prototypes, data-mining to full-on publications. All shall be done - it must be; improving the gaming world forevermore.

Band of Outsiders' Love for the Game

Goddamn that jacket looks sick! Smooth, ribbed, and has enough sophistication to confuse even Q-Tip. Yours, for a mere $568.

Why Books Look So Flippin' Cool

Sure, we could all grab our Kindles and make our way towards digital everything. Or, we could continue collecting books, stacking them on top of one another, and creating that wonderful, everlasting placebo effect that makes us think we retain everything we read. I, for one, like enjoy the second option.

Sonnenzimmer Creates In Chicago

Perhaps they're not as quirky nor insane as Kozy and Dan, but they're a cute shoestring portrait of two art lovers coming together to create something special. And who's to complain about that?

Aimee Wilder Teases My Wallpaper Addiction

Man, I really, really dig those black and white muted patterns. The one you see above is the Pipes design. Doesn't look anything like pipes to me, but hot damn it's sweet!

Paula's Watermelon Cooler Recipe

Here's something that's fresher than a box of Zip Lock bags. Try replacing the water with 80 proof Vodka if you're looking for some fun.

• 1 1/2 pounds (4 cups) sliced seedless watermelon, rind removed
• 1 cup lemon sorbet
  
• 1 lemon, zested
• 1 1/2 cups cold water
• Watermelon wedges and mint, for garnish

In a food processor, blend watermelon, sorbet, and lemon zest until very smooth. Stir in 1 1/2 cups cold water; cover and refrigerate until very cold. Serve over ice and garnish with watermelon wedges and mint.

Bitchin' Kitchen

Warm tones, bright whites, and a knuckle punch with aluminum accented hardware makes for a very, very nice kitchen.

Krazy Kwilted Goods Are In

Just when you thought you couldn't take any more retro, extra-bright prints, someone goes out and makes some quilt-inspired goodies. Noa's Ark has some if you got some extra cash to burn.

Kevin Wang & His Lady Friends

Like I always say, if you're going to do something - you gotta do it right. So when Kevin set out to do a complete series with model 米亞, I was completely stoked to see the results were above and beyond his normal body of work. Check out the rest of the gallery to get some ideas in case you ever want to take your lady friends out for a little photography adventure...

Ideas To Make Working Feel Like You're Not

Idea numero uno: Add colorful and unique stickers to your glass windows to make it seem like a playground rather than an office environment.

All The Things She Says

She says kisses are a dime a million. I'd like to believe her, but she blinks too much.

Enough Punches of Color To Blind You

While I still believe that this whole bright phase is going to fade out as fast as it came fading in, the lovely work by Ashe + Leandro architecture and interior design firm based in New York City is done so well that I really can't complain. Sure, it's so bright that it might dig a hole in your cornea, but other than that, it's fantastic!

Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Review

In case you didn't know, I'm absolutely addicted to this casual pick-up gem. I didn't always have this addiction, but it has blossomed over time... now that it's here, I can't spend more than a week without having a nice sit down with one or more friends and beating the crap out of them (or vice versa) for a few hours. It's great. It's classic. The sprites kinda suck. But it's still godly. 9.2/10.

Loft Living Is Sex Life

That is, if you enjoy natural light as much as well... yaknow. Anyway, this is the dream, Niko. Keep your eyes peeled.

How To Avoid Family Portrait Clichés

The list kinda goes like this:

1. Alter your perspective: Get extra-high or low for some unique shots.
2. Play with eye contact: Try looking off camera or exchanging looks with someone in the frame.
3. Break the rules of composition: You don't always need the rule of thirds. Go crazy and sometimes you might run into something you'll love.
4. Experiment with lighting: Generate mood with backlighting and silhouetting your subject, or slow down your ISO and grab tons of light into your photo.
5. Get your subject comfortable: You can do this with silly shots, making the subject feel like it's less of chore and more of a fun activity.
6. Shoot candid: Posed shots are okay sometimes, but candidness is unbelievably effective every time!
7. Introduce props: Interesting items can and will add a new life to your photos.
8. Obscure your subject: Try shots where your focus is more on one part of the body, leaving the rest of the photo open to the viewer's imagination.
9. Take a bunch of shots: Bursting can create a very interesting series of images if you do it right.

Photo courtesy of Kevin Murphy.

EYESCREAM For Nigo & Hiroshi Fujiwara

My local heroes from the East, legendary Japanese entrepreneurs/designers Nigo and Hiroshi Fujiwara, have always been great influences for me since they started takin' over with their advertising methods, classy hip-hop style, and creativity that's a step beyond godly. Check 'em out on the latest April 2009 of EYESCREAM magazine.

Tekkonkinkreet Review

It's not easy describing Tekkonkinkreet; the story of two kids named Black and White (sounds like a JPRG already, no?) who are the protectors of the city known as Treasure Town. Years go by and things as yukuza captains run into the mix and turns their somewhat innocent beings into total carnage and despair. And like a video game, it mixes 2D with 3D in a way that's vibrantly mesmerizing, bleeding the world off the screen, and engages in characters that are both believable as they are entertaining. It's an intellectual piece, with actors voicing opinions according to personalities and kids were kids - who reacted to situations like kids, and this kept the movie covered in an undescribable darkness that continued up until the very end. Though, you're alright with these morbid undertones, you'll love this beautiful piece about the innocence of being and the darkness of souls. 8.6/10.

Hate His Website, Love His Design

If there's one thing I hate more than anything, it's a website that forces your browser window to automatically maximize. But not just enlarged, it opens it up so that you need to manually resize the damn thing back to normal when you're done with it to keep all your future windows from doing the same thing. Rees Robert's site does that. Luckily for him, he knows how to spruce up a space.

Hello, London

PSLAB collaborated with DOS architects on the refurbishment of an old Victorian residence in London. Talk about an overhaul. I likey.

Synecdoche, New York Review

"Synecdoche, New York" expands on the basic themes hypocrisy, life, and death - similar to "Adaptation," but Synedoche really makes it seem like a mere kid's exercise in comparison. As an art film, you might start to feel it coming across as a bit pretentious. But really, I believe that's what the director was going for all along. Poking fun at all the hipsters out there, film afficiandos, and intellectual blah-blah seen all around the art world, it's more of an ironic narrative than one made to appeal to a universal audience. Despite leaving you with a splitting headache by the end, it's a daring story that sticks with you long after you leave the theater. 7.8/10.

Frolick In Buttons Galore

Although, to be perfectly honest, I wouldn't know what to do with so many buttons. Grab 'em here.

Cool Independent Studio Packaging

The kind of stuff I would ship my stuff in if I owned a company. Or I would hire Independent Studio to do all the dirty design work for me...

Killzone 2 (PS3) Review

Not sure what the hubbub is about - I found Killzone 2 to be as generic as they come. No real innovation, just lots of density smoke, a decent draw distance, and lots of fancy lighting effects in an attempt to mask gameplay that would've been somewhat cool in 2001. Wait a sec, it's 2009. So sorry folks, nothing to see here. Oh, and don't get me started on the controls. 7.4/10.

Ip Man Review

I can, undoubted say, that this is Donnie Yen at his finest. After putting myself through all of his other "urban Hong Kong cop thriller" movies, I found Ip Man to be a stunning redemption. Other actors are all exellent here as well, but it's the fight scenes that are arguably Yen's best work to date. The only reason keeping this from a completely solid score is the editing. There's some sloppy work in there. But, it's great. A must-see for kung fu film fans to get their adrenal glands pumping. 8.7/10.

Barry Schwartz: The Real Crisis of Today

These are the types of ideas I like spreading. Aristotle once said, "A wise person knows when to make an exception to every rule." And so brilliance, in a way, is not suficient enough to solve all solutions without the help of wisdom.

Noby Noby Boy (PSN) Review

Yeah, this one was weird. It was like a train set with no instructions and a bunch of moving parts. Except for a train, you have this weird worm thing that does nothing but stretch. A pointless endeavor really, but one would hope that it would hold a little more substance given the fact that it was made by the same makers of Katamari Damacy - one of my favorite games of all time. Unfortunately, the quirkiness only goes so far with stretching (versus Katamari's rolling) and I would imagine many would become bored within minutes into the game. A shame, really, but it's still an interesting piece worth noting. Just not of Katamari proportions. 7.1/10.

Flower (PSN) Review

Like a poem, Flower really has no form or function other than to mesmerize you. It's definitely a nice break from all the lame shooters and zombie fiestas I've been experiencing lately. So kudos to the boys at Sony for getting more and more creative games up on the network everyday. While superb and innovative, it's short as hell. Taking you about 2 1/2 hours to complete and another few just to get the trophies, you won't be getting much mileage for your money. It might be worth $5, but nowhere near the $10 that comes retail. Still, a sweet little experience if you've got some extra cash laying around. 8.0/10.

Eagle Eye Review

Two words: popcorn flick. Eagle Eye is a standard, well-paced action movie that has enough intellectual interest to keep you watching amidst the number of explosions every 10 minutes and nauseating ultra-fast editing. Even though the story stems into the "considerably ridiculous" category more than once or twice, and most action fans will probably guess all the surprises well before they happen, it still delivers a cohesive story with an ending worth waiting for. 7.2/10.