Last Sunday Facebook surprised the world. Without waiting for their market flotation later this week – and like a big shot investment banker casually ordering the 1900 Cristal Brut – the social network laid down $1b in cash and stock to acquire Instagram.
Archive for the ‘software’ Category
Google’s top ten April fools.
Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012
I suppose when you create the most useful invention since the Corby Trouser Press, you have the right to outsmart your audience. And the good people at Google certainly like to take advantage of their elevated position on the first day of the fourth month.
Friends, for your inspection and enjoyment, we bring you the top ten Google April Fool gags.
One more thing. Only nine of these are real Google April Fools. One is an invention of the great minds at Creativepool. But which one?
Quietly Redundant – the future for the QR code?
Tuesday, March 27th, 2012
I’m not a classic early adopter. I don’t queue outside Apple stores every time a plastic cover for the iPad is released, but I latch onto technology fairly quickly. I was online in the late nineties, had one of the first phase of free Spotify accounts and even owned a mini-disc player when portable CD machines were the norm.
So why have I never used a QR code?
Do familiar brands make the world less exotic?
Thursday, March 22nd, 2012
Remember the scene in Pulp Fiction when Sam Jackson and John Travolta are discussing Big Macs? Travolta (as hitman Vincent) is amazed to learn the burger is called a Royale in Parisian outlets, assuming McDonalds restaurants to be identical the world over.
In reality, of course, nobody dropping in for a Big Mac in any territory, from Red Square to Rangoon, would be too surprised. Allowing for slights tweaks in the recipe (halal in Muslim countries, kosher in Israel) and, as in France, some creativity with the menu, Vincent would always find his dining experience reassuringly familiar. Indeed, this is the food chain’s whole market position: wherever you are, whatever you’re doing you only need to look for the golden arches to be sure of a reliable burger experience.
Google has changed its privacy policy. But does it matter?
Thursday, March 1st, 2012
What is Google? A search engine, right? A tool for scanning the billions of pages housed living on the internet in order to find the information you’re looking for. Right?
Well, no. The searching thing is certainly Google’s primary service but not its actual business (it doesn’t charge for the searches, as we know). No, Google is an advertising business, pure and simple.
Wedded bliss – discovering an inspiring media hub.
Thursday, January 12th, 2012
It’s a college. No it’s not, it’s a record label. Sorry, it’s a TV studio. Hang on, no, it’s a computer games firm.
Let’s start again. Confetti is definitely a bar and meeting place. And all of the above, it seems.
Nestling in the centre of Nottingham, Confetti is quite unlike any media company I’ve ever encountered. And I’ve encountered a few. Established in 1994, the organisation launced as a well-equipped, creative technology school for college students and school leavers. It was the vision of Craig Chettle and initially worked with The People’s College of Further Education. As Craig puts it, “We wanted to create a place and an opportunity that was not available to us when we were in further education.”
The 40 best sites, tools & apps of 2011
Tuesday, December 13th, 2011
During 2011 we discovered some unbelievably cool and useful sites and apps and shared the best we found in our fortnightly newsletters. Here we have condensed these into an even more exclusive list of the forty coolest sites, tools and apps of the year. Google+, Instagram and all the other obvious choices are here. But there’s also a few wildcards thrown in along the way just to spice things up a bit. Enjoy!
Ten of the best HTML editors
Tuesday, November 8th, 2011
From needing to make a few simple HTML tweaks to a full website overhaul, there is a huge range of HTML editors available to download today. Ranging from the simple to the complex, and from the free to the costly, here are ten editors which stand out from the crowd for either usability, low cost, or are totally free.
Ten of the best image editors
Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
The range of image manipulation software available has grown significantly. Whether you’re looking to create a digital art masterpiece or just want to quickly take the red reflections out your friend’s eyes or crop them out the shot entirely, there will be a piece of software out there that will satisfy your image editing needs. Check out this list of ten of the best image manipulators and editors out there today.
Land of the free. Has charging for things become taboo?
Thursday, April 19th, 2012Of course, once the giant grocer (and plenty others) realised the shocking damage slave labour would inflict on their brand, they retreated quicker than a worm from a hungry blackbird. But I can’t help thinking the whole escapade was symptomatic of a much larger trend. The closer I look, the more I notice the concept of paying for stuff being treated with contempt.
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