Type-O-Matic markets themselves as “…the only confidential, hand-typed transcription and postal service with online ordering – on the planet.”
Below is one of the machines they draft letters on.

via Letterology

My Kickstarter poster project is now live, and I’ve explained the idea behind it, so now I thought I would share why the design is structured the way it is.
The Golden Spiral.
The Golden Spiral is created from the Fibonacci number sequence – 1, 1, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34 …
You’ve probably seen it before:

My friend and fellow Daily Exhaust contributor, Jory, was the one who suggested I use it. Like any tool, the golden ratio is only useful if you know how to use it. I knew how to use it, but initially I didn’t know where I should use it.
It also brought to mind an image I came across this past year of the Apple logo:

I thought it only fitting I use sacred geometry for someone like Steve Jobs. So I just laid the Golden Spiral graphic above over my original design and started experimenting with shapes. Eventually I ended up with this:

And if you flip the grid horizontally, you can see how I positioned the other elements:

Aside from the silhouette of Steve Jobs, every shape with the brain/gears group is positioned and sized according to this ratio. Every circle diameter corresponds to the size of each box within the grid:

Even without seeing the spiral grid laid on top of the design, the elements just feel balanced. In no way does it guarantee a beautiful design, but if it’s used right, it can make all the difference.

John Paczkowski at AllThingsD reveals Acer CEO J.T. Wang has a plan:

“We will shift our strategy to improving profitability from pursuing market share blindly with cheap and unprofitable products,” Wang told Dow Jones. “Ultrabooks will become our key growth driver next year as customers want a lighter, thinner notebook with longer battery life. Selling more ultrabooks will also help improve our profit margins as they command higher prices.”

So you were (still are) shipping cheap, unprofitable products?
I’m proud of you, Wang. Acknowledging you have a problem is the first step on the road to recovery.
I still find this whole ‘ultrabook’ category hilarious. Once ‘netbook’ became a bad word, PC makers needed a new word for the (supposedly) new category, when in reality it only came into being when they realized the MacBook Air was a serious threat to their laptop businesses.
This whole process to stop shipping crap could have been started years ago, but it seems PC makers are only interested in improving the quality of their products after they’ve bottomed out and their back is up against a wall.
Did I mention I’m tired of writing about Apple?

via Modern Mechanix

(via thisisnthappiness)

Recently I had a sit down chat with Dominic Coballe, the co-owner of the Canadian-based company N-Product. This is the company that has brought us the Deckster Timepiece—the natural companion to your iPod Nano.

Thirty-nine. That’s the number of bits and pieces that make up one Deckster, packaging, inserts and all. In our tiny workshop, each one is hand-assembled. Once packaged, after a hug and a kiss (we wipe it afterwards), it’s sent into the world ready to love and to be loved.

What struck me the most when talking with Dominic was his overall passion and determination in making the best possible product. Deckster is 100% North American made and is packed with ethically sourced materials in its construction. The Leather straps are made by a Montréal-based company known for supplying brands such as Louis Vuitton, Cole Haan, Armani Exchange and Alexander Wang.

Recently the Re:Class line of Decksters were released. This line was created in partnership with Canadian retailer Mountain Equipment Co-op and utilizes discarded bicycle tires, inner tubes and backpacks for their watch bands. It is bringing new life to things that would normally end up in a landfill.

In purchasing a Deckster this holiday season, you are breathing new life into your iPod Nano, reducing environmental impact and ultimately supporting the growth of a company that will go on to produce many more quality products.
Give the Gift of a Deckster. Or buy one for yourself.

Influencer: HOPE 2008 by Shepard Fairey

Influenced: HOPE 2011 by Shepard Fairey

via asaucerfullofwheels

via Technabob

Trong G. Nguyen’s piece, Library (via Letterology):

The entire text and individual chapters of various books written word for word on grains of rice. A re-interpretation of the library.

“December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt
And so the United States entered World War II as a combatant. But, the war was also being fought on the homefront. Below are a few examples of how design worked its way into the propaganda machine.

via Attitude

via The National Archives

via tutsplus
The tubes are full of this stuff. Go explore.

Technology Review says gasoline fuel cells may be coming soon (via Technabob):

If you want to take an electric car on a long drive, you need a gas-powered generator, like the one in the Chevrolet Volt, to extend its range. The problem is that when it’s running on the generator, it’s no more efficient than a conventional car. In fact, it’s even less efficient, because it has a heavy battery pack to lug around.

Now researchers at the University of Maryland have made a fuel cell that could provide a far more efficient alternative to a gasoline generator. Like all fuel cells, it generates electricity through a chemical reaction, rather than by burning fuel, and can be twice as efficient at generating electricity as a generator that uses combustion.

Burning fuel, lol.

The sketches of Susan Kare, the designer of the original Macintosh icons.
So good.