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prior listings

 

• heymeadows 7/31/01 
  Description: My personal site, featuring interactive travelogs and other fun stuff like postcards and whatnot.
  Comments: Today's pick is the second site I've seen recently with a name based on an old Simon and Garfunkel tune (here's the other one I'm thinking of) — also reminds me of the "you can call me Jackson or you can call me Jack" routine.  With that totally useless information out of the way, I've got to say I had a little fun while checking out today's pick.  Alan's — oops, he said I can call him Al — Al's site features what he call "interactive travelogs."  He and a friend have been to a number of places and they take a lot of photos, which are displayed here with plenty of interesting and amusing personal commentary.  The twist is that the user can also comment on any individual photo and that's where my fun came in.  I couldn't resist making my own caption to a few of the photos (and I did, again and again and again), so yes, Al's travelog is definitely interactive.  The other big attraction here is a section of postcards (ecards, if you will) but the only problem is that it's not quite ready.  "No problem" I was thinking to myself last night, "I'll just drop Al a line" to see when he expects to have that section done.  I did and found out that within a short few weeks, or at least within the next month, the section will be ready to go — I expect it will be pretty cool, based on what I've seen in photos already, so there's something to look forward to.  We can't be livin' on fun alone around here, though, so I should mention that I was very impressed with Al's PHP-savvy and the overall site design is excellent.  It navigates well and the look and feel matches the type of content being presented.  The other sites in his "portfolio" are worth checking out, too — now go have some fun...
   
• MONO*crafts 7/30/01 
  Description: exploring new expression (Flash and Shockwave)
  Comments: Japanese designer Yugo Nakamura is the guy behind today's pick and from what I can see, he's a true master at Flash and Shockwave.  "Surface" is version 3 of his site and the collection of studies is as good it gets, in my humble (but consistent) opinion.  The opening screen will probably make you turn your speakers down at first, but it won't be long before you'll want to turn 'em up again after you've had a chance to play with the recording mode.  The interface to the assortment of goodies is cool as well — great color changes and radio controls.  You may want to check out version 2 (there's a link to it when you click on "archive") — you'll probably agree that it's great, considering it was done in 1999 — in fact, I think all of Yugo's work would still be great if it was done in 2002.  "Cant touch this!" is probably the best description I can offer.  Highly interactive and enjoyable — Yugo gets a big dose of well-deserved respect...
   
• SpasticReb.com 7/29/01 
  Description: Wild, zany, fire and spice.
  Comments: Rebecca's only 18 years old, but she's a senior in college.  Are you thinking what I'm thinking?  Someone else was thinking the same thing when they asked "So you're like a genius or something?" and her response was "or something."  Add that to the randomized "brain spasms" that Rebecca hits you with on every page load and you start realizing that she's not only smart, but has a great personality and sense of humor as well.  She's surrounded by friends ("when I pay them well enough") — they provide her with color consulting, troubleshooting, entertainment, and encouragement.  And she's even got the "hornygoat" donating livestock.  Can you tell I've been having fun this morning?  Anyway — her writing is interesting, covering things like parallel parking to "you know you're old when..." and conversations with a bot.  All amusing and full of personality, today's pick left me in a great mood. "I could have the most impact on the world by just being myself."  Hmm...  Today's pick also left me enriched...
   
• conspi.com 7/28/01 
  Description: It's just a way to show what i feel at the moment, but instead of long texts, i prefer expressing my feelings through enhanced graphics and sounds.
  Comments: Today's pick comes from web builder Ghilione Vincent, born in Saint-Tropez but now working in Geneva, Switzerland.  He calls it a "graphical diary" where he can express himself through images and sound and plans to share his changes in mood and feelings every 2 to 3 months in the form of new artworks.  This is Issue One and Ghilione has flying on his mind.  The feature is a unique three part Flash piece that's pretty cool.  There's also a portfolio of Ghilione's visual work that you don't need Flash to view — some interesting pieces.  Though he says the site is best viewed in Explorer, I decided to check it out in Netscape 6 and discovered that everything works just fine, despite the popup warning that some of the javascript will cause problems in Netscape — perhaps that message should just be given to visitors who are using Netscape 4x...
   
• Quarlo.com 7/23/01 
  Description: digital pics nyc...and some tunes too
  Comments: Todd Gross is probably somewhere in New York, right this minute, taking photos of the early morning sky or, perhaps, capturing the expression of a lady looking out the window of a train.  If he's lucky, there's someone sitting at a bus stop wearing unique shoes that would make that perfect picture.  Buildings, crowds, sleeping dogs, skylines, expressive people — whatever — Todd is on the case, sharing his unique perspective on the web.  It looks like it started back in the middle March with his "Walk to Brooklyn" and he's been doing it regularly since then.  I love the minimal design and thoughtful navigation (on most of the pages) and the content is rich.  In addition to the snapshots organized by date, there's a selection of 20 featured photos that must be Todd's "bestof" — great stuff.  Some of the dated pages also have some tunes you can listen to (.mp3) and I'm wondering if those might be what Todd was listening to as he took the photos on those days.  If I'm not mistaken, the day that includes a Colin Hay tune (which happens to be today's entry) also has a picture of Colin singing — did Todd go to a concert over the weekend, hmm?  (To be honest, I wonder if recording artists like Colin or the Rolling Stones might have issues with their music being made available through websites like this, but that's a whole separate discussion.)  Big kudos to Todd for his digital pursuits and a thanks for sharing...
   
• jeffsdigital 7/22/01 
  Description: Digital artwork submissions and special projects.
  Comments: Jeff Ocheltree's recent redesign is intended for higher resolution settings — I like it best at 12x10, though it's pretty good at 10x7.  The big montage of retro graphics on the main page (which shows Jeff's savvy at manipulating images) provides an interesting backdrop to the content presented in popup windows.  There's an excellent collection of Jeff's original digital artwork showcased here, but the site seems more focused on showcasing the visual art of others.  A number of people have already contributed cool content and my guess is that the "Art Showcase" will continue to grow.  "Who knows who might notice your work of raw genius!... Creativity and originality are what matter."  Here's to a certain "spirit of the web" and people like Jeff who appear to get it...
   
• RINZEN 7/20/01 
  Description: exists somewhere over the rainbow, bending reality into shapes pleasing to the eye and the ear (Flash)
  Comments: So — the path to today's pick goes something like this:  coolstop > robocore. > robocore.archive > robocore.archive.5th page > RMXXX > Today's Pick.  Robocore, picked earlier this week, was promptly added to the sidebar as an excellent place from which to explore the web in search of inspiration, and I guess today's pick sorta proves the point.  Okay, so I actually could have picked RMXXX for today — it's produced by some of the same folks who are behind today's pick and features the work of over 30 designers from around the world, all participating in a big "visual remix" — "golden goodness" is what Rilla calls it.  But as cool as that site is, it wasn't exactly what I was seeking at the moment — it wasn't exactly what I had in mind.  So, that link to the final spot on the path, today's pick, was really appreciated.  I ended up on a page with a simple, somewhat mysterious interface and started playing around.  Stickers, posters, characters, CD covers, themed stuff — all kinds of tasty visuals in a backdrop of odd sounds.  This very artisitic portfolio appears to include personal and work samples, but it's all presented simply and unembellished.  Though Rilla and her group are obviously in the design biz, a "mailto" contact link is the only thing you'll find here besides all of the cool stuff in the portfolio.  Wonderful, inspiring diversions (without commercial distractions) are what I was seeking on this particular excursion, and it was at the end of the path where I hit paydirt (everything along the way was really good, too).  Respect goin' out to Rilla and her "collective" for their cool art and designs...
   
• nerissa.org 7/19/01 
  Description: Just a little place for playing, experimentation and sharing ideas. It's all about having fun. (Flash)
  Comments: Nerissa's got a thing for summer — a most positive vibe — "big smiles, happy go lucky, pink, dimples, all u can eat, summer, recurring dreams, coconuts and pineapples, silly, knee high socks, skirts, memories, laughter, hugs, giggles..."  So, this is Nerissa's summer edition.  For the memories, there's that shoe box of old family photos and passports she found in the garage.  And there's the dream about finding an abandoned house.  I'm sure there's plenty of laughter and hugs with Pete, who is no stranger around here and played a part in that piece about the dreams — if Nerissa's lucky, it'll be all u can eat the next time he makes pizza.  And that section of vacation photos and commentary that she and Pete put together when they went to L.A. is pretty cool, too.  Ahh... summer at Nerissa's does bring big smiles if you get into it.  Nice site design and nice attitude.  And do check out the "active spaces" thingy...
   
• designdamage 7/18/01 
  Description: project based site features photography, cover archive, design news, and other works
  Comments: Eric Tsai states that the intention of his site is "propelling all of us to see and view the meanings behind designs and art, and not merely just pointing out differing visually aesthetic pieces."  He expresses a concern for reaching more than just designers with his digital art, saying it "needs a better language and newer ways of thinking" to appeal to the wider audience.  I find his thoughts intriguing.  "How do we engage our designs and make people think that it's more than just visual fetish or eye-candy?"  That's a challenge, indeed, but can we really make people think something other than they're actually thinking?  Is it possibly true that visual art is just visual fetish or eye-candy and that the deeper meaning is something that comes from deep within each viewer's perception of any given piece?  As I go through Eric's graphically intensive site, which I do appreciate greatly on a visual level, I can't help but wonder what the meaning behind any particular piece is for the designer/artist, though I am stuck with my own interpretation of it.  That, in my mind, is the way visual art works.  The language IS visual but newer ways of thinking may depend more on the viewer of the art than the artist — it may be futile to attempt to maneuver it otherwise.  Oh well, that was just my two-bit response to Eric's thought-provoking piece on "Conceptual Art/Design."  Today's pick is a great design with really tasty visuals (whatever they mean) and an outstanding collection of photography projects...
   
• Images by an animator 7/17/01 
  Description: Artistic black and white web site made by a Japanese animator. Unique moving icons with Flash are used. Also many drawing works are included.
  Comments: According to its "What is new" page, today's pick was last updated back in April.  So, I guess it might be a while before Japanese animator Maki Hosoi actually gets his "Animation" section up and running.  Though that seems ironic at first, the name of the site implies that it's images you'll be seeing from this animator and in that regard, he certainly does deliver the goods in the "Gallery."  To be accurate, I should say that you DO get plenty of animation here despite the mentioned section that's under construction — the navigation icons throughout the site are all very cool Flash animations!  It's those simple black and white icons with their tasty rollovers, the Gallery, and the simplicity of the design that really impressed me...
   
• terrorpilot|dot|com 7/16/01 
  Description: v 2.0 — "kill all web designers" — experimental flash portfolio. pain in the neck for the new economy. (mature content)
  Comments: The Italian designer who calls himself "swampthing" is one strange dude.  I'd seen the previous version of his site and wasn't sure what to make of it.  This new version, launched earlier this month, has made it all much clearer to me — this kickass designer is one strange dude (not necessarily a bad thing).  When one pulls out all the stops and lets it all out like this guy is doing, you've got to take notice and I'm sure that's what he's been thinking all along.  With a Flash intro that's a cross between Hitchcock, Scream, and Troma (definitely not for the faint-hearted) and a stated mission to "kill all web designers", swampthing is apparently going for the throat here and whether you like or not, you have got to take notice.  The "collective" weblog is an excellent addition to the site, balancing out the madness a bit, and the "covers" are good stuff.  What this site provides is a radical experience — a work of web art that's one of a kind.  What remains to be seen, I guess, is how people will respond to it...
   
• singlecell 7/13/01 
  Description: an online bestiary of interactive life-forms
  Comments: It's true.  These little creatures came into being as the new medium evolved.  New life forms, some raised on Java and others fed on various Macromedia nutrients, squirm around the screen waiting for user input.  Input.  We need input to complete our existence.  Wasn't it Paul Simon who said something like "it's all happening at the zoo?"  He was right.  Seems that one of these new beings has come into existence every month since January of this year, and each of the parents also has some other cool things to show ya.  In some cases, the user actually creates the creature "on the fly" or is that creates the fly "on the creature?"  A most interesting site.  Real web art.  Did I tell ya I love the web?
   
• Web Page Design for Designers 7/12/01 
  Description: dedicated to the creative side of web design - graphics, typography, writing and free-thinking
  Comments: Back in 1993, when much of the technology we take for granted today was still "science fiction", Joe was approached by the Daily Telegraph to create visual prototypes of a new concept — the "virtual" newspaper.  He was designing interfaces for the Apple Newton® at the time and the idea of providing content through portable devices was already in place, though it depended on the use of diskettes or some other storage media. The big question was how to deliver constantly updated content (like news) to the user.  A new freeware called Mosaic seemed to be part of the answer, and Joe was in on one of the earliest efforts to bring news to the new medium called the World Wide Web.  The rest is history.  Today's pick is Joe's site, created in 1996 to provide resources and information for web designers and it's simply one of the best its kind.  There's monthly editorial articles on contemporary topics written by Joe and others in the field and a wealth of resources for designers from beginner to expert.  Joe's credibility is solid in my book and his site is an absolute jewel...
   
• zefrank 7/11/01 
  Description: "making a fool of myself"
  Comments: Very seldom does someone submit a site to the portal cool zone that is not their own work but on rare occasions, one of my loyal visitors will submit a site that they thought was cool, though not their own.  I have to give weight to such a submission because if someone liked it enough to submit it without having anything to gain personally, they must have really liked it.  With that said, I want to thank a nice guy named Jeff for submitting this unique site, which provides some rather amusing content.  I would say more — in fact, I did say considerably more in the original posting of this review earlier this morning — unfortunately, it wasn't taken as intended, so I decided to "sanitize" it...
   
• design for chunks™ 7/10/01 
  Description: a selection of designers illustrate a sickbag in their own style
  Comments: Back in November, 2000, when I picked "the personal space of oz dean", I mentioned in the review that a certain "concept is one of the strangest ideas I've seen for a collaborative feature and I've got to wonder if it will fly - if it does, we're in for some amusing visuals."  Well, my friends, the concept DID fly and the submissions came flying in at a rate sufficient to create a separate domain for all those "amusing visuals."  Today's pick is the spin-off site based on Oz Dean's original concept and I think it's superb — the visuals are actually beyond amusing — there's some great ideas from a whole bunch of excellent designers.  I'm not sure when Oz created the separate site, but if you get a little whoozy when you fly, this one was made for you, baby...
   
• newtasty 7/6/01 
  Description: graphic design, illustration, web design, animation and video for monkeys, robots and ninjas in camouflage
  Comments: Thank preshaa for today's pick because that's where I found it.  A site with a name as accurate as they come, today's pick comes from the team of Stef Grindley and Steve Baker and features some great use of Flash.  The quick-loading piece called "anagram" on the cover tells you instantly that you DO want to enter the site — it's just that neat.  After entering, I checked out a piece called "chaos" and another called "stuart" and it left me thinking "they must be pros" but unless you view the source, you wouldn't think at all that they were "in the biz" and even there, all they say is that they're a "design collective specialising in..."  Had they said "we're the cutting edge of design and will bring your business into the future" or something like that, you wouldn't see 'em listed here, jiveturkey.  It's what I call "the fun factor" that's driving this baby and that's also obvious from their source — you gotta love their comments:
  
  
  
  "<!--sitename] says hello and blows big kisses to the world of design.
  "<!--Thankyou for looking at our code, is it as sexy as our frontend? -->"
  "<!--Oooh you like it don't you you saucy little code monkey. -->"
  
  
  
  But wanna know what really impressed me?  The portfolio has the coolest interface I've seen recently.  There's some loading you gotta wait for as you go, but the message you get as you're waiting is a gas and when it's done loading, you'll love the way it's presented as much as the content itself — very cool.  And the links listing ain't bad either.  Stef and Steve rock... really.
   
• surfacemedia 7/4/01 
  Description: Modern Design. An experimental site featuring work of Australian designer Matthew Arthur. Both Flash and HTML versions. Features include a folio and downloadable desktops.
  Comments: Today's pick is available in Flash and non-Flash versions and Matthew's done a great job of making the two versions quite similar.  I was particularly impressed by the interface and presentation in the portfolio section of the Flash version, and the overall site design is superb.  Though Matthew calls it a space to display both experimental and commercial work samples, the site's a little heavy on the work side of things.  The work samples are excellent but the only personal stuff, for now, are some cool desktops — maybe more pieces done for fun and experimentation are in the works.  The "about" section only talked about Matthew's education and work experience, too.  I humbly suggest that a site like this, as great as it is, would be so much better if the personality of the person behind it was more visible.  Many users just don't care about job titles and client lists and may turned off by the site, especially if they're not designers themselves.  But, then again, we all choose our target audience and create our content accordingly...
   
• zoorex.com 7/3/01 
  Description: Holographik display of noise and distortion by Zylonzoo. Also serves as your daily inspiration site.
  Comments: "If you are noticing that there is a scrollbar in this news, i'm still working on it. he-he."  Rex Advincula decided to go ahead and launch the "B4CKTO5K00L" edition now, though his plan was to release it in August.  So, the news window is a little funky at the moment but I'm sure Rex will resize the div and set the "overflow" to "auto" and it'll end up looking good.  Today's pick is extraordinary and I could hardly do it justice by commenting too much on it.  Spectacular backgrounds, a knock-out collection of visuals and sweet design should cover it.  Rex aka Zylonzoo has been doin' it good for some time now — he's also one of the people behind The Half Project.  This major force in Filipino design is becoming quite well known everywhere.  Keep up your great work, Rex — we love it!