Archive for August, 2011

The Steve Jobs Formula and Why It Works

The Steve Jobs Formula and Why It Works

Steve JobsI quickly grew tired of reading about Steve Jobs retiring last week. Practically every tech-blog filled their front page with article after article covering it. There were a few that I found interesting, one of which is The Steve Jobs Formula and Why It Works, by Scott Fulton at ReadWriteWeb.

The article covers six key things that we can look to Apple, and Steve Jobs, for examples of how and why it works.

  • Make it all one platform
  • Make your mission a cause
  • Make them look into your eyes
  • Fight to the death, every time, all the time
  • Surround yourself with smarter people, then own them like your children
  • Let the world see you fall, then rise again

While the article is focused on Steve Jobs and what he’s done at Apple, when you read it you can see that it’s really a formula for successful business in general.

Of course, you’ll have the opportunity to read more about Steve Jobs, including more about his resignation this past week, in November when Steve Jobs (the biography) by Walter Isaacson is released.

08/29/2011 Read More
Free brushes: Rising smoke

Free brushes: Rising smoke

Rising smoke brushes

Click to download free rising smoke Photoshop brushes

08/26/2011 Read More
Steve Jobs: “That day has come.”

Steve Jobs: “That day has come.”

Steve Jobs

Health issues aside, it really was time for Steve to step down

When I think back on the entire length of my career, I find that it has been tied (for good or for bad) to Steve Jobs. From the Apple II, to the Mac, to NeXT, back to the Mac again, iPods, to my current iPhone, I’ve been using Steve Jobs’ devices and software virtually every day. It’s kind of weird to think about, really.

We all knew Steve Jobs would be retiring soon, and after the last keynote speech, most of us knew it was going to be much sooner than people thought; due to the obvious health issues. With Apple announcing Steve Jobs’ resignation today, I (like many of you) enter a new Apple era. Unlike the last time Steve left Apple, this time it’s in great hands and on top of the world. When you think about it, he really couldn’t have chosen a better time to retire as CEO of the company he founded.

I’m not going to repeat the hundreds of articles that popped up yesterday after the announcement. Instead I’ll just say this: Thanks, Steve. Thanks for the vision, courage and leadership. Thanks for making our lives easier, and better.

08/24/2011 Read More
How to apply pseudo-HDR image enhancement to your photos

How to apply pseudo-HDR image enhancement to your photos

Sometimes even a photo that has been composed perfectly needs a little something to really make it pop. Or maybe you just want to jazz it up for use in a text-heavy document. There’s a simple way to give it a pseudo-HDR effect using Adobe Photoshop, or even Pixelmator.

Pseudo-HDR effect

The original image lacks the oomph we're looking for

The original image above is really nice. It’s well-composed, has great depth and color, and would probably be fine as is. To give it some punch, you make a duplicate of the background layer by hitting Command + J, and set the Layer Blending Mode to Overlay using the drop-down menu at the top of the Layers panel.

Pseudo-HDR effect

Adding a few layer copies can boost the overall color & contrast

While the image already shows boosted color and contrast, try duplicating that newly created layer again using Command + J. The Blending Mode should already be set to Overlay, but if it isn’t go ahead and do so. As you can see in the image above, the effect is quite stunning. But if you feel you went too far, adjust the Transparency of the top-most layer until you’re satisfied.

08/24/2011 Read More
Easily open emails containing “winmail.dat” attachments in Mac OS X

Easily open emails containing “winmail.dat” attachments in Mac OS X

If you’ve ever received an email that is nothing more than an email with an attachment named winmail.dat, you’ve no doubt been frustrated. Thankfully, there are two utilities you can download for free that can help you read these files.

If you’re not familiar with winmail.dat files, they are simply emails sent from Windows users running Microsoft Outlook via an Exchange server who composed the email using RichText.

MailRaider

MailRaider can extract the text and images in that winmail.dat email attachment

MailRaider from 45 RPM Software, and TNEF’s Enough by Josh Jacob are both stand-alone utilities you can use to easily extract the RichText file and any images they may contain.

Both utilities worked perfectly for me running under Mac OS X Lion, as well as Snow Leopard.

08/22/2011 Read More
Free image: Rusty warehouse door

Free image: Rusty warehouse door

Rusty Warehouse Door

Click the image above to download the full size image

I recently posted the above Instagram image (which of course shows up in my personal Facebook feed), and got a few email requests asking if I had a larger version of the image. Rather than offer it over email, I’ve opted to share it here instead. Feel free to use this 2,592 x 1,936 3.4MB JPG image in any manner you see fit.

08/19/2011 Read More
Infographic: History of design tools

Infographic: History of design tools

History of Design Tools

Do you remember when Illustrator was released? Was it before Photoshop?

I’m a huge fan of infographics, so when I saw The History of Design Tools, I had to share it. It’s a simple chart taking a look back at the major pieces of software used in the design industry since the release of the Mac.

08/18/2011 Read More
Free font: Skullphabet

Free font: Skullphabet

Skullphabet font

Absolutely no legitimate use for this font, but you'll want it anyway!

I know, I know. But it’s such a cool looking font, and it’s free. Download it, you know you want to. I promised myself that before my career is over, I WILL find a use for this font!

08/17/2011 Read More
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