Author: Ty Dunitz

I’m a fan of 6pt type, but this is ridiculous. Computer science professor Ken Perlin has decided to claim the title of designer of the smallest readable screen font. His font, above (duh), is able to compact the first 500 words of the Declaration of Independence into a 320×240 rectangle – perfect for mobile devices. “My design,” says Perlin, “assumes that screen pixels are horizontal striped as RGBRGB, as are most LCD screens these days.” And frankly, that knowledge alone helps substantially in the legibility of this typeface – which, since Perlin has apparently given it no name, I have decided…

Don’t mess with Benedict XVI – guy is all up on this internet business like ain’t never been seen. Dude has his own YouTube channel. Heavy. But the internet is serious business, and Benedict wants us to remember as such, issuing a warning to web-goers the world over last week. His Popage cautioned internet users that the web has “numbed” young people, creating an “educational emergency – a challenge that we can and must respond to with creative intelligence.” According to AFP, the Pope claims a large number of young people “establish forms of communication that to do not increase humaneness but…

Assuming you visit the Apple front page with any degree of regularity, you may have noticed that today, it’s been replaced with the above. Apparently, tomorrow we’re going to get an ‘exciting announcement’ from iTunes. Frankly, Steve, I dunno about that: seems your last exciting iTunes announcement was Ping, and last I checked in, it was still a pile of crap. So forgive me if I remain a little apprehensive of your promise that I’m truly never going to forget the day you released… well, whatever it is. I suppose we can speculate on that, can’t we? From where I’m sitting, this can be one of three things:…

According to TechCrunch, Facebook has sent out invitations to a media event on November 15th, where Mark & Friends will reveal ‘Project Titan’ – what is expected to be a web-based email client, allowing users to register @facebook.com email addresses. Apparently, TechCrunch says that Project Titan is internally referred to as the ‘Gmail killer’. And the plot thickens, and Facebook and Google continue to be grouchy at each other, and the world continues to turn. Honestly, would you want an @facebook email account? Is that more, or less cheap-sounding than Hotmail?…

I’m one of those who denies the iPad’s usefulness as a creative tool. Sure, there are cute little apps for that let you make cute little tunes, but despite a few notable, robust apps, there’s not much real use a serious musician can get out of an iPad. Apparently, Gorillaz creator Damon Albarn doesn’t agree with me, and is planning to release a new Gorillaz album before Christmas – the second one this year, following the celebrated Plastic Beach. The schtick? “I’ve made it on an iPad,” says Albarn to NME. “I hope I’ll be making the first record on an iPad.” As far as we know, dude, you will be. “I…

I have no idea how the dude finds the time. You thought Big Steve emailing his customers back was unusually conscientious? Get this: The Seattle Times is reporting the tale of iPad developer Ram Arumugan and his recent experience with the App Store approval process. After having developed an app, Economy for iPad, Ram found his work rejected for using a private API call that, interestingly enough, fixed a bug with the iPad’s virtual keyboard. In frustration, Ram ultimately emailed Big Steve about the rejection. Surely Apple would make an exception for an API call that improves the performance…

Illustrator James Gurney has found a prototype of Apple’s next big release: the iBox. This is big, guys. I can’t say anything that James can’t say better than I can, and since he’s the maker of this discovery, I’ll let him have the floor. Look what someone accidentally left in a laundromat in Italy—a working prototype of Apple’s much-rumored new iBox, ahead of the official launch. It’s a lot smaller than the MacBook Pro, and even a bit narrower than the iPad. The design of the outside is very simple, with no connection ports at all. It keeps to the same simple brushed aluminum look with rounded…

My apartment hasn’t had cable for years, and I’m pretty strapped for cash most of the time – understandably, I’m a little behind in the advertising world. But hot damn, have commercials for videogames ever been getting high budget. This one for Call of Duty: Black Ops will either be the best commercial you’ve seen in awhile, or the worst. The cameos by Kimmel and Bryant (and… maybe there’s other stars in there too, I’m terrible with Hollywood) are great touches, and the guy at the end is, of course, gut-bustingly funny – but on the other hand, I have never seen an ad glorify war like this one does. It…

Surely you’ve had that roommate. You know the one. The one that leaves passive-aggressive notes on the fridge about how nice it would be if someone would do the dishes, and stuff. The worst, right? Google is that roommate. Perhaps threatened by Facebook being… well, being Facebook, Google has posted a new alert to users attempting to import their contact data. Check it out. Ouch. ‘Trap my contacts’? Can we go over a couple of things, Google? Firstly, er… Facebook DOES let you export your data. In fact, with a single click, you can download your entire profile. If you ask me, that counts as ‘control…

I’ve never used nor liked the term ‘nerdgasm’, but I feel the need to point out that I’ve just experienced one – so for the purposes of this article, the term is appropriate. Courtesy of Furious Fanboys is a blueprint of the Millenium Falcon, in its entirety. You can thank me later. Unless you’re not much of a Star Wars fan. You don’t have to thank me, then. Click to enlarge that bad boy….