Focusing on twitter the last few days and inspired by the beuatiful weather outside I went through my followers list and stumbled uppon two awesome “outdoor” gifts you might not have thought about before:

For bird lovers and Big Brother enthusiasts:

found on Nischenartikel.de (@nischenartikel)

 
Your loved one inherited his granny’s garden plot but doesn’t like the shoddy cabin on it? So this might be something for you:

cabin by Form & Forrest (@FormAndForest)

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This is the twitter noise reduction apparatus:

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As twitter is ever growing more and more clutter is flushing the social messaging service. Starting with twitter I often followed others without really thinking of the value I might receive by following people.

As a matter of fact twitter became more and more a time sink instead of a valuable source of information and interaction platform for me.

Consequently I started with my “3-question-twitter-follower-strategy” which I stick to whenever I think of following someone. So far I think it worked pretty good out to keep me focused on mass customization & generative design, sustainability and social media which are some of the key areas I am interested in. So here are the 3 questions:

1. Does he/she inspire me (fun, cool ideas, wisdom,…)  by the way he/she writes?

2. Do I like the stuff he/she does/writes/promotes? 

3. Is the content provided connected to any of my professional or personal interests?

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Every time I answer all 3 questions with NO -> Sorry pal, you are dismissed.
1 YES out of 3 -> you get a chance over the next couple of days.
If I answer 2 questions out of 3 or 3 out of 3 with YES -> you’re in the game.

Easy, isn’t it? So what’s your strategy to reduce noise?

I would love to read your about your ideas?

 Additionally it won’t harm to introduce some people/brands/organizations worth following to you:

Carrotmob: 

BIO: In a boycott, everyone loses. In a Carrotmob, everyone wins

Carrotmob is a movement and network that rewards business owners making the most socially responsible decisions. In a competition business owners (e.g. a fashion shop) can apply for a carrotmob. The mob (similiar to a flash mob/smart mob) purchases products from the company investing the highest percentage of the mob-revenues into sustainable projects

dmscott:

David Meerman Scott, evangelist of the New Rules of Marketing and PR. Everyone interested in Marketing and PR should check out Meerman Scott’s publications. My favorites are his books – they are concise, easy reads and full of inspiring stuff.

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ArminWolf:

Austria’s Nr.1 Anchor Man of the national broadcaster ORF. Valuable news and funny comments with sarcastic touch. Tweets are in German

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qrpower:

I added qrpower recently. qrpower is a great source for everything connected to mobile tagging especially QR Codes.

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wildscreenTV:

If you are a “What will the future of music-business will be” or “a music flatrate will save the world” type of boy or girl than check out wildscreentv. Chris provides you with vivid insights on music marketing. Check the WildscreenTV Video platform as well. Good Indie Music!

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zappos:

Tweetfeed of Zappos‘ CEO Tony Hsieh – full of interesting, amusing and also fun executive insights.

And out of the mass customization, diy, digital fabrication and open innovation universe:

Fabbaloo:

Fabbaloo tracks all the developments in Fabbing, 3D Printing and Desktop Manufacturing.

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openp2pdesign:

Massimo focuses on Open Systems and Open Collaborative Projects. He was also co-organizing the iRealize – the art of disruption design workshop recently hosted in Italy. He always provides us with very useful and interesting links!

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makerbot:

MakerBot Industries creates open source robot kits (not unlike the Bits from Bytes desktop 3d printer) that transform your digital designs into physical objects automatically.
Besides their open source fabbing project I also like makerbots  “tah tah, now WE are here!” attitude.

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bruces:

Bruce Sterling is a dedicated Wired contributor  (Beyond the Beyond) and generative design enthusiast.

pic by f!to

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Thick air in big cities is –at least for the majority of townspeople- a circumstance they have to live with, when wanting to lead an urban lifestyle. However, respirable dust, smog, exhaust gases and industrial dust harm one’s health. Additionally also the facades of our most favorite builings are affected. The „Elegant Embellishments Ltd“ developed with  „Prosolve 370e“ something that could make this world a better place- at least in that matter.

At the moment some people in Berlin have a view comparable to one out of a honeycomb. The white air-improvement installation „Prosolve 370e“ is added on buildings and is astonishingly similar to bees dwellings. So you can lead a life like queen bee and simultanously breathe fresh air. Fantastic, isn’t it?

The facts speak fort itself: „Prosolve 370e“ follows the standards of the EU clean air strategy for 2005 and is supposed to reduce pollution deaths by over 100 000, and air pollution related damages by up to 45 billion Euros annually. The idea is good, but is the world ready for it?

Will these do-gooders soon be installed in the hearts of our congested areas? And will they be as good as promised? We’ll see. Certain, however, ist that the „Prosolve 370e“ is truly good-looking and once added to the eyesores of the city they will definitely grade up ugly rows of houses.

Pictures by Designboom

Via Designboom

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QR Codes get more and more attention even in Europe – I think we’re partly responsible for that  . 

Using the momentum we give you a glimpse of what we are compassing next and consequently like to introduce the QRring and the QR Cuff Links to you!

Yep! Soon you can leave your old-fashioned, granny style rings at home and show off your 21st century interpretation of the classic signet ring. And the QR Cuff Links will make it for an action loaded scene in the next James Bond movie

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This was the “pain in the a**” creation of the first prototype:

More to be announced soon!

Learn more about QR Codes.

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Via Fabbaloo I found a 3d print service focused on 3d-printing your game avatar from digital models. Not unlike Figureprints, a digital fabricator recreating your virtual World of Warcraft character as a fully detailed 3D replic, Offload Studio turns your virtual Super Hero into a real one. This service might also be a big deal for the thousands of Warhammer enthusiasts out there…

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Offload Studio about their approach:

Imagine a system where the game player can take their virtual personal experience to their personal reality by holding in their hands their own unique customized game character. Offload Studios Inc. has developed a production pipeline that will support the GameMaker’s desire to diversify their player’s experience and realize physical custom products from the game. These artifacts are created as fully coloured figurines. Building upon technologies borrowed from the rapid prototyping industry, Offload Studios provides the spectrum of service required to bring your virtual world to your player’s physical reality.

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If you like to get a deeper insight into Offload Studio, I recommend you this interview with Bill Henderson, Founder of Offload Studios.

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Dicke Luft in den Städten ist für viele eine Tatsache, etwas, mit dem man einfach leben muss, wenn man einen urbanen Lebensstil führen will. Doch Feinstaub, Smog, Abgase und Industriegebläse schädigen oft die Gesundheit der Städter beziehungsweise das Antlitz der Gebäude. Die „Elegant Embellishments Ltd“ hat mit ihrem „Prosolve 370e“ etwas entwickelt, das die Welt-zumindest in dieser Hinsicht- verbessern könnte.

Einen Ausblick, wie aus einer Bienenwabe haben derzeit schon einige Berliner, denn der weiße Luftverbesserer wird an Häusern angebracht und ähnelt stark der Machart von Bienenbehausungen! So kann man also Leben wie eine Bienenkönigin und gleichzeitig sogar noch frische Luft einatmen. Fantastisch, nicht?

Die Fakten sprechen für sich: Der „Prosolve 370e“ folgt den Standards der EU Strategie für Reine Luft 2005 und soll über 100.000 Todesfälle, die aufgrund von Luftverschmutzung passieren verhindern und zusätzlich Beschädigungen von bis zu 45 Milliarden Euro vermeiden. Die Idee ist gut, doch ist die Welt dazu bereit?

Werden im Herzen unserer Ballungszentren bald solche Weltverbesserer angebracht werden und sind sie wirklich das gelbe vom Ei, wie sie versprechen? Das wird sich weisen. Sicher jedoch ist, dass sie verdammt gut ausschauen und viele der Ekelbauten definitiv aufwerten würden. Bin schon gespannt wie ein Bogen, ob ich diese wabernden Gebilde bald auf der einen oder anderen Häuserfront betrachten kann. 

Pictures by Designboom

Via Designboom

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Imagine a world without I-Phones, Sony Ericsson, Blackberry-giants or Nokia. Imagine a cellphone so thin that you could easily use it as a tissue. (Or Kleenex if you want.) Imagine a cellphone lighter than a fly and even more graceful than the I-Phone. If you manage to do that, your thoughts will maybe produce an inner picture resembling the design by Ilshat Garipov. The Kambala. Its colour is elegant black and its design puristic. As far as design is concerned, Garipov, with the Kambala concentrated on the essential. However, with a great amount of style.

 My puff piece still lackst the best about Kambala. In four simple steps you can easily change the cellphone into an earphone, which –logically- fits into your ear perfectly and keeps your hands free while telephoning. While you are calling your friends and family you can now drive your car, write an essay, play basketball or hit the drums. Or –if you wish- pick your nose with both hands at a time. Wouldn’t that be nice?

 That was a „nice“ transition to the only critics that I found in the whole wide web. The big discussion in the Kambala-forum dealt with earwax. Yeah, really, you heard me! People are discussing whether the Kambala stays clean or not after putting it into the ear. Guys! Really…listen to me and clean your ears more properly. Then your Kambala will stay clean and neat. 

Images by Yanko Design

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Back in the office after a long weekend I reflect upon the few days at iRealize last week. In the front of my mind is the ”to die for” Kitchen in the apartment of Andrea Clemente from ToDo, wow! Also seeing the Spamghetto wallpaper by Giorgio Olivero of  ToDo was great. I wish I had thought of that!  Finally meeting Massimo Menichinelli from Open Peer-to-Peer Design after having knowing him only through twitter was great. I also got the chance to chat to Massimo Banzi about Arduino and caught up with Michal Piasecki.

By the way thanks to ToDo and Massimo for you hard work and hospitality!

As for the workshop and conference, it was held in a converted warehouse which has been turned into a film studio for shooting movies and commercials. It apparently cost Turin a few million Euro each year and doesn’t really get used. It was nice though .

In the workshop we brainstormed some disruptive solutions to the present technological and social situation. Reading in the New York Times this morning it seems one idea coming out of my group seems to have been realized in part by the start-up founded in December, GoodGuide.

In the conference I particularly enjoyed Peter Savilles talk about becoming the creative director responsible for the brand Manchester, yes the brand Manchester. Many of the talks, which were mostly in Italian unfortunately, got  to some extent lost in translation.

Of course owing to his mind that appears to works differently and perhaps more efficiently than most of ours, Bruce Sterling provided some interesting perspectives on the re-appropriation of spaces: The stuffed animals as he calls them.

Geoff Manaugh of BLDGBLOG spoke of a good example of minor disruption (Disruption was the theme of the event). A friend of his told him that to get Americans out of their cars and into trains all that is needed is Wi-Fi in the trains.

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Stell dir eine Welt ohne I-Phones, Sony Ericsson, Blackberry-Brummer oder Nokia vor. Stell dir vor, dein Mobiltelefon wäre so dünn, dass du es sogar als Serviette verwenden könntest. (Oder als Taschentuch!) Stell dir ein Telefon vor, das leichter ist als eine Fliege und einen Tick graziöser als das Iphone: Dann, aber nur dann, kommen deine Gedanken in etwa auf das wunderschöne Design von Ilshat Garipov, mit dem klingenden Namen Kambala. Elegantes Schwarz zeichnet das puristische Design aus.Ilshat Garipov konzentriert sich designtechnisch auf das Wesentlichste. Und das mit Stil.

Dabei habe ich das beste daran noch gar nicht verraten: In 4 simplen Schritten kann man das Handy schnurstracks in einen Kopfhörer verwandeln, der dann logischerweise am Ohr hält und fürs Freihandtelefonieren bestens einsetzbar ist. Dann kann man nebenher Autofahren, Schreiben, Basketball- oder Schlagzeugspielen oder auch mit beiden Händen Nasenbohren, das wäre doch was?

Dieser Punkt bringt mich gleich zum einzigsten Kritikpunkt, der im Kambala-Forum heftig diskutiert wurde: Ohrenschmalz! Wirklich! Leute…putzt euch eure Ohren, dann bleibt auch nichts an eurem pipifeinen neuen Telefon hängen, wenn ihr es mal schwupdiwupps in eine Freisprecheinrichtung umfunktioniert habt.

Pictures by Yanko Design

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Recently launching the QR Belt Buckle, a buckle you design yourself with custom QR Codes, I thought it’s time to take a look around the QR Code Universe and check out what other people do with QR Codes.

If you are not familiar with QR Codes, here is a short (Wikipedia) introduction to the two dimensional pixel-pattern:

A QR Code is a matrix code (or two-dimensional bar code) created by Japanese corporation Denso-Wave in 1994. The “QR” is derived from “Quick Response”, as the creator intended the code to allow its contents to be decoded at high speed. QR Codes are common in Japan, where they are currently the most popular type of two dimensional codes. Moreover, most current Japanese mobile phones can read this code with their camera.

If you want to learn more about the Codes read  this more detailed description of Bar Codes and QR Codes or watch the video guide to Bar Codes. Additionally check out the slide shows “Whats the power behind 2D Barcodes” and “Trends”

Vizitag.com also gives  you some useful information about the codes in their free ebook “Mobile Tagging – Getting Started”.

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I conducted the following list to provide you with an idea how useful QR Codes can be and what people really do with them. If you know other great sources or more cool appliances of QR Codes and Mobile Tagging please drop us a line!

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QR CODES IN FASHION ART & MUSIC:

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Lendorff.Kaywa Scarf:

Lendorff.Kaywa is a collaboration between London based pixel-knitwear designers Office Lendorff and mobile enthusiasts Kaywa from Zurich, Switzerland.

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Fluid Forms QR Belt Buckle:

Turn your custom QR Codes into a belt buckle with our online design-interface

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QR Art on Flickr:
Different approaches to QR Art can be reviewed on the Flickr Foto Pool with QR-Art

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Pet Shop Boys Video “Integral”:
British popgroup Pet Shop Boys used QR Codes for the artwork of their download-only single Integral in 2007.
The videoclip for the song also features QR Codes

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QR DECODER & QR READER SOFTWARE DOWNLOADS:

Decode QR Codes online or download the reader software for your apple, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung or Sonyericcson mobile phone

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QR CODE GENERATOR:

Generate QR Codes with the Kaywa QR Code Generator

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QR CODES – ARTICLES, BLOGS & FACEBOOK:

Mobile Tagging Blog (German):

The Mobile Tagging Blog covers developments, news, and stories concerning the world of mobile tagging

Mashable on QR Codes:
You don’t know how to use QR Codes?
Find 5 reasonable answers in the mashable article “5 Unique Uses for QR Codes”

More sources:

All About Mobile Life Blog – The Kaywa Blog about mobile life

2d code - News, views and analysis about QR Codes and two dimensional bar codes

Article on David Harper’s Blog – Different Things Mainstream America is ready for Bar Codes – Converging “Realspace” and “Mobilespace”

Article on Norbert Hillinger’s Blog Filmvermarktung 2.0 - Mobile Coding – Neue Wege (auch) für das Kinoticket und die Filmpromotion (Article in German)

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Facebook & QR Codes:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/QR-Code/46402543055

QR CODES & SCIENCE:
The QR Code page of the University of Graz is a great academic source to QR Codes. Find descriptions, links and videos (in German)

Comments & more suggestions welcome!!!

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