fuss & feathers: blog » Web Design

The war of the music (radio) sites…

Sarah W. Rose — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 09:21:05 +0000

At work, I am currently in a music drought. I recently subscribed to Spotify and I am somewhat disappointed with the “radio” aspect of their application. The recommendations are few and far between and very “mainstream.” I was hoping for an experience somewhat like last.fm…but with unlimited listening and somewhat tolerable ads. Oh well. Spotify, I want to love you, I want to love you even more because you’re Swedish….surprise me! Dorah recently introduced me to Qobuz. I must admit, I find their design quite catchy; I like the typo choice for the headers (the capitals framed in a bar is something that always attracts me like tinfoil in a bird’s nest), yet, they lose points with the use of Times New Roman (works when the font is small, doesn’t work when the font is big). They seem to be having a typography crisis. I also enjoy how site maps (see bottom of Qobuz) are becoming more and more stylized and less of an afterthought…. but that’s just me. Okay, wait, at a third glace, it seems pretty amateur.

In any case, people are making a big fuss over Spotify (potentially) publishing an iPhone App, I heard some rumor (must be confirmed) about last.fm merging with iTunes (maybe that will correct the problem that is otherwise known as “Genius”), and Deezer made a huge design change…perhaps in attempt to catch up with the others. But if I could create a metaphor with social network sites, Deezer was my Friendster… sorry Deezer. I was very disappointed when one day, I could listen to my bands in your database and the next day, they were still in your database but the play button was seemingly “blocked.” If you had given me an explanation, I would have forgiven you.

Anyway, this article is more “Sarah whining” than a veritable analysis….because I have a lot of of other things that I should be analyzing at the moment. But here’s a taste of web radio as of September 2009 (and sorry record companies, I haven’t purchased a CD in about 5 years):

Spotify

Last Fm

iTunes

Deezer

Qubuz

2009 Webby Awards Music : Design vs. Function vs. Content

Sarah W. Rose — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 21:28:57 +0000

Recently, I’ve been trying to get a feel for the “Webby Awards” and how they are classified and distributed. This came about mostly out of a desire to see what is current and innovative and to see if I could find any sort of design inspiration for my job. Overall, I cannot say that there are many surprises. The category list seems to grow every year and I’d say that the list has become too long and the distinction between categories has become too blurry. So blurry that it’s becoming less and less of a reference point. If it is safe to say, the Webby Awards seem to be driven by content, hence it’s not a designer’s playground. There are a few surprises, but most of the nominations seem obvious…if not redundant.

Browsing the music category, I landed upon the NPR music site (webby award winner and people’s choice winner) whose content has really evolved over the years. I just went on the site and I am listening live to the Newport Folk Festival (specifically Fleet Foxes) and the sound is crystal clear… NPR was never about bells and whistles; it has always been driven by quality content and I can say as much about their music site (as well as their blogs, which are written by real / dedicated, intelligent bloggers (not like this one)).

So to summarize this article about nothing in particular with a rhetorical question : are the Webby’s really important? They seem to be driven by content, which I suppose is a good thing in the laissez-faire virtual world full of bots, spammers and sex addicts. The Webby’s are perhaps testament to the idea that there is still hope for the virtual age : when newspapers, magazines and books, yes books, disappear, all communication with not automatically turn to gurgles, burps and scribbles. That and I secretly dream of working for a company that wins a Webby …because it looks like one classy party.

Google Map place markers : Looking for solutions…

Sarah W. Rose — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 08:21:23 +0000

I am looking for examples of efficient / inventive Google Map symbols / place markers… and I’m wondering if a library / archive already exists. I found “Making Maps: DIY Cartography”, as well as “Google Earth: the basics of creating placemarks.” I am fluctuating between the 3-dimensional rounded “pin” or the flat “bubble” pin (does it have a name?) . In any case, I am thinking if the pin itself is not 3D, the shadow is key.

If anyone knows of a good ressource, let me know !