Cool Hunting
Whether the standard wallpaper options (picture of your pet, swirly thing) bore you or you just like having a global perspective, Earthdesk takes your desktop to the next level by making it into a constantly updated view of the earth. The app uses geographical and time zone stats to create a customizable, info-rich image.
The most striking part, of course, is that Earthdesk provides a visual of time passing, with accurate shading delineating night, twilight and daytime. It also (seemingly almost magically) shows real clouds, light emitted by cities and moonlight (which can be adjusted to show more or less city light). Other customization options include political and natural views, as well as the ability to lock the map to a city, the sun or the moon to get a different perspective. We don't say it a lot around CH, but this one is truly awe-inspiring.
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Berlin-based interactive firm Whitevoid is getting a lot of well-deserved attention for their data visualization for Lufthansa's Brand Academy in Frankfurt. Visitors to the center can see all 14,000 Lufthansa and Star Alliance flights worldwide in real time and with a 360° view. The project allows for interaction with flight data, zoom in on specific flights or areas and listening to radio communications, etc....
With so many ways to stay socially connected these days it's difficult to keep track of it all. The new Adobe AIR application Skimmer sorts this problem out with its clean, minimal interface that conveniently aggregates Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Youtube and Bebo activity in to a single list view while still allowing you expand each item to view the full details—all within the application. Skimmer...
When, on this Saturday on 28 March 2009 from 8:30-9:30 pm local time, people around the world switch off the lights, they will be participating in Earth Hour. Created and organized by the World Wildlife Fund, the goal is to raise awareness about the climate crisis and how it's affecting the world we live in. For one hour, with the participation of millions, Earth...
Combining science with art to talk about some of the pertinent issues of our times, Andreas Nicholas Fischer's data sculptures are beautiful executions of scientific information. The Munich-born, Berlin-based artist, like Chris Jordan, is leading the way in a certain type of art that opens the dialogue about issues we face today, from the economy to privacy violations. Proving himself as both a skilled craftsman...
Thanks in part to laptop stands like this two-tiered one by Staton, the days of lugging around crates of vinyl are slowly fading as DJs trade their decks in for laptop setups. Although we're the first to argue that nothing quite compares to a record, advancements in programs like Serato and the ease of carrying thousands of mp3 tracks have made going digital more palatable...
Perhaps the most intuitive backup solution on the market, Backblaze launched last September as an online data storage center emphasizing simplicity at a reasonable—if perpetual—price. While initially drawing ease-of-use comparisons to Apple's Time Machine, they recently released their own Mac platform, currently in Beta form. Like the PC version, Backblaze continuously monitors files for changes and uploads them to an offsite server. Though the...
