Matthew D. Dekenah

Shared by Matt
Says a lot for the education at UJ.

(images via: tony demarco)

Outdoor advertising is so ubiquitous in almost every urban setting around the world, it’s difficult to walk down a street, take an escalator or sit on a bench without getting slapped in the face with one product or another. But the city of São Paulo, Brazil is like an advertising ghost town: all of its billboards stand oddly blank and empty.

In September of 2007, the world’s fourth-largest metropolis was scrubbed of almost every type of outdoor advertising – even pamphlets. It’s all part of mayor Gilberto Kassab’s quest to eliminate visual clutter, making the city itself the focal point rather than colorful, increasingly desperate marketing campaigns.

(images via: eduardoZ)

“The Clean City Law came from a necessity to combat pollution . . . pollution of water, sound, air, and the visual. We decided that we should start combating pollution with the most conspicuous sector – visual pollution,” said Kassab.

The results are astounding: gone are the 50-foot lingerie ads and oversized neon signs a la Times Square. In their place are strange vacancies, gaping holes… space. Suddenly, the architecture and natural scenery come into sharp focus.

(image via: katedubya)

While advertisers weren’t too happy about the law – $8 million in fines were levied against those who dawdled in taking ads down, and Clear Channel launched an unsuccessful campaign to raise support for putting them back up – the citizens clearly approve. Surveys found that at least 70% are happy with the change.

---

Want More? Click for Great Related Content on WebUrbanist:

11 Unusually Cool Outdoor Furniture Designs: Part Eight in an Eight-Part Unusual Furniture Series

The two types of typical outdoor space: the tiny space that’s so cramped it’s nearly unusable, and the surprisingly large space that just begs for designed furniture. 15 Comments - Click Here to Read More »»

---

Bright Lights, City Life: The World While You Sleep

If you thought these places were glorious during the day, wait till you see them at night. 23 Comments - Click Here to Read More »»

---

Sin City Skinny Dip: 10 Luxurious Las Vegas Hotel Pools

From last resort to desert oasis, Las Vegas' host of hotels have helped make the gambling mecca a fabulous fun destination and the party starts in the pool. 4 Comments - Click Here to Read More »»

---

Seriously, why is everyone in such a rush?

Acer working on frameless laptop with touchscreen keyboard? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

They say that chip technology doubles every two years. We've disproven that limitation.

Shared by Matt
Rad.

Nendo does it again with the Fade-Out Chair. Realizing that our perception of furniture is heavily influenced by the space around it, Nendo decided to turn this relationship on its head with a chair that changes the look and feel of a space it’s placed within. Fade-Out’s back and seat are constructed of wood and the clear acrylic legs use trompe d’oeil to gradually fade into what seems to be a mist or fog. The chair was recently featured in Ghost Stories: New Designs from Nendo at New York’s Museum of Art & Design.

Durex Pleasuremax condoms offers the maximum stimulation that you can enjoy with uniquely positioned ribs and raised dot.

Advertising Agency: Grey G2/Group, Düsseldorf, Germany
Chief Creative Officer: Per Pedersen
Creative Director: Katja Luckas
Art Director / Copywriter: Ursel Barwinski
Producer: Danilo Klöfer
Post Production: Locomotion Digital Facilities GmbH
Print Production: Nicole Heese, Peter Engel
Published: March 2010

Zapiro continues to hit the nail on the head in the South African political sphere. 

So much for “Do No Evil”…

via reddit.com

Want to see more Google Streetview fun? Check out our collection of ”The Best Google Street View Fails, Wins, And WTF’s“.

Simple blogging platform Tumblr has finally added the ability to add static pages to your Tumblelog.

Tumblr has grown a great deal without this feature — its simplicity has always been its selling point. However, many companies need static pages — it’s often the best way to provide contact info, company data and more to provide customers with the information they need. Regular users can use them to describe who they are or what they are working on.

Now tumblrs have the option to build pages. While simple overall (it’s just like building a blog post), you do get three choices for layouts: standard (title and body with your tumblelogs’s layout), custom (create a page with a completely custom theme), and redirect (forward a page to another domain).

The new pages feature seems to keep Tumblr’s simplicity intact while providing a very necessary feature to many bloggers. From the looks of commenters though, the feature still has a few bugs. So Tumblr users, let us know what you think of the addition in the comments!

Tags: Blogigng, tumblr

In December 2008, Microsoft surprised a lot of people by releasing an iPhone app — Seadragon Mobile. A month later, they ensured the move wasn’t taken as a joke or gimmick by launching another app, Tag, into Apple’s App Store. Now, they have a few, including an app for Bing. And starting today, they’re doing the same for Android.

Tag for Android is the first Microsoft-made app launched on the mobile platform. This is notable, of course, because Android is the mobile platform by Microsoft’s chief rival: Google. Still, as we saw with the iPhone, Microsoft has no problems getting its technology out there, even if it means using rival platforms. Aside from Android and iPhone, Tag also currently works on Windows Mobile, J2ME, Blackberry and Symbian S60 phones.

Microsoft’s Tag technology allows you to use your phone as a mobile barcode reader. You simply point your phone’s camera at a tag (think: a smaller QRCode), snap a picture, and the Tag program will interpret it. This can be used to place things like coupons in physical locations, for example. Other companies, including Google, are working on these mobile barcodes as well. In fact, just prior to the Nexus One unveiling, all Google employees were given the device with a special barcode on the back that other Android devices could scan to get that person’s information.

Despite the high level on animosity between Microsoft and Google, it’s great to see that Microsoft isn’t above creating apps for the increasingly popular Android platform. Microsoft made its own big mobile headlines last month with the unveiling of Windows Phone Series 7, a complete reboot of its mobile strategy, due to launch later this year. That move should help Microsoft better compete with the current hot mobile platforms, Android and the iPhone.

The Tag application is available today in the Android Market; it’s a free app.

Shared by Matt
Seriously, what is wrong with people?!

Alright, lets pat the pockets and run through the mental checklist one last time before security: Passport? Check, front pocket. Headphones? Definitely in your backpack. Boarding pass? Uh oh. Where’d that boarding pass go?

Oh, that’s right! It’s on your phone – because you, like a rapidly increasing number of other people, opted to have it sent straight to your handset. Security scans the barcode right off of your handset’s display, and you’re on your way with one less thing to lose.

Trinity Mobile, one of the leading companies behind the mobile ticketing push, is today announcing a 1200% year-over-year increase with their mobile boarding pass offerings.

Read the rest at MobileCrunch >>

Shared by Matt
LOL

Google Wave parodies are nothing new (Remember that kick-ass Samuel L. Jackson one from a while back?), but when mockery hits entirely too close to home — and then takes you somewhere truly weird — you’ve got a keeper.

The following video, courtesy of College Humor, offers a spot-on parody of the friendly Google Wave team, Steph and Greg — right down to their awkward yet enthusiastic greeting. The vid then proceeds to veer off into territories better traversed by Chatroulette adherents than tech geeks, while still managing to give viewers a pretty helpful tutorial on how the program works.

This parody might seem a little Johnny-Come-Lately considering that Wave came out months ago and has yet to truly take off (to be fair, it’s not open to everyone yet, but it’s safe to say Buzz buzz is much louder as of late), but it’s still pretty amusing. Check out the video — as well as the tutorial that it’s mocking — below.

Tags: chatroulette, google buzz, Google Wave, humor, viral video