Monday, July 5, 2004

Wrap & Roll Introducing the Wrap & Roll; a simple, silicone rubber wrap that secures your favorite gadget to your handlebars in seconds. Made from an elastic rubber, similar to a rubber band, the Wrap can hold all sorts of devices securely while riding. Great for Mobile Phones, MP3 Players, GPS Units, and much, much more... This is a gadget holder for a bike handle bar, but I don't see why this should not work on a car's steering wheel as well... [Gizmodo]   5:20:07 PM     PDAs at the Symphony However, a glimmer of hope is appearing, and it's coming from the screen of a personal digital assistant. In an attempt to draw patrons and enhance the concertgoers' experience, several symphony orchestras--including the venerable New York Philharmonic--are testing a PDA-based program PDA-basedcalled the Concert Companion which provides real-time commentary about the piece being performed. I think we covered this last year already. I still believe that looking at a PDA during a concert would take a person outside the music, although it would be tempting to try one's hand at writing poetic instructions for the concert-goers, like: - close you eyes and count to 33 - take the hand of the person sitting to your right and hold it gently - turn to the person sitting directly behind you and smile a luminescent smile Eyes rule over ears when given a chance, which means I still prefer to close my eyes to listen. Here is an interesting little bit of information: did you know that one can hear a little better with one's mouth open! Next time you see me stare into space with my mouth open while tuning you'll know why... Mike Hale reported that at a recent New York Philharmonic concert his Concert Companion froze three times, while his wife "hacked her way to the device's operating system and was happily playing solitaire."   5:13:11 PM     Public Library - Blue Sky in Seattle   4:41:53 PM     Seattle Public Library This photo gives you a sense of the scale. What a wonderful public building! I had to check out the men's room as I am always curious how designers and architects handle that particular area since seeing Philip Starck's designs for the Paramount and Royalton Hotels in NYC. The urinals were a very cool Falcon Waterfree model I had never seen. And then disappointment! Nice Grohe fixtures, but one has to push a button, same for the unbelievably noisy air dryer - I could hear it from about 40 feet outside the men's room! One should not have to push a button in a public restroom, period!   4:20:10 PM     Seattle Public Library Detail 3 This detail shows the ceiling which dampens the sound.   4:13:09 PM     Seattle Public Library Detail 2 This is a detail from the fourth floor, where the meeting rooms are located. Organic fluidity... I really enjoyed that each floor had a different surface. This is the brightest of them, the others have dark wood, white-washed wood, a gleaming glossy surface, metal etc.   4:12:09 PM     Seattle Public Library Detail 1 This is seating for four.   4:10:05 PM     Fireworks 2   4:08:55 PM     Seattle 4th of July Fireworks Amazing fireworks on the lake last night.   4:07:05 PM

© Copyright 2004 Ottmar Liebert. Last update: 7/29/04; 9:48:55 AM.