October 20, 2010

Google's Slideshow of Interesting Things: Is the Future of Publishing Now?

Google's Creative Labs came out today with a slideshow of interesting things on the web. I find these three especially relevant:

Dynamic Digital Typeface

RCA (Royal Academy of Arts) student Jack Gilbey is developing dynamic typography where the font adapts to contextual changes within the content. I think this is a BIG deal. You don't have to take my word for it; here are his:

"Recently, my practice has been concerned with exploring the possibilities offered to typographers by developments in technology, new media and the apparently limitless dimensions of the Internet. I am interested in challenging the universally accepted concept of a typeface as a static set of visual forms – a tradition born of obsolescent technologies – and investigating the notion of a typeface as a dynamic system that can be context-sensitive or thematically driven. I have developed a body of work that aims to explore the extent to which these new typographic methods can enhance communication."



Cool, Jack - high time too!


MyFry - Stephen Fry's Book App

Stephen Fry and Penguin digital made his latest book into an iPad app that is browsable in completely new ways:






Is this cool or what? I'm REALLY tempted to get an v.1 (version #1) iPad... although, even with Apple, I generally wait till v.2. Microsoft? Wait at least till v.3.1....


Mongoliad: The Digitally Enhanced Genghis Khan

Neal Stephenson is leading/writing a serialised 13th century historical epic, Mongoliad, with community-enhancement, wiki-contribution, a subscriber model, and multiple writers; all to be released on iOS (i.e. as an iSomething app).


I do believe the subscriber model is the best way for authors to make a living from their work. Multiple writers... I'm not so sure about that....