Processing - Programming Environment for Art and Design

I just came across this :- http://processing.org/ - according to their site it's a "programming language and environment for people who want to program images, animation, and sound. It is used by students, artists, designers, architects, researchers, and hobbyists for learning, prototyping, and production."

Have a look at some of the examples - there's some interesting work there. And there's heaps of tutorials etc. as well. They have linux, windows and mac versions available.

It's still in beta but it could be something to keep an eye on.

via kottke

Archibald Packing Room Prize Awarded

For readers outside Australia the Archibald Prize is arguably Australia's most high profile art award. It's an award for portraiture and has been an annual event since 1900. Since 1991 the staff who receive the paintings and set up the exhibition have awarded the Packing Room Prize to the portrait that they thought best. This year it's been awarded to Jason Benjamin for his portrait of actor Bill Hunter.

Another Side of the Online Music Debate

In the mainstream media it seems the only thing you hear about mp3 downloads is that they are illegal (read evil) and robbing artists. But there is also a thriving free and legal mp3 download scene which not only benefits consumers but helps artists as well. The artists benefit from having their music exposed to a wider audience and consumers get to sample a wider range of music. And it's not just indie bands and small websites that are involved :- I just downloaded a Moby track from Amazon.com.

Any mainstream media journalists out there listening? How about some coverage of the positive side of online music.

I've only just started exploring this but here are some links to get you started :-

• Amazon.com free music downloads
• Epitomic.com - independent music with several genres
• About.com's guide to free mp3 sites
• DMusic - independent digital music community
• Better not forget to mention GarageBand
  

The World Needs More LED Disco Dance Floors...Apparantly

What happens when you get a whole bunch of students together who know how to solder and write code? They create a programmable LED Disco Dance Floor of course! An excellent way to establish your dorm as THE place to be on campus.

link via Boing Boing

Devo Posters

Gallery of Devo posters from the world's most obsessive Devo Memorabilia collector.

Solar Powered Backpack

Voltaic Systems are a company offering a super-cool solar powered backpack which you can plug your battery powered devices such as mobile phones, digital cameras, mp3 players etc. into to recharge them. What more can I say - I love it!

Kurrajong Sanctuary New Site Released

I have just released the website for Kurrajong Sanctuary Retirement Village at Burpengary Brisbane.

Reach for the Sky for Energy

On the subject of reaching high for energy there is another project beginning to take shape by an Australian company called Enviromission. They propose building the world's tallest man made structure, a solar tower, which will create enough energy to power 200,000 homes. A location at Wentworth in New South Wales is being proposed and appears to have the full backing of the local council but with a price tag of $700 million it will need support from State and Federal governments as well.

The German-designed technology is based on the principal that hot air rises. The base of the structure is like a large hothouse connecting to the tall chimney structure. The hot air travels up the chimney at increasing speed and turns turbines.

High Altitude Wind Farms

Wired.com reports: Bryan Roberts a professor of engineering at University of Technology, Sydney is creating a high altitude wind farm concept. Basically they get a helicopter style device to hold the wind turbine in the air and a cable sends the electricity back to earth. At high altitudes the wind speed is much higher than at ground level and winds are much more consistent. This sounds like a fantastic idea and if it's as good as it sounds the governments of the world should be putting some more resources into this project. For more info read the Sky Windpower website.

Natural Capitalism

I just broke for lunch and on TV was the latest speaker at the National Press Club in Canberra. Her name is L. Hunter Lovins and she is the author of Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution. She argues that there are fortunes to be made by solving the world's sustainability problems. That the leading nations of the future will be the ones that position themselves to best use diminishing resources. She makes a very compelling case with hardly a hint of doomsaying.

Bribie Prestige Properties

Just released today is the new website for Bribie Prestige Properties with some great real estate for sale on Bribie Island.

The First Annual Bottom Line Design Awards

Business 2.0 just anounced the winners of the first Bottom Line Design Awards. The awards criteria are based on designs that satisfy not just form and function but also market need. This emphasis on function and market need is something that I feel is a little lacking from a lot designers and it's good to see it recognised.

Included in the diverse array of winners are the movie The Incredibles in the media category and Fiskars Posthole Digger in the household goods category. One of my personal favourites Gmail also gets an honourable mention in the User Interfaces category.