Response to RiP!: A Remix Manifesto (Assignment 3)

I thought that this documentary was very interesting. It was thought-provoking and informative. Honestly, I knew absolutely nothing about copyrights and open source sharing before I watched this video, so I learned quite a bit. I think it was very cool to see the history of copyrights laid out in the movie. Within this history, they mentioned Napster. I do remember hearing something about legal issues with Napster and Metallica, but I never had known what the problem was (which this documentary explained nicely). One notable thing that I thought was interesting was how this can be applied to sharing and mixing music together. As with DJ's like Brett Gaylor, I always wondered how they made their music. This video really shed some light on not only the music industry, but also open sharing, remixing, and copyright legal issues. My last thought was how innovative it is to make the documentary itself open-source. I think it really drives home the point that we should be sharing our creativity with other creative minds.

Final Logo and Mockups (Assignment 2)

"A Brief History of Type" - Response (Assignment 2)

Honestly, my first thought after reading this article was something along the lines of, "But it's just words..." I imagine that I'm not alone in being a little bit baffled at the idea that there is such a history regarding the artwork behind type faces. It's interesting to get a little bit of information about how we have so many different type faces that we use everyday, but at the same time, history usually is somewhat boring to me. I would be lying if I did not admit that I found the reading a little bit dull. That being said, I think that it is helpful to look at the history and logic behind what goes into different fonts, because this can help us understand when appropriate times to use them would be. Therefore, while this was not the most enjoyable thing for me to read, I can appreciate where the author is coming from in writing about the history of typography.

3 Effective Logos (Assignment 2)

1) Michael Jordan Brand

I think that this logo is effective because it conveys a message without needing to use words. Michael Jordan's basketball dunking is undoubtedly legendary, and fans of Michael Jordan will definitely understand the message here. However, even people who don't know Michael Jordan can see that this is clearly meant to project the idea of "if I buy this product, I'll be a good basketball player."

2) Twitter

Twitter has an effective logo for some of the same reasons - it can explain the idea behind the app without using words and by using a simple logo that is easy to recognize. The idea of "tweeting" to send a quick, fleeting message is illustrated here by a small bird in flight. Even the beak being open symbolizes sound, talking, etc.

3) Under Armor

I really like the Under Armor logo because of how simple it is. I think that overall, the best logos come from very simple, small, or seemingly insignificant details. Here, the "U" in Under and the "A" in Armor appear to be overlaying each other, thus combining the two words in a succinct and recognizable image. This also makes an image that's easy to print on clothing and apparel.