{bp} formerly known as WebBP :: Blog

Scouting Photographers

For the last two weeks, Hannah and I have been trying to interview another prospective photographer every night after work. Now that it is the weekend, I can say a couple things have become apparent:

1. Portland really needs to sign intersections more consistently and add some streetlights in SE Portland. Trying to find photographers that sometimes work out of their houses or an unmarked warehouse in heavy rain has proved, at times, rather frustrating.
2. There is a lot of variety in skill sets, styles and prices in the marketplace.
3. The ones we like most are more than we'd like to spend (What else is new, right?).
4. The whole process feels reminiscent of the late '90s day day trading craze: we are constantly living in fear that someone else will book our favorite photographer before we do.
5. Because we've been booked every night, we really haven't had the time to discuss our impressions of each in much detail before seeing the next one, meaning a lot of post-visit analysis still needs to be discussed this weekend (tomorrow).
6. My house is beginning to resemble that of a grad student during dead week -- Not a good thing. So while Hannah and the girls are out looking at bridesmaid dresses today, I am cleaning house. Strangely, after this week, I don't mind it. Besides, I've got a dinner party to look forward to tonight!

Yahoo! RSS Beta: First Impressions

A few folks (more) have experimented with Yahoo!'s new beta support for RSS feeds this week. Intrigued, I decided to spend a few minutes with Yahoo!'s implementation of RSS. Three things quickly became apparent: (1) The database their search queries isn't complete or up to date. I couldn't find WebBP and was able to add it only by providing the complete URL for the feed. (2) While the display format is consistent with Yahoo! News content, it does not appear to keep track of what you have read the way BlogLines and other RSS aggregators do. (3) If this takes off, it will motivate all of us to write better headlines. If I didn't know what I had written, I'd have little idea what each of these posts contained:

I've taken that to heart. So long, cute headlines (maybe).

Rain Rain, Go away....

All day, the rain has been coming down. I've had enough now. Please, go away, come back some other day. I've been purusing the photography of Meg Forbes for a change of scene. Even grey skies look more exotic in the UK on a day like today.

Big returns in small boxes....

BusinessWeek: "Apple sold nearly as many iPods as Macs, 733,000 to 829,000 in its 2004 fiscal first quarter, ended December 27, 2003. Despite far lower prices, the iPod actually brought in more revenue ($256 million) than Apple's consumer flagship iMac line ($251 million)."

When e-commerce goes awry....

I just visited Continental Airlines' website, generally regarded as one of the better airline sites for its functionality, usability and success in driving online ticketing. Not today:

Of all the snafus I've seen on corporate home pages over the years, this one has me scratching my head the most.

Three from Kottke...

Three tasty morsels from the world of Jason Kottke today:

1. An amusing post about the "work load" that social networking sites like Friendster, Ryze, Tribe, LinkedIn, et al are causing as users struggle to keep their profiles and networks up to date. Jason has gone so far as to advertise for a personal social coordinator on CraigsList.

2. Sundance coverage of The Corporation, an audience award winner. I didn't know anything about this movie, but it sounds like a very intriguing premise and one to watch.

3. A link to this very handy Map of Search Engine Relationships (who powers which sites, who supplies the paid ads, etc.)

Philips Creates Foldable Screens for E-Newspapers

Yahoo! News: "Dutch firm Philips Electronics said on Monday it was preparing to mass-produce a slim, book-sized display panel onto which consumers could download newspapers and magazines -- then roll up and put away."

We can produce this in batches. It's no longer a research project. We're going to build a pilot line that should be ready in 2005 to make one million displays a year," a spokesman at Philips Research said.

I can't wait...finally, technology in a form other than beige boxes...This has been on my wish list for a few years. It's exciting to think it may be here next year!

The Industry Standard -- now a blog!

The Industry Standard magazine, once a standard fixture on lobby tables in start up and VC offices alike during the dot-com hey day of the late 1990s, folded with the dot-com crash. Now it has reemerged -- kind of -- as a
blog written by Jimmy Guterman. I'm not sure what it will become, but it might be one to watch. (via JD)

Why your neighbors are smirking...

Sacramento Bee: "Bank of America on Wednesday acknowledged that it has misdirected tax documents detailing bank account and Social Security information for 3,800 customers primarily in Northern California, leaving clients in fear of identity theft or other crimes."

In the words of one frustrated customer:

"I go in there and tell this guy I'm panicked, and he said 'It's no big deal,' " she said. "I told him it is a big deal."

Obessions

Two years ago, I took the plunge and bought a digital camera. At the time, I thought it would empower me to take pictures wherever and whenever the urge struck me. For a time, it did. When I was living in San Francisco and on my feet all the time, I took 100s of pictures a week: street scenes, interesting signs, cars, people, architecture, flowers, scenery, photojournalism, you name it. And I loved it. Since I've returned to Oregon and incurred a significant commute, my photography has waned dramatically. Quite simply, I have less time.

So it is with more than a little bit of nostalgia that I stumbled across Found Typography this morning, a site dedicated to photographs of public typography in San Francisco. In the same vein, a lover of the noodle has begun to photograph every pasta dish he consumes in Italy. Now if only his site had a to go menu....