I originally saw this talk linked into the idea of bringing a very interesting tech development group called: TechShop to this area. What I did hear was about a failed digital building boom that went bust with large amounts of high-speed fiber being left “dark” in the region. This city needs to get itself aligned with it’s residendents and light the unused fibers at cut rate prices, it would be about time we entered the high-speed elites in this country.

I will say, there would be a wealth of user data in the world of computing could be at the Municipal’s constituent fingertips, to better understand more citizens, provide a higher quality of life through access to more integrated services. Being an East Coast transplant, many of the things I used to go down the street to get, I can find online if I cannot find them here. There are many other reasons and a plethora of things the web can source. With integrations that WordPress, Google, and many other social media sites, all of which have changed the landscape for communications today.

This “new” access to the web allows for people to get the items that, as a major city dweller for over 20 years can attest, can only be found on the web, and not down the street here in Saint Louis, for example. If it were not for the web, I most definitely would not be here in Saint Louis. With that said, to me, this just spells opportunity.

The idea of creating a pocket of cutting edge technology could only make coming to this city more appealing to bigger businesses while allowing small and medium one’s compete on the national level with access of the caliber that could be available for pennies on the dollar. Problem is, who is going to subsidize their management, how do we get the dark wires, fired up? This is a serious question, and one that I am not sure how to answer. The bar could be raised and new opportunities to develop ideas that will only bring more innovations to this area and the rest of the world.

When listening to the talk, I remember not really understanding the resistance I seemed to see, and the seemingly “old world” entrenched business interests seemingly rooted in the bottom line and not knowing how they could improve the situation and make money, together. While there there are definitely some people who are starting to see it’s importance.

I am a transplant, that originally moved here to be close to everyone in my family, both literally, and figuratively. The internet connects us in ways we have never I would love this city to finally grow up and be proud of the small, eager and robust community of artists and craftsmen in this area. There are some seriously awesome inkling toward seeing this city grow beyond it’s small town feel and join the other metropolises and make a statement about how and why we live in cities. To create a better life for it’s citizens, beyond the bottom line.

So, in closing, seeing some articles like: Last call for gigabit in St. Louis?. It amazes me that these networks just don’t make a password driven system and charge on the nickleware like iTunes does. This city could finally emerge in the national stage as a technology innovating city, why would that be a bad thing? How can that be encouraged? I am still left vexed as to what can be done to encourage people in this area how it would be good for business.

America seems to have a long history of innovations coming from garages and basements of rural homes, we need to find a way to create infrastructure that can help develop, and market these products and put innovation back into the important category.

As the new year looms, and looking forward, I am hoping to make some serious progress this year. New Year resolutions and all in hand, some fun things being played with, and some new directions. I look forward to seeing you this year!

So, in the year 2013 and the coming new year, I will wish you, and yours, a very bountiful, abundant, and warmest of holidays, and a creative, an enriching, and a successful new year!

Uploaded on Dec 10, 2009

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I really see all my clients as peers and partners. In a society where we are increasingly becoming a service market, and the need for fulfillment companies are increasingly commonplace, my services can complement most of today’s needs. With agency connections, and peers that I have partnered with for more than 20 years, our partnership can engineer your message in a professional, successful, and reliable way.

And in this wish to create a positive collaborative environment, I have always been a bit unconventional, and still dream of working in a Google like work environment, creating a free and comfortable place of business for the next generation. This, then seems to also follow: that I seek to create real and enriching relationships with all my clients. My father used to say that patients should be referred to by name, not by procedure… and I believe design clients should also be more than just the project I did for them, but actually friends, peers, and colleagues.

In the end, like a good friend, a design client need to be communicated with, and allowed in to see the process. A process, in the end of most projects, they will need to manage, facilitate, or just use on their own. My goal is to show all the secrets, because an educated design client can make better long-term choices for their needs.

Graphic design is a creative process — most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form (i.e., printers, signmakers, etc.) – undertaken in order to convey a specific message (or messages) to a targeted audience. The term “graphic design” can also refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines that focus on visual communication and presentation. The field as a whole is also often referred to as Visual Communication or Communication Design. Various methods are used to create and combine words, symbols, and images to create a visual representation of ideas and messages. A graphic designer may use a combination of typography, visual arts and page layout techniques to produce the final result. Graphic design often refers to both the process (designing) by which the communication is created and the products (designs) which are generated.” ~ Wikipedia.com (2013)

Common types of graphic design include identity (logos and branding), publications (magazines, newspapers, and books), advertisements and product packaging. Graphic design, for an example, can be a product package including a logo or other artwork, organized text and pure design elements such as shapes and color which unify the piece. Composition is one of the most important features of graphic design, especially when using pre-existing materials or diverse elements, all to conform to a branding identity. This is an involved process that develops over time and grows toward a unified whole.

I love to do projects that have a long life, taking little pieces off each day, and working toward creating a world that lives in balance with nature, and create a better life for everyone.  Know that sounds a bit ethereal and impractical, but I hope to make that not so.

Long term projects need to be defined, and clearly delineated so that progress can be well monitored and efficiently use time. Give me a long term project, and long duration tasks, these are my specialties.  From printing 1600 page font catalog that ended up taking week of printing 24/7, to producing a 3D render that took two computers 7 days to render 24/7, or even the process of helping create and ease the creation, styling, and updates for WordPress blogs, like this one.

My goal is to have more of these kinds of projects, as they are the most fulfilling to work through the breakdown and forecasting the parts that need to be blocked out.  It is a “green” way to communicate and share business ideas, projects, goals, and define a way of working.  And it will always be actually getting into the trenches with your client and revising work to help create a clean, simple and informative medium to convey an idea is one of the best parts of the long-term projects.  Getting to know and learn a new business, and help it grow in the long term.

All of which, are never, short-term prospects. 

Google released a PDF about the SEO basics. And there are a lot of recommendations. ( Download the PDF here or View some Tips. ) You could even go here to see more from Google themselves.  Here, to say just having links on other sites is not enough, and there are greater depths of information and avenues of action that can improve SEO results in social penetration realm.  While this seems a bit of the old advertising cold and sterile psychology of persuading the masses, to satisfy the needs “to be seen” by as many people who could be interested in your site, SEO must use a sort of “freudian word association” of sorts to best meet this need.

Effective SEO responds to trends and keeps your site in front of those looking for you!