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And thanks everyone for making the Creative Intensive Network on LinkedIn the largest network of creatives on the planet!

TheAdClass team.

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The Purpose:

1. Learn typography in a fun and engaging way.
2. Develop your own typographic style while collecting fonts you like, fonts you think you can use in the future, etc.
3. Learn fonts’ anatomy, classification, style, theme, mood and understand how and when to use them.

The Assignment:

First, make sure to go over our list of great reads on Typography. Collect at least 20 fonts and design a beautiful font book using a corresponding number of movie quotes (one or two font per quote, one quote per page). Selecting the right font for each quote will demonstrate your understanding of mood, style, classification and typography and art direction. Beautifully designing each page will provide an added value to your portfolio, which will demonstrate to creative directors/creative recruiters your knowledge and understanding of typography.

Consider This:

It’s not a coincidence that a synonym for the word ‘letter’ is the word ‘character’. Letters are like characters and so are typefaces. They each have personality and quirks. Each have something different to say, and when your message and typeface’s voice align – a very powerful and emotional association is made.

In the movie industry, actors and actresses are often being typcasted. In the world of the art director / graphic designer, typefaces can be used to ‘typecast’, set the mood, or give a stronger meaning to the words. You would never cast Kate Winslet to play Rambo or more subtly you wouldn’t want to cast Cameron Diaz to play Eleanor Roosevelt. With the plethora of fonts available today it is not quite as black and white though. There are many typefaces featuring similar personalities that can be used interchangeably. The ability to distinguish their subtle differences allows the designer / art director to harness even more of typography’s power.

[MOVIE: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly | DESIGN BY: Kevin Jones]

Guidelines:

1. Use one, or maximum two fonts per quote/page

2. We recommend using a variety of font classifications. If your font book includes 20 fonts for example, you can use:

4 Serif
4 Sans Serif
3 Slab Serif
3 Blackletter
3 Display
3 Script

3. Play with size, dimensions, colors, or any other effect that can help you set the mood, feel, etc.

4. Be careful of over-using any effect (photoshop, illustrator, etc). We have a tendency to enjoy playing with these effects to a point where it might be too much.

5. Remember – simple is better.

6. Use the Best Practices for Combining Typefaces guidelines via SmashingMagazine.

7. Pick quotes most people know – keep in mind that your target audience in this assignment is the creative director / recruiter that might hire you. You’d want them to know most of the movie quotes you pick so they can relate and understand why you’ve picked the fonts you picked.

Start Here:

In 2005, The American Film Institute put together a list of the top 100 movie quotes in American cinema, which can help you locate some of your favorite movie-quotes. For a longer list, you can check out the 400 nominees (PDF).

LiquidGeneration put together a list of “100 Best Movie Lines in 200 Seconds”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QUT0tweX1M

Harry Hanrahan put together “The 100 Cheesiest Movie Quotes of All Time”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTiAS7cdsYc

“The Other 100 Best Movie Quotes of All Time”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2Kgn6J7SjA

and “100 Greatest Horror Movie Quotes of All Time”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IezWgqg_-cQ

Examples:

While this assignment is not about moving type (aka motion typography, aka kinetic typography), here are some beautiful example of kinetic typography that demonstrate nice selection of context-relevant typefaces:

Rocky:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKBOcrPeZY8

Kill Bill:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiKXVYF6-hY

The Social Network:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6aWSBSEgVk

Pulp Fiction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywxL7HHCiyg

Fight Club:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbMa4MGFCOg

Dark Knight:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq1i7296t1c

Gladiator:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhTVcpgM-qU

The big Lebowski:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3KTG87jgQc

Devil’s Advocate:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QX7N58df0j0

V for Vendetta:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6Q0dfrbr10

There Will Be Blood:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5q_SHlu9haw

Great Reads / Articles:

Meet Your Type – A Field Guide to Typography (PDF) via FontShop.com

Font Anatomy Wallpaper (1920 x 1200 JPEG Image) via Font.is

Typeface Anatomy and Glossary via FontShop.com

Periodic Table of Typefaces (3150 x 2100 JPEG Image) via SquidSpot.com

Typographic Rules to Remember Checklist adapted from The Mac Is Not a Typewriter by Robin Williams

So You Need A Typeface (1983 x 1402 PNG Image Infographics) via JulianHansen.com

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Typeface adapted from Seventy-nine Short Essays on Design by Michael Bierut

Best Practices of Combining Typefaces via SmashingMagazine.com

8 Simple Ways to Improve Typography In Your (web) Designs via SmashingMagazine.com

Mixing Typefaces Cheat Sheets (PDF) [#1 - Combine at will. #2 Not a conservative choice. #3 Think again]

10 Common Typography Mistakes via TheDesignCubicle.com

Additional Typography Mistakes You Might Be Making via TheDesignCubicle.com

Resource Pages:

Smashing Magazine – Typography Tag

WebDesigner Depot – Typography Category:

I Love Typography – Typefaces and All Things Typographical:

SpeckyBoy – Typography Category:

Web Design Ledger – Typography tag:

Typographica – Type Reviews, Books & Commentary:

Typophile – Typographic Collaboration & Active Discussion Board:

UpscaleTypography – Design, News, Trends, Comments:

The Type Directors Club – International organization supporting excellence in typography:

Typefaces / Fonts:

Typedia: A Shared Encyclopedia of Typefaces

Adobe Type Library / Font Finder

Font Managers / Tools:

Apple’s Font Book – Font Manager (Mac / Free)

FontExplorer X Pro – Font Manager (Mac / Paid)

NexusFont – Font Manager (PC / Free)

Typetester – Compare fonts side by side

WhatTheFont – Identify what font is used in an image

Books:

Thinking with Type: A Primer for Designers: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writers, Editors, & Students by Ellen Lupton

Type Rules!: The Designer’s Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver

We tried to organized the list below in an order that will make more sense in terms of best optimization and easiness. Please note that while we’re here to help, we can’t be responsible in case something happens to your Mac or data. We strongly recommend you to backup your system before you apply any changes.

[p.s. If you want the shorter version, the steps that are most effective and will show the most immediate results are #1, #22, #23, #37 & #38]

Here goes:

1. Update all possible OSX system and software updates:

WHY: Every couple of weeks Apple releases patches, updates, etc, that are intended to fix bugs, increase performance, reduce security threats, etc. Just update them all.

HOW: Hit the little Apple icon on the top left menu/corner, then hit “Software Updates”. If updates are available, hit “Show Details”, make sure everything is checked, and hit “Install”.

NOTE: For some reason, after “Updates Installed Successfully”, it goes back to the Software Update window, giving you the impression that you there are more updates, but if there’s a green check mark next to all updates listed, you’re done. If it asks you to restart, you can restart later since we still have a lot to do.

2. (if you uses any of these) Update Firefox, Google Chrome, Thunderbird to their latest versions, and all of their plugins/addons/extensions:

WHY: Your web browser and email client (much like your OS) contain security holes and bugs that are constantly being fixed and improved. If you use Safari or Mac Mail, step #1 of this guide will take care of these updates but for the above browsers, email clients, etc, you’ll have to update them yourself.

HOW: Visit the above links, download, and install or you can check for updates from within each software.

3. Update / install addons / plugins / extensions for Firefox, Chrome and Thunderbird:

WHY: They make your browsing / emailing experience sooooo much better.

HOW: Here’s our list of must-have Firefox addons:

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/collections/avni/firefox/

Here’s our list of must-have Thunderbird addons:

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/collections/avni/thunderbird/

4. Update /install the latest versions of the following free software for better multimedia compatibility / video performance:

WHY: Older versions of multimedia plugins can use up your CPU and slow down your system (not to mention heat it up when playing videos). Adobe just recently released a 64bit version of their Flesh Player, which is also set to take advantage over Mac’s graphic acceleration (a feature that hasn’t been used in the past):

Perian – The swiss-army knife of QuickTime components
Windows Media player component for Mac (Flip4Mac WMV)
Microsoft Silverlight .NET Multimedia Plugin
Adobe Flash Player
Adobe Shockwave Player
Adobe Air
DivX multimedia codec
Do yourself a favor – while DivX is a great codec for playing online videos / content, the DivX Player installed with it is no good. After installing the DivX Package, trash the DivX Player (from the Applications folder). Instead, we recommend:
VideoLAN (VLC) Media Player

5. Update Microsoft Office:

WHY: Every other day, a 15-year-old hacker finds some new security holes in Microsoft’s Office suite. Making sure you’ve got the latest patches, updates, etc is important.

HOW: From within either MS Word, Excel or PowerPoint, hit “Help” on the top-menu and then “Check for Updates”. This will run the Microsoft AutoUpdate.

6. Update all your 3rd party/other software:

WHY: Mac OS Software Update tool is great but it only covers Apple software.

HOW: For 3rd party or any other software, I use both AppFresh and LogicielMac Update (LogicielMac Update is a bit old but it’s still working). They each find updates the other one won’t. If you’re up for paying $20 a year for a better tool, check out MacUpdate Desktop.

7. Install AppTrap before you uninstall/remove any unwanted / unneeded software from your mac:

WHY: AppTrap deletes all associated files with trashed applications, allowing for a more complete clean-up of your Mac when you uninstall software.

HOW: Get the latest version of free AppTrap here.

NOTE: When you update software (rather than un-install it), an AppTrap popup might appear, asking you if you want to delete some extra files it finds, that are associated with that software. These are usually settings or preferences files for that software so I’d recommend not to delete them (MOVE to trash), but to LEAVE them as is.

8. Uninstall / remove any unneeded / unwanted / unused software from your Mac’s Application folder:

WHY: They take extra space you might need, they may use your memory and slow down your OS (if they are loaded at boot time), they can add clutter to your application folder, etc.

HOW: Simply drag any unwanted/unused software to the trash can. If you installed AppTrap as suggested above, an AppTrap popup will appear, asking you if you want to delete some extra files it finds, that are associated with the unwanted software. Sure you want.

9. Clean your dock’s unused icons/shortcuts:

WHY: Seems like everyone have a few shortcuts on their desktop’s doc they are not really using that often. Trashing them makes the doc cleaner and much more useful.

HOW: Simply drag your unused icons/shortcuts to the trash can.

10. Clean your cluttered desktop & reduce the number of icons:

WHY: For OSX, every icon on your desktop is like a little window. As such, it has a corresponding backing store allocation in the window server. Lots of these little windows apparently can put a strain on the server, especially when you’ve got lots of other (normal) windows open as well. It’s been reported numerous times that having a clear desktop will, in fact, increase the speed of your Mac.

HOW: Either put your junk in folders or delete stuff you don’t need.

11. Disable DropBox, SugerSync, Carbonite (or any other online backup / sync tool) from loading at startup:

WHY: Don’t get us wrong, we LOVE free backup/sync services like DropBox & SugerSync, but when loaded at startup, they have a tendency to suck bandwidth. Online backup/sync services constantly call home to check if there are any files to sync/backup, slowing down your internet connection.

NOTE: Backupping (is that a verb?) is important and if you’re the type of person who remembers to manually backup your data, skip this one.

HOW: In DropBox’s preferences menu, uncheck “Start DropBox on System Startup”. InSugerSync’s preferences menu, uncheck “Auto Start SugerSync Manager When My Computer Starts Up”.

12.Disable TimeMachine’s automatic backup and use TimeMachineEditor instead:

WHY: By default, time machine tries to backup every 3600 seconds (one hour).  We do believe backup is important but every hour? really? Unless you’re working with extremely sensitive data that changes by the minute, once a day or every few hours is probably good enough. This will free up your CPU usage and over-use of the external hard-drive you’re backing up to.

HOW: Get free TimeMachineEditor here.

13. Access your NTFS Windows formated (external) hard-drive with Paragon NTFS for Mac:

WHY: If you’re using an external hard-drive which was formated using a Windows system as NTFS, and you need to access the files on your mac, this software is for you.

HOW: Buy and Download Paragon NTFS for Mac here, install and enjoy it. If you’re into torrents, I’m sure you can google it.

14. Download, install and enjoy the free BetterTouchTool:

WHY: Because once you use it, you wouldn’t want to stop using it. Click here to learn more.

15. Disable file sharing (if you’re not using it):

WHY: Did you know most Macs share their public folder’s files over the network? That means if you’re using your Mac at a coffee shop or any other public/open wifi hotspot, people might have access to some of your folders. Even if your public folders are empty and you think you have nothing to worry about, having access to your computer via the network will slow down your internet connection.

HOW: In Mac’s “System Preferences” click “Sharing” and make sure File Sharing is off.

16. Get rid of language files you don’t speak:

WHY: Mac OS X has always supported a wide range of world languages  but to be honest with you, we only use English. Getting rid of all other languages will not affect your ability to see/read any of them online, using your browser, email, etc. These language files are only used for Mac’s actual OS, menus, interface, dialogs boxes, help files, etc.

HOW: Hit the little Apple icon on the top left menu/corner, then hit “System Preferences”. Hit “Language & Text”, then “Edit List” and remove all unneeded languages.

17. Disable Mac’s Bluetooth (if you’re not using it):

WHY: Most people do not use bloetooth on their Mac, yet it’s enabled by default and shortens your battery life.

HOW: Hit the little Apple icon on the top left menu/corner, then hit “System Preferences”. Hit “Bluetooth”, then uncheck the “On”.

18. Turn off Universal Access (if not used):

WHY: “Every Mac comes standard with a wide range of assistive technologies that help people with disabilities enjoy the power and simplicity of the Mac. We call this Universal Access” (Apple’s website). Assuming most people won’t use these features, why have them on?

HOW: Navigate to System Preferences / Universal Access, and turn off anything you’re not using.

19. Turn off Speech Recognition / Speakable Items (if not used):

WHY: Unless you’re using it, why have it on?

HOW: Navigate to System Preferences / Speech / Speech Recognition and turn off “Speakable Items”

20. Reorganize / clean the Spotlight search index:

WHY: We love Mac’s spotlight (the little search box on the top-right corner of your menu-bar) but it seems like it indexes and lists files we’re never going to look for.

HOW: Hit the little Apple icon on the top left menu/corner, then hit “System Preferences” then “Spotlight”. Uncheck all the elements you’re not using and/or re-order the list by dragging elements up/down. Since we’re using Thunderbird for emails, for example, we don’t need Spotlight to check “Mail Messages” in Mac’s Mail client. We also disabled: Fonts, Contacts (since we’re not using Mac’s Mail), Webpages, Events & To Do Items, and System Preferences. Then we re-order the list by the type of searches we use most:

Applications
Folders
Documents
Presentations
PDF Documents
Movies
Music
Images

NOTE: If you wish to delete Spotlight’s index all-together and have it re-index your hard-drive, use OnyX (mentioned in step #38 of this guide).

21. Use free Secrets preference pane and TinkerTool to customize Mac’s hidden or incomplete settings:

WHY: There are a lot of things you can do to improve your Mac’s performance / visual appeal that are usually hidden or unaccessible. For example, you can probably do without the fancy 3D effects and animation that may seem sluggish on some older Mac models.

HOW: Disable some or all of these effects with TinkerTool and Secrets, turn off the translucent menu bar using the Desktop & Screensaver pane in System Preferences, and display folders in the Dock as folders rather than Stacks (control-click on each folder in the Dock and choose Display as Folder).

22. Clear out useless login items:

WHY: Its good to check that unwanted programs are not starting up when you login to your Mac. Any software loaded during startup will slow down your OS and/or the internet if it’s using any bandwidth.

HOW: This can be done from System Preferences > Accounts > Login Items.

23. Eliminate unwanted background / startup processes:

WHY: Much like the mentioned above “login items”, background processes are applications or parts of them that run in OS X without telling you they are there. You won’t see them in the Dock but they can slow down your system.

HOW: Head to the root of your drive (Double-click Macintosh HD). Click on the folder called “Library”. There are three folders to look into inside the Library folder:

Macintosh HD / Library/ LaunchAgents
Macintosh HD / Library/ LaunchDaemons
Macintosh HD / Library/ StartupItems

Once you’ve identified something you don’t need or no longer use inside these three folders, drag it to the trash can. If you’re wondering what are those files inside these folders, you can always use google to identify what software installed them there.

Next, head to the “Library” folder inside your own user’s folder and look for the same three folders:

Macintosh HD / Users / (your username) / Library / LaunchAgents
Macintosh HD / Users / (your username) / Library / LaunchDaemons
Macintosh HD / Users / (your username) / Library /StartupItems

Again, once you’ve identified something you don’t need or no longer use inside these three folders, drag it to the trash can. Note that not all three must exist in this Library folder. It may be that you’ll only find one or two of them.

NOTE: Be careful not to delete any items you might need, for application you use regularly (like backup software for example). You’ll need to Restart your Mac for changes to take effect.

24. Clear out / delete unused user accounts:

WHY: Have you ever created user accounts for your roommate, boyfriend, girlfriend, etc which you’re not using anymore? Not a bad idea to login to those account one last time just to make sure there’s nothing you need in the Documents folder (copy/back up those files if there are), then logout, and simply delete those accounts.

HOW: This can be done from System Preferences > Accounts. You may need to unlock (click the lock to make changes), then chose any account you’re not using under “Other Accounts” and hit the minus (-) below to delete the selected account.

25. Use Disk Inventory X or GrandPerspective to locate large files/folders that take too much space on your hard-drive and can be deleted or moved to an external backup hard-drive.

WHY: Mac OSX needs about 20% free space on your hard-drive to operate optimally. Not to say you can’t run it on a full hard-drive, but the more free space you have, the faster your system will run. That’s because when it’s idle, Mac OS runs its defragmentation scripts and the more free space it can use, the faster the defrag process will take.

HOW: If you have an external hard-drive, consider relocating your media library files to it (movies, audio files, etc). This will keep your media but free up lots of space on your internal hard drive.

26. Use smcFanControl to cool down your Mac:

WHY: Ever felt like your Mac is over heating? smcFanControl lets you set the minimum speed of the build in fans. So you can increase your minimum fan speed to make your Intel Mac run cooler.

27. Use TotalFinder as a replacement for the Mac OS’ default native Finder:

WHY: One of the coolest features of TotalFinder is that it adds tabbed browsing to the finder, similar to your Firefox, Explorer or Chrome’s tabbed browsing.

HOW: Buy TotalFinder here or if you’re into torrent, you might find it on google.

28. Remove fonts you don’t use, as well as defective and duplicate fonts:

WHY: Getting rid of unused fonts provides both a performance and disk space benefit. Obviously, every font file is a file that takes up space. However, Mac OS X must read the installed fonts as part of the start-up and log-in process, making a large number of fonts a performance issue. Perhaps even more importantly, all applications read available fonts at launch. This means that reducing the number of fonts can have speed up applications’ launch time.

HOW: You can remove or disable fonts using the Font Book application included with Mac OS X. Run.

To remove/delete defective fonts, in Font Book, click “All Fonts” under the “Collection” (left-menu). Then, on the Font column, select all fonts (Command +A). Right-click on your selection and hit “Validate Fonts”. A popup window will appear, validating all fonts. We recommend deleting/removing any font that can’t be validated (green check-mark).

To remove/delete duplicate fonts, use your Mac’s top menu-bar – hit “Edit”, then “Resolve Duplicates”.

29. Use Little Snitch to keep track of what software is using your bandwidth and sharing your private information.

WHY: A firewall protects your computer against unwanted guests from the Internet. But who protects your private data from being sent out?

HOW: You can buy Little Snitch here or if you’re into torrents, google it.

30. Set up a firmware password for extra security & protection:

WHY: Even if you setup a username login password, it’s fairy easy to hack your mac (as this guide shows).

HOW: Here’s the complete guide for setting up firmware password from Apple’s website.

31. Evaluate your dashboard widgets (or even better, disable widgets all-together):

WHY: Widgets use a lot of ram. Each dashboard widget you enable consumes both processing power and valuable memory.

HOW: Limit how many widgets you run. To disable widgets all-together follow these steps:

1. Applications > Utilities > Terminal
2. Type “defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean YES” (without the quotes) and hit enter.
3. Type “killall Dock” and hit enter.

To re-enable desktop widgets just repeat above previous steps with “NO” insteadof “YES” in step #2.

32. Reset your Mac’s SMC (System Management Controller) chip:

WHY: The System Management Controller (SMC) is a chip on the logic board that controls all power functions for your computer. If your computer is experiencing any power issue, slow downs getting into sleep mode, idle, wake ups, noisy fans, charging issues, etc, resetting the SMC may resolve it.

HOW: If you can remove the battery from your Mac, follow these steps:

1. Shut down the computer.
2. Disconnect the power adapter from the computer, if it’s connected.
3. Remove the battery.
4. Press and hold the power button for 5 seconds.
5. Release the power button.
6. Reconnect the battery and the power adapter.
7. Press the power button to turn on the computer.

NOTE: If you can’t take the battery out, or for more detailed info, visit Apple’s guide on the topic here.

33. Reset your Mac’s PRAM and NVRAM:

WHY: PRAM Stands for Parameter Random Access Memory (used in in PowerPC based Macs) and NVRAM Stands for Nonvolatile Random Access Memory (used in Intel based Macs). They are both type of random access memory which does not lose its information when power is turned off. PRAM and NVRAM store certain system and device settings in a location that Mac OS X can access quickly but this exact cache memory data can cause slow downs.

HOW: Follow these steps:

1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command, Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
3. Turn on the computer, and immediately,
4. Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys. You must press this key combination before the gray screen appears.
5. Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup chime sound for the second time.
6. Release the keys.
7. Your computer’s PRAM and the NVRAM are reset to the default values.

NOTE: For more info on this, visit Apple’s detailed instructions here.

34. Turn off Mac’s annoying startup chime using StartupSound.prefPane:

WHY: Cause if you’re in a meeting and you need to restart your mac, you really don’t want that annoying chime.

35. Install the “32- or 64-bit Kernel Startup Mode Selector” and switch to 64bit mode (if you can):

WHY: Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is a 64-bit system but by default, it’s set up to work as 32-bit. Why? (you might ask) – at the time of releasing OSX 10.6 Snow Leopard, apple was worried about 3rd party drivers not working well on a 64-bit core. Now, It’s been a while since its release and we’ve been running on 64bit using this tool for over a year now without any problem.

NOTE: You might want to check if this tool is compatible with your system before you run it. Read more here.

HOW: Download the 32- or 64-bit Kernel Startup Mode Selector here, install and run it ONLY if you get the green check-mark, to verify that your system is compatible.

ALTERNATIVE: Snow Leopard System Mode Configurator Preference Pane – 32/64 bit boot selector (same thing basically, just allow you to access its preference panel via System Preferences instead of the Application folder).

36. Download free Caffeine to alow your Mac to stay awake when you’re using it:

WHY: Caffeine is a tiny program that puts an icon in the right side of your menu bar. Click it to prevent your Mac from automatically going to sleep, dimming the screen or starting screen savers. Click it again to go back.

37. Use CleanMyMac to, well, clean your Mac:

WHY: Out of all the tools we tested, CleanMyMac is the simply the best in cleaning your mac. We love the language removal feature, the universal binaries remover, and the many other features.

HOW: Buy CleanMyMac Here or if you’re into warez, google it.

38. Use free OnyX to clean your system, repair permissions, run daily, weekly and monthly scripts, and more:

WHY: OnyX allows you to verify the Startup Disk and the structure of its System files, to run miscellaneous tasks of system maintenance, to configure the hidden parameters of the Finder, Dock and of some of Apple’s own applications, to delete caches, to remove a certain number of files and folders that may become cumbersome and more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV0HxsZOQAc

39. Use iDefrag to defrag your fragmented hard-drive:

WHY: The question whether you need to defrag seemed to be answered by Apple in their technical document that describes the capability of Mac OS X to defragment files itself. It turns out OS X only does this for files that are smaller than 20 MB. Since we all have files that are larger then 20MB, they are never being defragged and can slow down your system.

HOW: To the rescue, buy iDefrag and use it to optimize your system.

NOTE: We DO NOT recommend using the quick (online) defrag option. There have been reports it can mess up some files if used while running other software. To be safe, go with FULL defrag. It requires restart and may take all night but it’s the best defrag option.

40. Calibrate your Mac’s battery:

WHY: Calibrating your battery ensures you get the longest possible running time from it. Apple recommends calibrating your battery about once a month (really Apple?) We say, just do it now, and maybe next time you’re going over this guide in a few months.

HOW: For OSX Snow Leopard 10.6, follow this guide. For other versions of OXS, search Apple’s reference articles here.

ALTERNATIVE: If you’re up for paying fot it, Watts will do the calibration for you. You can buy Watts here or if you’re into warez, google it.

Smashing Magazine – Design and Web-Development:

[direct link to RSS feed]

WebDesigner Depot – Resources for Web Designers:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Six Revisions – Web Development and Design Information:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Colour Lovers – Color Trends and Palettes:

[direct link to RSS feed]

I Love Typography – Typefaces and All Things Typographical:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Inspired Magazine – Daily Graphic Design Inspiration:

[direct link to RSS feed]

MoodStream by Getty Images – MoodBoard Streams Music, Images, and Video According to Your Mood:

PSD Tuts+ Plus – Adobe Photoshop Tutorials, From Beginner to Advanced:

[direct link to RSS feed]

SpeckyBoy – Design Web & Development Magazine:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Tutorial 9 – Photoshop Tutorials, Photography Tuts, and Resources:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Web Designer Wall – Design Trends and Tutorials:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Web Design Ledger – Blog, Tutorials and Inspiration:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Noupe – Design Blog:

[direct link to RSS feed]

Want more?

This is an older post (2008), but it’s a pretty good/comprehensive list:

99 Sites All Designers Must Know About

The Ultimate Collection of 400+ Web and Graphic Design Resources

Art Director: Drew White
Client: Million Trees NYC
Campaign: Fight Pollution with the Right Weapon

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Art Director: Colin Frost
Client: Swingline Staplers
Campaign: 1:0

Art Director: Drew White
Client: Elmer’s Glue
Campaign: Relax, it’s Washable.

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Art Director: Kristen Hulsey
Client: Mother’s Market
Campaign: Bread / Vegetables / Fruits

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(click image for full-size)

Copywriter: Cyndie Lalic
Client: Picture People
Campaign: Working for You

Art Director: Natalia Celis
Client: Equate Ultra Thin Pads
Campaign: Way Too Comfortable

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Art Director: Drew White
Client: Bostitch Staples
Campaign: Holds Strong Through Every Struggle

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Art Director: Natalia Celis
Client: Salsa Salsa Dance Studio
Campaign: Same dance, different reasons to join

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Art Director: Liz Llaury
Client: Nature’s Sleep Mattresses
Campaign: Stress-Relief Mattress

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Art Director: Drew White
Client: GE Microwave
Campaign: Larger, to cook more items at once

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Art Director: May Hon Yap
Client: Mountainsmith Backpacks
Campaign: Travel Seriously

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Art Director: Chelcea Cupples
Client: Scotch
Campaign: All-Weather Duct Tape

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Copywriter: Cyndie Lalic
Client: 76 Gas Stations
Campaign: Just Around the Corner

Art Director: Serene Sim
Client: Graco Baby Seats
Campaign: Taking Care of Your Baby

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Art Director: Drew White
Client: Scope Mouthwash
Campaign: Long Lasting Fresh Breath

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Art Director: Chelcea Cupples
Client: Sur La Table Kitchenware
Campaign: Doing the Cooking For You

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Art Director: Ambrosio Ballon
Client: Canada Dry Ginger Ale
Campaign: The Unexpected

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Art Director: Ambrosio Ballon
Client: Invicta Watches
Campaign: Seconds to Spare

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Before we start this step-by-step ‘HowTo’ guide, here’s a little clip called ‘Blogs in Plain English’ (courtesy of commoncraft.com) to help you understand why you might want to set up your own blog:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN2I1pWXjXI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYKqEqg9bgg

Ready to start?

1. Purchasing a domain name + hosting service:

Domain name is simply the URL you’ll be using (like YAHOO.com or CNN.com). When you buy a domain name you’re really buying the rights to use that name for a limited time. Hosting, on the other hand, means a physical space on someone’s hard-drive (server) where your blog’s/website’s files will be stored. To have a website or a blog you’ll need both. When visitors type your domain URL into their browser, they are being redirected to the files stored on your hosting service. You can purchase the domain name separately from the hosting but it’s not recommended since some hosting services (like 1&1) will give you 1, 2 or even 3 free domains with your hosting service (GoDaddy, for example, do no give free domain with their hosting so you’ll have to pay for both if you )

My personal choice is 1&1 (click here for their current deals). I’m sure you’ve heard of GoDaddy but I find 1&1 to be cheaper, with better customer support, and a few extra features GoDaddy charge more for (like free domains with your hosting). Here’s a detailed comparison between the two.

Before choosing a domain name, think about YOU as a BRAND.  What would you like people to know about you?  How would you like others to perceive you? To identify your self-branding goals, you can use these tools:

TOOL: Personal Branding Creative Brief

TIP: 12 Excellent Tools for Picking a Domain Name

USEFUL: 1&1′s Hosting | Customer / Tech Support: 1-866-991-2631

IMPORTANT: You want the Linux hosting and not the Windows hosting, even if you have a Windows operating system.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzBrjTjT8OM

NOTE: The hosting packages shown in this video may have changed. Visit 1an1 for current packages & pricing.

2. Before Installing Your Blog (Setting up FTP and MySQP and FileZilla):

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It’s the way your computer communicates with the hosting service you just purchased. To be able to transfer the blog files, you will need to download and install an FTP software. I recommend FileZilla (click here to download). It’s free, fast, easy to install & use, and works well on both Windows and Mac OS. If you use Firefox as a browser, another good option is FireFTP (Firefox addon).

The next step will be to create an FTP account (via your 1&1 control panel):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaQrvYni94Y

USEFUL: If you need further assistance, call 1&1′s Tech Support: 1-866-991-2631

MySQL is a database management system which is used (in our case) to store your blog’s content (posts, pages, links, etc). Before you can setup your blog, you will need to create a MySQL databse in your 1&1 Control Panel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnnTjCgOv8k

USEFUL: If you need further assistance, call 1&1′s Tech Support: 1-866-991-2631

3. Downloading WordPress plus my WP Extras:

WordPress is currently the leading blogging software out there. You may have heard of, or used, other platforms (such are Blogger, Tumbler, Drupal, TypePad, LiveJournal, Movable Type, etc) but there’s a general consensus among bloggers that WordPress is relatively easy to install, very easy to use and offers lots of features that other platforms do not.

COMPARE BLOGGING PLATFORMS: ProBlogger.net chart and a more detailed comparison chart (via ojr.org)

Download the latest version of WordPress HERE. Save the ZIP file on your harddrive and unzip it.

Download my Extras for WordPress here. Unzip it to the same folder you used for WordPress, overriding any existing file in the WordPress folder you created in the previous step.

My extras include:

- info.php file that will provide lots of valuable info about your hosting service.
- Improved .htaccess files for both 1&1 and GoDaddy.
- Sample favicon.ico for your blog.
- List of the most useful WordPress plugins.txt

4. Uploading WordPress to your 1&1 hosting space with FileZilla:

In step 2, you’ve downloaded and installed an FTP client called FileZilla. Run FileZilla and transfer the WordPress files to your hosting server.

NOTE: the video below (courtesy of slackermarketing.com) will show you how to transfer your files. In the video, they recommend creating a /blog folder on your hosting server side. If your intension, is for your domain to host your blog alone (no other website), you can also transfer the files directly to the root (main) folder:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4DYHOiwGSQ

IMPORTANT: If you followed the video above, they recommended FTPing (transferring) all the WordPress files into a “/blog” folder within your main hosting area. This means you now have two options:

Option #1 (RECOMMENDED): Let 1and1 redirect all visitors to the /blog folder automatically:
- Log into https://admin.1and1.com
- Once logged in to the admin area, click on “Domains” to see a list of your domain names
- Check the check-box next to your domain and click on “Destination” and “Edit Destination” on the top-menu
- Under “Home Directory” forward the domain to the /Blog folder

Option #2 (less preferred) – If you already have a website on that domain and would like your blog to stay on the /Blog folder, on the next step (Sept 5) simply go to YourDomainName.com/blog for initial setup.

5. Activating / Setting up  WordPress for the first time:

- Once all the files are uploaded to your hosting server, visit:  http://YourDomnainName.com (or .org, net, etc, whichever one you bought).

- This should start the setup process. During the process, you will be asked to enter the database name, database host, username and password. This information was given to you during step #2 of this guide and you can always go back to the MySQL page on your 1and1 admin page and look it up.

- during setup, you will be asked to pick a username and password for your blog (not the MySQL or the FTP), by default, the username is “admin”. It’s recommended to change it to something else.

Here’s a little clip that explains how to Log In to your admin dashboard:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuzJBFb0LNM

TIP: adding /wp-admin at the end of your url is exactly the same as adding /wp-login (both will take you to your blog’s dashboard).

About your blog’s Dashboard (courtesy of learntospeakgeek.com):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyy84weBBdk

6. Updating .htaccess:

.htaccess is a server management file which can provide a higher level of security, increase memory access, and a few other important settings you can add to your blog (or to any other website). For your convenience, I have written a powerful .htaccess file and added it to the Extras you’ve downloaded before. In your unzipped WordPress folder, you should see two versions of it, one for 1&1 hosting and the other for GoDaddy (they use a slightly different code to enforce PHP5). Assuming your host is via 1&1:

- From within FileZill (the FTP client), look for a file named htaccess-1and1.txt on your server side (the right side, not the left side which is your local hard-drive).

- right-click it and rename it to:  .htaccess (basically adding a dot before the h and deleting the dash and everything after it, including the .txt extension).

If you’re interested in learning what exactly this .htaccess file do, open it with a text editor and read the side notes.

TIP: Updating this .htaccess file will allow you to install and activate over 40 plugins in one click vs. having to install and activate them one by one.

7. Configuring WordPress:

At this point, WordPress is installed on your domain. If you visit http://YourDomainName.com you should see your blog. It should looks something like this:

Now you’ll need to configure the basic settings for your blog. To do so, visit your admin page (also called Dashboard): http://YourDomainName.com/wp-admin

[viddler id=90de1906&w=525&h=444]

The following SETTINGS (left menu) are shown in the video above:

To add the ‘www‘ prefix to your URL, go to:

Settings / GENERAL / For both WordPress address (URL) and Blog address (URL) add ‘www‘ / Save.

Settings / GENERAL / Timezone – pick your city (and hit Save Changes)

Settings / WRITING / Size of the post box – I recommend changing from 20 to 40 so your post editing box is bigger.

Settings / WRITING / Update Services (copy/paste this instead of whatever is in the box):

http://rpc.pingomatic.com

http://ping.feedburner.com

http://ping.syndic8.com/xmlrpc.php

http://www.blogpeople.net/servlet/weblogUpdates

http://ping.myblog.jp

http://bblog.com/ping.php

http://pingoat.com/goat/RPC2

http://ping.bloggers.jp/rpc/

http://xping.pubsub.com/ping

http://topicexchange.com/RPC2

http://rpc.technorati.com/rpc/ping

http://rpc.weblogs.com/RPC2

http://api.moreover.com/RPC2

http://blogsearch.google.com/ping/RPC2

http://ping.weblogalot.com/rpc.php

Settings / READING / I recommend changing both the “Blog pages show at most” and the “Syndication feeds show the most recent” from 10 to 15

Settings / DISCUSSION / Comment Moderation
Click here and copy this list into the Comment Moderation box.

Settings / PERMALINKS / Common Settings - Check ‘Custom Structure’ and  copy/paste this:
/%category%/%postname%

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfI1ArtfnTc

8. Installing Plugins:

Plugins add functionality, security, usability, and many other features to WordPress. Before we install any plugins, there’s an unnecessary plugin that was auto-installed by WP, and that we don’t really need (the more plugins installed the slower your blog will be to your visitors). On your blog’s Dashboard (left menu):

Plugins / INSTALLED / Check Hello Dolly
Under Bulk Action, choose Delete / click Apply

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtEfFuXuyVU

Now lets add some useful plugins:

Plugins / ADD NEW / In the search box, type: plugin central / hit search
Install “Plugin Central” (ignore any “plug not been tested” message if you get one) / click Install Now / click Activate Plugin

Click the Plugin tab on the left-menu once again, and then the Plugin Central under it.
Copy the list of plugins (links) below and post it into the Easy Plugin Installation box / below the box, click Install Plugins:

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/admin-management-xtended/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/backwpup/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/bad-behavior/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/better-plugin-compatibility-control/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/better-seo-slugs/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/broken-link-checker/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/cbnet-favicon/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/cbnet-ping-optimizer/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/contact-form-7/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/defensio-anti-spam/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/exclude-pages/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/sem-external-links/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/feedburner-plugin/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-analyticator/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-analytics-for-wordpress/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-sitemap-generator/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/hana-flv-player/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/lightbox-plus/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/my-category-order/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/my-link-order/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/my-page-order/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/no-self-ping/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/page-links-to/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/photo-dropper/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/redirection/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/revision-control/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/seo-image/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/sexybookmarks/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/smart-youtube/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/subscribe-to-comments-reloaded/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/tinymce-advanced/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/vipers-video-quicktags/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-cumulus/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-optimize/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-polls/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-htaccess-editor/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-show-ids/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wptouch/

http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/yet-another-related-posts-plugin/

9. Activating Plugins:

On the left menu, under Plugins / click Installed
For Inactive Plugins / click ACTIVATE under each plugin to activate them one by one.

If you followed steps #3 (extras) and step #6 (htaccess) of this guide, you can also activate all plugins at once. To do so, check the ‘Plugin‘ box below ‘Bulk Action‘ / Change Bulk Action to Activate and hit Apply.

If you didn’t follow steps 3 & 6, you might overuse 1&1 server’s cpu by activating all plugins at once and you’ll get “ERROR 500 – Internal Server Error” message (which basically means you are using too much of their allocated memory). If you did get “ERROR 500″ message and can no longer access your blog’s Dashboard, follow these steps:

a. Using FileZilla or any other FTP client  – rename the “plugins” folder on the server side (right side) to a different name (doesn’t matter what). The plugin folder is under the /wp-content/plugins

b. Login to YourDomain.com/wp-admin  – that will reset your blog with no active plugins.

c. Using FileZilla or any other FTP client, rename the plugin folder back to – plugins

d. Login to your YourDomain.com/wp-admin again and this time, activate the plugins one by one (or go back to make sure you follow steps #3 & #6 of this guide).

Note: Depending on the plugins you installed, upon activation, you may receive a number of red, pink, yellow, etc error messages, that may look like this:

FYI, these are not error messages but rather, plugins settings that may require your attention. In step #10 we will set up all of these plugins, which will take care of these messages.

10. Plugin Setup:

Some of the plugins you installed require initial setup or configuration. In this section we will go over some of these. On the left menu, under:

SETTINGS / All-in-one SEO Pack (Search Engine Optimization):

Here’s why SEO:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNHR6IQJGZs

Typically, this is how google presents search results:

In our example, all-in-one-SEO settings are:

Home Title: “The Advertising class” (even though our URL is TheADClass.com, we wanted the word “Advertising” to appear on the title since we assume people are more likely to search for it). Keep it short and relevant. While the format of the home-title shouldn’t be just keywords but a real title, the words you use for your home-title should be relevant to the google keywords you want to be found by.

Home Description: “The best resource page for advertising students, professors and professionals. Art Directors, Copywrites, Account Planners, Media Planners, AdAge, AdWeek, Ads of the World, ADDY, Clio, I Have an Idea.” Notice that in the example I gave here, the description in all-in-one is longer than what Google actually shows. Google only shows 150 characters (with spaces) so you want to limit your description to 150 characters.

Home Keywords: No more than 30. Use the most important keywords you’d like to be found by. All lowercase.

Check ALL check-boxes EXCEPT the last one (“Log important events”). This will prevent Google from lowering your PageRank due to duplicate content.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LtstWkmrDw

Until you setup and enable the All-in-one-SEO plugin, you might see this annoying message but once you enable it, it will go away:

You can check the “I enjoy this plugin and have made a donation” box as well…

SETTINGS / Bad Behavior

This plug will prevent a lot of spam comments on your blog. You want to un-check “Display statistics in blog footer“.

SETTINGS / cbnet Favicon

CBNET Favicon adds a cool favicon to your blog. Favicon (short for favorites icon), also known as a website icon or bookmark icon is a 16×16, 32×32 or 64×64 pixel square icon associated with a particular website or webpage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jRoln8UsiE

Here are some favicons inspiration:

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2007/01/31/inspire-yourself-50-remarkable-favicons/
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2007/09/11/creative-favicons-tiny-artwork/
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2007/06/14/creative-favicons-when-small-is-beautiful/
http://deltatangobravo.com/archives/2004/march/favourite
http://pimpmypagerank.com/favicons/
http://mppierce66.home.comcast.net/~mppierce66/web/fi/collage.htm
http://www.cssjuice.com/20-best-favicon-online-generators/

SETTINGS / Google Analyticator

This plugin Shows cool stats about your visitors. First, you’ll need to setup an account and get a UA code from Google Analytics. If your blog URL ends with /blog/ or /wordpress/ include that in the URL during the setup:
http://www.google.com/analytics/

Here’s a short clips on how to set it up (courtesy of OnlineCashflowGuru.com). Note that only the first 3 minutes of this clip are relevant (since we’re using the Google Analyticator plugin, we don’t need to copy/paste any code other than the UA number).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abHDVTD_ZSw

Setting up Google Analyticator with your UA code:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixUoFyQpWhA

TIP: I would actually not recommend enabling the Footer Tracking Code by default, since it’s not compatible with every WordPress theme.

SETTINGS / Photo Dropper

Use this plugin to grab interesting photos as you blog along, to add to your posts (icon will appear above the post’s editing-box). To optimize it for best usage:

- Remove the check from “Use Classic Interface”
- Increase “Images per page” to 25
- Remove the check from “Show only…”
- Check “Sort Photos by…”
- Save Settings

SETTINGS / Reveal IDs for WP Admin

This plugin is for advance users who might need to figure out post/page IDs. No special setup, just hit SAVE once if you’re still getting an announcement about it on the top of your dashboard. If you do not hit save, you might keep getting this note:

SETTINGS / Robots Meta

This plugin improves SEO (Search Engine Optimization) by modifying the robots meta tags.

- Check ALL check-boxes for this plugin.

NOTE: If you’ve uploaded the .htaccess file as described in step #6 of this guide, you don’t need to touch anything else here other than checking all check-boxes.

SETTINGS / External Links

This plugin sets up links to be opened in a new window or tab, allowing your visitors to stay with your blog open. It can also add a cute little icon next to any external link on your blog (which personally I don’t like):

- If you’re like me, and do not like this little link icon, I recommend removing the check mark from the second option (Add Icon).
- Add a check mark to both “Add No Follow” and “Open in New Windows” / Save Changes

SETTINGS / TinyMCE Advanced

This plugin allows you to change the post editing window (kinda like when you write a MS Word document). If you find this to be confusing, you can skip this step. For more info on this plugin, search YouTube for “TinyMCE Advanced”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1K_HgsFYLSw

SETTINGS / SEO Post Link

This plugin makes your post link short and SEO friendly (Search Engine Optimization). It removes common words that are unnecessary for search engine optimization off your blog’s post link.

- After registering / verifying, if there isn’t already a list of “Unnecessary Words” than click here and copy/paste this list.

NOTE: while this is a great plugin, the author of this plugin will send you marketing material after registration. When registering, I’d recommend using an alternative email that you can still check (in order to activate) rather than your main email address. When transfered to another website to sign up, pick “no thanks”.

SexyBookmarks AKA Shareaholic

The settings for this plugin are NOT under the SETTINGS tab, but rather, they have added their own tab toward the bottom of the left-menu, called “Shareaholic“. You can also click the “Plugin Options Page” on this red error message that will appear on your screen if this is the first time you’re setting it up:

Select your preferred social bookmarking sites, preferred settings and hit ‘Save Changes‘. Once you saved your options, the above red error message will go away…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVkGJCum3vI

SETTINGS / Ajax Edit Comments

Under ‘Spam Protection‘ (middle of the page) / check Defensio

Update Settings

SETTINGS / Defensio

Defensio is one of the best anti-spam plugins. Sign up and get the Defensio API Key (sign up for PERSONAL, not professional) here:

http://www.defensio.com/signup

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xw5bfUPGpJ4

(the video above is a great one but I’d recommend to sign up as personal rather than a professional, that way, it’s free…)

Use the API code you got at signup and save settings. Once you save your settings, the yellow error message below will disappear:

SETTINGS / XML-Sitemap

This plugin will help Google index your blog.

- Click where it says: “The sitemap wasn’t built yet. Click here to build it the first time“.

11. Installing a theme for your blog

Before you install a new theme on your WordPress blog, a few things to consider:

- Find a theme that you like – consider the overall look, the number of columns, the size of different elements on the page (logo, images, widgets, etc).

- More important than finding a theme you like, is finding a theme that supports your branding statement. Is the theme helping you brand yourself / your business the way you want it to? What does it communicate about you visually? Is it too busy? Does it look professional?

To install a theme, on the left menu of your dashboard, under APPEARANCE, click Themes. On the top bar, click INSTALL THEMES and brows for the right theme using the Search, Featured, Newest, etc tabs.

A nicer alternative to WordPress’ built-in theme catalog is to search for a more recent, SEO optimized, beautifully designed theme on the web. Below is a list of great links to start your search. When you find the theme you like, download it as a ZIP file and use the UPLOAD tab to upload the theme:

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/08/19/100-free-high-quality-wordpress-themes-for-2010/

http://websoulz.com/amazing-100-free-wordpress-themes/

http://www.instantshift.com/2009/02/22/140-brilliant-free-wordpress-themes-around/

http://www.antsmagazine.com/100-superb-wordpress-themes-for-free/

http://www.presidiacreative.com/39-amazing-wordpress-themes/

http://www.ahnternet.com/2009/02/03/25-awesome-high-quality-free-wordpress-27-themes/

http://mashable.com/2010/02/10/free-wordpress-blog-themes/

http://mashable.com/2009/01/19/free-wordpress-themes/

http://mashable.com/2009/01/07/wordpress-2-7-themes/

http://pennybutler.com/wordpress/themes/free/beautiful-creative-wordpress-27

http://www.ezwpthemes.com/

http://honestholly.com/10-rare-wordpress-themes-for-2009/

http://honestholly.com/thursday-themes-10-best-wordpress-themes-2009/

http://www.noupe.com/wordpress/15-high-quality-free-premium-wordpress-27-themes.html

http://www.patromax.com/15-most-popular-wordpress-27-themes/

http://topwpthemes.com/

http://www.freewpblogthemes.com/

You can also manually install any theme using your FTP client (FileZilla). Here’s a little video tutorial on how to install your theme manually (courtesy of mattladwig):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wrh2OZ9Mbw8

12. Howto Blog:

Understanding Blogs – Blogs in Plain English (courtesy of commoncraft.com)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN2I1pWXjXI

Understanding Pages, Posts, Categories, Tags, Slug and Permalinks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVKkblKgFyY

Adding/writing a new post (courtesy of learntospeakgeek.com):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vccJHRLgWR8

Adding/writing a new page (vs. post) (courtesy of learntospeakgeek.com):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTDRagRBiWI

2009 Clio:

http://www.clioawards.com/winners/index.cfm?maxrow=30

2009 One Show:

http://www.oneclub.org/os/os/showcase/?year=2009

2009 Andy:

http://www.andyawards.com/winners/index.php

2009 Bassies (Canada):

http://thebessies.ca/2009/winners.html

2009 D&AD:

http://awards.dandad.org/2009/

BTAA (British Television):

http://www.securio.net/btaa/btaa/index.cfm/fa/award.intro/year/2009

2009 Golden Drum:

http://www.goldendrum.com/competition/showcase/

2009 London International:

http://2009.liaentries.com/winners/?id_medium=6&view=icons&range=w

2009 Addy (actual ads can be searched on Google by ad/agency name):

http://www.aaf.org/default.asp?id=1001

2009 Cannes Lions (actual ads can be searched on Google by ad/agency name):

http://www.advertolog.com/award_show_winners/Cannes_Lions/year2009/

* Traffic to advertiser Web sites spiked on the day after last year’s Super Bowl (duh)
* In the last five years, the biggest Super Bowl advertiser was Anheuser-Busch, which spent over $100 million on its Bud and Bud Light brands alone.
* Motion Pictures form the biggest category of ad spending, which leads to an immediate surge in online buzz for the advertised films.

According to TNS Media Intelligence, the economic slump have also taken a toll on Super Bowl ads, pushing down the price for only the second time in the game’s history (though they are still the most expensive ads on television).

This year, a 30-second spot is expected to cost anywhere between 2.5M to 2.8M (not including the production costs, just air-time). Final figures will be released after the Super Bowl airs Feb. 7. In the past, an average 30-second ad cost:

2009 – $3 million
2008 – $2.7 million
2007 – $2.4 million
2006 – $2.5 million
2005 – $2.4 million
2004 – $2.3 million

A couple of interesting trends in this 44th Super Bowl:

* Pepsi won’t advertise its drinks for the first time in 23 seasons, joining FedEx and GM, who dropped out last year.
* In their absence, newcomers and smaller companies have snatched up slots in advertising’s biggest showcase.
* From 1990 through 2009, the Super Bowl generated $2.17 billion of network sales, including 1,400 commercials from 210 advertisers (source: TNS)

Watch all Super Bowl 2010 ads during and after the game here:

http://www.spike.com/superbowl
http://www.youtube.com/superbowl
http://superbowlads.fanhouse.com/
http://creativity-online.com/superbowl2010/thespots/
http://www.superbowl-ads.com/

AdWeeks’ 2010 Commercial Players:
http://www.adweek.com/aw/custom-reports/superbowl/chart.jsp

Read more Super Bowl trends from The Nielsen Company:
http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/?s=super+bowl

Who’s Buying What in Super Bowl XLIV ???
http://adage.com/superbowl10/article?article_id=141168

Super Bowl 2010 on AdAge:
http://adage.com/superbowl10/

Super Bowl 2010 on AdWeek:
http://www.adweek.com/aw/custom-reports/superbowl/index.jsp

USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter:
http://admeter.usatoday.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA_Today_Super_Bowl_Ad_Meter

The world’s Largest Collection of Super Bowl Ads (AdLand):
http://adland.tv/SuperBowlCommercials

Top 20 Super Bowl Ads Ever (Creativity-Online):
http://creativity-online.com/superbowl/top20

The Funniest Super Bowl Ads of All Time (Huffington Post)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/05/the-funniest-superbowl-ad_n_449511.html

To view full-motion commercials, storyboards, and ratings that aired during the Super Bowls since 1999, visit Nielsen’s website at:
https://www.nielsenmedia.com/monitorplus/superbowl/

CBS – Super Bowl’s Greatest Commercials 2009:
http://www.cbs.com/collections/superbowl/

The 10 Best Super Bowl Ads of All Time (MSNBC):
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35174030/

The 10 Worst Super Bowl Ads of All Time (MSNBC):
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35059361/

The Sleaziest Super Bowl Ads of All Time (MSNBC):
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22871730/

Top 10 Sexiest Super Bowl Ads of All Time:
http://www.ranker.com/list/top-10-sexiest-superbowl-commercials-of-all-time/pt_tesla

And last but not least, here are just a few of the upcoming 2010 ads (or teasers). The list will be updated as the ads run during the game:

VW (Meet Sluggy Patterson):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlB9OhhJhE8

Audi of America (The Green Police):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYxvtDMB1zk

CareerBuilder.com (Job Fairy):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2gUi4xvvsE

CareerBuilder.com (Casual Friday):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1FxwagDP8A

CareerBuilder.com (Worst Seat):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvRQ_9J_GDg

Doritos (Snack Attack Samurai – Crash the Super Bowl 2010 Finalist):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bRSM4EbLFw

Doritos (Smackout – Crash the Super Bowl 2010 Finalist):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpRbbtHp5Qg

Doritos (Kids These Days – Crash the Super Bowl 2010 Finalist):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4YNFO70Qhk

Doritos (House Rules – Crash the Super Bowl 2010 Finalist):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rsEnwKrsvc

Doritos (Casket – Crash the Super Bowl 2010 Finalist):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPTAOgPIUds

E*Trade (Barbershop):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqZGj6VLSGg

E*Trade (Lottery):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqVBKO_QM3o

Monster.com (Boogeyman):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_cbLS0-Abo

GoDaddy (Lola, rejected):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68WTMYxoSck

GoDaddy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SklKTC_1S_A

GoDaddy (Spa):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXWvkgdCP-s

GoDaddy (News):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fYykJCvZPM

Boost Mobile (McMahon, teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzGl7S-kauM

Boost Mobile (Singletary, teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhYX7fF_EIs

Boost Mobile (Distka, teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8-bCgRJhEk

Bridgestone (Your Tire or Your Life, teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4eqNo2L53I

Bridgestone (Whale of a Tale, teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuqwY495AwQ

Denny’s (Feeds America):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txoSa6huhN4

Dockers (teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAFuNk0fM1I

CatholicVote.com (Life: Imagine the Potential, rejected by NBC):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2CaBR3z85c

Kia:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJqs3D2vv4I

Dante’s Inferno (Go To Hell):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rbeAGdYk_0

Universal Orlando Resort (Wizarding World of Harry Potter):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWNKWE-vFAI

Honda (Accord Crosstour):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtDWKusYZgM

Hyundai (Paint):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLRvmWv1J6s

Hyundai (10 Years, featuring Brett Favre):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVYxU1OHumM

TruTV (Groundhog Day, featuring Troy Polamalu):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFzIdZbypNk

The Last Airbender (trailer):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeTzlC6mN4E

Cars.com (Timothy Richman):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FH6Gt1-NWw4

Taco Bell (It Rocks, teaser):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqIISOfTrVc

We’d love to hear from you before, during or after the game

WHAT’S YOU FAVORITE 2010 SUPER BOWL AD?

WATCH THE ADS HERE

COMMENTS?

A few great ads to start the week with. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in99Xm1-Fz8

Client: Sky TV | AD: Labour
Agency: DDB New Zealand
Creative Director: Adam Kanzer
Creatives: James Conner & Christie Cooper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YZ710CJ0hM

For more of Aleksandr Orlov, visit
http://www.youtube.com/user/CompareTheMeerkat

Client: CompareTheMarket.com | AD: Journey of Courageousness
Agency: VCCP, London
Creative Directors: Darren Bailes & Steve Vranakis
Creatives: Richard Connell & Clement Woodward

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iou-l59OOBg

Client: Philips | AD: Squeaky Clean
Agency: DDB London
Creative Director: Neil Dawson
Creatives: Deborah James & Chris Lapham

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6csvpkZ1S50

Client: Pepto Bismol | AD: Nice Burrito
Agency: Lapiz, Chicago
Executive Creative Director: Laurence Klinger
Associate Creative Directors: Jose Funegra & María Bernal
Copywriter: Jose Funegra
Art Director: María Bernal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOgFP2TLq-o

and ‘The Making of’:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4t4IshMNRsA

(and their waterslide ad, in case you missed it last year)

Client: Barclaycard | AD: Rollercoaster
Agency: BBH, London
Creative Director: Adam Tucker
Art Director: Szymon Rose
Copywriter: Daniel Schaefer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDwYUfh_Vyk

Cliend: Mercedes-Benz | AD: Avoid surprises
Agency: The Viral Factory, London
Creative: Lukas Lindemann Rosinski

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqlQS5CCmwI

Client: Nolan’s Cheddar | AD: Seriously strong
Director: John Nolan

So, we know you’re a brand. We also know that when you’re looking for a job/internship, potential recruiters/companies will not really see you the way you think you are, but rather, the way YOUR BRAND is being communicated.

” Brand is the sum total of the emotions, thoughts, images, history and gossip that exists in the marketplace about a certain company/product/idea”

– Luke Sullivan
Group Creative Director @ GSD&M & author of “Hey Whipple, Squeeze This”

We know that great brands stand for ONE and only ONE thing. The question then, is what’s the single most important thing you want/need to communicate about YOUR BRAND? (i.e. #6 in the creative brief below).

Filling out this personal creative brief will help you shape your resume, website, or any other piece of communication about yourself. Creative briefs can take different directions depending on the perceptual problem that needs to be solved. The challenge is to find the strongest problem/solution and focus on that one only.

Here are a few examples of perceptual problems:

• In High-tech, employers are looking for people who master new technologies [which may lead to one branding themselves as internet gurus].
• Ad agencies prefer hiring people who are not only knowledgeable and curious about a lot of different things, but are experts in finding information [which may lead to one branding themselves as information mavens].
• Creative shops would rather hire someone who is not afraid of making mistakes [which may lead to one branding themselves as a smart-risk-taker].

Here’s a personal-branding creative brief that will help you figure out single most important thing you should communicate about yourself:

1. What is the perceptual problem you are trying to solve?
This is not a real problem (like the fact that they don’t know you yet) but a perceptual one – what do they think about the idea of hiring someone like you? What is their perception about potential candidates? What is the #1 personality trait or skill needed for this specific job? Who might be their best candidate and why?

2. Who are you talking to?
Not demographic but a real person with a real position/title in a real company. Not HR, but the person for whom the #1 above is the perceptual problem that needs to be solved. The more specific you are about who it is that you’re targeting, the more likely you are to communicate what they want to hear.

3. What do they currently think about you / the idea of someone like you / potential candidates? (current perception)

4. What do you want them to think of you / the idea of hiring someone like you? (desired future perception)

5. Who are your competitors? (other potential candidates) What are they like? What makes them unique/special? What are their advantages & disadvantages?

6. What’s the SINGLE most important idea you want/need to communicate about you?
Not three things. Not two. ONE single idea – the most important one. This idea should solve #1 on this brief (the perceptual problem).

7. What’s the best way to communicate this idea?
Not what media to use, but rather what strategy, tone of voice, feel, mood, etc. (not execution). Why?

8. How do you  know you’re right?
What evidence do you have that supports the above #1-#7? A good creative brief is not based of a gut-feeling or on your thought about what might they look for, it should be based on research. The more research you do about this job/position, about the target audience, about the competition, etc., the more insight & evidence you’ll have that your strategy is a smart one.

Here are a few great reads on personal / self-branding:

Fast Company: Me 2.0-the personal branding playbook

Fast Company: The Brand Called You (5 pages)

TheAdClass.com: 10 Tips for Writing A Remarkable Resumes

Harvard Business School’s One-Minute Elevator Pitch Builder

Mashable.com: Personal Branding 101: How to Discover and Create Your Brand

Mashable.com: Personal Branding 102: How to Communicate and Maintain Your Brand

Mashable.com: 5 Ways to Take Control of Your Personal Brand Today

Mashable.com: HOW TO: Build Your Personal Brand on Facebook

Mashable.com: 10 Ways Personal Branding Can Save You From Getting Fired

Mashable.com: HOW TO: Build Your Personal Brand on Twitter

Mashable.com: 25+ Ways to Manage Your Online Identity

WebDesignerDepot.com: 100 (Really) Creative Business Cards

WebDesignerDepot.com: The Art of Branding Yourself

Steve Pavlina on Personal Branding (and his survey results)

CNN: Me 2.0: Branding yourself online

Teaching Online Journalism: 10 tips for Journalists’ Personal brand

Additional Resources:

PersonalBrandingBlog.com

CopyBlogger.com

Seth Godin’s Blog

Here are a few great examples of blogs (not all personal blogs) with strong branding statement (both visually and content-wise):

The WorkAwesome blog/brand communicates “Be awesome at work”

Darren Rowse‘s blog/brand communicates ”Professional Blogger”

Demain J’arrête‘s blog/brand (French) communicates ”Dark Cartoonist”

Tim Ferriss’s (The 4hour Work Week) blog/brand communicates ”Lifestyle Design”

The Strip blog/brand (German) communicates “Cartoon Artist”

WebDesignDepot‘s blog/brand communicates ”Smart Design Ideas”

LifeHacker‘s blog/brand communicates ”Efficiency”

Vitaly Friedman’s SmashingMagazine blog/brand communicates ”Smart Design”

The MusicCity blog/brand communicates ”Music Community”

Manuel Romero‘s blog/brand communicates ”Designer”

The Swish Life Magazine‘s blog/brand communicates ”Sophisticated Lifestyle”

Mashable blog/brand communicates ”Social Media Experts”

10 Job Hunting Tips for This Year’s Graduating Class | February 14, 2009
By Edward Boches, Chief Creative Officer @ Mullen

http://edwardboches.com/10-job-hunting-tips-for-this-year%E2%80%99s-graduating-class

The Top 10 Mistakes in Portfolio Development | November 4, 2005
By Suzanne Pope, Associate Creative Director @ John St., Toronto.

http://ihaveanidea.org/articles/2005/11/04/the-top-ten-mistakes-in-portfolio-development/

* NOTE: Link requires login (free to register). Create an account with IHaveAnIdea and revisit link after login. Believe me, it’s worth it!

10 Tips for Writing a Remarkable Resume in Today’s Creative World | March 21, 2009
By Assaf Avni, Creative Advertising Faculty @ California State University, Fullerton

http://www.theadclass.com/jobs/10-tips-writing-remarkable-resume

25 Non-Random Things About Writing Short | March 20, 2009
By Roy Peter Clark, Faculty/Senior Scholar @ The Poynter Institute for Media Studies

http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=78&aid=158294

83 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me While I Was Learning How to be Creative | November 2005
By Sally Hogshead, Copywriter & Creative Director

http://www.radicalcareering.com/hogblog/?p=41

* NOTE: Originally written for “Pick Me: Breaking Into Advertising and Staying There“.

An Inconvenient Truth For Copywriters: How To Write Headlines And Why Your Career Depends On It | September 23, 2007
By Suzanne Pope, Associate Creative Director @ John St., Toronto.

http://ihaveanidea.org/articles/2007/09/23/an-inconvenient-truth-for-copywriters-how-to-write-headlines-and-why-your-career-depends-on-it/

* NOTE: Link requires login (free to register). Create an account with IHaveAnIdea and revisit link after login. Believe me, it’s worth it!
** Downloadable PDF version here (no need to register)

How to Train Ideas to Come When They’re Called: Notes and Advice for Young People in Advertising | September 7, 2009
By Suzanne Pope, Associate Creative Director @ John St., Toronto.

http://ihaveanidea.org/natbucket/Ideas_SuzannePope1.pdf

A Note To Student Art Directors | Sept/Oct. 2002
By Hal Curtis, Creative Director @ Wieden+Kennedy, Portland

http://makinads.blogspot.com/2009/08/advice-from-hal.html

* NOTE: Originally published in the September/October 2002 issue of Communication Arts.

Revising Your Creative Concept Without Ruining It | August 5, 2009
By Jim Bosiljevac, Creative Director & Copywriter @ DDB San Francisco

http://makinads.blogspot.com/2009/08/revisions.html

The Agency With the Best Softball Team Does the Worst Creative
By Sally Hogshead, Copywriter & Creative Director

http://makinads.blogspot.com/2009/07/this-article-was-written-for-one.html

* NOTE: Originally published in One Magazine.

Saving Advertising | 2000
By Jelly Helm, (formerly) Executive Creative Director @ Wieden + Kennedy and founder of W+K 12

http://www.emigre.com/Editorial.php?sect=1&id=25

And here’s a transcript or Jelly’s presentation to AIGA Portland’s Designspeaks:

http://oakhazelnut.makerlab.com/2009/09/18/aiga-portlands-designspeaks-with-jelly-helm-transcript-and-event-review/

Design Thinking | June, 2008
By Tim Brown, CEO and president @ IDEO

http://www.ideo.com/images/uploads/news/pdfs/IDEO_HBR_Design_Thinking.pdf

You can read more about Design Thinking on Tim’s blog:
http://designthinking.ideo.com/

Do’s and Don’ts to Consider When Building Your Online Portfolio | March, 2009
By Heidi Ehlers, Founder @ Black Bag Creative Recruitment & Career Management inc.

http://www.blackbagonline.com/inspiration_details.php?id=89

Why Not Take a Moment to Define Success Before You Pursue It? | September, 2009
By Alex Bogusky, Principal @ Crispin Porter & Bogusky

http://alexbogusky.posterous.com/why-not-take-a-moment-to-define-success-befor

73 Ways to Become a Better Writer | July, 2009
By Mary Jaksch, Chief Editor @ WriteToDone.com

http://www.copyblogger.com/better-writer/

Hot to Get a Job in Advertising (a Good Job) | March, 2009
By Scott Goodson, Founder @ StrawberryFrog

http://scottgoodson.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/03/how-to-get-a-job-in-advertising-a-good-job.html

Can you recommend a few other great reads on the topic?

Career analyst Dan Pink examines the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don’t: Traditional rewards aren’t always as effective as we think. Listen for illuminating stories — and maybe, a way forward.

More on Dan Pink (from TED’s website):
http://www.ted.com/speakers/daniel_pink.html

More of Dan Pink from Better Life (55 minutes):

[viddler id=9d0d0dee&w=437&h=289]

TODAY’S CHALLENGE: Aside from the methods mentioned in the clip (Atlassian’s FedEx Days, Google 20/80, etc), if you were the CEO of a company, or to manage other people in any working environment, what creative method can you come up with, to tap into employees’ intrinsic motivation? We’re looking for short, simple, smart, clear, and positive ideas that can be incorporated into any working environment.