designbivouac

Hyped Up By the "Hyper-Matrix"

This "Hyper-Matrix" work from the media artist group Jonpasang made the rounds a whlie ago but seeing it again, as well as the "making of" video gives me new found respect for those out there who are taking experiences like this squarely to new levels of execution and excitement.

 

New York Times Budget Puzzle

Sometimes I find myself noting something as interesting but it takes a while to really appreciate it to its fullest. That was the case with the New York Times Budget Puzzle which came out last November.

While in an information visualization brainstorm today, this came back to me as a great example of how to empower users to relate to a very abstract concept...our federal budget deficit. Its minimalistic approach and small details like representing 1 billion dollars with small blue squares that tally up in real time depending upon decisions users make is a nice touch. 

BMW Breaks New Barriers with Entry Level M Model

BMW has long been breaking performance barriers with each successive model in their M range and the new 1 Series M is no exception. In this nicely choreographed video they take things to a new level which would no doubt make Tanner proud.

 

 

What Does Your Project Space Look Like?

And how are you getting on with your mates in it? We all know that space matters...and so does gravity as Paul Harrison and John Wood so delightfully illustrate in Tate Shots Issue 12.

 

 

Quality Time in Seacrest County

Lately, my nephews and I have had the opportunity to spend some quality time in Seacrest County, the fictional land featured in Need For Speed Hot Pursuit.  Thankfully, designers of this racing game have foregone obsessing over telemetry and torque curves generated on the world's most famous race tracks. Leaving that to those crafting Grand Turismo 5, NFS creators instead made the solid decision to offer up a dynamic new twist on a childhood favorite: Good Guys vs. Bad Guys.

 

Adrenaline levels run high as convincing near photo-realism is placed in just the right places. It starts with the diverse and beautifully rendered vistas of Seacrest County, which span coastal roads, open desert highways and snowcapped alpine routes. These stand out as heros of the title alongside the fastest police response units. Creators of the game follow through with a great range of the world's most exciting vehicles. I for one was most happy to see the BMW Z4 sdrive3.5is and the Lamborghini Reventon among the list of beautiful cars one can try their had at. 

The game delivers on a few well-honed gaming principles:

1. Support immersion- Convincing visual details in the landscape and vehicle modeling are convincing and invite drivers into the world of Seacrest County.

2. Cause and Effect Loops- Dramatic and sufficiently detailed damage simulation reinforces just enough cause and effect consequences to keep things interesting.

3. Collectibility- An impressive range of vehicles each with their own overview provided by an ecosystem of manufacturers keeps one engaged and moving forward in the game as does the addition of technological enhancements.

While there are surely a number of alternative driving games out there with more realism that would be far better to use as training platforms for your next trip to the Nurburgring, few can match the levels of sheer joy that come along with busting bad guys or racing at high speeds across the deserts of Seacrest county. Thanks goes out those who put quality time into creating the vistas of Seacrest County and Need For Speed Hot Pursuit.

Happy holidays...

Artist Chris Burden creates a toy freeway with 12,000 cars in a work entitled "Metropolis II". Depending on how you look at it, the work is either a powerful statement about what it feels like to live in Los Angeles or the best gift an eight year old could ever find under...er...make that over the tree.

Happy holidays and here's to more shared commuting rides in 2011.

 

Getting Creative with the iPhone

The Hitchcock Mobile Storyboard Composer by Cinemek is a great example of a wave of new content creation tools (versus content consumption only apps) that we hope to continue to see being released for the iPhone and iPad. The application allows for those visualizing storyboards to use photos and markup icons as an alternative to sketching.

Hitchcock Mobile Storyboard Composer from cinemek / Hitchcock on Vimeo.

 

BMW 6 Cylinder Legend Finds its Way to Touring Bikes

It's on the way...and ready for the touring motorcycle of the future. Anxious to see what they wrap around what seems to be an impressive bit of engineering.

 

Helpful Guide to Automotive Design Terms

Lest you get your Plenum mixed up with your Tumblehome, Jalopnik offers up a helpful guide to automotive design terms.

Beauty is More Than Skin Deep

For motorcyclists, the image below might set the mind wondering about just what is it that you are riding. Looking somewhat like those circulatory diagrams outlining how blood flows through the body, the image highlights the lightweight integral anti-lock braking system (integrated ABS) and automatic stability control (ASC) system which BMW has continued to refine for its motorcycles.

Although as BMW states, no system can mitigate all road condition risks, it is inspiring to see a company care so much about safety and to see how beautiful (and intelligent) the systems are from an engineering perspective...even if they really are not intended to be seen.

To learn more, see webbikeworld's overview of BMW's Integral ABS and ASC systems. Very informative.

The Power of Tiny Things

Dust Breedings...a moving exploration by Jan Goldfub and Sacha Neudeck. Nice.

dust breedings from goaj on Vimeo.

Astronaut Dinosaur

Scott Listfield captures poignant moments of irony in his paintings that juxtapose a Mercury Program era astronaut with commercialized symbols of today's "progress"  It was one thing to see Hilton or Pan American Airlines promoted in orbit in "2001: A Space Odyssey", but this is something entirely different. One can only wonder what the astronaut is thinking during these encounters. Perhaps something close to what we might be thinking when we try to do things which should long ago been made far simpler or better like printing a document or taking a flight.

A New Perspective

Sometimes the essential functionality of an object is best revealed from angles seldom seen. Take the redesigned 2010 R1200RT for example. Seen from the side, the bike appears familiar... a fine design iteration of the venerable long distance tourer.

However, the true genius and dynamics of the design are best revealed from a eagle's-eye view. From above, affordances for generous wind protection and ways to obtain comfort for miles on end really stand out. Undoubtedly this type of "form follows function" creativity is stirred up during long hours spent shaping the design in a wind tunnel. Regardless of how it came into being, the bivouac is once again blown away by the refinements taking place in motorrad land. Perhaps you too are thinking about your designs from all angles?

More Uplifting Elements as Stars

Key structures placed with meticulous care within video story lines have been popping up lately. See Rampenfest for a slower-paced story or take a look at this nice counterpoint and particularly uplifting visualization from Hydro's Norweigian advertisement. It highlights the promise of a new generation of young, up and coming engineers. Thanks for the link Thomas. 8)

BMW 1 Series Launch

For those of you that may not have caught the original ramp up to the US launch of the BMW 1 Series, this piece Jeff Schultz and Bite the Bullet Productions, stereotypes notwithstanding, sheds some light on how you might have missed it.

Visit www.rampenfest.com/ for the full story.

Websites as Interactive Film

Video is playing a larger role in website design as is evidenced by the recent BMW Concept 5 Gran Turismo website. Hyundai adds further interactivity and multiple perspectives as well as offers a new twist on the 360 degree view of its Genesis Coupe on its Genesis Coupe website.Thanks to Engin for pointing this one out.

BMW Concept 5 Grand Turismo

BMW provides a grand tour of its Concept 5 Grand Turismo model via its informative film format website. Take a closer look both inside and out at this new category of vehicle. View the Concept 5 Grand Turismo website

Market Places of Distinction

Conveying the richness of an offering online has long been a challenge. Muji and Hema have managed to find engaging and informative ways to feature their products online in remarkable ways.

Muji leverages video in a strikingly straightforward way...http://www.muji.com/playmuji/

Hema plays with physics...http://producten.hema.nl/

Visit here for a more searchable experience: http://www.hema.nl/

Oblong Realizes Minority Report Interaction with g-speak

It seems the folks at Oblong have been working to realize an interaction approach similar to the one featured in Steven Spielburg's Minority Report film and you can check out some of their efforts here.

g-speak overview 1828121108 from john underkoffler on Vimeo.

Echochrome offers a new perspective on video gaming

Although somewhat puzzling initially, Echochrome offers Escher-like environments that players navigate by "filling" broken pathways as they change their perspective view on the scene. This title offers a refreshing angle on brain-enhancing gaming.

Pure Visual Searching Goodness

Keen to add a visual element or some serendipity to your web searching? Try oskope.

Get Real

High fidelity rendering of girl follows your cursor. You decide on creepiness factor. Powered by Motion Portrait. This is a good exploration regarding the attention to detail and nuances needed to represent the human form in an appropriate way.

Back to the Future

Not sure just what is going on over at Cadillac headquarters these days but let's hope they keep it up! Ed Welburn and his design team continue to successfully explore the edged aesthetic reminiscent of some of Syd Mead's vehicle designs which inspired so many to think about what the future of vehicle design might hold. The CTS Coupe concept is another successful design exercise in that regard. Thanks to the folks at Cadillac for bringing back that feeling of future think once again. Now, if we could just start seeing more vehicles like this on the road...ideally with a hybrid power plant.

BMW X3 Commercial with Techniques Revealed

The masters at Digital Domain brought compelling sequence to life with the introduction of the BMW X3 back in 2004. This extended version reveals a few of the techniques used. Nicely done.

Reminds Me Of Remind Me Video

Regardless of how you might feel about nuclear energy, here is another fine exemplar of super clean and delightful isometric animations served up for the energy company Areva by Euro RSCG C&O and H5.

Your Design Here

Ever need to visualize branding or design work in context? With LiveSurface images, you can place your designs within layered photoshop files containing images of spaces or objects.

To learn more about LiveSurface visit: www.livesurface.com

Remind Me...

Thanks Susanne for reminding us of this exemplar of infographic visualization.

Before and After

Some people may have a tough time spotting the differences between the older model X5 and the all new for 2007 redesign. However, enhancements and changes are significant. This morphing promotional video clearly shows that signature character elements can be retained while achieving significant design revision.

Give A Little Love in 2007

Perhaps we should all take the message from Coca-Cola's recent video game-inspired commercial to heart this year. Created by Sheena Brady and Shannon McGlothin of Wieden + Kennedy, Portland and produced by Nexus Productions UK, the spot serves up a cool and refreshing spin on the Grand Theft Auto genre of video games.

Automobile Website Designers Get Flashy

The bivouac has spotted two vehicle websites which pushing the limits of web-based communications. Sites like these are undoubtedly keeping writers, musicians, photographers, digital video compositors, videographers, flash developers and three-dimensional rendering experts busy and working together. Supplemented with informational video clips and theatrical quality soundtracks, content is conveyed in a rich, albeit broadband requisite fashion. One similarity between the two sites is the use of three-dimensional renderings of the featured vehicles. Let's hope the new Audi R8 and BMW X5 are as impressive in the real world as they appear to be online.

View the 2007 BMW X5 website.

View Audi R8 microsite.