Volkswagens new EBike -- Bik.e

This went right under my radar early in the spring when it was announced in China. VW's new electronic EBike or more properly the Bik.e.

While only a concept now, it seems to me it would be a hit. Love the clean design. Not sure how it would be on hills, but for city exploring or flat areas, it looks like fun. With a speed of 12.5 mph you'd better like meandering. Its range of 12.5 miles also limits its functionality, but alas (!) it's meant as a car accessory. Volkswagen sells cars. The car, in fact, charges the bike and watch how it folds. Check it out in this video.

There are no plans to actually produce them, but one can dream. No word on cost either.

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SHAME --There's an app for that

I have neglected my blog for many months. Why? I've been way too enamored with the apps on my latest Iphone.


Bad Jil. An app a day is not a way to live. That said, I am addicted to some of them. One particularly fun one for color enthusiasts is ColorSnap for the Sherwin Williams paint company. It has one feature that integrates with the camera on your Iphone and allows you identify a color or family of colors. I took a photo of an Anichini throw, the colors of which move me.



I then tweaked it and the app analyzed my palette. An email function means you can then send yourself or your decorator or your painter an email listing those exact colors.

Other cool features include making customized palettes, a Sherwin Williams store locater, and a really time wasting by fun section called "explore color" where you can zoom your finger over a color then play with lightening it, adjusting the saturaton and on and on.

While it is doubtful anyone will have actually missed me, I feel as if I have provided a somewhat rational explanation as to my MIA status.

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Say it with Animoto

Animoto is a new, totally affordable service that allows regular non-nerds make videos easily.

Animoto, winner of a prestigious Webby Award this year, has zillions of applications. As the Guys at Animoto (that's really what they like to be called) put it:

The heart of Animoto is its newly developed Cinematic Artificial Intelligence technology that thinks like an actual director and editor. It analyzes and combines user-selected images and music with the same sophisticated post-production skills and techniques that are used in television & film.

Imagine. You're opening a luxury hotel outside of Florence and you want to impress the press. Create an Animoto video. I heard a great story about an Animoto guy proposing to his girlfriend via an Animoto video. Non-profits are encouraged to contact Animoto to make videos and there is a section on the site for making videos for educational purposes.

I'm not too smitten by these guys am I? I created a farewell video with pictures of our local Twitter group for friends moving to Austin. Speaking of Austin, Animoto won an award at SXSW. How to do it? Upload photos and choose a song. Could it be easier than that? While the video is being created, look to the right and there is a list of things to do called "distractions". A little something to busy yourself with while you wait.

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My QR Code -- http://tinyurl.com/58fcou

I work a bit for a French company, Baracoda, that makes Bluetooth barcode scanners used in warehousing, hospitality, education, medical institutions and on and on. So codes elicit a bit of excitement in me.

Understandably, my ears perked up when I started reading about QR codes (developed not too much of a surprise, by a Japanese company) being used in retail. You can generate one for your website here at the QR Code Generator. There's a Ralph Lauren ad (below) featuring one in recent New York Mag back cover. The photograph is odd, because I was in the car and it is from an Iphone. It made me wonder if one could "find" or "design" really attractive QR codes. No, perhaps I should finish reading the newspaper.

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The Septemberists

No photograph. No cool graphic. But I am so impressed by my friends at Cool Hunting for featuring this delightful concept from Charity Water.

Is this a trend? Are other month people this cool? I'm a Feb. Do we do anything other than dole out Valentine's day messages?

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I (heart) Google History* and Wrong Distance

Often when people ask me why I have this blog I tell them that it helps to organize me. That it gives me a place to chronicle the places I'd like to go (online) and rid my house of piles of paper that I mean to deal with later. Today I had a cyber-loss-of-meant to post-this-moment.

This morning I found an amazing site called Wrong Distance, but then had a couple of problems. First, because I never set up my mail program on this, my newest computer (ok, I didn't do it on its predecessor either, but that's just me) and second because there was a glitch on Firefox. I won't go into the details, but the gist is, there was no way via Firefox to figure out my history. Upset, feeling frustrated, I delved into my Google account. Sure enough. There is a Google History and if you look really hard (this could be a problem for some, just kidding) you can investigate your history in depth. I am so happy to have found this. But I'm sorry to have not addressed Mr. Wrong Distance. Where is he from? Germany? The photograph is of a small theater seating 150 people in Amsterdam using reclaimed pallets by Denis Francois Oudendijk.

*Thank you Google History

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Pandora -- no skipping allowed

My wonderful friends at Pandora sent me an announcement about downloading= the new Pandora app for the Iphone. It's great BUT . . .


a) it's a serious drain on the battery; b) it only allows 6 skips per hour (what's the point of that?) It will probably be out of power in an hour and isn't instant gratification the whole point?; c) when in use, the phone doesn't ring. It is a phone. Back to the drawing board I'd say.

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Jotting from my Iphone

I frequently call my home voicemail to remind myself to do things that I know I'll forget to do. Use your imagination. . . . The problem is, well, I don't often check my home voicemail. So I was delighted to find Jott on the new APP Store on the new 2.0 screen, in the "featured"section (as I was driving on 95 the other day). Not good, I know this.

It looks like a voice recorder but then sends my message to me via email. Just tap the screen and record your message. For example, I told myself to write a note to Lori and an email arrived later in the evening and told me "Write note to Lory. " Note its creative spelling. You can also send yourself text messages, but if you're a new 3g Iphone owner, you will now be charged for data, unlike the earlier version.

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