Wallpaper for August

Even though we still have a month of winter to go there are still those harty souls that enjoy getting up early and heading out into the day.  Whether they are photographers searching for the morning light (light I do) or surfers seeking out that perfect wave to themselves, winter mornings can still hold a special something (even at less than 10 deg C).

Below is an image I captured on the 1st day of this month at one of my families favourites surf spots.  I’ve added the August calendar to make this a very useful and beautiful addition to your computer desktop.

Desktop Wallpaper for June

This month’s desktop wallpaper has been at the direct request of my husband Ian.  He a big “green thumb” and our garden is a direct reflection of his still and passion for plants.  The image was taken early one morning last week and is a recent favourite of his, and thus it is the basis of the calendar desktop wallpaper for June 09.

Download June 2009 desktop wallpaper

April 2009

A quarter of the year is behind us …….. where has it gone ….. and I’m here to share with you the 2nd Working Solo desktop background wallpaper.  In loading it up I’ve also been reminded how tardy I’ve been in posting articles on this site.  I promise to have a few new posts for you over the coming weeks.

In the meantime you can download the April desktop.

This image was taken last weekend on Observatory Hill, Sydney.  This area played an important role in the early colony of Australia and today still provides one of the best views in Sydney.

Remember…  this image is covered by Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license.

Enjoy your April!

March 2009 Wallpaper

For the past 12 months I have been creating computer wallpaper images for each monthly edition of The Calm Space.  By combining a wonderfully evocative image from Amy Palko (or myself) and graphics with the calendar for that month, we were able to create something that was both beauitful and practical.

From March I’ve decided to release some of my images (often of beach scenes) with a monthly calendar here at Working Solo.

This month, as the hottest days of summer start to fade, I’ve got an image for you to load onto your computer to remind you of summer days past.  “Watching-Waiting” was taken at Wanda Beach in Sydney’s southern suburbs and speaks to me of anticipation, friendship and patience.

You are able to download the calendar wallpaper, 1680pixel x 1050 pixel version, here.
Note:  This image is covered by Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license.

Have a good March!

We Can All Use a Calm Space Occassionally

It’s been a very long day here …. it’s 9.30pm and after dinner with the family and a few quick finishing touches to today’s project I’m calling it a night.  You see I’ve been at the computer since 4.30am (not the whole time but a real good chunk of it).

But I am very pleased with today’s effort – with some focused effort by Káren Wallace, a wonderful client, and yours truly we managed to complete a project that Káren has been working on for a number of months.  Along with some wonderfully wise and inspiring contributors (including Chris Owen, Angela Esnouf, Marjorie Lim, and Annie Hutton) Káren has launched a new online magazine called The Calm Space.

Here is a quick glimpse of what’s in store -

Why not drop over there now and have a look.  I’m sure Káren  would love you to say hi while you are there.

[tags] The Calm Space, Karen Wallace, Chris Owen, Marjorie Lim, Angela Esnouf, Annie Hutton [/tags]

A New Calm Home for The Clearing Space

One of the things that has been keeping me busy over the past couple of weeks (and there are a number of them at the moment) has been creating a new “calm” space for Káren Wallace and her online home The Clearing Space.

Up until this week The Clearing Space had a separate website (that was really in need of an update considering Káren’s renewed focus) and a Typepad hosted blog. Now was the time to move both the dynamic and static parts of The Clearing Space into a single home (using a Wordpress platform), all under the www.theclearingspace.com.au domain name. Not only does it make it easier for her readers and prospective clients but having everything under her domain provides extra SEO brownie points.

We still have a couple of things on the to-do list for this site (keep your eyes peeled for a re-design of Sanctuary) but I know Káren would love it if you dropped by her new place and said hello.

I wonder if we can encourage Káren to share her thoughts on the topic I’ve been covering here over the past few days …. Káren, why do you have a blog?

[tags]The Clearing Space, Wordpress, Typepad, Karen Wallace, Working Solo, design[/tags]

I Took the 2007 Web Design Survey

If you are involved in web development or design then get over and take the survey. It should only take about 10 minutes.

Design is Not Just Looking Pretty

Good [tag]design[/tag] is not just about how something looks! Let me repeat for you one of my favourite design philsophies -

Don’t make something unless it is both necessary and useful; but if it is both necessary and useful, don’t hesitate to make it beautiful.

Everyday I use what I consider to be some very well designed [tag]time and activity management tools[/tag]. These tools are designed by [tag]David Seah[/tag] and have been very interestingly titled The Printable CEO Series.

I know that some of you will be surprised that I use paper and pencil to manage my daily workload but it presents me with the most functional and practical way for me to manage my day.

My favourites are the :

• [tag]Concrete Goals Tracker[/tag]
• [tag]Emergent Tasks Tracker[/tag]

If you are looking for some design that is practical, well laid out and a great example of good informational design then give The Printable CEO Series a try.

PowerPoint – Has its death been greatly exagerated?

The Sydney Morning Herald this week published a story that some people have been touting for sometime – the death of the PowerPoint presentation.

If you have ever had a brush with the corporate world then you would have experienced “death by PowerPoint”. Your death not that of PowerPoint; your heartbeat and breathing stopping while the PowerPoint presentation (and the presenter) continued to roll on oblivious to your nodding head.

Are you brave enough to own up to having been the perpetrator of PowerPoint paralysis? Are you still rolling out those wordy presentations, crammed with so much information that you don’t have to remember your script, you just read off the slide of course?!?

The researchers quoted in the Sydney Morning Herald article have actually identified why PowerPoint presentations aren’t effective (and you just thought it was the bad design).

If you have ever wondered why your eyes start glazing over as you read those dot points on the screen, as the same words are being spoken, take heart in knowing there is a scientific explanation.

It is more difficult to process information if it is coming at you in the written and spoken form at the same time.

Ah! Now that poses many interesting questions.

It also questions the wisdom of centuries-old habits, such as reading along with Bible passages, at the same time they are being read aloud in church. More of the passages would be understood and retained, the researchers suggest, if heard or read separately.The findings show there are limits on the brain’s capacity to process and retain information in short-term memory.

Interested in the research?

I must have swallowed a little too much of the Microsoft mouthwash (sorry, brainwash) because I still see there’s a part to be played by PowerPoint. BUT (and that is a big but) only if it is done well.

One of my philosophies when it comes to design is :

Don’t make something unless it is both necessary and useful; but if it is both necessary and useful, don’t hesitate to make it beautiful.

And in my book the same goes for PowerPoint presentations.

• Don’t use PowerPoint as an Autocue
• Don’t cram everything you are going to say on the slides
• Don’t write in full sentences
• Do use images, graphs and diagrams to convey your message
• Do learn how to use PowerPoint from people that know how to do it well
• Do use the “less is more” philosophy
• Definitely let the PowerPoint go if it/you are putting you audience to sleep

There are many resources available to you to design and deliver wonderful presentations that are supported by PowerPoint. These are just a few.

Presentation Zen – www.presentationzen.com
Garr Reynolds – Top 10 Slide Tips – www.garrreynolds.com/Presentation/slides.html
Manager Smarter – Presentations – www.presentations.com
PresenationPro – www.presentationpro.com

Furthering the conversation!

What questions do you have about how to make your PowerPoint presentation better? What do and don’t tips do you have?

Related Posts -

Want An Online Video? but only know how to use PowerPoint

Technology and the Power of Influence

100 Keys to Solo Success – #17 Have Great Presentation Skills

Image by Gapingvoid

Music and Design

There is a movie around at the moment called Music and Lyrics – romantic comedy, with all the usual leading characters, and just the way many people would enjoy spending a quite evening with popcorn and soft drink.

BUT that’s not what I am talking about here! Music and Lyrics may not inspire all that much but Music and Design can produce outstanding outcomes and inspire people to great levels of creativity.

For me music plays a large role in my process of creativity and allows me to get focused, shift moods and quiet my mind of distracting to-do’s and “day dramas”.

A recent post by Derek Featherstone at A Box of Chocolates reminded me how much music plays a part in my workday. Derek reflected that 2 of his favourite moments at the SXSW conference this year were actually to do with music – particularly the panel presentation on The Influence of Art on Design.

Here is where I found it got really interesting. They almost all discussed music and how it influences their design work: choosing the right tunes/mix to evoke emotions that fit with the tone of the piece in which they were immersing themselves.

The iTunes folder on my laptop (I still haven’t seen the need to be an portable mp3 player yet) contains a large array of music that can get me in almost any mood required. From AC/DC to Joss Stone, Jon Stevens, Santana, Paul Mac, James Morrison, Ella Fitzgerald, Cold Chisel, Jack Johnson …. and the list goes on.

And just like Derek it made me start thinking about where else in the workday music could help me and you to be more focused and more creative. I have clients and friends who specialise in providing training and consultancy into the corporate workplace and wonder how music could help them create better programs for their clients. And for those people who work one-on-one with individuals to create better personal successes, how music might allow them to design better tools. And again the list goes on …

Do you use music to help you in your business? I would love to know what type of music helps you achieve the difference types of design that occur everyday in your business.

Image from flickr by Megan

[tags] Music and Lyrics, design, music, focus, business [/tags]

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