Helvetica: The Movie

Designers everywhere rejoice! If you haven't heard, there is a film out (now available on DVD) called Helvetica: A Documentary Film by Gary Hustwit. If you can't figure out by the aptly named title, it is a documentary about, you guessed it, the typeface Helvetica. The movie was released in 2007, celebrating Helvetica's 50th birthday, and no other typeface is more deserving of such a film than good ol' big H. (Bonus points for counting how many times I can use the word "typeface" in a movie review.)

As the fallback typeface for every modern designer it gets a lot of flack from some as being a bit of a copout, but others insist that there is no need for any other typeface because Helvetica is, well, perfect. I, being a fan of the latter viewpoint, have to say that I loved this movie (especially since Helvetica Neue UltraLight is the best font ever). It gives a great background to the history of the typeface and has interviews with many world renowned graphic designers about their thoughts on its use. A lot of big name designer-rockstars are in it such as: Massimo Vignelli, David Carson, Michael Bierut, Paula Scher, Stefan Sagmeister, Eric Spiekerman, Neville Brody, and many more. The views expressed range from Helvetica being the embodiment of the modern corporation, to it being a simple and elegant solution for any design communication problem.

The film has a great soundtrack and very nice cinematography that incorporates an example of the typeface in nearly every shot.

Type nerds will salivate over this film although I doubt it's one to have your non-artsy friends come over and watch. But it is a nice, palatable introduction into what us crazy designers think about for the better part of our day, while watching movie credits, looking at food labels, reading magazines, browsing book titles or anything else with legible type printed on it. A good designer can never shut off that part of their brain so try to get your non-designer friends to start noticing things like where Helvetica is used and WHY its important and you will no longer be the annoying friend who is talking about critiquing the motion type during cheesy TV commercials. Helvetica is really THE typeface of the modern era; it's everywhere you look and I challenge you to walk down a city street without seeing it used somewhere.

If you want to check it out for yourself search for it on Amazon.com or pop over to the film's main site at www.helveticafilm.com

And some clips:

Ball Balance - Play Game Online

Description: Fill the tray with balls - and don't tip it! Spread the balls out; three in a row will zap away. Go to it!
Instructions: Mouse to select a slot. Mouseclick to drop your ball.

Yahoo, MSN, ICQ, GTalk - Chat without the messenger

http://www.meebo.com/ - Another site for office users.

Has your office banned chats like Yahoo, MSN, AIM or ICQ, Jabber or GTalk? Of course since they have banned then the system engineers have even not installed these chat clients on your machine right? No problem. Just visit ‘Meebo’ and you have all these chat clients opening inside the same browser. Just type your user name and password like you would do under the chat client you wish to chat with.

Once logged in, the page refreshes and inside the internet window itself, you will be able to see your chat client and chat. Chat windows open inside the browser itself so you have complete privacy and what’s more it can’t be tracked by the office cyber software.. yipeeeee.

I must say this is the greatest website. Above all no need to download and install the particular messengers. What do you say. Isn’t it a noble idea. Terriffic. I just can’t explain in words. Now chatting for all.

Source: ZeroIn

How To Protect Your Kids from Internet Dangers

Learn how to protect your kids online. The Internet can be a dangerous place for children, but armed with information and parental control tools, you can protect your children from these internet dangers. There are tools available to help parents control spam in their email as well as pop-ups while surfing on the Internet. Chat rooms, instant messaging and email are places your children have the opportunity to see objectionable content. Internet safety and safe surfing are important aspects of protecting your children. Please go through this to learn how to keep your kids safe from porn, spam, popups and more.

Kids Top 10 RulesFor Staying Safe
1. Never give out identifying information such as your address, phone number, school name, town, etc. in chat rooms, forums, forms or questionnaires.
2. Never agree to meet anyone in person that you have met online.
3. Never reply to any email, chat messages, or forum items that make you feel uncomfortable.
4. Never send information or pictures to anyone over the Internet that you do not know.
5. Never give your password to anyone except your parents, no matter who they say they are.
6. Be aware that people may not be who they say they are. Someone who says she is a 10-year old girl may really be an older man.
7. Never click on links in emails from people you don't know.
8. Don't order anything or give anyone credit card information without your parent's permission.
9. Always tell your parents if someone upsets you or makes you uncomfortable.
10. Always follow your parents' rules regarding computer use.

Internet Dangers
Most parents assume that pornography and sexual predators are the only dangers their children face on the internet. While these are certainly a huge concern, there are other dangers lurking in the dark corners of the net. These include the following: areas that foster hate crimes, sites that teach children how to make bombs and other weapons, forums to discuss the best ways to commit suicide, sites that encourage the use of drugs, and even areas where children watch others take drugs via webcams. The John Walsh Show recently aired an episode where teenagers watched as a young man died from an overdose of drugs. As parents, you need to know the dangers that exist on the internet, and arm yourself with the tools and rules to prevent your child from becoming a victim.

How Prevalent Are These Dangers?
Statistics show that 20 percent of children have been solicited online and 25 percent have received unwanted pornography online. Of the 3 million unique users under seventeen that visited adult sites in September of 2000, 21.2% of them were under the age of 14. More than half of teenagers have visited Internet sites containing pornography, offensive music lyrics, gambling or messages of violence or hate. Federal online child pornography cases jumped from 127 in 1995 to 510 in 1999. In 1998 the FBI opened up 700 cases dealing with online pedophilia, most for posting child pornography. By 2000 that figure quadrupled to 2,856 cases. One third of parents in households with Internet access said they used filtering or blocking software.

Warning SignsTo Watch For
* Your child quickly changes what is on the screen when you walk in the room.
* Your child stays up late at night talking to friends online.
* You notice links to sexually-explicit or inappropriate sites in the history section of the browser.

Tools To Help You Protect Your Kids
Common sense and parental guidance are the leading tools for protecting your children from online dangers. However, it is unreasonable to expect that parents can know what their children are doing at all times. There are many Internet safety tools available to help you monitor your children's pc activities. Explore the links on this page to see what products are available that will help you protect your child from danger.

Which Tools Do I Need?
The links to Internet Safety Tools on this site perform different kinds of functions to help you keep your children safe. Blocking or Filtering software prevents children from accessing inappropriate content. Filtered ISPs are internet service providers that offer protection against objectionable Internet web sites as well as unsolicited and inappropriate emails. PC Time Monitors regulate the times of day and length of time your kids have access to the pc. Activity or Keystroke Loggers keep a log of all communications between your child and others, so that you can later monitor what they have been doing. PopUp Blockers prevent unwanted windows popping up as many of these are porn related. Spam Blockers prevent your children from receiving spam email, which often advertise X-rated sites. Kid Friendly Portals are a safe place for your children to be when searching the internet. It is often best to use a combination of these types of tools to ensure safe internet usage.

Source:protectyourkids