Some Random Dude

Some Random Dude is a blog by P.J. Onori that covers design & technology in the broadest sense possible.

Archive for May, 2007

Click on one of the items below to go to the post

Ads Just Got More Invasive

My wife and I had to fill up our car with gas, (something I am beginning to loath more and more with each trip to the gas station) when we came across something new (at least for us) at the pump. It seems that at certain gas stations, dealing with the fact that we have to fill up our cars with toxic chemicals for ridiculous amounts of money will be the least of our worries. Yes, now we have to be subjected to advertising. Bad advertising.

These ads are not your basic billboard advertising. No, these are full video ads… With very loud sound. So unless you are willing to close your eyes and plug your ears while pumping your gas, you are going to be stuck getting pounded by some 30 second plea for you to spend your money on whatever the person on the screen is peddling. Gas just got that much more noxious Read On…

So I Am Starting to Twitter

I have been playing with Twitter for the past few months now and I have decided to temporarily take the plunge and devote much more time into it. I am planning to integrate my Twittering into this blog – which required this plugin, which required a WordPress upgrade which ended up creating all hell with some of my plugins, which ended up clearing all my tags once someone commented, which required me to frantically try to get my site back to normal.

Good times.

If you Twitter, by all means, please head over to my profile and add me as a friend. I have been very resistant to the social networking scene as I feel many, if not most, lack substance. What I like about Twitter is the fact it is a tool that can be used however one desires – the social aspect is merely a feature. Due to this flexibility, I am going to give it a go.

Integrating some aspects of my Twittering to the blog should not take too long so they should be popping up in the next couple weeks… Along with the photoblog and the functionality updates to Some Random Dude… Yes, I know I bit off more than I can chew. Still, I think this could add a lot to the site, so I am looking forward to trying it out. Please let me know your thoughts and, by all means, Sign up for an account and add me as a friend so you can join in on the fun.

Flash 9 Hits Over 83% Penetration

Wow, that did not take much time at all… Adobe reports over 83% penetration for Flash Player 9 in mature markets and 84% even in the US. Of course, Flash 9 penetration is significantly more important than prior releases as the latest release is the only player that is compatible with apps built in Actionscript 3. I have briefly glossed over a couple of the important features Actionscript 3 brings to users which could open up completely new doors for interaction. I knew Flash 9 would be adopted quickly, I just had no idea it would be this fast.

Via Flash Obscura

My, How Far Flash Video Has Come

For the few people out there still questioning the validity of Flash video as the best, if not only, solution for the web, you have to watch this. Make sure to click the ‘Maximize’ button in the top-left corner in order to see what I mean. Flash applications built in Actionscript 3 allow for a fullscreen mode – allowing things such as video to be viewed in a much more traditional, theatrical manner. Surprisingly high-quality video can now be easily viewed over the web with no server-side streaming software – allowing anyone with ample bandwidth to provide video to its audience.

This ability for rich media experiences to be delivered on the cheap is one more reason that: 1) Flash (or perhaps another future rich media delivery system) is going to become an even more integral part of the web/browser experience, and, 2) The TV, in its current form, is becoming more obsolete by the day. We all saw this coming, I am just utterly blown away at the pace that it is occurring. If you thought the public liked web video before, just wait until the next batch of video players to hit the scene that take advantage of all the features Flash 9/Actionscript 3 have to offer. It will make the current phenomenon look pitiful in comparison.

Via Flex RIA

MTV.com (Finally) Dumps Flash

This is slightly old, but the failed experiment of MTV.com as a completely Flash site is over. The site was a disaster from the start and it was painful to see Flash (as well as online advertising) so blatantly abused. Many folks on the internet were quite vocal about their disagreement with the direction towards Flash and bid the old MTV.com a not-so-fond farewell when it finally died. I still remember seeing it for the first time and having the load-times, performance and amount of ads just blow my mind. I am not a fan of MTV in general, so the move pretty much solidified what was already a great amount of animosity towards the brand. That site will most likely go down as one of the worst high-profile Flash sites of this decade. Let this all be a lesson to us…

Ironically, I personally think the new version of MTV.com is not too hot either. It gives me a kind of MySpace meets music vibe – but perhaps that is just me.