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Opinion

How much does a website cost?

Published May 1, 2019 By Philip Papeman

serious man with cigar

A lot of designers flinch at that question, but it’s a fair thing to ask. It’s also unfair to dismiss it with a counter question like “How much does a car cost?” Most clients have a good idea of what a car costs, but they may have never purchased serious design work before, so they… [Read more]

Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Tagged With: websites

A Parking Ticket

Published April 29, 2019 By Philip Papeman

mark zuckerberg

Last week Facebook was fined for poor privacy practices by the Federal Trade Commission. Probably around $5 billion — A chunk of change to be sure. But when your net profit is $7 billion a quarter, the fine seems kinda skimpy. Put Another Zero on Facebook’s Fine. Then We Can Talk. By Kara Swisher for… [Read more]

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: facebook, kara swisher

The Web at 30

Published March 13, 2019 By Philip Papeman

tim berners-lee

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the man who created the world wide web in 1989, has some regrets. He has seen his creation debased by everything from fake news to mass surveillance. Can it be fixed? He seems to think so. The world wide web turns 30. Where does it go from here? Opinion By Tim Berners-Lee… [Read more]

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: tim berners-lee

Weaponizing social media

Published August 8, 2018 By Philip Papeman

mark zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg once characterized Facebook as a “benign utility” that promoted human interaction, community, and connectivity. Still accurate? Not so much. As discussed by Kara Swisher of Recode in a recent article for the New York Times, Facebook could be losing the battle to control the behavior of its users. It’s a great read if… [Read more]

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: facebook, kara swisher

Who the hell is Ern Berck?

Published January 31, 2018 By Philip Papeman

the magnificent seven ern berck blacksmith

Ern Berck is the blacksmith at an anonymous town shown in the opening scenes of the 1960 film The Magnificent Seven. You never see him, he never speaks. But somehow you know he’s there, with fire and iron, making stuff. The movie The Magnificent Seven is a 1960 American Western film directed by John Sturges…. [Read more]

Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Tagged With: ern berck

272 words

Published January 19, 2018 By Philip Papeman

president abraham lincoln portrait

Just an observation I read an article the other day that suggested that the best length for a blog post was 1,890 words. No more, no less. The author came to this conclusion by analyzing 1 million Google search engine result pages (SERPs). He went on to say that “this correlation could be due to… [Read more]

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: content

Inspiration is for wimps

Published November 15, 2017 By Philip Papeman

chuck close self portrait 1967

It’s very trendy nowadays to peddle “inspirational” books and courses about “finding your passion.” And I suppose there’s a certain hopeful charm to the notion that one day your true calling will reveal itself in a single shining moment. I guess it happens to some people, but not many. And certainly not to me. Man,… [Read more]

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: chuck close

Learning how to learn

Published November 8, 2017 By Philip Papeman

animal house group

Regarding your academic progress … After my first quarter at the University of California, I was put on “academic probation.” Technically, that meant I had a grade point average of less than 2.0 (less than a “C”). Non-technically it kinda sucked. Nobody likes to be labeled “less than average.” For all practical purposes though, it… [Read more]

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: college

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Who the hell is Ern Berck?

January 31, 2018 By Philip Papeman

Ern Berck is the blacksmith at an anonymous town shown in the opening scenes of the 1960 film The … Read about Who the hell is Ern Berck?

We’re not artists

April 25, 2018 By Philip Papeman

Design is not art. Design is utilitarian, art is not. -- Massimo Vignelli 1931-2014 First some … Read about We’re not artists

How much does a website cost?

May 1, 2019 By Philip Papeman

A lot of designers flinch at that question, but it’s a fair thing to ask. It’s also unfair to … Read about How much does a website cost?

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