Mars

Rover offers Mars weather forecast: Pink skies, dust storms

By Todd Halvorson, USA TODAY

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Baboons can recognize word shapes (study)

Split-screen | What was that monkey looking at? PlayBaboon -wdsiemer ii

[READ ARTICLE]

Best Buy CEO Resigns

A few notes I haven't posted...

• IGN.com ripping the video game Naughty Bear in its home page review while the whole rest of the page's theme is an advertisement praising the game.
• Buying a 99cent Pepsi Next at Walgreens and receiving a coupon for a Free Coke Zero
• Below is somewhat reminiscent...

Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn is stepping down from the nation's largest consumer electronics retailer, a company widely criticized for not responding quickly enough to growing competition and the changing shopping habits of Americans.
-USA Toda

I suppose Brian Dunn wasn't responsible for this onslaught of ads on the same page as news of his resigning.

Or maybe he was... "I leave it today in position for a strong future," Dunn said.

Nike Unveils New NFL Uniforms

I had recently posted a gallery of the Nike NFL concepts. Here is a gallery of some of the actual uniforms...

Nike / Cincinnati Bengals

USA Today Gallery
Nike Elite 51

Nike / USA Today / Seattle Seahawks

Nike.com NFL Jersey pre-order Countdown

Burger King's New Look

Luis M. Alvarez, AP

Burger King had fallen behind both McDonald's and Wendy's in sales, and are looking to reinvent their brand with a new menu and restaurant interior (as McDonald's did recently.)

[Read USA Today Article]

Chances of Winning Lottery

I enjoy informational designs like this one posted on USAToday.com.

Centaur 'skeleton'

Centaur 'skeleton' takes science center stage
By Dan Vergano, USA TODAY


[Read Article]

Bill Willers 

'The Centaur of Tymfi,' on display in Tucson.

Netflix Price Increase

NETFLIX = NET PROFIT logo - wdsiemer ii

Netflix Price Increase

Rabble, rabble, rabble...

Nobody likes price increases. Gas prices keep taking a hike. Cell phone bills are outrageous. Restaurants increase the prices on their menu. It seems my DirecTV bill has continually grown more expensive, and I get less of the channels I'd prefer to watch. Etc. Etc. Et Cetera.

Really in the scheme of things, Netflix raising prices of their all-inclusive DVD and streaming service from $9.99 to $7.99+7.99 isn't all that bad considering I used to pay over $5 for a few day rental from BLOCKBUSTER years ago.

As a customer, I'm not happy considering I am not getting more streaming movie options, but I understand their move from a business perspective. If another company has better prices for the services Netflix offers then maybe that company will do to Netflix what it did to BLOCKBUSTER. However, the reality is Netflix has a fairly good grasp on the market for the time-being.

I'll probably cancel my service just because I rarely use Netflix. I think I have had the same DVD out for 6 months now, and I don't stream enough to justify the price hike. However, true movie lovers shouldn't have anything to complain about. Whatever, whatever.

Some Netflix customers threaten to quit over price increases

-Netflix
-Blockbuster Online
-Hulu Plus
-Amazon Instant Video
-Apple iTunes
-HBO Go
-More

Putting Mickey Back Into Disney

Putting Mickey Back Into Disney -wdsiemer

Disney upgrades, updates California Adventure Park
By Matt Krantz, USA TODAY

By Dan MacMedan, USA TODAY
Disney California Adventure park Ferris wheel now sports a giant image of Mickey Mouse as part of its makeover.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Like Cinderella, the Disney California Adventure Park has toiled out of the spotlight while its sister park, Disneyland, got all the attention.

[READ ARTICLE]

KIA Brand

KIA Hamster Logo Spoof

The KIA Brand

I have been saying it for a while; KIA has really turned their brand image around. The vehicles are visually appealing, the reliability and safety is improved, the warranty is outstanding, the price is right and the marketing has taken off.

The commercials are targeting an edgy and youthful audience, even if I'm not a big fan of the Soul's oversized hamsters.

[READ ARTICLE]

The freshly designed KIA Sportage. From KIA.com

Cheerios Buzz

Buzz collecting honey for his next batch of Honey Nut Cheerios

Cheerios turns 70; iconic cereal endures, sells
By Carolyn Thompson, Associated Press

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Here's a little quiz for the breakfast table:

What is the most popular cereal brand in American grocery stores?

Hint: It's been General Mills' top name since 1951.

Another hint: If you're a parent, you've vacuumed it from the minivan and under the high-chair cushion by the cupful.

[READ USA Today Article]

Summer Package Designs

Summer designs aim to boost soda, beer and tissue sales 
By Bruce Horovitz, USA TODAY

These Kleenex boxes are designed to look like waffle ice-cream cones. Kleenex.

Folks who sip a Coke, munch a Chips Ahoy or sneeze into a Kleenex this summer can't avoid noticing summer-theme package designs.

It's about sales. Marketers know shoppers can be swayed to buy a product not just because of what's inside the box or bottle, but what's on the outside. That's why package design has become a $1 trillion industry. Even a fraction of a percentage of increased sales can separate a successful selling season from a lousy one. So consumer product giants are adding a splash of summer to packaging.

"People look at brands and see a sea of sameness," says JoAnn Hines, a package design consultant. "But a unique shape, design or color that says summer can take them out of the me-too category."

Read the Article

New York's Yotel Hotel

Yotel Hotel Review [click here] 

New York's Yotel Hotel at Times Square

On my East coast excursion, I'll be staying at the new Yotel in New York at Times Square. I'll take pictures and give a quick review when I return.

Yotel: High-style, low-priced hotel to open in NYC
By Barbara De Lollis, USA TODAY
|Read the USA Today Article|

QR Codes Will Rule The World!

This headline looks very familiar..

Why those funny new cellphone bar codes will take over the world

USA Today Article

to QR Codes Will Rule The World!

the sketchpad

USA Today Article

Too real means too creepy in new Disney animation

Computer animation has a problem: When it gets too realistic, it starts creeping people out.