Remind me again how far it is from London?

Looks like it’s just under 4800 miles as the crow flies…

I ordered my itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny MOO cards on May 30 - just 10 days ago - and today (!) the letter carrier smooshed the package through the letter slot. The box that came inside is about the size of one of those 25-piece packages of chewing gum.

What I like about Moo:

• Their lightheartedness! I love the site, but the shipping notification tells the whole story, “Remember, I’m just a bit of software. So, if you have any questions regarding your order please first read our Frequently Asked Questions and if you’re still not sure, contact customer services (who are real people)… Little MOO, Print Robot”
• I especially like the sentiment printed on the “belly band” that is wrapped around the box. Folks here are indeed thinking about their environmental impact! Click on the image to the right to read what they had to say.
• The print quality is terrific!

I’m sure I’ll come up with lots and lots of uses for their products and - some day when I have time - I’ll create some of my own designs.

In the meantime, take a look at this fun company at www.moo.com.

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After Steve Jobs told us that no one reads anymore, who tells us - once again that print is dead? None other than Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer, in the Washington Post, June 5.

While Steve starts out with the term “media,” he really means “print media,” and he believes that in the foreseeable future it will be gone. Here are the pertinent segments of the interview:

WaPo: What is your outlook for the future of media?

In the next 10 years, the whole world of media, communications and advertising are going to be turned upside down — my opinion.

Here are the premises I have. Number one, there will be no media consumption left in 10 years that is not delivered over an IP network. There will be no newspapers, no magazines that are delivered in paper form (my emphasis - DGNK). Everything gets delivered in an electronic form.

WaPo: 10 years?

Yeah. If it’s 14 or if it’s 8, it’s immaterial to my fundamental point. . . . If we want TV to be more interactive, you’ll deliver it over an IP network. I mean, it’s sort of funny today. My son will stay up all night basically playing Xbox Live with friends that are in various parts of the world, and yet I can’t sit there in front of the TV and have the same kind of a social interaction around my favorite basketball game or golf match. It’s just because one of these things is delivered over an IP network and the other is not. . . .

Also in the world of 10 years from now, there are going to be far more producers of content than exist today. We’ve already started to see that certainly in the online world, but we’ve just scratched the surface.

. . . I always take my favorite case: I grew up in Detroit. I went to a place called Detroit Country Day School. They’ve got a great basketball team. Why can’t I sit in front of my television and watch the Country Day basketball game when I know darn well it’s being video-recorded at all times? It’s there. It’s just not easy to navigate to.

You can also view the video segment from which this clip was taken on this link>> by waiting until the video “Ballmer on Microsoft’s Mission” starts. Pause it, then select “Ballmer on the Future of Advertising” from the right side menu.

Time to get on the wagon and start looking at the many flavors of “cross media marketing!”

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It’s great to discover new and unusual approaches to the ordinary - and MOO.com is fun company doing something different.

I think I may have tested dozens of “web to print” solutions over the years, some pretty cool and some pretty awful. Here are a few of the things that MOO does right:

• You won’t see a standard business card anywhere! There are about a million companies selling “design online” business cards, who needs to try to compete in that space. These folks have designed - and made popular - a new size card: 1″ x 2 1/2″
• This is definitely NOT your mother’s “photo card” site, either. These folks figured out fast that by developing relationships with sites like Flickr, Myspace and FaceBook, they could reach the younger market and avoid competing with traditional (read: boring) online print services.
• Like most design online applications you can upload your own designs, but you have to see the selection of “ready made” designs available. Some of the best I’ve seen to choose from!
• You get a lot for a little! A sturdy plastic box of 100 mini cards or a packet of 20 postcards costs $19.95 and a packet of 10 greeting cards plus envelopes or 16 note cards plus envelopes is $24.95.
• Shipping is reasonable! For these products, the first item is $6.99 and $3.99 for each one after. Not bad from London!

I thought this selection of minicards looked interesting. It’s called “Skies and Sunsets” and 100 different images are included in the packet. There are dozens of categories to choose from and you can upload your own photos or designs. Nifty!

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Computers have gotten smaller and lighter over the years; and now we have the Apple MacBook Air - thin enough to slip into an interoffice envelope - and the itty-bitty Eee PC! The Eee is small enough to tuck into my handbag, though the screen made me really squint! Reading glasses, anyone?

For the fun of it though, here is a video of an improv group that took “portable computing” to a new level. We’re all used to seeing coffee drinkers slouched over their laptops, but not many of us have seen a full desktop computer on the table next to us!

Enjoy!

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Three days at OnDemand Expo in Boston this week had me checking out the latest digital printing equipment, book binding equipment, and publishing software. Some pretty amazing machines out there! Xerox, Océ, Canon, Kodak - all offer printers/presses that make books on demand a reality.

Although it’s possible to print a book pretty much any time and anywhere, or even not print it at all - as in an e-book - perhaps we should ask ourselves, “to book or not to book? That is the question.” (Sorry, Will…) (Read the article)

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