Design Minstrel - Pop Idol

So, my regent obsession with writing songs about Flash and ActionScript 3 made me an idol tonight. I introduced the entire audience of FlashForward (+-800) to Design Minstrel. They liked my first song so much, they demanded an encore. We had a great time. It was a huge rush and therapeutic because I have really put a lot of effort into getting up to speed on ActionScript 3 and even though my songs are meant to be funny, they are written about stuff I really care about. It was a rush to make so many people laugh.

Flashforward San Francisco 2008

Driving to San Francisco from Salt Lake City was not a big deal! I took my dad along and got a lot of freelance work done while he drove. With all our pit stops - including a 1 hour stop at Donner Pass, and a very long detour coming in from the north through Vallejo and San Rafael, we made it in about 12 hours. We left about 4AM and arrived around 5PM. The time went surprisingly fast. I am excited to attend this year - a little freaked out though about singing on Friday. Weather is great! 

Update: FlashForward is almost over and it has been pretty good but I learned very little about the hands-on stuff though (notice my absence of notes compared to last year). Somewhat good on the inspiration side, but overall, I like the old 3-track format better. There wasn't enough how-to information this year. It was much too general. 

I am singing in a few hours and I'm not sure how it is going to go because two minutes isn't very long. 

Featured in .NET Magazine

I stumbled across this magazine article in .net magazine issue #168. Nitro Circus was highlighted! Here is the text:

Nitro Circus is the home of Travis Pastrana (American motocross and X Games legend) and his films of crazy stunts. Its the first site to use Matt Maxwells own 3D engine, and it sets a new benchmark in 3D Flash graphics and its use in depth of field. The site has a suitably daredevil look, particularly with the dynamite motifs and motorbike parts strewn across the digital landscape, and the 3D engine serves as a way of manoeuvring through the sites sections. Its an ingenious and gorgeous-looking approach to navigation, and something thats sure to catch on in web design styles. No longer is the menu system a 2D affair; visitors really can move through virtual spaces. It looks very much like the tabletop designs that are so common today, but it takes the experience further.

Featured on Communication Arts Home Page

Well, my late nights howling into my webcam have paid off. I have been promoting my new designminstrel.com site as a creative/promotional expression. I wrote a song about Communication Arts Magazine and they featured it as a news item on their home page! Thanks CA. Thats 3 times I have had them recognize me in their prestigious world. The first time it was a letter to the editor blasting a sleezy Corel ad. I tore it out and mailed it to them - with magic marker written across it: "You can have this back. If I see it again in your publication I will cancel my subscription. I also sent a letter separately and they published in one of their issues. The second time was their "site of the week" on their home page. And this third time makes me happy. ...If only I could now get my design work printed in their pages...

Design Minstrel

Many of you who know me are aware that I have been taking voice lessons for a year or so and some of you have already had the occasion to be assaulted by my amateur tones. Well, I have decided to redirect all my passion for design, Flash, and tech plus my blossoming vocal agility (sarcasm there) into a new site called designminstrel.com. I'm not sure why I am doing it, other than I love to write - and sing - and design - and this seems to be a way to combine all those things. Check out my songs and tell your friends!