Steve Jobs

Count me among the multitudes whose life was impacted by Steve Jobs. As I sit here writing this, I am surrounded by three Mac desktops, two Mac laptops, four iPods, two iPhones and two iPads. (Along with two Windows machines and one Windows laptop.) What I do for a living means that I have to spend a lot of time on the computer, whether it be my work as a designer or as a photographer, and most of that time is spent on a Mac.

It took about 24 hours for the detractors to start appearing, talking about how little Steve Jobs did and that he is over-rated and that it is just "Apple Fanboys" that are praising him. Sad to see, actually. Both he and Bill Gates helped to change our everyday life in ways that we really are still coming to grips with today--and probably won't understand for many more years.

Steve Jobs was an innovator. He was able to take ideas and see them brought to life. See them turned into modern creations that were more than simple objects. He didn't invent the MP3 player, the computer tablet or the personal computer, but he did help make them better. He had a vision of turning personal computing into a more streamlined concept, accessible by anyone.

And his vision had impact. Look at the way that we live today. People don't generally refer to MP3 players or smart phones or computer tablets, but rather as iPads or iPhones or--most predominantly by far--iPods. And the Mac OS influenced the way a personal computer interface is viewed. It created a graphically pleasing design that was echoed quickly by others. Is it a better system? Well, that is a debate that has been running for a long time. To me, both Mac and Windows are equal, it just depends on what you prefer. And what you are used to using.

Steve Jobs didn't influence me, he influenced everyone. The world is a different place because of him. And today it is a different place because he is no longer with us.

RIP Steve. And thank you. 

So...Having "The Conversation"

The customer is not always right.

That's something that some find hard to accept, given the popularity of that old axiom, but it's the truth. I prefer the phrase, "the customer is always to be respected." That allows a lot more latitude and potential for growth in your relationship with the customer--or in this case, the client.

When you are hired by a client, you are contracting to provide a service--or good, given the case--to the best of your ability. It isn't your job to give them what they want, it's your job to give them more than they expected. And in some cases, that means telling them that they are wanting the wrong thing. You are the expert, trained in your area, and it is you who should be guiding the job to the best possible outcome.

Recently I had that exact experience. A customer asked me to design a logo and branding for his new company, and after having an extensive conversation with him about the company and it's purpose, I went off and worked on some sketches, sending them to him. He responded with a sketch of what he thought the logo should look like--and it was bad design. As the expert he hired for the job, it was my duty to tell him why his design was a bad idea. It had no sense of branding. It had no design flow. There was nothing memorable about it. I was respectful, and told him that he had the ultimate call, and if he wanted me to create the logo that he designed I would, but I recommended against it and told him why.

He was grateful and thanked me. It convinced him that he made the right choice in hiring me because I wasn't afraid to tell him that sort of thing. That I could explain why to do some things, and not to do others. I didn't attack him, I simply guided him to the right place.

It's not easy to have that sort of conversation with a client. It's much easier to nod and tell them that you'll do exactly what they want. But that's not the right thing to do. As a creative talent, you aren't only supposed to be good with a program, you are supposed to be good with your craft, and in the case of a freelancer, that means the craft of communication as well.

So...hey

Anything been happening in the past 2+ years?

Yeah, not much for me, either. Well, that's not entirely true. I've moved out of the comics industry and into the photography/graphic design biz. Not as big a jump as you might think, considering that I was doing both of those things while still working in comics. But I've kicked it up a gear and been working on my skill set. Moving from film to digital with the camera (a move I absolutely LOVE, btw). Learning web design and mobile platform graphics. Trying to find a place to put all of this knowledge to use.

And to that end, I've revamped Pandahead. You see the link to the website next to this blog. Check it out, and let me know what you think. In the coming days I'll have my photography site up as well. (It's designed, just need to implement.)

Oh, and I'm living in Woodstock now. Sharing a place with good friend Bobby Politte, who was kind enough to open his doors to me, my wife and our three cats.

So, anyway, just wanted to touch base. I'll be posting here more often. Sharing ideas and thoughts. Work and frustration. Whatever is best for the day and time.

And check back, I promise not to be gone so long next time.

So...Hans

My friend Hans Rueffert is a hell of a guy. I met him many years ago at Dr. NO's, where he was another comic and gaming geek that came into the store with a big personality and a big heart to match. He later went on to publish some games in conjunction with Clive Barker, whom he remains friends with to this day. From there, he joined his family business as the Woodbridge Inn in Jasper, GA as a chef. That catapulted him to appear on the first season of Food Network's Next Food Network Star, where he fell just shy of winning the whole thing. Only days after that ended, he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. After a long and courageous battle, he beat it. He came back to Georgia, and started up his own cooking show on PBS, Hans Cooks the World. He recently published his first cookbook--which I highly recommend.

This past week, the cancer came back. It reappeared this time as tumors in his brain. He flew out to Houston for treatment at the cancer center there yesterday. Today, I sit and worry about his health and well being. I know that he is strong, and I know that he has the courage to beat this, but I can't help but sit and wonder what he is going through.

If you can, take a moment and click on the link to the right that says "Hans Blog", and read a little about my friend. And if you have the room, send some good thoughts his way. Every little bit helps.

So...Mister Miracle

Of Jack Kirby's creations for DC, the one that has longest held my interest is Mister Miracle. And I mean Scott Free, the husband of Big Barda, Mister Miracle, and not one of the others who have used that name.

The basic premise of that idea is that he is a guy that can escape from anything. It doesn't matter how dangerous the trap, you just aren't going to be able to capture this guy and keep him for long. He is the ultimate escape artist.

And I can't help but think about him every time I watch the show No Way Out. I watched it the first time on a lark, drawn in by the ad that had the star of the show--Jonathan Goodwin--walking through a series of bizarre traps and finishing it with getting a scorpion put in his mouth which is then sealed with duct tape. (That last bit does happen on the show, btw...and yes, he got stung.)

Last night's episode was a great example of why I am being sucked in to watch this every week. Jonathan was buried alive and had to escape. I think that I've seen that gimmick done in comics and movies several times, but you always know that it is special effects/a comic book, so you just accept what happens. Last night, I got to see what would happen. It wasn't pretty. While he did put forth a valiant effort, he did have to be rescued from this escape--after ninety minutes. How someone could survive, and remain sane, from being buried alive for ninety minutes is far beyond me, but he did. He panicked his crew--who is always there to save him if something goes very wrong--but he survived. He didn't escape, though, and admitted that it was the toughest thing he's ever tried to do.

And he ended that with "I can't wait to try it again." So, in short, he's nuts. But it's a good kind of nuts.

If you are a fan of true escape artists, I recommend that you give No Way Out a try. It's only a half-hour show, but it packs entertainment into each of those thirty minutes. It's on The Discovery Channel, Monday nights at 9:00 pm. And hey, it ain't like Heroes has been any good this season.

Like I said, I've always liked Mister Miracle, and Jonathan Goodwin is the closest thing that I've seen since the comic. Sure, he's not as good as Scott, but hey, Scott was a god after all...

So...The Super Bowl

In about three hours we will have the kickoff for SuperBowl IXIII, pitting the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Arizona Cardinals.

As anyone who knows me well knows, I am a football geek. Every Sunday during football season, I am religiously sitting in front of my television, enjoying watching my hometeam Atlanta Falcons play. And even if they aren't the team I'm watching, I gravitate towards professional football when given the choice, and college football when that isn't available. And it seems that I am not the only one. Of the seventeen most watched television programs of the last thirty years, seventeen of them are SuperBowls. It is the most watched single-day sporting event in the world, and by a considerable margin at that. In fact, professional football is the most watched television show in the United States, outdistancing such phenomenon as American Idol and Survivor with room to spare. Yet, for the first time in history, this year the SuperBowl did NOT sell out their infamous commercial time weeks before the game was to air. In fact, last week NBC--the network showing the game this year--had to lower their SuperBowl ad rates (also a first in SuperBowl history).

What does this tell me? Well, it could be one of a couple of things. Maybe the matchup for this game is scaring off some advertisers, who see the Cardinals as being a detriment. After all, it has been sixty years since the team played for an NFL Championship. And due to that, they have long been considered a bit of a joke to most NFL fans. Or maybe this is another reflection of just how bad our economy is right now. Unemployment is at a 30-year high, and consumer confidence is at a new low for that same time period. Maybe advertisers are afraid to shell out the money that would be needed for this big-time stage. In all likelihood, it is probably a combination of those two factors.

But, personally, I don't care. I'm in it for the game. And, as a football fan, I'm excited to see the Cardinals playing for the title. They have played the best football of any team in the playoffs, and they deserve to be where they are today. I believe in them.

My pick: Cardinals 24, Pittsburgh 14

So...Final Crisis

Here's my review of Final Crisis #7, and the series as a whole. I'll try to keep it succinct so there is not any confusion (which, if you read the series, I'm sure you are used to--after all, nothing in the series made any sense whatsoever. I mean, I don't consider myself stupid, and I actually enjoy esoteric and abstract material, but this book was incoherently aimless at times--well, most of the time.), and I will also be totally honest. Here it is:

Worst. Series. Ever.

Done.