So I’m to two ideas. Both still sort of foggy of course.
The first is this whole print vs digital. I asked my roommates about what they like most about magazines on the iPad as opposed to a printed one. One thing one of them looks for is interactivity. He’s not too concerned about what the article is trying to say. When he opens one of these, he just wants to play around with everything. So, a digital replica of a printed issue is not enough.
Interestingly enough, this article here says the same thing.
So, what can publishers do digitally to get away from print and make the interactive version more worthwhile? There has to be a better reason than just saving paper.
In addition, what can publishers do to keep the printed version alive? That article, although only a year old, states that the printed issues are still counting for a good amount of revenue. So it’s not dead just yet. A good question to ask would be what could the two do together to help keep each other healthy? Why should I buy a printed issue? And what would I get out of the digital version?
With the other idea, kind of going back to Apple a little…
There’s a couple things I’m thinking about with them:
- Although I’m trying to stay away from Graphic Design as a main topic, I’m interested in what these retina screens have done for designers. As I’m reading up on the retina models (since I want to buy one) it’s actually interesting to read the backlash Apple has received because of these screens. Designers are soft of forced to go back and make everything retina compatible on both the desktop and mobile versions of sites and apps. And what about designing on these? They are 144ppi as opposed to 72ppi like every screen has been. So do we work in 144ppi first and then downscale our images?
- Another area that interests me in the sort of social status Apple has created with their products. Goes back to what my sister and I were talking about. People who use these products to their advantage know the value of it. But the general consumer may only buy it because it’s the cool thing. I keep thinking about fashion when saying that. Feels weird to apply that to a device
- One more thing is the branding of “i” that Apple uses. The MacBook and OS X are the only products that don’t use “i” anywhere in the name (although OS X is becoming more and more like iOS with each new release). It’s only in the portable devices. Why is that? What is their reason for using i in their products?
I want to keep away from doing a history of Apple. Although I wouldn’t mind doing something on their history, focusing on one aspect of them (social keeps coming to mind) would be much better. I also wouldn’t mind focusing on the brand. I’m interested in brand/corporate identity. I love the process that goes into an identity. The research, the sketching, the application of the logo, trying it out, seeing how people react, etc. It’s an interesting process to me.
Links:
http://theapplephenomenon.blogspot.com
http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?sid=ca3debfc-07b5-42d1-b4ea-9328c831bf2e%40sessionmgr198&vid=1&hid=101&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=3358551
http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/how-steve-jobs-influenced-modern-world-digital-design
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/igeneration/why-i-shall-never-buy-another-apple-iproduct/4492
http://www.theguardian.com/media-network/media-network-blog/2013/mar/07/fall-rise-magazines-print-digital
http://www.nywici.org/features/blogs/aloud/print-magazines-go-digital
http://mrmagazine.wordpress.com/2012/06/19/flaunt-the-most-interactive-print-magazine-yet-and-no-batteries-or-smart-phones-are-needed/