Redesign the broken models of the 20th century. Challenge our patterns of living and working in a fuel-hungry world…come up with solutions that connect us, make us more efficient, more humane. Focus on one area that needs fixing—products, interiors, buildings and landscape, communication systems, or anything else you can imagine—and develop your idea fully.

This competition, sponsored by Metropolis’ Next Generation, is open to all designers in practice ten years or less. All entries must be submitted by 30 January 2009 at 11:59pm PST. Residents of the following states by law are not required to pay an entry fee: AZ, CT, MD, ND, and VT. Visit the site to learn more.

Above: 1st Prize [d³] contest
Raphael von Allmen (ECAL) - Chair.

This competition is one of the most prestigious competition platforms for up-and-coming designers of interior products. It is open to students and graduates from the fields of product design, industrial design or interior architecture and allows all interior products like furniture, lighting, textiles, carpets or wallpapers at the status of prototypes at the time of the fair or in preparation for serial production. The jury of the “interior innovation award” will select the best developments and present the award to up-and-coming designers at imm cologne 2008.

All entries have to be submitted by September 15th 2008 (date of postmark) to the German Design Council which is organizing the competition on behalf of imm cologne. Visit the site to learn more.

Spark is the exciting new competition created to promote great design and designers. They invite everyone to participate - designers, art directors, architects, design firms, manufacturers, institutions, ad agencies, students and novices may enter and enjoy the Spark Design Awards.

Graphics, product, transportation and architecture are just a few of the many design categories accepted. If you or your company create great designs, don’t miss the opportunity to compete in this important event.

To accommodate the greatest possible range of designs and designers, and to lower the initial cost of entry, the SparkAwards are now configured as a “two-phase” competition, just like a sports playoff series. In Phase I, the entrant will upload an image of their work and short description to the Spark website. The Phase I fee is US$125.

The first phase (virtual jury) final deadline is August 1. An international jury will carefully review the entries in early August. Phase I entrants chosen by the Jury will then have the option to participate in Phase II, as a Spark “Challenger “candidate, with payment of a second fee of $250. Phase II deadline is September 1, 2008. Jurists will judge the actual, physical works of design, so you’ll need to ship your design to the Jury site by September 5. Visit the site to learn more.

Incheon Metropolitan City, the Host city of Asian Games 2014 and Global Fair and Festival 2009 Incheon, Korea invites designers around the world to participate in the Incheon International Design Competition as part of the Incheon International Design Fair 2008.

Primary submissions are in the Product, Package, and Environment Design Fields, with a designline of Friday, 4 July 2008 at 18:00 KST. Visit the site to learn more.

For Immediate Release (Feb 13, 2008)

DVDVideoSoft updatd Free Video to Flash Converter. Make flash video for your site or blog.

DVDVideoSoft an internet resource dedicated to free software,
multimedia software guides and tutorials has just updated Free Video to Flash Converter. The new version features 30+ player skins and new easy-to-use web integration, just copy and paste html code to the site or blog.

Nowadays everybody wants to make their own YouTube. We must disappoint you. It is hardly possible to make one more YouTube with Free Video to Flash Converter, but it is very easy to enrich a corporate web site or a personal blog with good looking video. Convert video files to flash (SWF and FLV). Convert the whole movie or just a partition. Apply 30+ player skins. Free Video to Flash Converter available at
http://www.dvdvideosoft.com/products/dvd/Free-Video-to-Flash-Converter.htm for immediate free download. The program contains no spyware or adware. It’s clearly free. No activation or registration is required.
Just download and use it. Free Video to Flash Converter is already the 15th free program developed by DVDVideoSoft. DVDVideoSoft has created a line of free tools: Free Video Dun, Free YouTube to iPod Converter, Free YouTube to MP3 Converter, Free YouTube to iPhone Converter, Free Video to iPod
Converter, Free Video to iPhone Converter, Free Video to MP3 Converter, Free YouTube Uploader, Free Audio Dub, Free YouTube to MP3 Converter, Free 3GP Video Converter, Free Video Flip and Rotate, Free Video to JPG Converter and finally Free YouTube Download
http://www.dvdvideosoft.com/products/dvd/Free-YouTube-Download.htm).

All these titles are available at
http://www.dvdvideosoft.com/free-dvd-video-software.htm for immediate download. Also here you can always find lots of guides and tutorials related to different video tasks like, burning and ripping DVDs, making DVD copies, converting between all video formats and more.

All our programs are absolutely free and run under all Windows,
including Vista. We respect our users’ privacy. There are not any
spyware or adware. It is safe to install and run!

Electrolux Design Lab 2008 invites industrial design students around the world to create tomorrow’s home appliances for the Internet generation, deadline May 30.

Electrolux, a global leader in home appliances and appliances for professional use, launches the 6th edition of its annual design competition via www.ElectroluxDesignLab.com and will select a limited number of entries to compete in Zurich at the international finals October 8 & 9, 2008.

The Internet generation comprises brand-conscious, busy young professionals between 25-35 who are independent, concerned about the environment, and whose lives are intertwined with technology and online social networks.

This year’s submissions should be for 2-3 years into the future and address food storage, cooking, and/or washing. “We are looking for daring ideas and solutions,” says Henrik Otto, Head of Global Design at Electrolux. “Entries should reflect the iGeneration’s core interests and concerns like mobility, convenience, time, materials, personalization, entertaining, technology, and sustainability.”

About Design LabSince 2003, thousands of design students have participated in the Electrolux Design Lab competition, which culminates in a different city every year at an international press event. Previous venues include Paris, Barcelona, Stockholm, New York, and Budapest.

Last year’s competition “Green designs for 2020” was won by Levente Szabó from Moholy-Nagy University of Art & Design, Hungary, with E-wash, a compact washing machine that uses soap nuts instead of detergent.

The Design Lab 2008 has a First Prize of 5,000 Euro and a six-month internship at one of Electrolux’s global design centers. The second prize is 3,000 Euro and third prize 2,000 Euro. An international jury will judge the entries based on intuitive design, innovation, and consumer insight.

Entries must be submitted by May 30, 2008 via the website. A limited number of finalists will be chosen by the end of June and invited to Zurich to make a final presentation to the jury on October 8 & 9 where the winner will be announced and the prizes awarded.

For more information about the competition, high-resolution photos of previous finalists and their concepts, broadcast quality b-roll, and to watch videos from last year’s competition on Design Lab TV, visit www.ElectroluxDesignLab.com.

Adesso Inc. a leading manufacturer of computer input peripherals, today announced the availability of its new wide screen graphics tablet, the Cybertablet Z12. Available at $149.99, the Z12 features a large 10″x 6.25″ work space for drawing, handwriting, sketching, coloring and video and picture editing.

A powerful, yet easy-to-use combination of an ergonomic pen, tablet and software lets you draw and write freehand graphics and text as comfortably as you would on real paper. The Z12 is ultra slim and compact, making it perfect for traveling from one inspirational drawing point to the next. Or use the Z12 to write, sketch, circle, or add notes during a presentation to emphasize important points. The USB connection makes for a quick installation and the tablet also works with Microsoft Vista.
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And, believe it or not, it came from Endless.com - Amazon.com’s first retail URL outside of the Amazon brand since its launch in 1995. Endless is filled with a seemingly endless supplies of shoes and handbags (over 250 brands and 15,000 styles and colors of bags and shoes for men, women and kids). While the variety offers fashion designers a source to study these accessories by price, style, brand, size, and color, the new site also offers free overnight shipping, free return shipping, 110% price guarantee, and 365-day returns window to offer customers a no-risk opportunity to try them out.

But, if you want to use your Amazon.com gift card, forget it. That’s not happening at the moment.

At right: Cyndi Lauper and Janet from Janet Jewelry.

My sweetie has fallen for another woman, although she’s married and has a kid. It appears that her business practices are what won him over, and I’ve become smitten with this woman as well. Although she’s designed jewelry for the likes of Cyndi Lauper, Janet treats us ordinary folks with the same royal treatment.

Here’s what happened: About two years ago, my sweetie purchased a few items for me from Janet’s website. One item, a necklace (seen here), was a huge hit with me. But, the chain was fragile and after I wore it everyday for over a year (even in the shower), it finally broke. When a chain was re-ordered from Janet this past week, she had the original order on file and she knew exactly which chain to deliver. When her mail pickup was interrupted, she sent an email immediately to let us know that the chain would be delayed a day. She then went to the post office personally to mail the order off to us.

When the chain arrived today, we encountered a personal note (with a smiley face drawn on it) and a real candy cane sealed with a holiday message and her business card. While some businesses would simply put the chain in an envelope, Janet packed it nicely in a little box imprinted with her logo and wrapped the box in a ribbon. She then wrapped that box in bubble wrap and sealed it with clear packing tape. You might think that Fort Knox was in that box! She also sent along three different postcards that showcased her work - a great tool for viral marketing, along with a card for a 10% discount on our next purchase.

Janet - thank you for your wonderful treatment. You know how to run a business! I had to let you know that you’ve won us over, even though your jewelry designs provide enough justification for a return visit anyway. Happy holidays!

Coroflot Groups space is a big open untamed space waiting to be brought to life with your work and ideas. Got a portfolio & something to say? Create a group at Coroflot and upload your design work at no charge into an online portfolio. Check out the other information available at this site, like the new salary survey results and job listings. This site is now a permanent link in the links “an eye on” list in the middle column. Visit the site.