Sherwin Williams is spitting out gems with their color picking site.  If you're in the market for buying paint this is a great visualization resource.  You can choose from different rooms and different styles of rooms- apply your paint schemes, and build a shopping list.  You can even get daring and paint the ceiling and trim. http://sherlink.sherwin.com/swapp/color_visualizer/index.jsp

There's a long tradition among news gatherers to hoodwink readers, listeners, and viewers on this day with some sort of bogus news story that seems "close, but not quite." Because we're all well-conditioned to treat stories on this day with some skepticism, it's pretty harmless fun for the most part.   When writing today's Videoactive Report, I considered continuing the tradition. Only problem was, every story I dreamed up didn't seem so far-fetched. More to the point, it seems I run something at least once a month that I greet with extreme doubt at first glance.

Check out the sample page peel ad in the upper-right corner. This is the default out-of-the-box sample of a new drupal module: http://drupal.org/project/pageear. I've seen page peels with videos under the peel which I think we could do by cleverly replacing the art assets.

Tim got a new webcam yesterday so we had fun testing some of the free videoconferencing systems like Tokbox, Oovoo and Skype. View this post to see a recording of part of our Oovoo conference. My impression is that Videoconferencing has come a long way since I've last tried it, especially in how easy it is to get it set up and get working. However, audio and video quality is still hit or miss, especially on the Internet.

Great news to graphics enthusiasts everywhere!  Photoshop, the industry standard in computer graphics software is now free.  Sorta.  Except it's not.  And it's slow.  In all fairness, this free version is really just testing the waters, and it's not meant to replace the full CS3 version currently out there.  I can't say I'm a fan though, it's just not very powerful or responsive and it feels like someone ripped the engine out of my car.  Feel free to check it out though:
https://www.photoshop.com/express/landing.html

From what I understand Apple is currently considering to allow consumers complete access to download as many songs as they'd like for a monthly fee.  Different prices have been tossed around from $20 to $80.  Of course the higher the price the less likely you are to retain subscribers on a monthly basis and of course the less likely users are going to stop at Apple's estimated 20 songs per person.

The DRTV and Infomercial industry has had a history of scams and fast buck artists. Why?

The creepiest robot... EVER. Yeah technology is great when it works... but it doesn't always, and sometimes it falls off the grid. When it's a toaster it's annoying, but when it's a giant walking monster- there's a good chance it's hunting you. I'm betting this will fuel a few nightmares over the next few weeks at least. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1czBcnX1Ww

Last evening I conducted a Hawthorne Videoactive Report TV interview with John Yarrington, Publisher of Response Magazine, about his new web site www.asseenonresponsetv.com. John and Adam Carrillo, Response's National Account Executive, braved canceled flights, lost luggage and a 5 hour car trip from Chicago to Fairfield, Iowa in time for dinner and a fascinating demo of their exciting new venture.    Launching today, www.asseenonresponsetv.com is an exclusive online video library featuring more than 200 DRTV long and short form commercials and products.

I returned last night from the International Home and Housewares Show in Chicago, where I have been every year for the past 15 years or so. Like every year, I had client meetings, made some new contacts and ended up with sore feet. It always seems that I have one meeting after another scheduled at opposite ends of the McCormick Exhibition Halls. Next year, I will be sure to wear my sneakers!   The buzz at the Housewares Show was about the turnout, which some people seemed to think was down somewhat from previous years.