Friday, August 15, 2008

BIG changes aFOOT

Stay tuned for big changes coming to the lab next week. You can expect brand new hardware and updated versions of your favorite software, from Toast to Microsoft Office to InDesign!

We'll be closed Monday to install the new equipment and troubleshoot some video connection problems we've been having. See you all Tuesday, August 19!

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Rebirth

Some students working with the Homeless Arts Project here in Philly have been working tirelessly in the Digital Media Lab the last few weeks, getting ready for a new art show called "Rebirth - The Reality of Homelessness." It's a night of dance, poetry, and art by homeless men in Philadelphia. It'll be this Friday, August 15, from 7-9pm at F.U.E.L. Gallery (249 Arch Street), and everyone is invited. The event is free, but donations are accepted. Hope to see you there!

Below is an image of the postcard/announcement (with more info), which was also designed here in the lab.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

What the Font?

A lot of people working on projects in the lab share a common problem: they're trying to identify a font. Usually they want to recreate a logo, or duplicate a style they've seen elsewhere (like using the Harry Potter font or the Simpsons font.) But identifying a font can be tricky if you're not a typographer. Enter "What the Font?!"

WhatTheFont?! identifies a font for you and lets you know where you can download or purchase it. All you do is upload a screen capture of the lettering in question, and then it automagically returns a list of fonts that match (or come close to matching) the lettering you submitted. If it can't find a suitable match, you can also submit it to an expert, or ask on the forums, where there are lots of people who apparently have nothing better to do with their time than wait for typographic n00bs to upload jpegs of hard-to-identify lettering.

Some of the fonts it comes back with are commercial and must be purchased :( But if you can find a free font that does the trick, chances are we can install it on a workstation for you to use here in the lab. Let us know if you need help getting a screen capture of the font you're trying to identify.

Thanks to Sarah for letting me know about this!

Friday, August 1, 2008

Equipment Lending

Just a quick apology to those of you who tried to borrow video cameras and audio recorders over the last week. Our system was temporarily broken after a recent mail server upgrade, so we never received a lot of your requests. Sorry about that!! We're back up and running now, so hopefully those problems are behind us. Feel free to start submitting your requests again.