Below is a list of my recommendations for the weekend.

As there a quite a few new buildings this year, I have focused on these in the list. If you are new to BOH, I’d recommend also looking at my post from last year.

Note that 27 of the 89 of the buildings have a ballot system for access. This closes 9am Monday 6th October!

There is also a speakers series in the weeks leading up to the 11/12th including a retrospective of Robin Gibsons work (the architect behind the Cultural Centre precinct) and a talk by NSW architect Peter Stutchbury.

We are hosting visits to the JRA Christian Street House on the Saturday & John Railton’s amazing 1960s home on the Sunday. Entry to these two is via ballot, so get your name on the list by the 6th October!

Photo: Richard Stringer

Photo: Toby Scott

On a recent trip to New York @wintera and I found this awesome way to plan the places you want to eat, drink, visit or stay using a Google Maps service called My Maps (formerly Maps Engine).

After we had made the map we realised that it didn’t load terribly well on our iPad or phones so I went searching for an native iOS app. Google do not make one, but a 3rd party developer does, and its quite good. Its called ‘MapsEngine Viewer‘. There is also a native Android app made by Google.

The way we used it was to research and load all our pins while we had wifi and a nice big web browser (before and during the trip). You can add your own descriptions (opening hours etc) and change the pin icons to help order the information. You then log into your Google account within the app and your custom map loads. All your pins are searchable; your notes / descriptions are available offline; and you can download the map tiles so you can navigate with the phones GPS only offline. It even lets you choose to use Apple or Google map tiles!

Checkout our NYC map here…

Here is my top 5 things that we did on our trip if the map is all too much!

1. Central Park free bike tour
2. Bushwick graffiti tour
3. New York Public Library Main Branch
4. Met rooftop
5. Tenement Museum

Oh, and a food top 5:

1. Eleven Madison Park
2. Katz’s Delicatessen
3. Grand Central Oyster Bar
4. Ed’s Lobster Bar
5. Freemans

And finally a coffee top 5:
(Don’t let anyone tell you all coffee in NYC is crap. Highly recommend ordering a cortado too.)

1. Happy Bones
2. Little Collins
3. Cafe Grumpy
4. Bakeri
5. La Colombe

Photo by @wintera

WINERIES:

In order of my favourites. Checkout also the Strange Bird wine trail.

• Pyramids Road Winery
• Bungawarra Wines
• Golden Grove Estate
• Robert Channon Wines
• Symphony Hill Winery
• Ballandean Estate Winery
• Tobin Wines
• Masons Winery
• Hidden Creek Winery

FOOD:

I’ll break this one down a touch more. Places for lunch, dinner and to generally stock up for a picnic or take home.

LUNCH:

• Robert Channon Wines – The Singing lake Café
• Hidden Creek Winery Cellar Door Cafe
• Ballandean Estate Barrel Room Cafe
• The Cellar Door Café @ Mason Wines

DINNER:

• Shiraz Restaurant, Ballandean, my favourite place to eat up here. THe chef Jason has a love of seafood. Don’t let the distance from the coast skew your judgment on that idea, it’s fresh and fantastic.
• Patty’s on McGregor
• The Vineyard Café

TREATS:

• Heavenly Chocolate at Wisteria Cottage
• Sutton’s Farm, the apple pie is amazing.
• The Bramble Patch

PICNIC / SUPPLIES:

• Vincenzo’s Deli
• The Granite Belt Dairy
• Mt Stirling Olives
• Sutton’s Farm, for apple juice.

DRIVE HOME:

• The Sovereign Hotel, my grandmas old pub in Warwick
• Kalbar, great for afternoon tea on your trip home.

OTHER:

• Girraween National Park, in terms of walks I’d recommend The Pyramids & Underground Creek.
• Bald Rock National Park
• Stanthorpe Visitor Information Centre

ACCOMMODATION:

Being a three hours drive each way, I’d suggest staying for the night at least! Here are a few places to have a look at:

BALLANDEAN:

• Wisteria Cottages
• Girraween Lodge
• The Vineyard Cottages
• Kurrajong Cottages
• Accommodation Creek Cottages
• Azjure

EUKEY:

• Girraween Country Inn
• Windswept

IN TOWN:

• The Vines Motel
• High Street Motor Inn
• The Apple & Grape Motel
• Top of Town Caravan Park (& cabins)
• Loggers Rest B&B
• Happy Valley Retreat
• Honey Suckle Cottages

DIRECTORIES:

• Granite Belt Wine Country
• Hiring a house may also be an option. Try this search at stayz.com

Only 14 of the 71 participating buildings require bookings, but there are some gems in there. The ballot for bookings closes tomorrow, so get you bookings in! More info here.

Click to open larger!

A little time-lapse video of a JRA project at Clayfield under construction. Shot over 6 hours between 6:30am and 12:30pm.

The completed precast floor now sits at street level with the main living areas of the house below, all opening onto a north facing courtyard. Up until now the work below street level has looked an archaeological dig in Pompeii!

Oh, you’re going to have so much fun!

This is an article I have been meaning to write for a long time. I think it is one of my most requested emails from friends. The back story is that I have been travelling to Japan pretty regularly since I was 12 years old.

The first time was in 1993 when I was in grade 7 at school. I studied Soroban which is a traditional type of maths learning using the abacus. For some reason the teachers liked me and sent me on a 2 week junket to Tokyo. Anyway, to the point…

THE QUICK BUDGET:

• Jetstar plane flights should really only cost $250-300 each way and are on sale every 3–4 months. Be patient and at the ready!
• If you want to treat yourself to ‘Business’ on the overnight home leg, it is about $550 on sale. Worth every cent as it includes food & luggage. Jetstar will sometime send out an ‘upgrade’ offer a month before your flight if you have already booked an economy ticket.
• Rail pass will set you back $300–320 for seven consecutive days depending on the exchange rate. Try: jrpass.com or jrpasses.com
• The accommodation at Andon Ryokan in Tokyo is awesome: $89/night for two ppl on the upper floors andon.co.jp, sometimes cheaper on the ground floor.
• Allow the usual $80-100 a day for food and local travel + shopping money. I think it is on par with Brisbane cost wise. The idea that Japan is super expensive is a myth. Maybe in the boom of the late 80s & 90s but not anymore compared to Australia!

Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kyoto

TRANSPORT:

TOKYO:

Getting around Tokyo is super easy. All signage and the interfaces on screen based ticket machines are in English. Rather than buying individual journey tickets each trip (around 160 yen) get yourself a Plasmo card at the first Metro station you come to. They work on the Metro, JR lines in Tokyo and many food vending machines.

• General Tokyo transport info
• Tokyo Metro website
• Tokyo Metro map
• Tokyo Metro iPhone planner
• Narita to Ueno train (Keisei Line) – The one to use to travel to and from Andon Ryokan. If you land early, I suggest getting the ‘local’ Keisei line train. It takes quite a bit longer, but is an amazing introduction to Tokyo.

THE REST OF JAPAN:

A JR rail pass may be your best option if you are exploring outside Tokyo. It saves you booking a ticket for each journey and if you intend on going any further than a return trip to Kyoto, it will work out cheaper and give you an excuse to go somewhere else you weren’t planning to go to.

It is worth reserving seats if you are doing a number of journeys, particularly during peak time (morning, arvo, weekends). You can do this at the english speaking JR offices where you swap your prepaid voucher for the official rail pass when you get to Japan. I usually go to the office at Ueno Station.

Note: You have to purchase the pass before you get to Japan as it is only for international visitors!

• JR rail pass info – $300–320 for 7 days
• JR pass network map
• Online rail pass retailers – jrpass.com or jrpasses.com
• Hyperdia train route planning website
• Hyperdia iPhone planning app

TOKYO RECOMMENDATIONS:

Tokyo is amazing. Have I said that too many times yet? I actually left this section until last as I wasn’t quite sure where to start!

If you’ve never been then I highly recommend contacting the Tokyo Free Guide service. It’s free because you are helping them practice their english skills. They just ask that you pay for their train tickets and it’s probably nice to shout lunch!

ACCOMMODATION:

Andon Ryokan is my first choice for any visit and I have sent many friends there who have loved it also. I first stayed there because it was so much cheaper than a ‘western’ hotel and well, looked fantastic. Since then a number of hostels have popped up (mostly in Asakusa) which could be a touch cheaper if budget is an issue…. but seriously, you will love the experience at Andon. Their breakfast is fantastic and they have a decent bottom-less coffee machine (decent for Japan!).

Kimi Ryokan also looks good as a backup – some sort of F1 pun? K’s House which I will mention for Kyoto, now also has a hostel in Tokyo.

Andon Ryokan, Tokyo

FOOD:

If you don’t eat near big western hotels or in a fancy financial district then food should be cheaper than back in Australia! A couple of favourites below:

• Tonki near Meguro Metro Station has been operating be the same owners since the 1960. Seriously the best meal I have ever had in Tokyo. We’re not talking a fine dining meal here, just simple fare int he form of Tonkatsu.
• Omotesando Koffee, in the back streets of Omotesando – The best coffee in Tokyo in my opinion. Enjoy the volley little courtyard out front.
• Monocle Cafe, Ginza.
• Mos Burger –Well this used to be a novelty, but you can now get this in Australia :(
• If you are flying Jetstar you will probably arrive in the evening. Ask the reception at Andon for a local food recommendation. The is a great place, open late, above the McDonalds opposite Minowa Metro station.

Tonki tonkatsu resturant, Meguro, Toyko

PLACES TO VISIT & SHOP:

Below is a list of key districts I’d recommend visiting:

• Ginza – Shopping capital of Tokyo. On weekends the streets are closed off  to vehicles. Check out eh 14 story Uni Qlo store!
• Yurakucho – Close to the International Forum, located here is the biggest Loft and Muji in Japan. If you have lived in the UK then you will know Muji. Super simple, unbranded, well designed products. Imagine a Muji the size of a small IKEA. It even has a restaurant  and you can buy a prefab Muji house here..
• Omotesando – Quickly overtaking Ginza as the place to position your flagship store. There is a list of archi building that are worth seeing in this area in the architecture section that follows.
• Meiji Shrine – A great place to escape commerce after your walk down Omotesando Dori (Street).
• Harajuku – When your done recovering at Meiji, take a stroll though winding streets of Jarajuku to see some extreme teenage fashion!
• Shibuya – This is where all the cool kids hang and shop. Make sure you visit Tokyu Hands, Parco and Loft.
• Asakusa – Originally a village outside Tokyo, Asakusa became an entertainment mecca not unlike Blackpool in the UK or Atlantic City near NYC were locals when to relax, bet on horses, take a ride in roller coaster all while making the pilgrimage to one of Tokyo’s most famous temples, Sensoji. Infront of the temple the Nakamise shopping street lined with stalls full of Japanese tourist ticky tacky. Actually worth checking out to do your gift shopping for friends back home. The street you want to find however is called Kappabashi Street which is lined with stores selling amazing dishes, pots, pans, cooking utensils, stoves, tables, chairs, signs, lanterns aimed at restaurant owners, but perfect for visitors!
• Ueno Park – I went to Ueno Park for the first time on my last visit to Tokyo. Amazing space, especially doing Sakura (cherry blossom) time.
• Nanyodo Architectural Bookshop is also worth the trip to if you are an architect / student. Amazing array of new and old books and really well prices – Yasukuni Dori, Jinbocho, Kanda, Tokyo
• Superfuture also has a pretty awesome PDF guide to Tokyo.

SHORT SIDE TRIPS FROM TOKYO (1-2HRS AWAY):

KAMAKURA:

A lovely little beach side area just south of Yokohama which happens to be just south of Tokyo. While you are there keep an eye out of the surfers in black wetsuits sitting on the boards in flat still water… just hoping for that wave. The other lovely place to visit in Kamakura is the Big Budda and its very large thing/flipflop.

NIKKO:

Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil. A hill side area with an amazing shrine / temple complex. Look out for the three monkeys! Plenty of Onsen’s to visit here. An onsen if you haven’t heard of them before is a hot spring fed bathhouse. Almost all are segregated male or female. You basically get your gear off, wash yourself in the little shower area and enjoy the heated pools inside and outside (sometimes surrounded by snowy hills). It is a great way to get to know the friends you are travelling with!

HAKONE:

This is the national park area that surrounds Fuji San (Mt Fuji). Plenty of opportunities for walking, boating in the lake or eating black boiled eggs on the side of the mountains. The eggs become black after being cooked in sulphur waters from the volcano.

Pot Plants of Japan

LONGER SIDE TRIPS FROM TOKYO (4-5HRS+ AWAY):

KYOTO:

3-4 hrs travel from Tokyo. I’ve been to Kyoto four times now and have never needed to go to the same thing twice! Other highlights there include Arashiyama, the Fushimi Inari Shrine, Nishiki Food Market, the Ryoanji Temple, and the Kiyomizudera Temple. Bikes are also a pretty awesome way to get around!

Two options for accommodation in Kyoto. The first is a fairly western hostel called K’s House, the second is a series of amazing traditional houses or ‘Machiya‘. There are a few smaller Machiya available, otherwise a large house with a big group of friends is an amazing experience.

Kyoto Machiya

TAKAYAMA:

An amazing smaller town up in the hills known for wood working. The train journey there is fantastic. It is 4-5hrs travel from Tokyo and you can stay in this temple!

HIROSHIMA:

A really interesting place for historic reasons, but while you are these, visiting the island of Miyajima is a must, as is eating proper Okonomiyaki.

NAOSHIMA & ISLANDS:

A bit involved to get there, but totally worth it for the art sites and Setouchi Triennale. If you leave it until later in your trip, you will be all over working out train timetables and connections! Worth thinking about flying out of Osaka if you end up at this end of the country. Here is a bit of a list of places to stay or eat:

• Full list of accomodation
• Tsutsuji-so Lodge (where we stayed)
• The crazy Cat Cafe (you can stay here)
• …and a great little place to eat!

Naoshima Ferry Terminal, by SANAA

Benesse Art Site, Naoshima

KAGOSHIMA VOLCANO:

A good way to get all the value out of your rail pass! It’s at the very southern tip of the mainland and a good day trip from Hiroshima and possibly Kyoto if you can make the train work for you. The volcano is active and you’ll often see ash in the gutters in the street. The volcano forms an island in the bay which you can visit and take a soak in the hot foot baths. Not far from Kagoshima is the subtropical island of Yakushima. I’ve not been there, but it is on my list.

IPHONE APPS:

A couple of apps I always have with me. Some I have mentioned earlier, but here they all are in one place. With a quick Google I am sure you can find their Android equivalents.

TRANSLATION:

• iTranslate Voice – needs wifi or cellular
• Google Translate App – you can preload a heap of translations
• Japanese Dictionary – no wifi or cellular needed
• Talking phrasebook – no wifi or cellular needed

MAPS:

• Offline mapping app  – no wifi or cellular needed
• Superfuture – shopping guide

JR TRAVEL PLANNING:

• JR route planner (Hyperdia)  – needs wifi or cellular

TOKYO TRAVEL PLANNING:

• Tokyo Metro planner app – needs wifi or cellular
• Trains_jp (Tokyo) app – no wifi or cellular needed

ARCHITECTURE:

If you are an architect, student or just a partner of one, then I have a few suggestions for you:

THE USUAL SUSPECTS:

The Galinsky website is a pretty good resource of place to visit around Japan, particularly in Tokyo. Archdaily always has features to help you compile a list.

Residential houses are generally very hard to organise a visit to, so unless you have a connection, with a connection, with a connection, good luck! We were lucky enough to go to the Suzuki House in Tokyo last visit!

• Map of recent Tokyo residential architecture, by Tokyo Architect Alastair Townsend
• Tokyo International Forum, by Rafael Vinoly – Massive. Have lunch at the mega Muji after (see above).
• Yoyogi National Gymnasium by Kenzo Tange – Fantastic to walk around.
• Basically the entire Omotesando high street (Prado, Todds etc etc.) buy make sure you checkout the back streets in this area for some little retail gems.
• While you’re exploring Asakusa, check out the Tourist Information Centre by Kengo Kuma.
• Yokohama International Passenger Terminal by Foreign Office Architects – A pretty short JR train ride from Tokyo.

A SPECIAL PILGRIMAGE:

Here are a couple places to visit that can be tough to find or involve train + bus + walking… so basically need a day / half day reserved to get to them.

• Museum of Wood Culture by Tadao Ando. A big thank you to Louisa Gee and Hellen Norrie for helping me navigate to the place on my trip in 2011. This one involves quite a journey of exact timetable coordination. If you are keen to give it a go, email me for instructions!
• Tama Art University Library, by Toyo Ito is truly amazing. This one is a bit easier to get to. Just one train and a half hour walk. I guess you could cab, but you see so much more by foot. This place is amazing. You can’t take photos upstairs and you kind of need to convince them to let you up (and they will if you say your an architect/student). I have never seen such precise concrete work in all my life. The point at which the arched columns touch the ground is literally 80-100 wide.
• The Church of Light by Tadao Ando in Osaka – Note it is only open a couple of days a week and you need to book.
• Sendai Mediatheque by Toyo Ito – I’ve not made it here, but on my list!

Suzuki House, Tokyo

Let me know if you find anything else awesome that I should visit next trip!

UPDATES:

As I find interesting links / visitor directories / new places to visit that are great, I’ll add them here over time:

• The Thousands new Tokyo guide
• Kinfolk + Tokyo + Coffee
• If you have a major data addiction, these guys have been recommended as a company to hire a pocket wifi or sim card from. Pretty good pricing!

I am not 100% on the source of these all of these images. I suspect the BCC for many of them. The Youtube clip at the end of this post suggest a chap named Richard Jones . They came to me via a friends mother via email. If anyone does know I will add due credit.

[UPDATE 27/04/16] Richard Jones contacted me recently confirming his connection to many of the photos which where taken below. More of his Brisbane photos can be viewed at the Brisbane Tramway Museum. Thank you Richard for sharing your lovely work!

Map of tram network via @jackbryce

Top of Queen Street (Corner George Street), 1965

Corner Queen & Albert Streets, 1958

Tram Depot Ipswich Road, Dutton Park, 1969

Trams on Gilchrist Ave with St. Bridgid’s Red Hill in the background and Roma Street goods yard in foreground

South Brisbane Railway Station

Wickham Street, Fortitude Valley, 1965

Gympie Road, Kedron, 1968

Stafford Road Terminus, 1968

Belmont (now Carina) Terminus, 1968

Grey Street, South Brisbane, 1969

Kingsford Smith Drive, Hamilton, 1969

Melbourne Street, South Brisbane, 1969

Ipswich Road, Annerley, 1969

Queen Street, North Quay, 1969

Stones Corner, 1969

Nursery Road, Mt Gravatt, 1969

Stanley Street,  Wooloongabba, 1969

Breakfast Creek

Possibly Adelaide Street (cnr Albert), 1960s

Days Road, The Grange, 1968

Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley, 1968

Dutton Park  or Buranda? (tram depot in back-ground)

Camp Hill, 1958

Petrie Bight (Customs House in background), 1965

Latrobe Terrace, Paddington, 1967

Milton Road, Milton (XXXX sign in background)

Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley (Corner. Wickham Street), 1968

Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley (same corner different angle), 1968

Wickham Street, Fortitude Valley, 1968

Video of above.

I put together a map for the the recent national architecture conference ‘Experience‘ held in Brisbane. As the conference hadn’t been held here for a couple of decades, a group of us (mainly EmAGN / YAQ members) decided to put together a fringe programme of events for the local and interstate visitors. The Fringe Experience programme was a great success with sore heads all round, after each evening of the 4 day programme!

The map features our recommendations architectural spots to visit, places grab a decent coffee, have a bite to eat, and fantastic drinking spots. It’s really a pretty good resource for anyone coming to Brisbane, not just architects.

Download map here.

1ST PAGE:

I keep my home screen in a fairly default app arrangement. Not sure why, perhaps it’s an OCD issue or my fingers have just learnt where all the main apps live. The only thing I have replaced is the default Music app with Instacast which is a fantastic little podcast player that lats you stream and download podcasts over the air independent from iTunes.

2ND PAGE:

Page 2 is reserved for my most used / every day apps… just one flick away from the home screen.

Twitter:
The official Twitter app. Used to be called Tweetie. UI is great. Swipe over a tweet for a quick shortcut to options.
The best alternative is probably Tweetbot, but I’m not really into the over the top UI crap.

Reeder:
Reeder is fantastic if you are into Google Reader. The UI is beautiful and you can cache a whole heap of unread stuff to read while you are offline. Great for travelling. Swipe a story to star it.

Instagram:
Instagram is by far my favourite app. It a photo sharing community that enables you to friend and share within the app, but also send the photos out to Twitter or Facebook. There is a whole bunch of really inspirational stuff going on there. Particularly in Brisbane.

Facebook:
We all know what that is about. I often delete it off my phone when I realise I am playing on there too much… :o
Once again a far nicer interface then the real website in my opinion. Right below it is the FB Messenger app. This is great if you need to curb your FB usage, then you still get inbox messages without the distractions of the other crap.

Pinterest:
Another great find of 2011. It’s a visual bookmarking tool that I use to categorise inspiration images, but can be used for any purpose you like really. This app lets you look up your pins on the go.

Beehive IM:
Instant messenger app for Google Talk, MSN, AIM etc. Always been reliable. Verb is a nice alternative.

Skype:
Doesn’t really require an explanation. VOIP over 3G or WiFi. Also lets you send SMS from your phone number if you like too.

Dropbox:
Dropbox is amazing. Install it here on your computer and it setups a folder called ‘Dropbox’. Anything you put in here is synced to the ‘cloud’ (internet) and is then available on any other computer (or iPhone via this app) you install Dropbox on.

Instapaper:
A tool to collect and read long articles you find on web pages. A small bookmarklet in your web browser adds the article’s text to Instapaper, which is then available for you to read on the iPhone via this app.

Plaintext:
A note taking app that syncs with text files in a designated folder via Dropbox.

Dropvox:
Audio recording app that is much better then the built in Voice Memo app I feel. Its super simple, you open it up, press record (which works in the background) and then uploads the small audio file to a designated folder in Dropbox.

Monocle:
The fantastic magazine now as a 24 hours radio station. This app plays it live, time shifts it and will send to the Hifi via Airplay.

Oh and the Travel folder is just full of stuff I am using at any given time while travelling to a certain destination. Currently there are a few Japan Rail and Tokyo Metro apps in there.

3RD PAGE:

This page is still full of good apps, but I use them less often. Here are a few selected favourites…

Oz TV:
Probably the best tv guide app I have found for the iPhone. IceTV is good if you have a TV tuner with built in IceTV functionality for scheduling recordings on the go.

AirVideo & Plex
Both allow you to stream channel BT content from your computer to an iPhone, iPad or AppleTV without re-encoding file formats. You install a small server app on the computer and it handles the live conversion. AirVideo lets you navigate folders of media by folder and filename. Plex is a bit more sophisticated and retrieves metadata on the media files and constructs a navigation system based on this data – name, genre, date etc. The best thing is if you have a cheap AppleTV box connected to your TV. You choose what you want to watch on the phone and just ‘send’ it to the TV via AirPlay.

Remote:
Apples app for letting you control iTunes or  an AppleTV via your iPhone. Great for a party situation so you can keep your lappy in a back room. If you use the iTunes DJ playlist, multiple people running the app can add tracks to a ‘request’ queue.

TV Forecast:
A great little app that lists the upcoming air dates of your favourite TV shows in whichever country they screen first. Great so you remember to grab them on channel BT.

Autostitch, Photosynth, Snapseed, Photoshop Express & PicFrame:
All great little camera apps you might like to play with. The first two are for doing panoramas, the rest for manipulating images.

BT:
If you are using Transmission on your computer, enable the web interface. To add a website to your Home screen, visit the page in Safari and tap the Go To icon at the bottom of the Safari window. Tap Add to Home Screen.

4TH PAGE:

Consume:
Great Australian made app to monitor the usage of your accounts such as your home ADSL, mobile phone cap / data usage, car flow tag, loyalty cards and other services.

Pocket Weather:
This app is an Australian replacement for the supplied weather app on the 1st page which seems to be fairly inacurate, particually for forcasts. Pkt Weather uses data direct from the Australian Bureau of Metorology (BOM) and inclrudes animated radar images.

Analytics:
I manage quite a few websites and this app serves up all the Google Analytics traffic data presenting it in an easy to digest UI.

Convertbot:
This one has an awesome animated user interface. Converts just about anything. Be sure to go into the settings and activate some of the hidden conversion options… only the common ones appear by default.

FTP on the Go:
Really useful while traveling to make small changes to code in websites for clients.

Wikipanion:
At the pub disagreeing on a fact? Wikipanion is a great mobile interface for the wikipedia.org site.

1Password:
Nice little app that syncs with the desktop version. It’s a place to keep all your passwords, serial numbers, ftp logins etc etc and have them with you on the road. All the data is encrypted and you need to enter a pin and password to access the data.

Tick:
This is the iPhone app for the web service at tickspot.com that I use for tracking time for work projects. Nice to be able to enter your time while out and about.

Thats about it for my list of current apps that I use on my phone. Hope you find one or two that are useful for you as well!

Via fubiz.net

Here is an OCD gem… A heap more can be seen here.

Via jeanniejeannie.com

In Poland.

Via @zacdavies

Looks like lights will soon be able to dim, brighten, turn on and off based on your proximity. Fantastic stuff.

Via Inhabitat

Via anneg.net

I need to sketch more…

Via anneg.net

The Architects – Show 271 – Floods Recovery Special.
Hosted by: Simon Knott, Stuart Harrison & Christine Phillips
Featuring interviewees: Peter Skinner (AIA/UQ), James Davidson (Emergency Architects Australia) and Michael Rayner (Cox Rayner).

Listen here or subscribe in iTunes…

A house in Karalee near Ipswich. Flood peak shown in blue.

Wivenhoe Dam at it’s peak. Image source unknown.

1974 flood map. Source unknown.

I heard years ago that this was the original intent for the central pier of Brisbane’s Goodwill Bridge but was axed when the ‘Courier Mail’ decided the bridge was costing too much.

Photos – Josie Withers

Via – Broadsheet

Via @stuartnharrison

Via Daring Fireball

Via Design Milk

Also, it’s interesting how car park heavy many of the stadiums are…

Congratulations to my colleague Michail Kowal for his work on the bid branding :)

Via Archdaily

Via Likecool

Read about it…

The workshop focused on using design approaches to make urban areas outside the Central Business District more appealing to visitors and residents.

Workshop participants—including architecture, landscape, arts, and environmental graphics practitioners—used a fast-paced collaborative format to generate ideas for encouraging urban exploration.

Our groups goal was to get visitors here for a conference to move out of the CBD and South Bank and explore what we termed  Brisbane’s ‘local villages’… areas such as West End, Paddington, Rosalie and Woolloongabba.

To achieve this we proposed communication triggers that the visitor would interact with as they journeyed  into the city from the airport, at their hotel and at public transport stops. This simple and easily identifiable communication system would help visitors overcome the complexity of navigating an unfamiliar public transport system, enabling them to explore many of the the places locals frequent in outer city areas.

More info at the SEGD & UAP blogs.
Other participants included: Urban Art Projects, Lat27, Jack Bryce Urban Design, Frollop, Kuuki & Place Design.

Via @bjango

Via designboom

Here are some tips for extending the battery life of the phone throughout the day…

1. Got to Settings > Wifi > Turn off auto discover wifi networks.

2. When your not at home or not using it turn off Wifi off. You really only really need it on when you downloading apps or doing some heavy web browsing with lots of images. Facebook, Email, Twitter really won’t use much of your data allowance so it’s almost not worth having on.

3. Settings > Brightness > Try and keep it as low as your eyes can tolerate.

4. Settings > General > Network > Enable 3G… I used to turn off 3G quite a bit unless I was doing heavy web browsing as mentioned above… if you just retrieving text (ie .Facebook, Twitter & Email then the 2G network is often sufficient in built up city areas…. this one saves LOTS of battery.

5. Settings > Mail > Fetch new data… If you are not using ‘Push’ email, changing fetch interval from 15 minutes to 1 hour will help also. Not using ‘Push’ also helps, but the convenience of the push services probably outweighs the battery drain.

6. If you do like 3G on all the time, just turn it off when the battery gets below 20%… will give you 1-2 hours more time before the phone dies.

Just remember it may seem like the iPhone has a crappier battery than your old Nokia or Motorola, but did you use that old phone as much as this one?… me thinks probably not :)

Via Shock Blast

Via Today & Tomorow

Via Likecool

Via Coute que Coute & @suziewhite

Via ffffound &  @suziewhite

Via Designboom

Via Likecool

Via Engadget

Via Büro North

More photos here…

Via @studiopounce

Via @jasonfried

Our first group project involved designing and fabricating a pod that could accommodate 4 people and be made from corrugated cardboard. We were allowed to use 10 sheets of 1100 x 2400mm card, cable ties, cloth tape and acrylic paint.

Below is the result…

We also had to put together instructions so another group could build our pod. I used an IKEA instruction set as inspiration :) Anyone work out where the name came from?

The pod packs flat and folds out like an accordion. We only used 9 sheets, each being one panel of the total spherical shape. Each of the panels is pre joined with the cloth tape. A series of simple folds allow the flat panels to fold and meet together at a central overlapping ring. The panels are pre-taped together. Two people can build the pod with the main structural fixing being cable ties around the top circle of the structure (9 ties). There a minor fixings points where the angled edges of each panel meet when folded along the top sloping edge of the structure (20 ties). A water seal is established here with an overlap and fold of tape. The fixing point at the base of the opening brings the panels of the structure together creating the final geometric shape.

Ventilation is provided by 3 large and 6 smaller diamond shaped windows that can be popped open and shut . Inside the pod there is plenty of usable space. There is room for 9 people sitting inside; room for 4-6 to sleep side by side and you can even stand up straight and look out the central ring (useful for getting changed or just peeking outside). There is a cap that sits over this central circular ring during wet weather. Talking of wet weather…

The final part of the project was to stay in the pod for a couple of nights… and of course it rained. Our pod performed really well for about 8 hours. Then it began sinking in height! The weak point was at the entrance. The edges of the cuts that were made for the doors were not taped enough. Water getting into these edges over the hours of rain caused rips at the bottom of each door weakening the structure. The next morning the pod was sitting at about half height!

Other aspects of the design were pretty successful rain wise. Only one of the windows leaked (they all had an overlapping seal) and the acute angles of the the folded panels worked really well at dispersing most of the water off the cardboard surface… unfortunately on each side of the door these folded ‘gutters’ sent water straight into the problematic door cuts mentioned above.

From here we will look at what we can do to improve the structures strength, particularly around the entrance (perhaps another layer of card internally or a different type of opening) and reduce the number of cable ties required for assembly.

Watch out, the improved ‘Buck Pod’ might be coming to a music festival near u soon!

Via Flickr

The Book Depository seems to come up the winner in most of my searches.

Via FormFiftyFive

Via @donmcallister

Via Map Magazine

Via Designboom

Via Today & Tomorow

Via Melbourne Gastronome as seen at Market Lane Coffee

Via @decryption

View on Google Maps…

NY Times image series – here

http://www.foodhax.com/
http://www.melbournegastronome.com/
http://www.thatjessho.com/
http://www.thefoodpornographer.com/
http://www.therealmelbourne.com.au/

Via @kahlerisms

Pity it’s an ad for something at the end, but cool anyway :)

Here is another one in the series making using a bin fun!

Via Likecool

Leave your hair dryers at home people…

http://audiko.net/

Save it at the end and drag it into iTunes.

2. A free way with quite a few steps…

You can buy ringtones on the AUS store, but creating free ones is easy. I did have some problems the first time I tried – and found that the important thing is the maximum song length, which is 30secs. Here’s a walk-through of the process:

1. Open iTunes and select your favourite MP3 audio file, take note of the section you want to use as the ringtone and right down the time of
when you want the ringtone to start – ie 1:45 (remembering that you
can only choose 30secs max).

2. Right-click on this file in your library to bring up the context menu.

3. Select Get Info

4. This will open a new dialogue box showing various details about the audio file. Select the Options tab.

5. Check the boxes next to both Start Time and Stop Time and enter
the times you want your new ringtone to start and stop (the maximum
length is 30 seconds) then click OK.

6. This will return you to your music library.

7. Right-click on the same music file again and this time select ‘Convert Selection to AAC’. (You need to have AAC selected as your encoder type in iTunes>Preferences>import settings

8. iTunes will process this briefly and insert the new ringtone-sized
file under the original file in your library.

9. Right-click on the newly created file and select: “Show in Windows Explorer or “Show in Finder” on a Mac.

– A new dialogue box will open showing you the location of this file. Select the file and change its name so that it is not the same as the original song, also change the file extension from “.m4a” to “.m4r”. (if using Windows it will warn you that this change may make the file unstable, but continue anyway)

10. Back in iTunes, delete the ringtone file you’ve created from your library.

11. Now import the renamed ‘.m4r’ file into your library (File -> add to library…. then locate the new file that you renamed in step 9) it should add the file as aringtone and appear under the ringtones (bell) icon in iTunes on the left hand side. Connect your iPhone and sync your playlist. You may have to manually drag the .m4r file into the Ringtones section on your iPhone. With your iPhone synced this file is now ready to be used as a ringtone.

3. Also here is a site with some direct .m4r downloads:

www.free-ringtones.cc thanks Drew

In case something bad happened to your iPhone – get help from the trusted iPhone repair San Diego.

Via Like Cool

Now I know why!
They have changed the typeface to Verdana for consistency in all languages and online.

After working for IKEA in the past for over 5 years and being really proud of its visual standards, it make my eyes weep a little…

Via Typophile

So now we need a flow chart to explain how to use flow charts…

Via Xkcd

Via Designboom

Via The Pirata

Via Compact Desk

Via Currawong

Via Engadget…

1ST PAGE:

I keep my home screen in the default app arrangement. Not sure why, perhaps its and OCD issue or  my fingers have just learnt where all the main apps live. The only one I don’t really use regulary is Stocks, but it’s a nice icon :)

2ND PAGE:

Page 2 is for my most used non Apple apps… just one flick away from the home screen.

IceTV:
An Australian based TV guide service. A paid subscription lets you activate recording of shows back on you media centre / DVR remotely.

TV Forecast:
A great little app that lists the upcoming air dates of your favourite TV shows in whichever country they screen first. Great so you remember to grab them on channel BT.

ABC:
This is the official app from the Australian public broadcaster. I use it to scan news headlines. You can also download ABC audio and video podcasts in the app. I just wish they would add a frequency guide!

Tuner:
This is an app that lets you play streaming Internet radio stations on your phone over wifi and 3G. It comes with a list if American-centric stations, but you can add your own stream (such as Triple J) by entering a URL.

Pocket Weather:
This app is an Australian replacement for the supplied weather app on the 1st page which seems to be fairly inacurate, particually for forcasts. Pkt Weather uses data direct from the Australian Bureau of Metorology (BOM) and includes animated radar images. There is another app in this league called ‘Oz Weather’ but as I paid for this one first so I’ve not used it.

Skype:
It took a while for an official Skype app to arrive, but it was worth the wait! I use Skype for calls while travelling overseas at Wifi hot spots and at home calling friends OS. Works as advertised!! It’s also great for instant messaging on Wifi or 3G. I guess sending SMS via Skype on the phone isn’t going to happen any time soon, but fingers crossed!! EDIT: Version 1.1 is now available and has voicemail retrieval and you can now send SMS messages!!!

Linked In:
I don’t use this professional networking took a real lot, but it does provide a much nicer interface than their actual website.

Analytics:
I manage quite a few websites and this app serves up all the Google Analytics traffic data presenting it in an easy to digest UI.

Facebook:
Well if you don’t know what this one is about, call up a mate and get them to help you lift off the rock that you’ve been hiding under! Once again a far nicer interface then the real website in my opinion. Also all the messages and info are cached on the phone so you can view it still if you have no data connection.

Tweetie:
This is a really nice apps for communicating using the Twitter service. I originally used Twitteriffic, but with V2 the interface got very busy and complex. The only thing I miss in Tweetie that was in Twitteriffic is the offline caching of tweets.

Reader:
This is a link to the mobile web app version of Google Reader for reading RSS feeds. I have tried using the native Google Reader app called Byline, but found it to be really slow. Google mobile web app is super fast and easy to use! RSS feed readers are a great way to get your news and monitor new posts on sites you visit daily. They basically strip away all the site except for text and some images, helping you get to the content you want to read easily!

3RD PAGE:

This page is still full of good apps, but I them less often…

Currency:
A must for traveling and doing currency conversion in a one page dashboard widget style app.

Grocery Zen:
Not a bad little app for doing shopping lists. It organises your shopping into aisles and categories. There are heaps of these sorts of apps on the App Store, but this is the one that was recommended to me.

Convertbot:
This one has an awesome animated user interface. Converts just about anything. Be sure to go into the settings and activate some of the hidden conversion options… only the common ones appear by default.

iStat:
This is an app by the company that did iStat Menus for the Mac. This app lets you monitor not just all your Mac’s remotely, but also the iPhone it’s installed on. A useful little feature is the ability to clear out the allocated memory on your phone which sometimes can get quite full if you have been playing games.

ATM Hunter
When I got back to Australia form overseas, I was pretty shocked by this new ATM withdrawal arrangement where you have to pay around $2 for every time you use an ATM not operated by your own bank (I am with a credit union and they used to let you withdraw anywhere for nix). This little app uses your location information to find the nearest ATM’s and tells you which bank operates them.

FTP on the Go:
Was really useful while traveling to make small changes to code in websites for clients.

Air Sharing:
Lets you use your iPhone like a USB memory stick. I also use it to store and view iPod formatted videos. This way I don’t have to import them into iTunes and sync the phone. You connect to your phone via Wifi and then phone appears as a drive on your desktop.

Wikipanion:
At the pub disagreeing on a fact? Wikipanion is a great mobile interface for the wikipedia.org site.

1Password:
Nice little app that syncs with the desktop version. It’s a place to keep all your passwords, serial numbers, ftp logins etc etc and have them with you on the road. All the data is encrypted and you need to enter a pin and password to access the data.

Mobile Usage:
Connects to the Optus billing server and retrieves your account balance, the number of SMS & MMS you have sent and data you have used for the billing month. Very useful for tight arses like myself!

Cities:
This app lets you see what time it is in other places in the world at a designated time. It’s kind of like the built in Clock app but it only lets you see the ‘current’ time. Useful if you have to plan a phone meeting OS or stay up for an OS event.

Tick:
This is the iPhone app for the web service at tickspot.com that I use for tracking time for work projects. Nice to be able to enter your time while out and about.

Remote:
Apples own app for letting you control iTunes or  an AppleTV via your iPhone. Great for a party situation so you can keep your lappy in a back room. If you use the iTunes DJ playlist, multiple people running the app can add tracks to a ‘request’ queue.

Byline:
This is an offline viewer for Google Reader. Useful if you are going on a plane or on the Tube. You just sync the app with Google Reader and all your RSS articles are downloaded. It’s a bit slow so I only use it when I know I am going to be without data coverage. It’s also best to use it over Wifi rather than 3G or Edge.

Tip:
A nice little Tip calculator for working out those dinner cost splits.

4TH PAGE:

This is my page of ‘fun’ apps…

Sol Free:
A free Solitare app. One of the first apps I think I downloaded!

Tris:
This is a Tetris game. You can’t download it anymore as it infringed copyright. EA does a licenced Tetris app, but the UI isn’t as nice…

Sim City:
I bought this app for my girlfriend and installed it on my iPhone too… I haven’t really  had a chance to played it much, but I will soon I hope!

Flight Control:
One of the best examples of an iPhone game that uses the touch interface for gameplay. The premise is that you have to land different places on different runways without them crashing into each other. You use your finger to glide the plane to the appropriate runway.

eShaver:
Funny app that turns your phone into a shaver. Great way to freak people out.

A-Level:
Turns your phone into a spirit level. There are a couple of free version on the app store now.

Kern:
Nerdy app for graphic designers. It’s a bit like tetris…. you line a missing letter up with a gap in a word and drop it into the space trying to get the spacing before and after the letter correct. Really nice visual design.

Thats about it for my list of current apps that I use on my phone. Hope you find one or two that are useful for you as well!

Via Geeky Gadgets

More photos here, here & here…

Via Inhabit & Dezeen

Via whatconsumesme.com

“It is considered to be a once in a lifetime experience and many tourists are already making the most of it. They are travelling vast distances to witness one of nature’s most dramatic displays – water reaching Lake Eyre…”

View videos & photos here…
http://www.abc.net.au/news/events/lake-eyre/#id=2571603

Messaging – Adium, Skype, Tweetie & Growl
FTP – Transmit
Bit Torrent / downloads – Transmission & Speed Download
Video – Perian, Flip 4 Mac for Windows Media, VLC & VisualHub or Video Monkey
Browsers – Safari 4, Firefox & Chrome Beta
Password management – 1Password
System – iStat Menus, MainMenu
Audio / video – Airfoil + an Airport Express, Sound Source & Last.fm
Backup – SuperDuper
Web design – Coda, Pipette
Google – Gmail Notifier, Reader Notifier & Mailplane
App removal – AppZapper
Photography – Aperture, iPhoto Buddy
Writing – Writeroom

All must haves!!

They are now doing a weekly audio podcast which is quite enjoyable….

Listen on the web | Subscribe via iTunes

They are also have a video podcast which complements stories from the magazine… Just do a search for it in iTunes.

Via Infosthetics…

Via Inhabitat…

Via Creative Review…

Via boston.com…

Via an email from a friend… Not sure who created it…

More information…

Download…

Via Techcrunch…

Oh cars AND planes…

Via Treehugger &  Knoxnews…

Events & birthdays to a CALENDAR:
– FBcal – http://www.fbcal.com/ (Mac & Win)

Contacts & birthdays to an ADDRESS BOOK:
– Addressbook Sync – http://danauclair.com/addressbooksync/ (Mac)
– Facebook Sync –  http://fsbsoftware.com/FacebookSync.dmg (Mac)
– Out Sync –  http://www.melsam.com/outsync/ (Win)
– Fonebook – http://ross.dargan.googlepages.com/ (Win)

Not I’ve not used the Windows applications… the Mac ones work great!

Message and status to your DESKTOP :
– FMenu – http://sourceforge.net/projects/fmenu/ (Mac) 

Via Animals on the Underground…

Via The Vine…

Via Google Long Lat blog…

www.xkcd.com/85/