Look North Inc.

Inbox Zero

2010-05-25T00:23:58+00:00

It won't last long, but today for a short while I've reached Inbox Zero. For those of you not aware of Inbox Zero, have a look here.

Two Of Our Clients Are Featured In The New York Times Blog

2010-05-27T00:20:30+00:00

A couple of Look North's fine-art clients have made the New York Times blog within the past week.

2010 In Review

2010-12-16T00:18:28+00:00

With 2010 now behind us, let's take a look back at some of the great projects we worked to get done over the past 12 months.

Akvaplan.niva Selects Look North to Lead Website Redesign Project

2011-04-01T23:04:57+00:00

The new website will highlight major services offered by the scientific research company. It will be in both English and Norsk and cater to an international audience.

The Last NASA Space Shuttle Flight - Ending A Great Era of US Space Exploration

2011-05-19T00:27:02+00:00

NASA has scheduled the final space shuttle launch July 2011. This will be the final trip for a truly remarkable spacecraft.

Solar Eclipse Happening Right Now In Norway

2011-06-02T00:24:52+00:00

You gotta check this out.

EllisLab Releases ExpressionEngine Version 2.2.0 and We’re Excited to Begin Using It Exclusively

2011-06-23T00:31:18+00:00

This release marks some major stability improvements. We're now ready to offer project development for production sites in the new version. We're really looking forward to checking out some of the sweet new features, including the completely revamped File Manager.

One Of Our Favorite New Features of Apple’s OS X Lion

2011-07-20T18:41:01+00:00

With over 250 new features, Lion is the most advanced version of OS X to date. And from what we've seen so far, we like it a lot.

The iCloud Future Looks Bright For Apple

2011-07-28T15:45:05+00:00

We think there's a ton to be excited about with iCloud. It means that as long as you keep backups of your data you can more easily take advantage of solid-state media's lower storage limits much more effectively. We're really looking forward to this.

You’ll Wonder How You Survived Without This Tool

2011-07-29T00:43:06+00:00

Awesome Screenshot is a slick new tool that allows you to take a screenshot of either a part of your browser window, or the entire thing. You can then annotate the screenshot with their tools. Once you're done it supplies the screenshot as a file for download or sharing via Facebook, Twitter or Email.

We’re loving Spotify, A New Streaming Music Service.

2011-08-03T00:02:31+00:00

Spotify is a new streaming music service here in the US. Different from Pandora, Spotify users have direct access to millions of tracks. You can search by artist, album, genre and more. It has quite an extensive catalog with a wide variety of great music. Only a few things have we searched for and not been able to find (although, the Beatles would be nice - iTunes has them!).

The subscriptions are simple. You can listen for free, with ads. You can pay $4.99 a month for no ads. And, you can pay $9.99 a month for no ads and mobile access.

Another key feature is you can sync some tunes for offline use. This is great when paired with the mobile plan.

Who Saw This Coming? WSJ: Apple Briefly Passes Exxon Mobil in Market Cap

2011-08-09T17:26:23+00:00

We all know they're doing great, but to see Apple pass Exxon as the largest US company by Market Cap? It's nice to see a company as focused on design and creativity as Apple doing so well.

Video: Danny MacAskill Industrial Revolutions

2011-08-19T17:21:51+00:00

This style of bike riding (street trials I think) has always been interesting to me. Some of the physics simple seem impossible. This guy is on a whole other level. (via kottke.org)

Spotify Was Fun, But rdio Is Where It’s At

2011-08-19T19:07:51+00:00

While I really liked Spotify I have recently canceled my account. The number one cause: a poor desktop experience on my Mac. The player was so clunky and annoying to use I couldn't take it anymore. Enter rdio, a similar subscription-based streaming service with a way better desktop app. The pricing is similar at $9.99/month with unlimited use and mobile access ($4.99/month without mobile access).

Thanks For Everything, Steve

2011-08-24T23:49:04+00:00

Today Steve Jobs resigns from CEO of Apple, Inc. I’ve been a die-hard Apple fan since Jobs returned to the company in 1997 and saved it from complete disaster. I believe the products they design living in today’s digital, connected, media-centric world not just possible, but enjoyable.

From his resignation letter on Apple.com:
“I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.”

I believe Jobs has set Apple on a course to maintain greatness, and become even more successful in the coming years. He knows it and is comfortable letting the folks he’s put in charge make sure his vision of the company is exactly what it is realized. I think Apple-focused journalist John Gruber sums it up stating, “Jobs’s greatest creation isn’t any Apple product. It is Apple itself.”

Good luck and be well, Steve. Thanks for everything.

Yankees Hit Three Grand Slams in a Single Game

2011-08-27T00:12:09+00:00

OK, so while they’re still battling Boston for first place in the American League East, the Yankees are setting all sorts of records otherwise. Take, for example, becoming the first team in Major League Baseball history to hit three grand slams (home run with the bases loaded for all you hockey fans) in a single game.

Fix Your Stuff With Sugru

2011-08-30T00:34:49+00:00

Sugru is truly amazing stuff. It starts out as a soft, moldable putty and cures into an almost silicon-like material. I can think of a million uses for it including a custom desktop iPhone/iPad stand and a way to keep things in their place in the car (pen holder, etc…). And, such nicely designed packaging to boot.

What would you do with it?

Here’s a video with some of the creator’s suggestions.

You can buy it at HOLSTEE.

(Via swiss-miss)

Thoughts on Apple’s iPhone 4S Announcement

2011-10-05T19:28:57+00:00

We're really excited about the new iPhone 4S here at Look North Global Headquarters. Not surprisingly however, some gadget lovers are not. What strikes us as odd is that the phone itself contains the technology that everyone was expecting: dual-core A5 processor, 8MP camera with new optics, improved graphics, etc.. There are even improvements that few saw coming, such Siri assistant technology (more on this soon...) and image stabilization. Overall, this is a huge step forward for Apple.

A Dent In The Universe

2011-10-06T14:56:12+00:00

Yesterday Apple reported that it's founder Steve Jobs had passed. There are a lot of things that can be said about this man. He touched the lives of millions. Many of us use the technology he created and inspired each day. He will surely be missed. But the work he did will live on for generations. I look forward to the day I can tell my children about him and how he shaped the very devices they take for granted. "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened." - Dr. Seuss Thanks for everything Steve. You'll be missed by many.

The Kid From Cleveland

2011-11-03T16:26:17+00:00

A big, hearty Look North congratulations to our friend Tim Goodman on the launch of his new site. The site is a slick combination of a modern, responsive design and an ExpressionEngine backend. Great work Tim!

SOPA - Stop Online Piracy Act

2012-01-18T02:19:01+00:00

Here at Look North we are paying close attention to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) currently making it’s rounds in the US House of Representatives. This bill, if passed and turned into law, would greatly affect the web as we know it today. It will require that ISPs and hosting providers shut down websites accused of online piracy or copyright violation - or be subject to fines, or worse. This would be such a burden on the ISPs and hosting providers that they will likely need to comply immediately rather than research each case individually. A simple accusation could take an entire business website offline. That’s not cool.

Tomorrow, January 18th, the English version of Wikipedia is going offline in protest of the bill. Many other prominent web professionals and sites are also against this bill. As is the current administration of Barack Obama.

Learn more about SOPA on Wikipedia.

To learn more and express your concern about the bill, visit the Net Coalition website.

But hurry because there’s not much time left to act on this before it affects all who use the Internet.