You're the Busiest Guy/Gal in Show Business!

Sure, you've got your Day Planner® and your iCal® and your pads of paper strewn about the office, but have you considered taking your "to-do" list electronic? There are lots of great options for this and lots of reasons it might make sense for you to have a to-do list online and on your iPhone, 'Berry, or other palm device (you can't misplace the electronic list, for one thing, you can set reminders for yourself for another, and it leaves your calendar for appointments only, giving you a better picture of how you're spending your time).

There are tons of options, so I'll begin with my favorite few and add from there. If any of them sound interesting or helpful, give 'em a try. You have nothing to lose... anymore.

My current list-making app in "heavy rotation" is Nozbe, and here is a screen shot of my own system, right NOW:

Highlight Reel: I can organize items by Project, by Project Label ("tags" to you and me) or "Contexts," or, where the list item needs to take place. I can upload documents (not viewable online, but can be downloaded again later), can access Nozbe through a dedicated iPhone app as well, AND can link to my Evernote account (and we LOVE Evernote!). I can also "share" items here with selected workmates, but, really, I use Nozbe just in a desperate bid to keep myself organized (and use other project software/cloudware for those team projects). There's lots more, so go here: Nozbe Visual Tour

Or watch the first intro video here:



This video will show you how the system works (it's easy). Like most things online, there is a free version and a version that is more robust that costs. Figure out what works for you, and get organized!

Understanding the Cloud (and More) Made Easy

This great little online book, illustrated by the incomparable (and oh-so-schmart) Christoph Niemann, will put you in-the-know in no time. At your next faculty meeting, or council of Deans, you will shine like no other as you bandy about terms like "Javascript" and "CSS" and actually know what they mean! Seriously. There is also some sweet animation, so go take a look:

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Evernote Says, "Remember Everything!"

And you can. With this online service that also has a matching desktop client for you as well as an app for your iPhone, Android, Blackberry, etc. Oh, and it's free. It's ALL FREE: Evernote

You can clip text, webpages, photos (I used it to photograph and file business cards) and more. Then you can organize your saved material into Notebooks (their name for folders) and tag items as well to further organize. It looks kinda like this once yer rockin' and rollin':

Like many other online services there IS a paid version with more bells and whistles, but you get all of Evernote's functionality in the free version along with plenty of uploading activity each month for free. Oh, and in terms of "keepin' it social," you can "share" notebooks or e-mail your notes to others. Here are a pair of videos to get you started using Evernote. Try it!:

Grading

No more math! No, seriously. You can weight projects, work with either letter grades, points or percentages, take roll/attendance, and on and on. Then, at that fateful moment at the end of the semester, it's all calculated for you, so you won't have to stay up all night wondering if your math skills will stand up in court. Beautiful!

See a demo about Snap Grades here: http://snapgrades.com/web/demo.php

Website: SnapGrades

From the SnapGrades website:

•	Enter scores as points, percents, grades, rubrics, even adjustments (25+2 or 40-5%).
•	Customize letter grades, rubrics, pass-fail, etc.
•	Customize weighted or unweighted categories.
•	Set weighted grading periods and exams.
•	Customize special marks for missing work, excused assignments, etc.
•	Type comments for each score of each student.
•	Set different grade scales for different classes.
•	Drop low scores automatically.
•	Override or adjust the total grade for each student.
•	Curve grades for any assignment.
•	Create independent study assignments for one or a few students.
•	Graph how each assignment impacts the student's grade.
•	Show students "What If" scores so they can see what they would need to reach a certain grade.

Scheduling Nightmares? Turn Them Into Dreams.

There are several free scheduling programs/services online, but When is Good, saved my life and a LOT of paper! It's simple, straightforward and just works.

When is Good allows you to develop and event and send out a call to participants via e-mail. They respond, and the computer finds the "times in common" for you and the group! And you see it as a chart. I know! Super.

Here is an example of what an account looks like:

Watch a video about the program works here.

New Models of Professionalism in Illustration/Visual Communication

“Life is not semesters.” Aaron Meshon

The illustration field is changing quickly.

Illustrators and clients are coming together to work online and social media allows for valuable interaction. Once isolated, illustrators now coming together and use social media to market their work (in varied ways such as Etsy, BeHance, the iSpot, etc.) and discuss the profession, strategies, and client issues.

Digital entertainment is normal now. And it makes people comfortable with electronic formats. E-book sales have tripled in the last year with e-books outselling traditional books by 43% in the last quarter. They can be multi-path stories and are highly visual. E-books will outsell paperbacks in 2011.

Markets for illustrators are opening in electronic publishing and online gaming. Vinyl toys and licensing are on the rise (Haring: The Pop Shop). Illustrators can develop their own markets and not necessarily wait for an art director to call.

Gary Baseman is a good example.

 

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