Oh how I loath 3D artists. Damn them and their skillful talents. OK enough. So basically, Keith Beltramini has launched a new site containing his recent 3D New Media work. The kids insanely good and he’s open for full-time employment! Check out his work at www.keithbeltramini.com!

My boy Jeff Lin launched his new website a few weeks back and it is hawt. His new media skills have blossomed from the little girl that I once knew to a full grown beast of the trade. Jeff….. this post is for you baby! Go peep Jeff’s site at www.jefflindesign.com.

I recently worked on a full-screen Flash experience website for the up and coming music artist Elizabeth Wills. The site will be undergoing more advanced updates over the next few months but the initial release is up doing well. Check it out if you have a free moment at www.elizabethwills.com!

Alright, I know what your thinking. Just because I own and primarily use Apple products, I automatically hold prejudices against everything else, especially Microsoft… Oh come on, get off the high horse and take a breath of fresh air. I don’t despise Microsoft, I’m just not fond of their recent products and marketing decisions. Every year the company seems to fall further from the tree that they created twenty years ago. With products like the Xbox 360 to the current proposal to buy YaHoo!, every step the company has been trying to take forward seems to go backwards by two instead. Every year they keep losing a percent or two from the desktop users. Sure, their still over 90%, but how many years before they start to level out with the other contenders? All these problems can be pointed to bad management and that’s what Microsoft needs to fix.

From 2006 to 2007, MTV was suffering from an out-dated business model so they replaced their management. After busting a move the company’s profits started to rise again. New shows were recorded and the legacy shows were dropped, albeit a couple that have been considered a standard among certain age groups (”Real World,” being a perfect example). By making a bold move they were able to innovate and raise the bar again. Microsoft should be doing the same.

Over the past few years, Microsoft has been trying to delve into other markets. The Xbox was Microsoft’s first big leap into an ocean of dangerous waters. Because of entering the genre so late they ended up losing money just trying to sell the system. Despite the negligible profits, it was a prominent and broad step for Microsoft. The project turned out be successful and created a dedicated user base that proved it’s worth with the release of the Xbox 360. The 360 has a solid user base and is gaining better third-party support. Along with the release of their XNA SDK, Microsoft seems to be pushing the platform for every gamer, hardcore or not, and while this is a strong move the problem lies in the system it’s self. With every 360 sold a 360 is replaced, setting Microsoft back a few billion. They could of minimized this number by at least a third if they replace their product line with their newest model that sports the smaller CPU die. Instead they currently release both which not only frustrates it’s dedicated users, but also drives people away due to the lack of reliability. Another example would be the non-free Xbox Live service, but I think I’ve said enough.

Along the same time line the company also tried jumping into the portable media market with their shiny product, the Zune. Here’s a short list of flaws about the Zune:

1. Horrible name for a Media Player.

2. Horrible tag line for a sale. “Welcome to the Social!” Oh wait, no one owns the damn thing so what ’social’ are we talking about?

3. Bad marketing. The damn commercials didn’t portray anything about the player it’s self.

4. No innovation. For those of you who think WiFi is classified as such I’m sorry to say the patent for WiFi in portable devices have been around long before the Zune.

So this is all fine and dandy. I could go on all day naming the huge mistakes made by a company with more man power and money over all of the competitors. Thats when my friend/colleague/business owner, Jeff Lin told me that Microsoft was looking for new talent at R.I.T. (Rochester Institute of Technology). It was almost as if a beam of light came down and burned a hole through the tumor in my head. I thought to myself, maybe Microsoft came to their senses and are looking to pickup the best new talent they could find. That was until I saw what had been given to the students…

Microsoft Swag

Thats right. A swag bag incentive that includes a SILVERLIGHT TATTOO! Come the fuck on now. A Silverlight tattoo? Who in the world even uses Silverlight, let alone wants a tattoo of the damn application (besides that fat zune tattoo guy from Gizmodo). So at the end of it all, they really came out just to get a few laughs out of the crowd. It’s sad to say the least. Below is a short, basic, guide to Microsoft’s ‘innovative’ attempts:

From Apple OS to Microsoft Windows.
From Apple iPod to Microsoft Zune.
From Nintendo / Sony Playstation to Microsoft Xbox 360.
From Adobe Flash to Microsoft Silverlight.

PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, FIRE YOUR MANAGEMENT!