Hot Searches

(Source: Visualization of "Hot Searches") 

Have you ever erased the history on your computer before letting someone borrow it?  If not, you must be very trusting. 

Alan (my boyfriend) and I have been dating for 2 years and living together for 1 year.  I'm just now letting him borrow my computer "raw."

I'm not searching for anything juicy (it's anything but).  It's just very personal.  It's direct access to my thoughts.  That's why I find Google Search trends so interesting.  For better or worse, it's the collective thoughts of a country.

Here's the top 10 in the USA today:

1. Teen Wolf: Season Premiere
2. Bruins: 2-0 lead over Penguins
3. Miley Cyrus: New single, "We Can't Stop"
4. Linked In: Updated "Who's viewed my profile" section
5. Jiah Khan: Bollywood star commits suicide
6. Jason Kidd: Ends basketball career
7. Frank Lautenberg: NJ senator dies
8. Pia Zadora: Broadway star chokes son
9. Vine: Video app now on Android
10. PNC Bank: Robbery in Carlisle

If I were an alien that dropped in on the US, I'd think Americans are obsessed with sports, celebrities, vampires, death, crime and apps.  Seems pretty accurate.

Text as Visual Protest: Suckcess

I bought the book 100 Ideas that Changed Graphic Design this weekend at an adorable bookstore, Beautiful Pages, in Sydney. 

My Adobe CS skills are still very rough, but it's something I'm definitely drawn to -- one day I'll learn (I say that a lot, whether it's learning a language or programming, so TBD).

In the book, Idea #18 is "text to images," and it references Bob Dylan's music video, "Subterranean Homesick Blues."  I've seen it before.  It's even in a Google ad.

I just never realized it contained the cult image, "suckcess" (to be fair, I sometimes live under a rock).  Apparently, Dylan was a pioneer of using text as a form of visual protest.  

It's amazing how adding an extra letter to a word can make such a powerful statement. 

(Source: Wikicommons)

PS - Apparently Allen Ginsberg, father of the Beat generation, is in the background of the video

PPS - Here's more behind the meaning of this famous Dylan song.

PPPS - If you're interested in learning more about the history of graphic design, check this book out.  It's way easier to process than anything I've learned online.