The (not so) little conference that could

Big doesn’t even begin to describe Webstock. As Kiwi conferences go, it’s a behemoth, boasting web celebs left, right and centre. But it would never have sprung into being—let alone attracted speakers like Tom Coates and Peter Sunde— if it weren’t for a couple of passionate people and some seriously hard graft. Professionals told Natasha Lampard and Mike Brown to start small and carve a niche; they had different ideas. The pair wanted to create their dream conference and went all out to organise it. As Brown explains, “We just wanted to make a conference where we could meet some of the people we always wanted to meet.” Indeed they did. With just a few weeks to go and tickets close to selling out, we take a look at Webstock’s rise to the top of the NZ events calendar

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What's the hype about?

Wellington-based start-up MusicHype.com is going global: it has just secured a $600,000 investment from the Rutherford Innovation Fund for expansion into the North American market. In a nutshell, it’s an online platform which rewards fans for promoting, talking about and spending money on their favourite bands and artists, tracking their activity across social media. Musicians can make a profit from exclusive merchandise, tickets, downloads, and other products. Just a year old, it has worked with bands such as The Mint Chicks on a number of exclusive releases and promotions. The investment will be used to expand MusicHype’s marketing and technical teams, and setting up a Los Angeles office to take on the American industry.

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Public transport gets animated

Navigating the convoluted Auckland public transport system getting you down? Maybe you need a little perspective. We love this animated map, which follows a day in the life of the city’s buses, trains and ferries. It’s the clever creation of Chris McDowall, who describes it as “the map I used to daydream about”.

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Who says video games aren't real?

Researchers at Stanford University have developed the first video games in which players’ actions influence the behaviour of living microorganisms in real time—while the game is underway. In PAC-mecium, for example, a mild electrical field is used to control paramecia—the single-celled organisms often used in biology experiments. But they hasten to add that there’s no cruelty involved; paramecia don’t have a brain or the ability to feel pain.

Common ground

Challenging perceptions about music is the focus of The Commons Project, which delves into electronic sampling, score-based instrumentation and processional sounds with guests from as far abroad as Zurich, New York and Buenos Aires. It’s the second installment of the Adam Art Gallery’s Sound Check programme, which will see a series of free performances (starting January 30, through to April 27) staged around Wellington. But don’t expect a typical hall or theatre. Instead, participants will be placed on unfamiliar city sites, the kinds of places which might not ordinarily lend themselves to such endeavours. How good are the acoustics in a carpark? You’ll just have to wait and see.

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Carson's reincarnation

David Carson, arguably the world’s most famous graphic designer, is returning to print— as art and design director for the bi-monthly magazine C A R S O N. It’s bound to be a grungey visual feast. Each issue will be themed, and cover art, culture, design, fashion, and current events. “I love to read real stories about real people and events, and then try to interpret them visually,” he says. “C A R S O N is a way of seeing our world in an exciting way, which in these times can often seem confusing, overwhelming, and/or soulless.”

Carson has won more than 170 awards for his work on fashion, skate and surf publications in his time and is now heading our way; he’ll be speaking at seminars in Auckland and Wellington next month.  The theme is Graphic Design after Print, with a focus on how to use design to get people’s attention at a time when formats are rapidly changing.

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Blunt force

As previously featured in Idealog, Blunt Umbrellas are the Ferraris of the brolly world. They’ll never poke you or anyone else in the eye, are incredibly durable and even kinda good looking. Need proof? Watch a Blunt being tested inside a wind tunnel; even on the wrong side, it stands up to winds of more than 100km/h.

‘Birds’ knocked off its perch

One for the history books: a 14-year-old has knocked longtime king of the App Store, Angry Birds, off its perch. Bubble Ball, the “fun, challenging physics puzzle game” teenager Robert Nay developed, has clocked up 2 million downloads since its December 29 release. In order to create it, he used Ansca Mobile’s Corona software development kit and taught himself the Lua programming language (although word is he enlisted his mother’s help as a designer). Unfortunately, he failed to build in a way to make money from the game, but he won’t make that mistake twice—he’s set to release a second, paid app.

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The swing’s the thing

Designing for ever-smaller confined spaces is so hot right now, and this compact bathroom column certainly makes the most of a tight spot. Taking its cue from the Swiss Army knife aesthetic, it features seven rotating modules which swing outward, including a toilet, shower, cistern and storage space. High-rise toilets…whatever will they think of next?

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Quote of the week

It wasn’t that we were not-for-profit, more that we were not-for-loss. It was never about making money.

 - Mike Brown on creating the conference of his dreams from the ground up (alongside Natasha Lampard)