Minimal Universe

Minimal Universe collect posts from our favorite minimal-related blogs listed on the right.
  • Clear Perfume Bottle

    Earlier this year Japanese designers Nendo presented the Clear Perfume Bottle during the Salone del Mobile in Milan. The bottle gives the illusion of either floating soft bubbles in air or water. The perfume is actually hidden in the cap, where the bottle suggests the invisible sensation of fragrance. How intriguing!

    Photo by Masayuki Hayashi

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  • "The key to performance is elegance, not battalions of special cases. The terrible temptation to..."

    “The key to performance is elegance, not battalions of special cases. The terrible temptation to tweak should be resisted unless the payoff is really noticeable.”

    - Jon Bentley and Doug McIlroy

  • 10 essentials

    I was reading a series in GQ called 10 Essentials where a designer or stylish celebrity names 10 things that are essential to them. I love the idea, but the lists seem like such tributes to luxury consumerism.

    I’m the last guy that GQ would interview for this series (I have no sense of style, to start with), but it got me to thinking: what are my “10 essentials”?

    And so I made a list:

    1. What I wear: jeans. I love the thick texture of jeans. I wear them every day. Some people like synthetic fabrics because they’re lightweight and dry fast, but jeans are just comfortable. I only buy my jeans at Goodwill.

    2. What I also wear: T-shirt. I only have a few — black, blue, and grey — but I wear them everyday until they get thin.

    3. How I hydrate: water. I do drink coffee and tea, but neither compares to plain water. I drink from the tap, throughout the day.

    4. What I love to eat: fruit. Fresh from the farmer’s market, or berries picked straight from the bush. Mmmm.

    5. What entertains me: books. Any type. I get them used, from friends or the library.

    6. My essential writing tool: a text editor. I’ll also take a pen and small notebook, especially if I’m out and about and feel like writing.

    7. What I do for fun: walk. I like to go outside and just take in the city, or nature. I don’t even need shoes — barefoot walking is even more enjoyable. Even better: walk with someone I like.

    8. Where I go for inspiration: nature. A nice park, a garden, a forest, the ocean, hills.

    I ran out of things at this point — and the last couple aren’t exactly things. I really tried for 10 items but I can’t think of more. If I have the 8 items above, I’m very happy: jeans & t-shirt, water & fruit, a book and a notebook, a walk in nature.

    I could live on just those items — of course I’d need other food for nourishment, but not much more. I don’t even need a computer — I could write in a notebook and use a computer at a library to post to my blog.

    You don’t need consumerism to be very happy — in fact, I’d argue that life is better without it.

  • "Increasingly, people seem to misinterpret complexity as sophistication, which is baffling —-..."

    “Increasingly, people seem to misinterpret complexity as sophistication, which is baffling —- the incomprehensible should cause suspicion rather than admiration. Possibly this trend results from a mistaken belief that using a somewhat mysterious device confers an aura of power on the user.”

    - Niklaus Wirth

  • romeojulietsierra: Taking a trip for six months, you get into...



    romeojulietsierra:

    Taking a trip for six months, you get into the rhythm of it. It feels like you can just go on forever doing that. Climbing Everest is the ultimate and the opposite of that because you get all these high-powered plastic surgeons and CEOs, you know, who pay $80,000 and have sherpas who put all the ladders in place and 8,000 feet of fixed ropes…you get to a camp and you don’t even have to lay out your sleeping bag; it’s already laid out with a little chocolate mint on the top. And the whole purpose of climbing something like Everest is to effect some sort of spiritual and physical gain, but if you compromise the process, you’re an asshole when you start out and you’re an asshole when you get back.

    Yvon Chouinard, Founder of Patagonia Clothing

    (via thelongbrake dot com)

    This was taken from the movie 180South. If you haven’t seen it yet, go get it or watch it in Netflix. It’s a fantastic movie.



  • Software development, Special Forces style - An idea

    About 3 years ago I began applying a series of tactics and ideas to programming and security testing based on what I learned in the military. It was just little things here and there, but slowly I started seeing patters arising. I started working with those little things and applying them to more software development and information security projects. It was great, very simple, very focused and it was working.

    I thought this method might interest developers and other people out there. I’m sure you can apply this to other fields as well.

    Before Tumblr ate my queue this was going to be a 6 part article, but I’m trying to make it all in 2 parts, if people are interested.

    This is the outline of what I have in mind. Let me know by likeing it if you are interested.

    • Small teams: 2-4 developers when possible, if more are required still partition the teams in 2 to 4 men. Small team sizes come with a bunch of advantages, one if which is the ability to adapt to changes
    • Combined arms tactics: breaking the problems and attacking it from different angles by different members, with code review done with every check in
    • The code: Spartan programming, code simplicity but stronger code
    • Planning: The manager plans what every member will code, what tasks are assigned and the testing to be performed
    • Planning 2: The operator (the programmer) has the ability to change the plan on the field
    • Planning 3: Get a sketch of the basic plan and work from there. No plan ever survives the first contact with the enemy. Be ready to change as you go
    • R&R: Let the teams unwind sometimes and pursuit their own projects
    • Scout the target: spend a few days roaming around the net, reading books, etc to research the technology and code needed to solve the problem, then prepare the test apps, small snippets and other things needed to go for it
    • Speed of execution: as soon as you decided what technique to use, language or the technology you will use, go for it fast and reach the testing phase quickly
    • FRAGO: fragmentary order. Learn how to react when a requirement is changed on the fly
    • Decisions: Make decisions right before you do something, not far in advance. It’s OK to wing it
    • Communication: Simplicity of communication. A simple design with very simple code could be easily understood by most programmers in the team and communicated clearly up the chain of command or the customer
    • Improvise adapt and overcome: If you are stuck, improvise and then tell your manager
    • Every man a rifleman: everyone works, everyone codes. Even those that are not programmers
  • "Speed is the most important feature. If your application is slow, people won’t use it. I see this..."

    “Speed is the most important feature. If your application is slow, people won’t use it. I see this more with mainstream users than I do with power users. I think that power users sometimes have a bit of sympathetic eye to the challenges of building really fast web apps, and maybe they’re willing to live with it, but when I look at my wife and kids, they’re my mainstream view of the world. If something is slow, they’re just gone.”

    - Fred Wilson

  • Being Geek

    Being Geek:

  • "The older the technology, the more likely it will continue to be useful. Find the minimum amount of..."

    “The older the technology, the more likely it will continue to be useful. Find the minimum amount of technology that will maximize your options.”

    -

    Kevin Kelly (via onethingwell)

    What we believe in.



  • WHY Wally-Hermés Yacht

    Why not? Wally-Hermés believes in a new way of navigating slowly on the sea with genuine environmental and ecological values.

    The WHY yacht concept was created through a partnership between high fashion house, Hermés and yacht builder, Wally. The living space, built on three decks is intended to meet the human needs of space, light and shade with advanced sustainable technologies. The 58 metre-long 38 metre-wide, pared-down yacht is powered by a diesel electric engine that produces solar electricity to manage the boat.

    “We didn’t design a boat, we gave shape to an idea – there are no excesses, nothing is superfluous, the impact on the sea is minimum.” Pierre-Alexis Dumas, Artistic Director of Hermès.

    There is something fabulous about indulging in absolute freedom with this life of quietness and gala affair. One caveat: cutbacks and timidity is positively, my order of the day.

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  • "Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you."

    “Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.”

    - Ralph Waldo Emerson

  • everydaycarry: Sinn UX S EZM 2B via 00Photo Editor’s Note:...



    everydaycarry:

    Sinn UX S EZM 2B via 00Photo

    Editor’s Note: Click for alt.



  • New York Times Bits Blog: Instapaper Goes From Hobby to Startup

    New York Times Bits Blog: Instapaper Goes From Hobby to Startup:

    instapaper:

    This happened.

    Good luck to Marco!

  • The three treasures

    I have just three things to teach;

    simplicity, patience, compassion.

    These three are your greatest treasures.

    Simple in actions and in thoughts,

    you return to the source of being.

    Patient with both friends and enemies,

    you accord with way things are.

    Compassionate toward yourself,

    you reconcile all beings in the world.







    — Tao Te Ching

  • (via idesk)



    (via idesk)



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