SIXTY-SECONDS BLOG: Fred Showker blogs about the realms of publishing, graphics, computing, social networking, marketing, promotions, and media-- with an eye to entertaining, amazing information that will possibly make you think! Published since 1988 as syndicated articles for user group newsletters, these are vital tidbits for busy computer users that you can read in 60-seconds! Join me on DTG FACEBOOK FaceBook and follow along on DTG TWITTER Twitter RSS

CREATIVE Tidbits : from Vignelli to PANTONE

Creativity can come when you least suspect it. These are extra juicy idea-starters! Follow along with this edition of Creative Tidbits:
* This is New York: Massimo Vignelli on Childhood, Discipline, and Design
* Legend: Harry Potter's Graphic Designers Launch Fine Art Prints
* GDUSA Reader Survey: Stock Imagery is a Designer's Best Friend
* PANTONE SkinTone Guide Launched for Matching Skin Tones
* A Deluge of Design
... and more ! October 30, 2012

Social Media Speeding through 2012

This Social Media updates includes our favorite finds in the past week -- good information for all online users, designers and marketers :
* 30 tweets worth reading, retweeting, and maybe even printing out from
* 6 ways to avoid a personal PR crisis on social media
* Discover more about your audience with social media
* Optimizing Facebook engagement: The timing of posts
* 7 Secrets to Getting More from LinkedIn
* Humanize your social media
.... and the continuing world of social media and networking October 25, 2012

CREATIVE Tidbits : something old, something new

Looking back ... then looking forward - for creative spirits, ideas and inspiration can be found anywhere. Follow along with this edition of Creative Tidbits:
* The Batman '66 Project: A Graphic Design Love Letter
* 10 Illustrations From The Dawn Of Graphic Design
* Framing Film: Cinema and the Visual Arts
* Art in Miniature
* Flying colours
... and more ! October 23, 2012

DTG News for October

01 Fred's 2012 famous fonts surfs
02 18th Annual Top Typography Books in Review
03 40 Free Macintosh (commercial) Fonts
04 Photoshop: 3D Typography in the Sky
05 Building patterns has never been this easy
06 Hermann Zapf: Design at Hallmark Cards
07 New Gallo Fonts for Design & Crafts
08 12 Essential books for creative pros, freelancers
09 CREATIVE Tidbits : Typography
10 Fall Publishing Update
11 Marketing Update : promotions into fall
12 Sub Contracting can be profitable
13 Search for AMERICA'S NEXT AUTHOR
14 Did you see the Publishers' Warehouse?
15 &Else NEWS for the creative professional :
16 Pages of Fonts Fest Past :
17 October rolls on ... then it's November and the Holidays October 1, 2012

What if the Internet went away?

With the spector of a U.N. take over of the Internet in December, (Details) I decided to ask one of the creative professional groups on LinkedIN what they think about the situation. Sheesh. And I thought Facebook had all the ninnies! August 22, 2012

DTG News for August 2012

Join our annual "Back to (Design) School" issue, for lots of learning opportunities and resources ... this issue includes :
01 August: Back To School
02 Tutorial : Easy magazine cover in Photoshop
03 Photoshop (EDU) madness
04 Photoshop (AUGUST) Madness
05 Photoshop CS6: Filters for Lens Distortions
06 10% OFF Colin Smith's PHOTOSHOP CS6 ROADSHOW
07 Adobe InDesign CS6: Paragraph Composers & Tabs
08 EDU : Use the Field Blur Filter in Photoshop CS6
09 EDU : Collect for Output for Adobe Illustrator CS6
10 EDU : Effects in Adobe InDesign CS6 : Transparency
11 EDU : Adobe InDesign CS6 : Paragraph & Character Styles
12 EDU : Expanding Your Photography Portfolio
13 EDU : Nikon DSLR learning, training
14 60-Seconds : My apology to all our readers
15 Cloud Rendering for 3D Artists and Architects
16 Script Arsenal for Photoshop
17 Marketing Update : Back to (Design) School
18 CREATIVE Tidbits : Awards to Crowdsourcing
19 &ELSE News, Views & Reviews
20 18th Annual Fall Fonts Festival
21 Have a great August August 1, 2012

My apology to all our readers

My apologies to all DTG readers who have enjoyed the Publishers's Warehouse and the treasure trove of resources and links there -- but who have found broken links, or links that send them off someplace they didn't expect to go. Unfortunately, there's nothing I can do about other online resources, and we have no real control over other sites that seem legit, but are not. July 27, 2012

Death of the search engine

For some time I've complained about the state of online search. Most everyone online are all about search engine optimization (SEO), but in my opinion, the SEO operators have ruined internet searching. Some segments of society are suffering for it! June 19, 2012

168 Ethics in Digital Photography

As new, up-and-coming designers and photographers hit the streets in search of the perfect photo -- we want to remember the responsibility each of us has in practicing ethics in photography. This piece covers the ethics and provides a huge list of digital ethics links. June 1, 2012

Facebook Advertising: Should you bother?

Here you go, on the day Facebook goes public, in one of the biggest stock market IPOs in history, we're asking should brands bother with Facebook advertising if 44% of people say they would never click on a sponsored ad? A global survey undertaken by the independent digital marketing agency, Greenlight, reveals 30% of people 'strongly distrust' Facebook with their personal data whilst 44% say they would ‘never’ click on Facebook sponsored ads, all of which indicates Facebook's advertising programme has an upward struggle. It's going to get interesting! May 18, 2012