OpenRoad + Mod7

Two pioneering organizations, together at last.

OpenRoad is pleased to announce the acquisition of creative agency Mod7.

Read the letter from our Principal

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OpenRoad is pleased to announce the acquisition of creative agency Mod7. Read the letter from our Principal.

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Curating the Internet fire hose this past week has brought forth some really titillating clues to what the near future might hold for design, culture and technology. Here are some of the more popular links, as voted on by our follower's clicks.

52x52 Here's an interesting project that explores a fresh fund-raising model. It helps you use your "social influence" and put your money where your mouth is. Google-Docs-powered,  Twitter-integrated, and dead-simple, this lovely site heralds the New Philanthropy: decentralized, faith-neutral and grass roots. Will it work? Well, it's already collected nearly $100,000 in pledges. But does it have long-term promise? Who knows. Even if it doesn't last, it's certainly an experiment worth experimenting with.

Ice Cream Sandwich No, not the popular cold  treat. But Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwichwas a real treat for developers and technology speculators when they got to see some of the new features unveiled. Our take? A lot of great stuff here, if you're a power user or developer. But Android still feels like it's trying to play catch-up with iOS devices (especially in the consumer-desirability department). Is cramming in more features really the way to go? Some of the more mom-friendly features are going in the right direction: Face Unlock (assuming it "just works"),  Talk-to-Text, some nifty Camera improvements. But we have yet to see real leadership in vision in the Android interface and feature base.

Lady Gaga vs. Moshi Monsters It seems there's a fine line between parody and infringement, especially where kids (and super-powered pop stars) are concerned. The British High Court has favoured Gaga's request for injunction against Mind Candy, the creators of the popular kid's social network Moshi Monsters, from using Gaga's likeness in the character of Lady Goo Goo. What do you think? Will kids have a hard time telling the difference between Lady Gaga and Lady Goo Goo ? :/

Animated History of the iPhone The Steve Jobs tributes just keep on coming, and this one weaves in the story of the iPhone, from its predecessors to its design to the hardware. You'll want to hit the pause often as facts fly by with nary a second to ponder. It's certainly well worth the look. Our favourite part is the comparisons of Jony Ive 's forms to the seminal work done by Dieter Rams. Design nerds will appreciate the wink and nod.