Month: November 2005
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Jordanian Tech Humor: getting it all wrong in Al-Ghad
I really like Al-Ghad. I mean, I’m a subscriber and get the paper every morning. But reading through the paper technology supplement today was one of those ‘should I laugh or should or should I cry moments’. Consider this list of mistakes found in the ‘technology panorama’ pages: 1. The company iDefence is spelled both…
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More interesting Arab design events: Kitabat in Dubai
Has the Arab world suddenly discovered that design events are cool? It’s about time! Well, I am really happy to report about Kitabat, a conference on Arabic calligraphy and typography. The Visual Communication Department at the American University in Dubai, in partnership with Linotype Library GmBH and Stichting Khatt (Center for Arabic Typography), and in…
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When Amman was hit, the world hit the web browser and found Jordan’s bloggers
WEB | Ahmad Humeid reports on how Jordan’s bloggers attracted global attention following the recent terrorist attacks This is an article I wrote for the Jordan Times to bring attention to the contribution Jordan’s bloggers are making to global convesations and impressions on the web. Hours after the attacks of 9/11 on Amman’s hotels, I…
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Impressive names (like Bruce Mau) at the upcoming Tasmeem Doha design conference
I just stumbled upon the speaker list for the Tasmeem Doha, design conference to be held February 20 – 23, 2006 in Doha, Qatar. I immediatly recognized two names: Bruce Mau and Stefan Sagmeister (the latter I’ve seen speak at the TYPO in Berlin, where I also gave presentations in 1999 and 2001). I am…
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Unsettling analysis on home grown terror in Jordan.. and what to do about it
Have we been fooling ourselves a bit with the show of popular solidarity in response to the bombings? Is it enough to wave our flag and have candel light vigils? I just came across this Reuters story by Suleiman Khalidi: Jordan faces threat of homegrown militants ..and the following story on a report by the…
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Companies: Show some personality on your web site!
WEB | Jordanian companies tend to hide behind a ‘big We’, Ahmad Humeid discovers. My work in the fields of design and the web over the last decade has brought me in contact with Jordan’s corporate company cultures. I have witnessed first hand how the introduction of technologies like email, websites and instant messaging are…
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SYNTAX develops name and brand identity for InterStandards
In a press event held November 22, 2005, InterStandards and Dubai Media City unveiled the new InterStandards organization. InterStandards was launched with the mission to help organize and refine the commercial Arab Internet industry by creating a set of new standards in e-marketing, e-design, e-content, e-security and e-solutions for commercial Arab Internet Websites to follow.…
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Branding craziness: Cingular will use the AT&T name..
It all a bit crazy. Cingular, the leading US mobile operator, has gone through a number of mergers recently. Now the result seems that Bellsouth, SBC and Cingular will now operate under the the ‘new’ AT&T brand and logo. Speaking about the new logo, pictured above, I was shocked when I saw it today. It’s…
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A world first.. Podcasting in Arabic!
They finally did it! The crazy gang talk a bit of nonsense and introduce themselves. And there you have it. The universe’s first Arabic podcast! Listen at your own risk! ..
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360east featured on BBC Five Live
I was interviewed by the BBC’s Five Live radio network in the UK 2 days ago about the reaction of Jordanian bloggers to the bombings and also about podcasting in the Arab world (or the lack thereof). Roba (and far away) was also featured. Listen here. Read these related posts on 360east: Toot and Arab…
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Jordan’s Al-Rai newspaper to start publishing a “Reform and Enlightenment” weekly supplement
Al-Rai, Jordan’s biggest selling daily (partially government owned), has announced today that it will start publishing a ‘Reform and Enlightenment’ weekly supplement as a contribution to “achieve a clarity of vision against the various forms of extremism and bigotry and takfir, and to raise the flag of enlightenment in the Arab world, allowing reason to…
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They will consume themselves..
A clear-headed analysis by my friend Mazen: “The rhetoric of Al-Qaeda is to glorify sacrifice above all. It is an emotional appeal to demonstrate committment without really offering an ideology of what they are really sacrficing for. What is so great about the wife of one of the suicide bombers following her husband? Presumably this…