Reader Martin Dop had that feeling of déjà vu all over again on seeing the new AT&T logo. Could it, by chance, have been separated at birth from the Google Earth desktop icon? Round? Check. Blue and white? Check. Wiggly lines? Check. A bit like a half-sucked gobstopper? Check.
There must be more to this than coincidence.
Sneak feels we should be told.

November 28, 2005 Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (3)

Now that its merger with SBC is under way, AT&T wants to be called at&t - in its logo at least - because the little letters create “a more welcoming and accessible image”, apparently, and not because the typesetters ran out of capitals. As well as the timid lettering there is a new version of the familiar AT&T globe. As the firm itself carefully highlights, the globe is “one of the most recognised corporate symbols in the world” and currently appears on 50,000 vehicles, 6,000 buildings and 40,000 uniforms. So what better business move than junking it for something that people won’t recognise? The new, unfamiliar globe looks more 3D-ish, “representing the expanding breadth and depth of services” offered by the firm, allegedly, and also has an element of transparency “to represent clarity and vision”. Appropriately, the new globe also appears to be rather hollow and lacking any real substance. Still, it’s not all bad. At least it no longer looks like the Death Star.

November 23, 2005 Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0)

A little girl kicks her heels in frustration. Why is her homework taking so long to download? Because the internet is a gate that’s half closed, held back by a piece of hairy string, her father explains.

Soon girl and parent join a throng, marching on the headquarters of a nameless organisation. And the crowd’s voice is heard, by a bloke in a not very convincing server room. He creeps toward the black monolith in the very centre of the room. He throws a brushed-steel lever, with a look of triumph tinged with trepidation. And lo, the hairy twine is no more, and the gate swings wide!

So... let’s hope the little girl’s homework isn’t about explaining the workings of local loop unbundling and ADSL.

At least one thing rings true about the ad. The first syllable of the firm behind it: Bulldog.

November 14, 2005 Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sneak wonders what hardware provider Dialogue, purveyor of the Flybook ultraportable, is trying to suggest. The English language version of the Quick Start Guide that ships with the neat tablet-style laptop has a less than flattering image of what is presumably supposed to be the average user. In fact it seems to be a picture of an Orangutan, pondering the benefits of the Flybook as a lifestyle accessory.

November 3, 2005 Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (1)