Tis the Season for… Calendars

I made myself a dodecahedral calendar earlier in the year and that was heaps of fun. Sad to report that my youngest son decided to see if it would withstand a foot, it didn’t. But lucky for me it is December and it is just about had it’s day in the sun. I am yet to make this years calendar as that one was hard enough.

But for people that don’t want to take the time to make their own 3D calendar then the 2D version might be for you. This one is dead easy, small and unobtrusive.

Care of Marlies’ Creative Universe comes a PDF which contains a strip calendar that you can print in either a horizontal or vertical format. The idea is that you can utilize the unused space on the side of monitors. Comes in Balck and white and colour. Nice idea I thought.

As I said easy, no scissors or glue required. But heck if you are up to the challenge the dodecahedral is fun and rewarding.

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Make Your Own Dodecahedral Calendar

Found this cool site today that allows you to select an download a PDF of a dodecahedral calendar. Obviously you have to print it and build the dodecahedral yourself. I thought what the heck I can do that, so I did.

There are two types of dodecahedron that you can choose from; the regular or the rhombic. I just chose the regular. Then you can select the year you want, the language (anything you care to name here) and the day the week starts on and hit the download button.

Download the PDF and print it out onto regular A4 paper (not letter – it does not fit). It is recommended that you use regular 80gsm paper. But for the extra challenge I printed it out on 110gsm Parchment Paper. It added a nice touch and I don’t think it made it more difficult.

Once printed cut it out, the instructions are on the print out.

Now the tricky part, fold it and glue it. Stapling just won’t cut the mustard so don’t attempt that. Now there a a couple of tricks here that will help you out.

1. When you fold the tags in make sure they stick out not in. That way it makes it easier to press them in, especially considering the next tip.
2. There is one “side” or “face” that you will notice has no folded tabs on it. Leave it till last. The reason being is that you need to stick your finger through it to press on the last few sides.

Once the glue dries, set it on your desk and admire it. I was surprised at the strength of it. I would guess that a lot of that lies in the actual structure and not much on the glue, but pretty cool.

Okay so that’s the art lesson for today and a great way to waste 1/2 hour. You could always get creative and edit the PDF to create something other than a calendar; here are a few suggestions:

• Print some photo’s on the sides
• Make your own RPG dice
• Get the kids involved and have them “decorate” them before you make the dodecahedral
• Make about 5000 of them and line a room to make your own studio
• Attach pins from the inside to make a lethal office warfare weapon

Here is my effort, now go make your own!

Add Platial Maps Widget to Your WordPress.com Blog

As you can see there have been a few changes around here. I found some motivation from somewhere and decided to update the widgets and ended up with a whole new look. I am still working on a few things but if you find something that isn’t quite right let me know. Since I was editing the widgets for the new theme I came across a new widget for WordPress.com users. It looks like I got the hop on the WordPress guys on this one as they are yet to release it.

You will notice in the sidebar widgets that there is now a Platial Mapkit widget available. Add it to your sidebar and it will show a mini map of the starting location that you specify when you set it up. Cool, but it gets better, you can add places with placemarks and readers can add their own with comments. Tag placemarks, add users as buddies and more.

The Widget displayed is the one you see here. My options have been included but you can make yours up to whatever you wish. You will have to create an account if you wish to use the widget in your blog. I have also added a placemark for the approximate location of this blog’s HQ, so you can see what they look like.

The map is powered by Google Maps and therefore includes either a map view a satellite view or a mix. As well as zooming in and out and all the usual Google Map goodness. I also noticed a Google Earth link on my homepage map I set up on Platial to take a look at it.

I have not added the widget to this blog, I’d rather keep the lines that I do and not stuff it full of other stuff. Plus it is another thing I have to keep track of if it was here. Although the map I created is available to view, you can see it here. Platial is not only open to WordPress.com users but all bloggers and site designers. So if this is your cup of tea then take a look. The design is simple and to the point and the size is good for a blog, it will fit most if not all blog sidebars. I had not heard of the service before now but it looks pretty good and a bit of fun.

WordPress.com users need to click the link on the widget when it is selected in the set-up. The link is in the text “Making maps at Platial is free”.

Create an account and configure it as you wish. It is fairly simple and straight forward. You can edit these settings easily after you have joined as well so don’t worry too much if you make a mistake.

The last bit is a bit tricky, since I had no “instructions” from the guys here at WordPress I had to work it out. The widget asks you to type in the “Platial Map Id:”. This is the last digits that you see at the end of the Bookmark for your map widget that you have created. That is the Map Id that you need to enter into the widget field and hit submit.

Once that is done just slide the widget into place on your sidebar and save the changes and your done. WordPress we have maps!

Great New Features for Mikons

Some time back I reviewed a site called Mikons. At the time I did not know how popular this story would be. If my memory recalls correctly it remains the top post on this blog for hits. I touted the site as a great place to make your own logo or avatar, which I would still maintain. I am in the process of “colourising” my own logo which I am hoping to use in some way shape or form, I also added extra text and formatting. (don’t worry Mark I am getting to it!). But that is the serious side to the site for me and that is but a small part.

As I said then this really is a service that people are looking for and are excited about. Since that post I have spoken with the owner of the site, Mark Smith and I can tell you that there is more install for this great site in the way of features and function in the near future. Which leads me to this post. Mikons have launched some great features that are worthy of mention.

For a start the site has had a bit of an overhaul as far as layout. The new layout looks good and is functional. This to me is not the big feature that is now available. Now you have the option to “Visit the Mikon’s Store”. The link is on the right hand side of the web site. I would suggest to Mark that even knowing the site I do not think this is as prominent as it could be. When I originally set eyes on this new layout and looked for the link I found it hard to find, I was looking for it in the top menu. You do have to be logged in to take advantage of the shop!

Click the link and you will be prompted to log in, once logged in you will have the option to buy T-Shirts and Stickers in various configurations, shipped to your door. Still only offered in the black and White variety, but stay tuned on that front. I say no more than that. But the interface to make your purchase is very slick and easy. Although I did think that the description of the presentation for the print being square or contour needed a bit more explanation – I actually thought that an image would be great here, nothing like a visual to help out. So in just a few minutes, following the steps you can order your mikon or logo or whatever you wish it to be called to be plastered on a T-Shirt to wear around town.

I encountered a bit of a problem at this point. For this review I was wanting to check the ordering and security. But the Shopping cart did not like the fact that I was an Australian and I did not have a U.S. post code or “zip”. So it would not let me continue. It is Okay I put in a bogus zip for me – New York for test purposes! So I can tell you that the checkout is over a secure SSL encrypted web page. Good. Fill in your details and I am assuming that is all there is to it. Phew! The process is nice and uses an Ajax interface which is smooth, although the prompts “fade away” a bit quickly. It would be good to have the checkout link near the “buy” button as well. Minor gripes though.

The same process applies to order stickers that come in two sizes. Black and White affair. The ones that Mark has sent me are excellent quality as well. They look like they would stick to just about anything. The ute will be get the treatment when I next get the motivation to wash it! Which I could send into Mikon Sightings! Yep not only can you order stuff, you can take a picture of any Mikon you see in the wild and send it in to the crew at Mikons and they will post it on the site! Nice feature and fun!

However, it would appear that at this time overseas ordering is not available. I will discover when it will be and let readers know.

So get into the Mikons scene visit the site, sign-up and start making your own to wear or plaster the walls with stickers and have fun being an individual. I still maintain that this is a great site with a load of potential and future. I think it is great that the web2.0 concept is begining to go beyond the web and make an impact where you least expect it – your wardrobe!