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I just love to see artists colour palettes, mixing trays, and colourful test papers. It gives a tiny glimpse into the thought process inside their creative brain.  It's fun to see how a colour scheme is fleshed out, knowing lots of experimenting and play went into each piece of artwork or illustration.
The colour palette above is the one I created while making the final art for Skink on the Brink. It ended up flowing onto a second page too...I like to mix colours myself, and with this book I wanted the colours to be quite earthy, and natural. I even kept real leaves collected from my cottage to compare against my hand mixed plasticine colours.

You can see my colour palette on the wire thingy above my art table. I like having it within arms reach, if I need to add another colour mixture, or if I need to remake a specific colour.
And of course, I had lots of pizza to keep me well fed...LOL...kidding,  those pile-o-boxes on the right under and on top of the table are holding my finished illustrations- keeping them safe from the curious little fingers of my 4 munchkins. From the amount there I'd say I was only about half way through the final art. The boxes were double in height once all of the artwork was complete.

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We are happy to announce our new REST Application Programming Interface (API) that lets developers explore, interact, and create great new content with the vast community of sites on the WordPress.com network and, in the near future, Jetpack-enabled sites.

The API gives developers access to posts and comments, as well as the ability to Follow, Like, or Reblog content for users. Other features from WordPress.com, like the daily handpicked content on Freshly Pressed, are also available through the API.

An excellent example of an application that uses the new API is the Windows 8 WordPress.com app, available now.

Our goal with the new API is to simplify the experience of using and adding to the data available on WordPress.com. To do this, we now use the OAuth2 protocol to authenticate requests for data. To retrieve public data, you can make unauthenticated requests. To perform actions, such as making new posts or comments, you would need to make authenticated requests. When the API returns data, we now return a standardized JSON object for ease-of-use.

The REST API also self-documents itself; as we add new endpoints, the documentation on our Developer Resources blog will auto-update to provide you with the latest information. In addition, you’ll also have access to a Developer Console, which will allow you to run real REST API queries and see real JSON data directly in your web browser. You can read more about the Console here.

Ready to build an app and integrate it with WordPress.com? Great! You can now sign up for and manage your OAuth2 tokens without waiting through an approval cycle. If you have any questions or feedback on the API, please get in touch with us. Make sure to follow the Developer Resources blog for news, updates, and documentation about the REST API and other awesome services we are making available to developers seeking to integrate with WordPress.com.

12 Comments on Integrate Cool Applications with WordPress.com, last added: 4/13/2012

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ZOMG you guys! Technical illustrator James Provost has created his own robot-intern. “IT CAN DRAW!! IT CAN DRAAWW!!!” It’s a bit like Spirograph-meets-Frankenstein. Well, I saw the movie, I know this will all end in tears! (Don’t miss the short video!)

(via InternBot - a set on Flickr)

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With publishers under pressure to publish more, faster and across various platforms, it is technology that comes to the rescue. After all, technology can only solve the problem related to technology. And finally, after a long time coming, In-design, with its latest release CS 5.5, has tried to address some very common issues which must [...]

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The Nook released the Nook color last year and made some good ground as far as the ebook market is concerned. The fact that comics come in color and Kindle does not have a color ebook reader made Nook Color a force to reckon with in the e-publishing market. And now it has come out [...]

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iPad generated a lot of hype when it was released last year.  iPad 2 released this year surpassed the hype of the first version and sold like hotcakes. Ever since its release, it has been touted as the e-book reading device to be conquered in the publishing circles. However, a recent survey has revealed that [...]

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The market for children’s books offers an exciting opportunity for publishers to have a sizeable pie of digital publishing. And the game changer has been the apps. Apps based on various popular bedtime stories give a whole new interactivity to story-telling, and kids always love interactive things. The fact that they can play Cindrella and [...]

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The world of publishing is going crazy about e-book publishing and the world of opportunities that the digital world offers. However, like everything else, ebooks too have a flip side to them. Here’s an unbiased opinion on ebooks and ebook publishing, and some piece of advice every now and then in between. Let’s look at [...]

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If ever there was a really discreet way for publishers to sniff on their competition and still get to network with the best, this is it. InDesign Secrets, now in its sixth year since inception, is hosting the print and epublishing conference this year in Washington DC. The event is scheduled for two days from [...]

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As some of you know I had the unfortunate experience of being hacked a few weeks ago.  I thought I would share some "lessons learned"  after realizing my brand new wesite had been hacked. If I can save anyone out there from going through  the frustrations and the fear of possibly losing all my hard work, then that would be great! I hope this will help other illustrators/artists who created their own websites( and like me are not IT specialists or programmers by any stretch of the imagination) to protect your  lovely websites and give you  some things to consider, and steps to take to better protect your website.

I had only had my site up for about a month or so, when I logged on one day to find that it had been hacked. Well of course I freaked out, and quickly emailed my support techs at my hosting company.  While they tried to restore my website from a backup, the hacker had embedded some nasty code in my site, possibly through my own computer, so going through the repeated process of deleting, reinstalling WP files, then restoring my backup was not fixing the problem. I ended up having my account suspended twice over a 2 week period becuase the hacker had my site linked to some phishing schemes that caused it to be flagged by phishing patrol websites. Luckily my friend Jonathan Woodward at zero2illo suggested  his go-to guy for website and WordPress security issues Neil Matthews. He runs a website for WordPress coaching and technical support called WP DUDE. Great name too don't you think?

Neil quickly diagnosed the problem and offered a security service review to beef up my WordPress security. His rates are very reasonable, and believe me it was the best money I ever spent for the peace of mind of knowing my site is protected properly. (insert big sigh of relief here!)
Then about a week or so later I was hacked again! I know it's not personal but it sure feels that way! I've been joking that some one out in cyberspace must really have a thing against plasticine illustration and all things creative-honestly!
Neil was quick to relay the bad news and look into it for me. The hacker got in this time through my FTP, so he could circumvent all the security Neil had just put in place. Geesh. He is going to share with me some steps to ensure my FTP is more secure.

I honestly am so thankful to Neil, who runs the super amazing website WP DUDE. He was so prompt, patient, and helpful,  like an WordPress knight in shining armour, rescuing me from my hacker nightmare!  Neil, thank-you, thank-you ,thank-you!

I highly recommend Neil's services for any security issues you may have, or wonder about, to ensure your site is secure. I signed up for his WordPress troubleshooting methodology mini course, so that I can learn how to troubleshoot myself and further educate myself should I have WP issues in the future. Knowledge is power people!
Neil also offers a fantastic webinar series( yes my Mom even signed on for his webinar series!) and his WP DUDE blog is jam-packed full of other Wordpress goodness for anyone wanting to educate themselves and make their WP sites as great as they can be.  So go now, and check it out!! You will be glad you did.


So  to break it down here are the things I learned:

1. Always back up your website. and back it up often. You can do this via a plug-in or through your host provider, or both.

2

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Today is the second day in the 38 Plays: 38 Days challenge to read a Shakespeare play every day for the next thirty-eight days. This evening I shall be pleasuring myself with The Taming of the Shrew (which is online at e.g. Project Gutenberg; I'm using The Oxford Shakespeare).

Wikipedia's synopsis reads:

The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1594.

The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the Induction, in which a drunken tinker named Sly is tricked into thinking he is a nobleman by a mischievous Lord. The Lord has a play performed for Sly's amusement, set in Padua with a primary and sub-plot.

The main plot depicts the courtship of Petruchio, a gentleman of Verona, and Katherina, the headstrong, obdurate shrew. Initially, Katherina is an unwilling participant in the relationship, but Petruchio tempers her with various psychological torments – the "taming" – until she is an obedient bride. The sub-plot features a competition between the suitors of Katherina's less intractable sister, Bianca.

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For the more technically-minded of you lot out there... via ProBlogger, Jeff Chandler shows how FireFox 3 can be a great tool for bloggers:

If there is one thing that sets FireFox apart from any other web browser, it would have to be the third party support in the form of themes and extensions. There are so many extensions available for the browser, you can virtually do just about anything. As I become more entrenched as a blogger online, I’ve started to transform FireFox into more than just a browser,  it has become my ultimate blogging toolbox (more...)

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Just like Scott Pack (indeed, in exactly the manner he describes, including nice email from Huw from i-level), I have received a freebie Sony Reader. I understand Steve and DGR are each getting one too.

Well, it's very nice! Free stuff is always nice. As a device it is pleasant enough but, I have to admit, I'm a little underwhelmed: I can't read under my favourite reading light because of reflected screen glare; page turn is slow -- and one forgets that with real book one flicks a lot e.g. to see how many pages before the chapter ends thus whether to read on or not; also, reading two books simultaneously, only the last one you were reading is conveniently saved, you have to search for other one (I think); and the alphabetical of authors is so wrong -- Melville is under H for Herman!!

However, it is very slim and tidy, and having a hundred-odd books within such a neat, wee package is very exciting. I'll live with it for a bit and report back anon.

Personally, I think e-readers represent a cul-de-sac technology: they'll go off on their own merry way for a bit, improve screen and e-ink technology, iron out their other glitches, and get really good at what they do -- and then the technology will be bundled back into the third or fourth generation i-phones and their competitors. The standalone e-reading device is only ever going to be a minorty-interest toy. However, if good e-reading technology is bundled back into mainstream devices (notebook laptops and phones) I can see it acting as a gateway drug that might lead some innocent young thing from the relative safety of reading on a screen to the hardcore activity of reading actual, real books. Too much hot air has been guffed about e-readers killing books -- I think they might lead a new generation back to them.

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if:book (via googlizationofeverything) have a useful review/overview of their coverage of Google over the past four years:

Fair use, digitization, public domain, archiving, the role of libraries and cultural heritage are intricately interconnected. But the name that connects all these issues over the last few years has been Google. The Institute has covered Google's incursions into digitization of libraries (amongst other things) in a way that has explored many of these issues - and raised questions that are as urgent as ever. Is it okay to privatize vast swathes of our common cultural heritage? What are the privacy issues around technology that tracks online reading? Where now for copyright, fair use and scholarly research?

In-depth coverage of Google and digitization has helped to draw out many of the issues central to this blog. Thus, in drawing forth the narrative of if:book's Google coverage is, by extension, to watch a political and cultural stance emerging. So in this post I've tried to have my cake and eat it - to trace a story, and to give a sense of the depth of thought going into that story's discussion.

More at if:book.

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Should be writing? Easily distracted? Try Dark Room (via doshdosh):

I’m busy with some other projects now and instead of leaving the blog alone for several days, I thought I’ll do a quick post on a helpful tool that I’ve been using for more than a year.

It’s called Dark Room and its a minimalist fullscreen word processor which forces you to focus on the writing process and nothing else.

This free Windows/.Net application transforms your entire computer screen into a dark background and removes all the usual word processor toolbars and quick buttons. The only thing you’ll see is the words. I feel that it really improves my ability to concentrate on the blog post or school essay I’m writing.

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Edward A. Zelinsky is the Morris and Annie Trachman Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law of Yeshiva University. In the article below, Zelinsky discuses the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in LaRue v. DeWolff, Boberg & Associates, Inc. In LaRue, the Court twice cited an article by Zelinsky. That cited article was an earlier version of several chapters in Zelinsky’s new book, The Origins of the Ownership Society: How The Defined Contribution Paradigm Changed America.

In the pension community, the recent decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in LaRue v. DeWolff, Boberg & Associates, Inc. is widely perceived as a watershed development. In LaRue, a participant in his employer’s 401(k) plan claimed that the plan failed to execute the participant’s investment instructions. This failure, Mr. LaRue alleged, resulted in a lower account balance in his 401(k) account. The U.S. Supreme Court held that Mr. LaRue, if indeed harmed by the inaction of the plan’s fiduciaries, may sue for relief under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). (more…)

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Edward A. Zelinsky is the Morris and Annie Trachman Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law of Yeshiva University. He is the author of The Origins of Ownership Society: How the Defined Contribution Paradigm Changed America which looks at how defined contributions (IRAs, 401(k) accounts, 529 programs, FSAs, HRAs, HSAs…) have transformed tax and social policy in fundamental ways. In the article below he questions why Derek Jeter’s New York tax settlement has not been made public.

Published reports indicate that Derek Jeter and the New York Department of Taxation and Finance have entered into a settlement concerning the Department’s claim that Mr. Jeter, domiciled in Florida, owed New York income taxes as a resident for the years 2001 through 2003. Neither Mr. Jeter’s lawyer nor the Department will disclose the terms of this settlement. (more…)

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I read Library Journal pretty regularly. I enjoy it, the writing is often great and John Berry and I see eye to eye on a lot of things. There have been a few lousy headlines about library topics that we’ve seen in the popular media, where the library was on what I would consdier the “right” side of an issue and the headline made them look like they were not. I read the whole article on salaries called What’s an MLIS Worth (for the record, I have an MLib.) and I have to say I could not get over the fact that women in librarianship, in all parts of librarianship earn less than men.

This fact is buried about four pages into the article in a section entitles “Gender Inequity Remains” and states “While women have seen positive improvements in salaries, finally topping $40,000, their salaries continue to lag approximately 6.5% behind salaries for men.” LJ then goes on to explain that they think this is because more men work in academic and vendor-type jobs where salaries are generaly higher. It also states that women have higher starting salaries generally and do better in special libraries where their salaries are 17.6% higher than men, but this section was one of the smaller ones in terms of total population; there were only 14 men’s salaries examined (and 86 women’s). Men in public libraries, on average, earn more than women, except in Canada. Men in academic libraries, on average, earn more than women. I’m sure there are many good reasons why this “effect” exists, but I’m a little curious whether there are really just a few totally plausible explanations for this, or if librarianship despite its intelligent, introspective, feminized nature is just as bad as everyplace else with its remaining gender inequity?

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Below Evan Schnittman shares his personal opinions on royalties and advances. This isn’t Oxford University Press’s official stance - but represents just one of the many opinions floating around our office on this very tricky subject. We hope that by sharing his views an open dialog can be initiated.

In his blog post Royalties Macmillan CEO Richard Charkin, posits that trade publishers and authors/agents would be well served if the standard for paying authors switched from a percentage of retail price to a percentage of gross earnings. He writes, “How about agreeing new equitable royalty rates based on real money not a notional recommended retail price?

Charkin also points out that, “The percentage is linked to a price which applies in only a minority of cases. It doesn’t apply to all sales overseas; it doesn’t apply to nearly all sales made in supermarkets, Internet bookshops and many bookshop chains.” In other words, paying on the percentage of a price that isn’t applicable to the majority of income isn’t logical or easy – which may lead to wildly confusing royalty statements.

As expected, within hours a series of rebuttals hit the comments field by individuals and groups rejecting Charkin’s notion as folly; stating the view that the retail price is the only thing that is transparent on publishers’ royalty statements, which are notoriously mysterious and murky at best.

While the debate will continue, it misses a far more important problem. (more…)

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