We’re very excited to unveil the latest venture started by members of mindsalt – the modulR iPad Case and Accessory System. Debuting at SXSWi this week, the modulR system is a durable, ergonomic case for your iPad that is compatible with modulR accessories, including a wall mount, car mount, stand, strap and more.

modulR iPad kickstand

modulR iPad wallmount

Designer Mike Casto and Mindsalt strategist Josh Beatty are launching the company with help from the rest of team Mindsalt. The idea for modulR  arose from the desire to see the iPad reach its full potential and truly become a “go anywhere, do anything” device.

You can learn more about modulR at www.modulRcase.com.

We want to take a little time today to show you what drives us. Where we find our inspiration. What makes us run. We’ve put together a few short videos for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

Mindsalt just wrapped up a fun interactive project for 21c Museum Hotel. 21c asked us to create an interesting teaser page for their soon-to-be-launched online Museum Shop. The goal for the teaser page was to show people a sample of the products that will be offered for sale, and to create a memorable experience that people will want to share with their friends. We also wanted to give users a small taste of the overall 21c experience. To do so, we took our inspiration from a popular piece of interactive art found in 21c’s lobby. ‘Text Rain’ (shown below) allows viewers to catch virtual falling letters that are projected onto a screen. For our project, we created a web page in which products fall across the screen. You catch the products with your mouse, then letters fall down the screen to spell the title of the product. All in all, it’s a fun distraction that should keep people interested in the upcoming launch of the full e-commerce store.

21c Museum Hotel Shop teaser page

Text Rain (1999) Camille Utterback & Romy Achituv

Click here to see the teaser page for yourself.

I’ve been a fan of Edward Tufte, the grandmaster of the infographic and Professor Emeritus at Yale University, ever since I first read his book “Envisioning Information”. In that book, Tufte, a statistician by trade, tries to answer a serious question that’s of interest to everyone from scientists and architects to doctors and designers – how can you represent complex, dynamic, multidimensional information through a two-dimensional surface (i.e., screen or paper)? It’s a big question that Tufte endeavors to answer by extracting general principles from the study of various examples, both good and bad, such as Galileo and Euclid’s drawings, Japanese weather maps and American hospital bills.

Tufte explains information design best, so I’ll let him lay it out for you:

“To envision information… is to work at the intersection of image, word, number, art. The instruments are those of writing and typography, of managing large data sets and statistical analysis, of line and layout and color. And the standards of quality are those derived from visual principles that tell us how to put the right mark in the right place.” – From the “Envisioning Information” introduction

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When you thinkabout presentation, what comes to mind?

Long, boring, unproductive… the dreaded powerpoint?

Gone are the days of firing off copy-heavy bullet points and the regurgitative read-along that inevitably follows. We challenge you to thinkabout fresh ways to make your point and make it stick – presentations that encourage participating, not sleeping. And no, this doesn’t require smoke, mirrors, dogs or ponies. Just a straightforward message with engaging, supportive visuals that connect with your audience.

Ready to see what we mean? Check out mindsalt’s abc’s of presentation.
Want to know more? Give us a shout.