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Are we living in the golden age of typography, or what? Whether for print or digital, we now have incredible control over how we can create with type. And as for the fonts themselves, the OpenType format continues to surprise with the creative possibilities it brings. When it comes to choice, the selection is now so wide, thanks to an apparently unstoppable flood of new offerings, that it's easy to get lost in the delightful task of finding the perfect font for a project. But beyond new font designs, there are of course more than a few reinterpretations of the classics. And even the occasional discovery of "lost" typefaces.

twelve south famous for it's BoobBook series of accessories released a new sleek iPhone cover. The SurfacePad for iPhone is made for those who don't want a bulky case and perhaps use their iPhone currently without any case at all, but still feel the need for some elegant and subtle protection for their device. It's available in black, white and red for the iPhone 4/4S and 5 for $35.

The idea of a blank piece of paper is somehow a touchstone for all our hopes and fears. Each new analog sheet or digital file holds out the possibility of creating something fresh that matters, that can make a difference. With the flip side being yet another flawed creation that falls short. But the prospect of failure is not enough to keep us from constantly engaging and making the first difficult mark on that disturbing expanse of whiteness. It's from this struggle that paper company Arjowiggins Creative Papers launched its Blank Sheet Project in 2010, in association with D&AD.

You might think that creative communicators spanning the fields of the visual arts and design are busy these days just trying to keep their heads above water. And while staying financially afloat amongst current economic conditions is admittedly a challenge, there is no shortage of creatives' attention being devoted to helping solve the problems of those less fortunate. Sometimes this falls within a corporate framework, such as the Sappi Ideas That Matter program, which has to date funded more than 500 design-driven programs, adding up to $12 million in support of causes supporting the social good — that quaint concept that refuses to die.

Each year Pantone reveals its Color of the Year, a prediction of which color it thinks will be particularly significant in the months to come. Last year it was Tangerine Tango, which I don't recall being particularly pervasive, while this year it's Emerald. So how does this oracular pronouncement come to be?

See Apple.com homepages from 1997 to 2012 compiled by Charlie Hoehn with the help of Wayback Machine.

Sure, times are still tough and the forces of neoliberal capitalism continue to run roughshod over the planet. But is that any reason to despair? I should say not. After all, the good guys are still out there beavering away on projects of benefit to the common good. Case in point is The Noun Project, which is dedicated to "building a global visual language that everyone can understand."

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That's the question you might well ask yourself, after perusing the clip below. It provides a taste of what's on the DVD accompanying the latest issue of IdN magazine, which includes 96 minutes of work from 27 motion graphics practitioners. Compelling enough but the contents of this issue, devoted to the theme of Character Design, are also of interest, a few spreads of which are included below. The disc and magazine bundle can be purchased on the IdN site for $19.95.