Stick it to the Hipster!

| Ikeaphobia and its discontents |

Say It Ain't So!

Joe K. at OrangeCone.com, has put up a post about where the next "cool place" will emerge. Examples of previous cool places are: "Picasso's Paris, Weimar Berlin, Beatnick San Francisco, Swinging London, Post-Wall Berlin and dotcom San Francisco."

So what happens next? I'm betting that the movement moves back out to the suburbs. New Urbanism, which has been simmering for 20 years, seems to be gathering steam and, frankly, it's not because people are suddenly realizing how much more sense it makes; I think developers are realizing that there's a growing market for a new suburban Bohemia, a brand new, prefab, simulated, yet comfortable environment that symbolically links the values of the urban creative class to the manufacturing technology of the burbs.

Oh God. No. Please say it ain't so, Joe!

| Orange Cone: Manufactured Bohemia |

Old City Update

The residential development of the National Building on 2nd St. and the area between 2nd and 3rd has now become official. It's official title is "The National at Old City" and it will be done by "The Matrix Companies" (yikes!). It will result in 320 new residential units packed within, roughly, a square block area.

Here are some links detailing the latest developments:

Philadelphia Daily News article
Globe St. article
The Matrix Companies site

Second Life Addiction?

Perhaps it is part of the regular pattern of becoming acquainted with a new computer game, but I have been addicted recently to Second Life. This may explain the spotty blog entries this past week.

It is not exactly a "game" and it may not be a new concept (since "The Sims Online" was one of the originators). However, the execution of Second Life is, I believe, quite stunning and unique. In a nutshell, a company in San Francisco has created a digital world and allowed you to populate it with your avatar.

Once you have you alter ego online, you simply roam around, chat with people, play games, buy land, build homes, create objects you may want to sell for the local currency (Linden Dollars) and so on. What makes this unique -- there is no ultimate goal or quest; people simply form emerging social and dwelling systems and economies: a laissez-faire experiment in a digital petrie dish.

The objects you create can involve complex scripting -- for instance, you may create a doorbell on your Second Life home that triggers an e-mail and/or IM alert in your First Life. The world comes pre-populated with a roster of such objects but intrepid scripters and builders have been creating their own inventions and distributing them or selling them. This creativity has caused the company hosting the world to address intellectual/digital property rights -- good news: you make it, it's yours...digitally, at least.

In the past few days, my character has bought land, designed and built a home, had guests over, gone to a strip club, gone to a dance club, bid for new land in an auction, participated in movie trivia games for Linden Dollars, and much more.

Have a look -- don't get too addicted.

| PC Magazine review of Second Life  | 
|  Article on Second Life and legal issues from LawMeme @ Yale University  |
|  Wired Magazine article  |

Philadelphia's Center City District Demographics

The Center City District and Central Philadelphia Development Corporation have made available several reports that present a wealth of demographic, economic and cultural information about Center City Philadelphia.

Here is a sample of some of the illustrations / charts in the reports to give you a sense of what to expect:

| Center City District of Philadelphia Publications |