It is officially a new year, and as I say farewell to the old and hello to the new, I’ve begun the process of determining a few key goals for my new year.  As I was doing so, I stumbled upon Mark Zuckerberg’s latest New Year’s exploits.  In the past, he has set extreme goals and followed through. One year he set out to learn Mandarin, and ended up holding an entire Q&A session in the language later that year. Another example could be vowing to wear a tie to work every day rather than the hoodies he’s become so well known for. 

This year, he has decided to crowd source some ideas from anyone and everyone who would like to write a comment.  Pretty cool move there Zuck. The Facebook CEO is not only good at following through on crazy intense New Year’s Resolutions, he’s good at being open to the ideas of others!  Check out more of Zuckerberg’s exploits in an awesome TechCrunch article here and try to think of a few goals for yourself in 2015!

And just because I was feeling inspired by his ability to commit to difficult goals, here are a few of my own little goals:

1. Make more stuff.
This one is simple.  I enjoy creating collages, watercolors, music, you name it, I enjoy doing it.  I am making the goal here and now to push through the ordinary and work toward creating more stuff.

2. Put down the Insta and break out the camera more.
I really enjoy photography.  It’s kind of become a hobby/side job at times, which is a real honor to get the opportunity to do, but that being said, I’ve become lazy and only capture moments on my little IPhone and rarely tote my camera around any more.  I’m going to aim to change that this year a bit. Quality over quantity will be the motto here.

3. Master the Fish.
I am not a prolific surfer. Not even that good on my best day. But man do I love the sport of it. One of my personal highlights of 2014 was stumbling across an awesome used Fish board.  2015 will be the year of mastering the fish.

4. Write one thank you note a week.
This one is inspired by one of Mark Zuckerberg’s past resolutions, where he wrote a thank you a day to people who were making the world a better place.  I am not that intense, so I have modified this to once a week.  This should be doable.

2014 has been the best of times and the worst of times, but here’s to 2015!

The year 2014 officially comes to a close TONIGHT and we are excited about the upcoming festivities.  As we look forward to the fresh start of 2015, we thought it would be fun to recount some of our favorite moments from 2014.  So without further adieu, here are Oniracom’s Favorite Moments of 2014!

Drew
1.  Finishing my Major Classes at UCSB - School was a large piece of my 2014 so I am happy to be through the really difficult classes, but also appreciate having the opportunity through Oniracom to go back to school.
2. Oniracom Ping Pong Table - The Tell’s graciously loaning their ping pong table has creating the perfect respite from a difficult development problem.

Calia
Arcade Fire at Santa Barbara Bowl was such a great moment since everyone Oniracom was there! They were amazing live, of course and the whole Reflektor tour was one for the books. So incredibly beautiful!
Also getting the ping pong table in the office has forever changed me.

Keir
My favorite moment was bringing my AIGA people to do a studio tour of Oniracom! (you can see the sweet invitation here)
Also Jacob did a presentation based on a deck I made! (here are a couple of images from it)

Haaris
2014 was a great year for this guy. Work wise there was SOOOO much I was blown away from. Hands down the SB Bowl Pint campaigns were my favorite. Not only is it something that will help out the environment at the best venue in the USA; the bands, staff and patrons all loved it! The Pints sold out on every artist run and hopefully that will continue in 2015. Also if you follow SB Bowl on Instagram I was the guy taking pictures before doors open, it was one of the more “fun” tasks i got to do at Oniracom. I must be doing something right cause in the later part of the year this guy now has a corner office, oh snaps!!!!

I moved into a killer new apt in SB and now have a Command Center (man caves are so 1972) where I plan world domination and throw an occasional haduken. Talking hadukens no Street Fighter V this year BUT one of the biggest games this year, Destiny, is in my world and am happy to report this thing is slight heroin for the eyes. Destiny brought me back into the world of 1st person shooters, I love you playstation 4.

Took some time off this year to see friends get married in Boston, and it was a trip to remember. Later this year I DID NOT break tradition and packed on some serious holiday weight this thanksgiving back in NJ and paid to the NY Giants lose to the San Francisco 49ers.

There were a couple of flicks that sole this dudes heart in 2014, Snowppricier, X Men Days of Future Past, & Guardians of the Galaxy are just some. But my fav of 2014 has to be the return of the OG monster himself, GODZILLA. Thank the stars that this was a solid monster movie and not that debacle of whatever it was Ferris Bueller was in the 90’s.

2014 Music was incredible, I should know I am the specialty DJ over at 92.9 KJEE when I am not working here. Here is a link to my best of 2014 show: http://www.kjee.com/MUSICxx.html  Best live show i saw this year was Mr. Jack White. Even though I had a fever it was still an amazing time with an incredible musician. Also Run the Jewels 2 came out and basically saved Hip Hop for me. Oh and I met Lorde.

Cant wait for 2015, STAR WARS Episode 7x menax !!!!!

—cross handle Lightsaber gif—-

Jason
1. Graduating From UCSB!
2. Seeing DJ Koze play 3 hours on the sandy river beach in Berlin
3. Officially joining the Oniracom crew in the office full-time!

Mike
1. Nonstop concerts at the SB Bowl (Grace Potter and Robert Plant take the cake)
2. An epic trip to NYC with my fiancée Nicole
3. My wedding to that same fiancée a few months later

Bre
Perhaps my most important Oniracom moment this year would be joining the team… but to take it all a bit further, I’ve had a blast simply working alongside the team and trading gifts for the white elephant at the Christmas party!

John Hayes
Hut to hut hiking in the Italian Alps!

Justin
One of my highlights of 2014 was four years in the making. In October, I experienced my first and second ever Phish shows at the Santa Barbara Bowl. Jacob Tell our fearless leader has been a Phish fan for a long time. I’ve learned about Phish from Jacob, who plays Phish first thing in the morning when he arrives at the office and every evening after everyone else leaves. I grew to respect Phish from Jacob’s many stories about the influence that following Phish had over Jacob and Sean’s decision to start Oniracom. I had promised Jacob that I would finally go to a show this year, after my attempts in years past had been foiled by conflicting events.
The show was as fantastical as expected, the venue was pristine, and the people came out in rare form. I think my favorite part of the whole experience was finally “getting it.” For years Jacob has tried to sell me on Phish: describing the music, describing the energy and the experience. Admittedly we both knew that there was no way for me to understand the allure of Phish without experience it myself. So, I finally went. I loved it. I bought a hat. The music that I heard at the shows occasionally pops into my head, and always gives me a smile.

Instagram has added 5 new filters to their repertoire and all I can say is, that’s rad.  If you’re anything like me, your favorite part of posting something on Instagram is, in fact, not the actual posting of it, but the editing of the photo.  I find it to be so fun to add filters over photos to get a new look to an image.  It’s kind of like an image accessory in a way.  Want to look mysterious? Go with a filter like Willow.  Want to look really artsy and out of the box? Go with Lo Fi. Want to go with the Tumblr jokesters? Opt for Toaster. 

Now Instagram has created five new filters: Slumber, Crema, Ludwig, Aden and Perpetua. Not only that, you can hide the filters you don’t want to use and rearrange the order using the Manage button. So if you have a certain aesthetic you’re going for, you can’t mess it up! You can just hide the filters that don’t match your brand. Can we say, awesome for branding?
There isn’t too much to say about the five new filters that hasn’t already been said, but you can check out Instagram’s very own blog post here

And just for kicks, here are some photos of my delightful pup Tank being a goofball. 

Get out there and find your perfect filter!

The holidays are in full swing.  I’ve personally been shopping like a crazy person getting all the gifts for my loved ones. I’ve been to lots of stores and seen lots of holiday ads, but all I can say is, ‘tis the season for beautiful and poignant Apple Ads!

In case you have not heard or seen yet, Apple has released an emotionally charged ad featuring a girl, her grandmother, and Apple Products.  Say what you will about this, but the advertising strategy, as usual, is perfectly timed, emotionally charged, and overall, flawlessly executed.  The concept portrayed, is if you get one gift, a gift created by Apple, it can become the tool that creates gifts of a greater value for years to come.  The tagline used in Apple’s Youtube Header is: “From one gift come many”. The brilliance of this ad can be unpacked in so many different ways, but I will highlight the three I’ve been most struck by when watching the video over a, ahem, quite a few times.

Brilliance Factor Number 1:
It does not focus on one particular product.  It utilizes the three most recognizable products: the IPad, a Mac, and an IPhone.  This is important because it not only shows the usefulness of more than one product, it stealthily advertises the interconnectivity between the different products.  The grandaughter converts the old song from a 45 to a digital track on her Mac, records vocal and instrumental overlays on her Mac, mixes on her IPad, gives to her Grandma via Mp3 track on an IPhone. 

Woven into the story is the usefulness, creativity and inter-connectedness of each product.  All of this while still getting you to feel all of the feels. Incredible.

Brilliance Factor Number 2:
This ad shows in the last 30 seconds that an IPhone is so easy to use, that even a Grandma can use it.  Please don’t take offense if you are a technologically savvy Grandparent. The point I am making here, is that Apple is subtly addressing the idea that only certain generations can use these products.  All of those arguments are crushed by this ad because there is nobody around to turn the IPhone on for Grandma, There is simply a note that says “Press Play” sitting on top of the IPhone, hinting at the fact that the Grandma is familiar with the product.  Apple products are not for particular demographics, they are for ALL demographics.

Brilliance Factor Number 3:
Emotional impact.  The ad strategy that Apple has been able to execute frequently and execute well, is humanizing their products.  After all, what good is a smart phone without a person using it, or, dare I say, purchasing it? The ability of this particular ad to appeal to nostalgia, yet at the same time a hope for a brighter tomorrow, is what makes it so darn beautiful.

So, go ahead, watch the best ad of the Holiday season.  I won’t judge you if you cry.

Here at Oniracom we are pretty passionate.  We are all passionate about many different things, but the thing we can all agree on, is that we love music.  I mean, we really LOVE music.  We all weighed in on our favorite albums of 2014. So, without further ado, here are everyone’s top pics for 2014.  Enjoy!

CALIA:
Tough Love - Jessie Ware
No Mythologies to Follow - MØ

JASON:
1. Caribou - Our Love
2. Moodymann [self-titled]
3. Sun Kil Moon - Benji

KEIR:
01 The War on Drugs - “Lost in the Dream”
02 Spoon - “They Want My Soul”
03 TV on the Radio - “Seeds”
04 St. Vincent - “St. Vincent”
05 Thievery Corporation - “Saudade”
06 fka Twigs - “LP1”
07 Merchandise - “After the End”

I just couldn’t stop playing War on Drugs. I already loved that band but this album was everything I wanted and needed it to be. Only slightly less so for Spoon (a great album to play bass with). I’m already stoked about TV on the Radio after only a few days. The rest are all good too, but honorable mention goes to Thievery Corporation for being my favorite album cover of 2014; it’s perfect for the tunes, title, and theme.

Oxford Dictionary honors “vape” as the word of the year, and I want to go die now because that is the worst thing I have ever heard.  I do not like that word. I do not like the way it sounds, and most of all I don’t like those silly blue lights.  I find them distracting.  Before I get caught up creating my very own version of “10 Things I Hate About You” on here, let me just say this, the English language is full of so many beautiful words, descriptive words, eloquent words.  But every year, the “word of the year” seems to drop a few more IQ points*.  I’m pretty sure we are in the negative field of IQ points now.
I can’t help but to think of Robin William’s character in Dead Poet’s Society

The word very sounds like a vacation into intelligence now.  Okay okay, I’m being tough on the silly “Word of the Year” choice over at Oxford Dictionary, I get that.  But I just saw the Mashable article, which you can refer to here.  and thought, wow, this is why people hate my generation.  So, if not for the need to reference two of my favorite movies of all time,** I needed to write this diary of outrage towards the “Word of the Year”, because the world needs to know that the millennial generation is more than vape-ing selfie-taking baes.  (Of course no judgement if you partake in any of those activities. I know you’re so much more than those things)
All that to say, I hope we can all learn something from this. 

You can read the Oxford Dictionary’s official release as well.

*The one caveat to this claim, is that I fully support the word Muggle being acknowledged as a superior word choice in any situation.
**I have actually referenced three if you have read the above asterisk.  Because, Harry Potter is awesome. Also I know it is a book series, but you get my point.

I used to watch Back to the Future and dream of how cool the world would be once we all had hoverboards and time traveling Deloreans, but as it turns out, the truth just might be stranger than fiction. Ladies and gentlemen. I give you the bizarrely great new tech of the future that is happening right now. Crazy right? Here are a few of my favorites so far.

Holograms

The Tupac Hologram of Coachella is not really new news, but this is the stuff of Star Wars people.  We are living the dream.  There are so many possibilities at stake in the entertainment world and I can not stop geeking out about it. Supposedly there is to be a TLC Reunion … this pick is for you Lisa ‘Left Eye’.

Stick ‘N’ Find

Don’t be fooled by this lame name. This is revolutionary on a scale of one to Post-Its. The Stick ‘N’ Find is that thing that every forgetful 20-something like me has ever wished into existence: It is a small “sticker” that is connected to Bluetooth and through an app, you can find whatever it is stuck to. You know what that means? I will never lose my keys again… Probably. See the site here

Solar Power

Again, the concept of solar power has been around for quite some time, but according to this MIT Technology Review, there is a solar power conversion that will harness 50% of the sun’s energy versus the typical 20% that exists at the moment.  The implications this can have for sustainable and affordable energy could mean great things for our future.

As of today Youtube, the provider of cute puppy videos, funny news interviews turned viral and the just plain bizarre, is now implementing paid subscriptions to select partners. What does this mean exactly? It means that starting with a subscription fee of 99 cents or more per month, about 50 of Youtube’s top partners will no longer be free.

From a business standpoint, it makes complete sense. In order to keep supporting the higher valued content, YouTube needs to implement changes that actually place higher value on said content. However, in the age of Netflix, Hulu+ and countless other entities segregating content into free and paid subscriptions, the web-scape seems to be shifting in a major way. 

This isn’t an outrage and this isn’t the end of the world. What I do believe is that we can expect the days of television, film and the web as separate entities are coming to a close.

The lines have been blurring for the last five years in the media world with smartphones, iPads/tablets, and Xbox or Wii becoming a main video console for many. It seems that with recent changes such as this new feature with Youtube, we are closer than ever to all of these mediums merging, placing an emphasis on better content, while also creating revenue for that content. With this emphasis on better content, it seems YouTube is really trying to focus on fostering a greater creative environment rather than shafting its biggest fans. 

Rest assured puppy fans, nothing is happening to your favorite cuteness addiction, just the content that actually has a good deal of production value behind it. 

Having paid my dues with the rest of the film students, I’m no stranger to the crowd-funding phenomenon known as Kickstarter. However, I’m used to it gathering backing for the most recent and “creative” post-apocalyptic student film trying to “make it” in the independent film festival circuit, not a big name from television/Hollywood. Thus begins an intriguing turn of events for the advent of crowdfunding and the (once) overlooked power it possesses. 

I thought it was truly extraordinary when the Veronica Mars film gained 100% backing via Kickstarter in just over a day, but now we have Zach Braff embarking on the same tremendous crowd-funding voyage we witnessed in tech news just a couple months ago. Yes. Zach Braff of Scrubs and Garden State Fame has already garnered $1.6 million of the $2 million budget total with 28 days to go. 

Here at Oniracom we are always on the lookout for great new tools on the tech horizon and it is with much jubilation that I introduce a new ticketing platform to keep us forever young:

Most of the digital ticket providers that have become staples for any saavy concert-goer or event attender are largely fan focused. While the efforts of these services are exemplary, focusing on the fans can be more harmful and chaotic than helpful in the long run.

CrowdSurge, launched in the UK in 2008 is a fairly young establishment with a big undertaking: CrowdSurge seeks to build a direct bridge between artists, events, venues, etc. and fans.

While this doesn’t really seem to be a new angle for ticketing services, many have failed to accomplish this task, often leaving enough of a gap in protection of the artists/events that scalpers and other nefarious types are able to exploit a good show. Creating a void in data collection for the product providers and a bad experience for the fans. In the case of this particular service, much of the control goes back in favor of the product providers rather than the fans, re-establishing a bit of order in the wild-west that can be ticket purchasing.

Allow me to further pontificate my claims through a brief analysis of some of their services.