Archive for the 'Zazzle.com' Category

Raz-ma-taz

Great news on those Zazzle prints. The print quality is terrific, especially on the glossy stock. The size (34×23″) is very good for the price. All of which means we have an easy way to distribute whatever we want to share. I’m not sure how stable Zazzle.com is, how long they’ve been around or whether they’ll be around much longer. But for now Zazzle will be our print service.

I’m working on the finishing touches for our first big poster-sized chart series, which I know you guys are going to dig. More on that later.

For now, we anxiously await word from the Chartball legal team on whether we can actually print these things without attracting MLB lawyers. I’ve read a bit on the applicable law, and I think we’ll be okay. A few years ago a fantasy baseball service tussled with Major League Baseball over whether baseball stats are copyrighted by the league. The fantasy league’s lawyer argued it as a first amendment case, basically saying that these are historical facts. As such they’re public domain. The court found against MLB on every argument. So I tracked down that lawyer and asked him to take a look at what we’re doing, to make sure it’s all clear. He’s looking at it now …

I’ll keep you posted.

Printing options

As I’ve mentioned before, before I made interactives I was a print designer for years. And I still think some of the best data presentations need to be seen in 2d, ink on paper. The Season Histories that I’m making need to be seen on VERY large paper, so I’ve been struggling to figure out how to print and distribute these posters for those that are interested. I think I’ve found a solution on a website I stumbled on: Zazzle.com.

Basically, I can upload my Season History charts and you can order a print directly from Zazzle. Saves me a ton of trouble in managing piles of prints, orders, shipping, etc. This way I can just put them up and you guys can have at ‘em. They even offer size options, in case you want to see it REALLY big (think: wallpaper your wife will not love). The only issue I need to resolve is whether their print quality is suficient. I’m skeptical, since they have such quick turnaround. But I’ll test it out and see.

And if that doesn’t work, Mrs. Chartball will just have to deal with shipping tubes littering our bedroom.



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