American packaging design industry veteran, Ted Mininni of Design Force, considers how the design providers became more ‘left-brained’ and analytical over years, shares the firm’s ‘survival strategy’ for the recessionary times and recommends some good and inspiring read for the U.S. peers.

Google+ is gaining momentum as an online destination for photographers from all around the globe. In November 2011, the network encouraged student photographers to share their stills with public for a chance to get their photos on a public display in an offline gallery. This prize is for younger generation, which may need some encouragement and support to step out—but some photographers on Google+ didn’t wait for any calls and developed their own collaborative project, a book titled ‘Plus One Collection’ under Google+ name. The new product is celebrating the art of photograpy, provides an opportunity to see photos in print (in our digital era, this becomes a rare thing) and offers a nice contribution to a philatrophic community.

Want to kill two birds with one stone, get a husband and a new car at one time? Building on the old tradition which allows women propose to their men on February 29 with no fear of being judged, Renault and Yahoo! are offering ladies in the UK an opportunity to finally make it and ask their boyfriends to be their husbands, but do it with a modern twist. The auto brand is calling female users to submit their ideas on how they would like to propose—Renault will give the winner a new auto and film the moment and post the video on the Yahoo! homepage. Happiness should be shared.