Road Warriors

Work Snug: AR App That Helps Road Warriors Find Workspaces

Cliff Kuang — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 11:44:47 -0400

BMW Gina: Shape-Shifting Car

Tim McKeough — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 17:46:02 -0400

It's like something out of a sci-fi flick. This BMW prototype with a flexible textile skin reflects the carmaker's new design philosophy, GINA (geometry and functions in N adaptations -- the N represents an infinite number). GINA sprang from a gamble that if BMW Group Design disregarded accepted conventions and existing car-building processes, innovation might result.

Reflection: A Century of the Automobile Industry

Clay Dillow — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 19:30:31 -0400

The Evolution of Diesel

Fast Company Staff — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:25:13 -0500

The Past

In response to the 1970s OPEC crisis, GM hastily rolls out diesel engines.
Badly engineered diesel technology produces a horrid stench and a lot of noise.
Nitrogen-oxide (NOx) emissions cause dense smog in major cities.

read more

Fun Runs

Christopher Percy Collier — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:21:18 -0500

Exercise your brain and body in...Austin, New York, Chicago, Denver*

Who: City Running Tours

Highlights: Run from one end of Manhattan to the other or explore neighborhoods like Chinatown and Little Italy; tour Chicago's lakeshore, Wrigleyville, and the 1893 World's Fair sites.

Cost: $50 for 6 miles or less, $4 each additional mile

Contact: cityrunningtours.com; 646-649-5321

Don't Call Them "Boutiques"

Mark Ashley — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:19:36 -0500

The dirtiest word in the boutique-hotel business today is "boutique." "So many boutique hotels expend all their effort on style but slack on service," says Brad Wilson, CEO of the James Hotel Group, one of a new breed of aspiring mini-chains. "It makes great photos and talking points, but for guests, the reality is often chaotic and crazy."

Wait No More

Mark Ashley — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:18:07 -0500

Online check-in and on-site kiosks have quickly revolutionized the way we get through airports and hotels. Renting a car, however, has remained a stubbornly retro experience. The companies do have their reasons: "We need to validate your driver's license, and we're giving you a $20,000 asset, not just renting you a seat or room," says Jerry Dow, chief marketing officer of Alamo/National parent Vanguard Car Rental USA Inc. But still. Mercifully, changes are afoot, though unfortunately no one company has all the answers.

Home Away From Home

Joseph Manez — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:14:48 -0500

The problem with working on the road is there's nowhere to work. Wouldn't it be great if you could sit in a good-looking office for a few hours--with a real desk, high-tech amenities, and meeting space--instead of an airport lounge, hotel, or coffee bar? "The need is there," says Charlie Grantham, cofounder of the Work Design Collaborative. And how. Grantham says he routinely witnesses sad sights like a full-blown flip-chart presentation at a Starbucks.

Stay Just a Little Bit Longer

Susan Stellin — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:14:16 -0500

If you've ever been on a long-term assignment out of town and forced by the bean counters to decamp in an extended-stay hotel, take heart: Your days of confinement in a room with a laminated wood table as a desk and bad art that's not even ironic are nearing an end.

Mile Marker

Susan Stellin — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:13:57 -0500

Road Rules - Rule 26

Christine Canabou — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:12:34 -0500

Who: Jeffrey Christian (jchristian@ctnet.com), chairman and CEO,
Christian & Timbers
Home base: Cleveland, Ohio
Mileage: 100,000 miles per year
Favorite destination: Catawba Island, in Lake Erie
Don't leave home without it: Three cell-phones and plenty of batteries

Book Smart

David Lidsky — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:05:41 -0500

There's always that one wiseguy in the office who loudly tells anyone who will listen how he finds fares online that the corporate travel agent can't. No one will fault you if you secretly wish that your wise friend gets stranded in Cincinnati during a multileg trip.

Creature Comforts

David Lidsky — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:04:14 -0500

Food

On a recent cross-country trip, a couple of coach-trapped sales execs pulled out a Brookstone Picnic Backpack ($100). On one side were supplies such as plates and silverware. On the other, compartments to store food and drinks. They served Bloody Marys, shrimp, and cheese and crackers to everyone in a three-row radius. If that's too much work, call SkyMeals (866-759-6325) next time you're traveling through L.A. for gourmet meals delivered to you. Or wait for its expansion to other hubs such as Atlanta this year.

Hidden Las Vegas

Josh Taylor — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 08:03:39 -0500

What happens in Booth 3250A stays in Booth 3250A. Forget gambling: Las Vegas is the trade-show capital of North America. In January 2005, nearly a million people attended conventions in Sin City, and this year more than 130,000 people are expected at January's Consumer Electronics Show (slightly more than for the World of Concrete exposition). If you're one of them, explore the hidden Vegas in your downtime. There is more to the city's enchantments than its surgical enhancements.

The Incredible Shrinking Peripheral

Michael A. Prospero — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:58:06 -0500

The busy business-travel season is upon us, and as roller bags fill with business cards and reports to read, there's less and less room for the essentials you truly need, much less your collection of minibar bottles and conference-floor tchotchkes. Here, a preview of three new (or soon-to-come) microsized gadgets that leave plenty of space for all your trade-show schwag.

A Touch of Class

Jena McGregor — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:57:20 -0500

Somehow, tuning in to the "ROI Report" on American Airlines' radio channel nine doesn't quite cut it as in-flight entertainment. We might learn a thing or two from listening to Unisys's senior manager of enterprise-server marketing, but, um, we'd hardly call that an escape.

Up The Creek

Alan Cohen — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:56:22 -0500

That sinking feeling has produced what might be called the second generation of Web travel sites that try to remedy it. The poster child for "travel Web 2.0" is Kayak.com. With an executive roster that includes former top management at Expedia, Orbitz, and Travelocity (the giants of "travel Web 1.0"), Kayak's founders like to call themselves the "dream team" of Internet travel. We prefer to leave the dream teams to basketball and comic-book heroes, but that pedigree has generated buzz since before the site launched earlier this year. Does it live up to the hype?

Tokyo Time Killers

Julie Bick — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:55:01 -0500

1. For the jet-lagged: You'll be up at 5 a.m. anyway, so why not hop in a cab and head over to Tsukiji fish market? Witness everything from gigantic frozen tuna being sliced with an electric saw to buckets of tiny live eels. Motorized carts take a cornucopia of seafood through the seemingly endless warren of stalls, but if you're careful and polite, the fishmongers won't mind your gawking and may even offer you a fresh fishcake.

Improving the Chain Gang

Bill Barol — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:54:37 -0500

Stop Spreading the News

"I don't know if it's my expertise in design that causes me to dislike the bedding in chain hotel rooms, or the fact that the bedding isn't usually the best quality. The bedspreads in particular are ugly, overly flowery, and feel cheap. Simply removing them can make the room a little less oppressive, as the rooms are usually heavy on the prints and flowers anyway."

-- Brooke Hodge, curator of architecture and design, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles

Hotels, Jet Blue-Style

Jena McGregor — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:53:48 -0500

Style on the cheap has never been easy to find on the road. Expense a stay at a pricey W hotel, and the pitbulls in accounting route it right back to you. If you do find a low rate on a boutique brand, it usually means giving up precious frequent-guest perks and dodging air kisses in the lobby.

Road Rules - Rule 24

Christine Canabou — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 00:22:58 -0500

Who: Chris Fair (chrisfair@earthlink.net), president, IMI Marketing & Design
Home Base: Greenville, South Carolina
Mileage: 150,000 miles per year
Favorite destination: Charleston, South Carolina
Don't Leave Home Without It: A pocket-sized notepad

Road Rules - Rule 25

Christine Canabou — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 00:22:55 -0500

Who: Scott Goldman (sgoldman @wapforum.org), CEO, WAP Forum Ltd.
Home base: Calabasas, California
Mileage: Nearly 100,000 miles per year
Favorite destination: Sydney, Australia
Don't leave home without it: A leather envelope full of photographs of my family, friends, and biking adventures

I'll Be Home For ...

Erika Germer — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 00:21:50 -0500

Sure you will. But right now you're stuck on the road, you've got 10 meetings in two weeks, and you haven't even written your gift list yet, let alone finished with your holiday shopping. Hard up for some last-minute gift ideas? We'd like to suggest that you think locally -- wherever you are. And we're not talking T-shirts, snow globes, and stuffed animals from the airport gift shop.

Let's Do Lunch (or Dinner, or Drinks)

Amy Wilson — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 00:21:27 -0500

Most people know where the hot spots are in Silicon Valley and in the Alley, but what if you're an up-and-coming tech city where the scene is still evolving? If you're trying to figure out where to cut a deal, hobnob with other techies, or just be scene in the right crowd, we offer a guide to schmoozing in four cities that are starting to make their dot on the map.

Fab Four

Erika Germer — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 00:20:51 -0500

Getting stuck at the airport is an invitation for stress, even without the crowded entrance gates, the wailing 2-year-olds, and the canceled flights. Luckily enough for harried road warriors, havens do exist. Why limit yourself to the overfilled waiting areas while you're waiting out a hailstorm? Here are some out-of-the-way airport spots where you can hide out and keep your blood pressure down.