Co-op Media

Co-op Media is the working front of midwest freelancer and consultant Paul Wenzel.

It is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, where it is currently Partly Cloudy, and 70 ° F.

Co-op Media keeps lose ties with folks in advertising, web development, makers, arts and academic institutions, and those interested in interactive media.

Why You'd Like Working with Co-Op Media

Focus on Open Source tools

Co-Op Media has always made excellent use of open source tools, benefitting clients through lower costs and stability.

Pragmatic development process

Co-Op Media has experience in breaking down complex projects, preventing feature bloat and overgrown timelines. Keeping things simple helps everyone maintain a positive attitude.

Clients

Best Buy, Co.

Wordpress and and Wordpress Mu development overseeing 1,700 blogs.

3M (w OLSON, CO.)

Localized, accessible global homepage for 3M corporation

Misplaced Music

Shoutcast streaming on a shoestring budget

Subaru (w Carmichael Lynch)

Dramatic speed enhancements to corporate site, replacing Flash-based content with Javascript (jQuery)

Target (w Catalyst)

HTML, CSS, Javascript (jQuery) development

PriceWaterhouseCoopers (w Hello Viking)

Video contest with automated video conversion tools, built on CodeIgniter (PHP) and FFMPEG.

Piano E-Competition

Coordinate live streaming coverage of week-long competition.

Coen+Partners

Wordpress-based architectural portfolio.

Ordway Center for Performing Arts (w VocalEssence)

MAX/MSP-based projection solution for live performance

TIES Education Technology Collaborative

MAX/MSP-based projection and video capture installation

Doomtree Blowout

Quartz Composer-based projection, delivering videos and reactive visuals at Doomtree's annual hip-hop show.

Thinktopia, Inc.

Multiple Wordpress-based blogs, including online book with inline user-commenting.

Minneapolis College of Art & Design

ExpressionEngine-based social network for MCAD's Alumni department.

Walker Art Center

Online edition of the Walker's Annual Report

Areas of Expertise

Development

Front-end development using standards-based XHTML, CSS, Javascript (jQuery).

Backend development with PHP, CodeIgniter, Expression Engine, Wordpress, and Wordpress Mu.

Server Environments Linux, OSX, FreeBSD, and on rare occasion, Windows.

Mobile platforms including the iPhone and Android.

Information and Design

Chatting about typography with print designers

Simple designs that perform superbly well on all browsers, including mobile devices

Web Analytics for everyone, from corporate sites to non-profits, including Google Analytics.

Consulting and Project Planning

Insight on technologies applicable to your project

Project management using tools such as Redmine, Google Apps, and other GTD toolsets

Audio/Visual

Streaming audio and video with technologies like Quicktime, Shoutcast and Icecast, SAM Broadcaster

Post-production processes requiring knowledge of appropriate codecs, HD hardware, and storage and archiving needs

Live performance tools utilizing Quartz Composer and Max/MSP/Jitter

Developer Notes

Findings on the development front. RSS Feed.

WordPress Database Error: Duplicate entry `0` for key 1

Losing auto-increment attributes will lead to unintended consequences in your Wordpress installation.

Fix for MAMP when MySQL is not starting

Fixing MySQL when MAMP leaves a dookie.

Textwrangler Speed on Large Files

Textwrangler is snappy with really huge text files.

Using the template_redirect hook for custom WordPress URIs

Add "fake" pages to your site with these quick additions to your Wordpress or Wordpress Mu theme code, taking advantage of the 'template_redirect' plugin hook.

WPMU Roles and Capabilities Hacks

Modifications you can use to create site-wide roles and capabilities in your Worpress Mu blog network.

Whitespace on Facebook

Blissful whitespace amidst the clutter.