When Portland-based app-maker Panic decided to put their name on a building, co-founder Cabel Sasser wanted more than a static set of letters. Inspired by the city's enigmatic light-up weather beacon, Sasser set out to design an illuminated, interactive sign that would add a little more magic to the city.
The idea is simple: a giant light-up logo that changes color at the press of a button from anywhere in the world.
As Sasser recounts in a blog post (spotted by Daring Fireball), Panic hired local fabricators Security Signs to build the shell of their building-mounted logo, but assembled the inner electronics (LEDs, light controllers, power supplies, etc) from off-the-shelf parts from JS LED Corporation.
The company built an accompanying website and web app that allows anyone choose a color and upload it to the sign mounted on the side of 315 SW 11th Avenue in Portland, Oregon.
"There’s something surprisingly special about standing on a street corner, tapping on your phone, and watching some colors you chose appear on a big brick building," wrote Cabel Sasser. "I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s not going to change the world, but it’ll change our colors."
The Panic Sign [Panic]
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