World Record Baseball Game: 9 Days Away From First Pitch, 11 Days From Last

If you keep up with our blog, as you should, you’d have already learned that Dirxion is one of the lead sponsors of the World Record Baseball Game (website here).  After publishing my last article on this topic, I realized that even if my last post was slightly informative at best, there is still no way it gave enough credit to how absolutely wacky-screw-loose-mad-as-a-hatter-insane playing baseball for 48 hours straight is. A guy with a thesaurus website open on his computer couldn’t find a single word to fully describe this sort of milestone. He’d have to come up with a combination of synonyms for the word “crazy” and just attach them all with hyphens to illustrate his point.

Numbers can do the talking though…
Numbers in terms of innings:
9: The normal number of innings played in a Major League Baseball game.

26: The longest game in number of innings completed in MLB history. The game was played May 1, 1920 between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Boston Braves. The game ended tied at 1 due to darkness.

92: The number of innings played in the 2007 World Record Baseball Game. Almost four times the Major League record.

In terms of time:
2 hours 54 minutes: The average length of a Major League Baseball game.

8 hours 6 minutes: The longest game, time wise, in MLB history. It was played May 8, 1984 between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago White Sox. The game went 25 innings. It started at 7:30 PM and ended at 1:00 AM due to curfew. The game was tied at 3 after 17 innings. Then the next afternoon the game resumed and went another 8 innings before Chicago finally won 7-6.

32 hours 28 minutes: The length in time the 2007 World Record Baseball Game was played without stopping once, about 4 times as long as the longest MLB game.

48 hours: The amount of time they are trying to play for this year, 6 times the length of the MLB record, and like watching 16 normal games in a row without pausing.

The box score numbers from last year …

Team                      Runs     Hits    Errors
St. Louis Browns     119    144    27
St. Louis Stars         81    103    43

When teams are chalking up digits like that, it means that in a single game you can see more offense than the Cincinnati Reds put up all year, yet still less errors than a Washington Nationals’ home game.

9, 10, 11: The days of October in which the 2009 World Record Baseball game will be played on.

First pitch is October 9th but the game will no doubt be played the 9th, 10th and 11th.  If you are in the St. Louis area, you should try and make it for part of the game. This event is not only happening to break a Guinness World Record, but also to help an admirable cause. All proceeds are going to Cardinal Glennon Children’s Medical Center. For more details on how to get free tickets and find out about the events going on around the TR Hughes Ball Park that weekend visit the World Record Baseball Game Website.

Dirxion Offers Multi-Language Support

In an effort to provide top quality digital publishing services around the globe, we wanted to remind potential customers and companies that Dirxion does indeed offer support for multiple language formats. We think it’s important in this fast moving digital age to be able to reach out to companies and customers on a global level.

Some of the more popular languages that Dirxion supports:

• Spanish
• French
• German
• Portuguese
• Japanese
• Chinese

and the list goes on…

No matter what language your print publication may be in, Dirxion can replicate the exact “look and feel” of your publication into nearly any language interface in the world. If your company has a global reach, and you’d like to place your product in front of customers in different countries, this is the solution that will make that happen.

You’ll find a few examples of our multi-language support in action below (click image for live examples):

Digi-Key Japan

Digi-Key Germany

If you have any questions at all about Dirxion’s ability to support different languages, don’t hesitate to contact us at +1.888.391.0202 to discuss your questions/concerns in further detail.

Celebrating 13 Years In Business!

We are happy to announce that today, July 1st, marks Dirxion’s 13th anniversary at the forefront of digital publishing. Three buildings, two names and 91 employees later, today we reflect on 13 years of service to the publishing industry.

Back in 1996, Dirxion (then known as Concept 2000 - see pic) pioneered the notion that technology and print could unite to form a dynamic and effective medium for White & Yellow Page publishers. We had just two product lines (1) Digital white pages on CD-ROM and company LANs/WANs and (2) Streaming radio stations on the web using mpeg3 files.

- Original owners: “Concept 2000″

Since then, our company has expanded dramatically. Today, Dirxion digitizes all types of print media, from phone books to flyers, enriches them with interactive features and makes them available for global distribution over several different channels, such as the Web, CD, kiosk and email. Publishers from all over the world are experiencing the benefits of lower publishing costs, increased circulation and additional revenue generation. We also now offer a complete suite of services that compliment our digital publishing solution - product placement, SEO/SEM, email marketing, kiosk placement, technical support, TearPages On Demand, CD/USB distribution and replication/packaging (just to name a few!).

What a long way we’ve come! After the recent release of our most innovative digital publishing platform yet- EdgeClix- the expansion of services and offerings continues.

We’d like to thank our clients for their business, their support, their feedback and for continuing to challenge us to provide the best possible digital publishing platform out there. We look forward to helping you maximize the value and reach of your print media throughout 2009 and beyond.

- Dirxion company photo: October 2008

2009 Dirxion Mascot Contest Winner Announced!

After a grueling two weeks of pouring over entries for the Dirxion “Choose Our Mascot” contest, we finally chose a winner. It wasn’t easy, as we had a couple of stand out entries to narrow down, but after the Dirxion marketing group was locked up in a tiny, overheated conference room for 12 hours without one single break, a winner emerged from the pack.

Okay, so while it wasn’t quite that dramatic, in all honesty it was a fantastic contest and we did a lot of in-depth thinking before choosing the animal/person/object that will represent Dirxion as the official company mascot. This was not a light weight decision!

We’d like to take a moment to send out a HUGE congratulations to the winner of the mascot contest, Greg Norton!! Greg, who found our contest over on Reddit.com, sent us a very unique entry that no matter how hard we tried, we just could not take our eyes off of it.

You’ll see Greg’s artwork below, but just in case you’re not familiar with the “Pygmy Jerboa”, a jumping desert rodent found throughout Northern Africa and Asia, here is a quick Youtube video that shows the cute little thing in action. After watching this short clip of the amazing Pygmy Jerboa, and after looking at Greg’s awesome concept drawing, you’ll see why we picked it.

Pretty awesome, right!?

Anyway, for Greg’s big win, we sent him a $100 Amazon gift card. We would tell him not to spend it all in one place but that would be kind of hard to do since it is an Amazon gift card that is only redeemable at Amazon.com.

Seriously though - great work, Mr. Greg Norton, and may the jumping desert rodent gods reward you for spreading the good word.

Dirxion Exhibiting At NCMA

On Monday, May 4, Dirxion will be exhibiting at the 2009 NCMA (National Catalog Managers Association) Knowledge Exchange at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel in Newport Beach, CA.

What is the NCMA Knowledge Exchange exactly?
It’s a high-value conference where automotive cataloging management professionals gather with their print and technology vendor partners for education and business development.

And the NCMA?
The National Catalog Managers Association is the only professional organization dedicated exclusively to the interests of automotive aftermarket catalog managers. Comprised of catalog, product management and marketing professionals from manufacturers, distributors and retailers - their mission for more than 30 years has been to help members sell more products, reduce costs and increase efficiency through accurate catalogs, efficient production processes and new technology.

2009 will not be like any other year, so if you haven’t done so already, make your plan to attend and don’t forget to stop by booth 204 for a visit!

Calling All ACCM Goers!

Dirxion will be exhibiting at the ACCM next week, May 4-6. Stop by our booth #711 and let us help you rebuild around the changing customer and economy with digital publishing. With the ability to reduce print, lower publishing costs and boost circulation and revenue, digital publishing is really hitting some high notes with catalog publishers. We’ll help you get tuned into the latest and greatest in digital publishing:

-EdgeClix (Dirxion’s new publishing platform with an enhanced interface and full interactivity)

-Versioning

-Order forms with payment options

-Catalog Library Search

-Enhanced search

-Audio and video

Best of all, you’ll receive a free music download courtesy of Dirxion just for stopping by!

Hope to see you there!

Dirxion To Attend YPA (Yellow Pages Association) Meeting

Next week (April 26th-28th, 2009) Dirxion will be attending the Yellow Pages Association meeting in San Diego, CA. We are very pleased to once again be a sponsor and show our support to the yellow pages industry. As we continue our roll out of the EdgeClix interface, we seek and value feedback from our publisher customers that will be attending the YPA.

In the very competitive yellow pages advertising world, we help publishers stand out with digital directories, that look and feel just like the print directory. Not only that, the EdgeClix format supports flash animation, video, audio, mapping, and other revenue generating options for the publishers.

In addition to our new platform, we support our publishers with programs including the Tear Pages On Demand sales tool, Search Engine Marketing management and implementation, managed video production services, and the creation of audio hotspots.

We’ll see you all in a couple of days!

Happy Earth Day 2009 From Dirxion

April 22nd is one of those days of the year that Dirxion takes very seriously, mainly due to the fact that we are proud to be a green company and not only that, but the products we sell have a direct positive impact on our environment (taking print to digital). Earth Day is one of those days where we celebrate our progress and the steps we’ve taken to help the environment as a company, and as individuals.

Earth Day has been celebrated for nearly the past 40 years, and was created to inspire awareness and appreciation for our environment. Earth Day was founded (back in 1970) by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in, and since then, it’s widely celebrated in many countries worldwide.

Dirxion has many practices and initiatives in place all throughout the year to help contribute to the well being of the environment, including but not limited to:

1. For every digital publication we produce, we donate $1 to Arbor Day Foundation. (We love trees!)

2. We provide employees with reusable shopping bags that they can use for grocery shopping, or anything else that would require a plastic or paper bag.

3. Dirxion employees are FANTASTIC at recycling. We have many designated recycling containers set up for all types of waste products (paper, aluminum, glass, etc…)

4. Recently, Dirxion employees were given Kleen Kanteens (and most of us use them daily!).

There are so many things we do here at Dirxion to help clean up and maintain a healthy environment, and it doesn’t stop at work for many employees. We have quite a few dedicated green people on staff, and we’re proud of their efforts, because they really do make a difference.

In case you’re wondering how you can play your part in maintaining beautiful Mother Earth, below you’ll find a list of Earth Day related websites that are all jam packed with information and helpful tips that will officially turn you “green” in no time at all!

1. EarthDay.Gov (official Government portal for Earth Day information and resources).

2. Earth Day Network (filled with enough Earth Day information to keep you busy for days).

3. EPA Earth Day Site (official Earth Day page of the EPA)

4. Wildnerness Society (official Earth Day page of the Wilderness Society)

5. World Wildlife Earth Day Page (official Earth Day page of WWF)

6. Earth Day For Kids (Government Earth Day site geared towards kids)

7. Sierra Club Earth Day Page (official Earth Day page for Sierra Club)

8. Earth Day History (from Earth911.com - a page full of Earth Day historical information)

9. Nature Conservancy (official Earth Day page for the Nature Conservancy)

10. Earth Day Canada (for our Canadian friends, this is the Earth Day Canada page)

There are hundreds of great websites and blogs out there that are all about Earth Day, the environment, and anything to do with nature, but we figured the ten above should give you a good start. One of the recurring themes on all of the sites above is the “just get out and do something” phrase. If you truly want to help, and if you’re not one that regularly practices eco-friendly habits, just try something for a day. Recycle some cans, replace your old lights with energy conserving flourecent bulbs, or one of a thousand other ideas you’ll find in some of the sites listed above.

Also, to find out more about Dirxion’s green initiatives, head over to our “Going Green” page. And if you have any questions about making the switch from print to digital (which is also very green!), head over to our contact page and send us an email or give us a call, and we’ll be happy to discuss your needs!

Dirxion Introduces “EdgeClix” For Directories

Dirxion’s newest version of its digital directory solution takes digital publishing to the next level. Entirely Flash-based, EdgeClix comes with amazing speed, boundless customization and a consistent user experience across all platforms.

Besides looking pretty snazzy, there are at least ten more EdgeClix features that will leave you wanting more! Take a look at some of the major highlights of our new EdgeClix platform:

1. Animated and highly customizable welcome page.
2. Textured backgrounds or wallpaper behind the directory for enhanced customization.
3. Improved video and audio effects.
4. Ability to embed Flash animations.
5. Ability to immediately go to a page when results are returned.
6. Automatic zooming of search results when clicked.
7. Ability to print an individual ad.
8. Hand grab control feature, which allows you to easily navigate a page by clicking and holding your left mouse on a page.
9. Spanish, French, Chinese, German and Japanese interfaces with more available upon request.
10. Uniform platform between Online/CD/USB/Download.

Below is a screenshot of the Gold Leaf digital directory which was developed using our new EdgeClix platform. It looks sharp, and is jam packed with a lot of the cool features mentioned above.

If you’d like to see EdgeClix in action, Gold Leaf is an excellent example and will give you a better idea of what EdgeClix is all about. Take note of the enhanced video features and super-friendly user experience.

To find out more about EdgeClix for directories, don’t hesitate to contact us via email or give us a call at: (888) 391-0202

Dirxion First Quarter Newsletter 2009

Just in case you haven’t noticed it on our website yet, Dirxion just released the first newsletter of 2009, and it’s jam packed with all kinds of great information.

We’ll let you handle the reading, but for a quick teaser, we talk about the following:

1. EdgeClix for directories

2. Catalog Library Search feature

3. Survey results from the end of the year (2008) Dirxion customer satisfaction survey

4. Our upcoming launch of the new “Paprles” product

5. Tradeshow information

And much, much more. So if you get a spare moment, we’d be thrilled if read through it, and as always, contact us with any feedback/comments/questions. Thanks!

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