In this day and age of digital downloads, iTunes, internet radio, and MP3 players, actually purchasing hard copy music (CD's) is becoming something of a rarity. And while I, myself, have happily embraced the freedom and portability which digital music affords, I can't help but feel like something has been lost in the shuffle.

Album covers and liner art are quickly going the way of the VHS tape, and I must confess a little sadness here, because as a young lad I looked forward to the liner notes of a new cassette tape/CD almost as much the music itself. Album covers and liner art were like an extension of the artist's vision and self-expression; a place where I often found inspiration in the form of visual art and fashion.

With that nostalgia in mind, designbump has put together this great collection of trends in album art from 2009. Sit back, relax, put on a great song, and enjoy!

Design Trend: Grunge

Design Trend: Hand-Drawn

Design Trend: Image Based

Design Trend: Minimalist

Design Trend: Photo Manipulation

Design Trend: Portrait

Design Trend: Type-Based

Design Trend: Vector Art

Design Trend: Digital

Barbara Nixon, a public relations professor at Georgia Southern University, recently posted instructions for completing the final exam for her PRCA 4330 students. Students were asked to create a list of the five most important things they learned from the course about conducting public relations research and to explain why these five things were important.

Students were then instructed to choose from a list of options for submitting their exam. The options included creating a PowerPoint deck and uploading it to SlideShare; creating a podcast using Utterli; creating a video and posting it to YouTube; creating a blog post.

What I love about this is the integration of new media and technology in the classroom. It makes me feel better about the next crop of PR folks that will soon be upon us. After all, this whole internet thing is going to be huge.