Classic Apple icon design by Susan Kare You can tell a lot about how much someone knows you by the gifts that they give. A good friend gave me this gift today after returning from a trip to New York. He bought it at MoMA and the label said it was on sale for $3.95…
Tag: design
IDEO Method Cards widget
IDEO’s excellent Method Cards for human-centered design are available as a widget for Mac OS X users. (Saves you $50) Available as a download in the right column of the news page. Really easy to miss. Incidentally, Fast Company has an article on IDEO Method Cards Turn, Um, 7! Happy birthday Method Cards!
The Brand Gap
A couple of months ago, a colleague asked me what branding was. I remember fumbling to find the right definition, and said something like, it’s the whole experience or impression you get when you recall the name of a company, organization or a person. It’s something that you can guide but it is ultimately outside…
Life Caching on Mobile Phones
At some point in the near future, the term mobile "phone" will be too limiting to describe what we’ll be carrying around in our pockets. Take the iPhone (or any smartphone) as an example. Currently there are 8GB and 16GB versions available, but at the rate memory is increasing and coming down in price, soon…
Personalization and Mobile Phones
Mobile phones and most personal electronics devices have been made for durability. My Samsung phone is finished in stainless steel, plastic and glass. It is black and shiny. My iPod Nano is aluminum. My wallet is made of leather. When I first bought by wallet, it was stiff, and uncomfortable. But at some point in…
Simplicity, Complexity and Contradiction in Design
Belatedly I finished John Maeda‘s book, The Laws of Simplicity, which outlines ten laws for balancing simplicity and complexity in business, technology and design. In effect he is building on the “Less is More” principle, popularized by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (originally spoken by Robert Browning in 1855.) I’ve been a long admirer…
The Satisfying Touch UI Experience
It’s a little embarrassing, but I get a lot of my insights from watching TED presentations. Blame it on the combination of my 2 hour commute, iPod Nano and TED providing video podcasts. In a fascinating presentation by neurologist Vilayanur Ramachandran, he talks about how the brain works with sensory input. What stuck with me…
When a Display Becomes Architectural
The video wall inside the IAC building, Frank Gehry’s New York City landmark is huge. At this scale is ceases to be a “display” screen and comes into the realm of the architectural, where it starts to define the character of the space. This is very high on the list of places to visit next…
Messy Desktop Interface
You don’t see too many new interface designs for organizing “stuff” on your PC. Bumptop (see TED video) one is interesting and amusing because it accommodates “messiness” better than any other interface out there. I love designer Bruce Mau’s An Incomplete Manifesto for Growth that articulates the way that creative people work. #25 in a…
Navigating New York
I remember when I first moved to Manhattan for grad school in ’94 that is was really disorienting when you exit the subway station. I had to walk a block to discover which way was North. Finally someone (NYC DOT) had the good sense to do something about it, in the form of a sidewalk…