January 2012
1 post
October 2011
1 post
2 tags
June 2011
1 post
February 2011
2 posts
November 2010
3 posts
Shadowplay by Joy Division.
July 2010
1 post
Holiday
viafrank:
There’s a good story a friend of mine has a hard time telling. A few years ago she was asked to work on the website of a large, public institution, and they approached her to see if she could come up with something that would last the organization 2 to 3 years. The budget was $7,000 dollars. She scoffed at the budget, but saw the opportunity of the project, and managed to negotiate a...
June 2010
2 posts
May 2010
2 posts
“Microsoft—in a nutshell—is a company that had one successful product that we are...”
– Mike Lee (via caseyliss) (via marco, peroty)
April 2010
11 posts
Design Principle #10
Good design is as little design as possible
Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials.
Back to purity, back to simplicity.
By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #9
Good design is environmentally-friendly
Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It conserves resources and minimises physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.
By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #8
Good design is thorough, down to the last detail
Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in the design process show respect towards the consumer.
By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #7
Good design is long-lasting
It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even in today’s throwaway society.
By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #6
Good design is honest
It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept.
By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #5
Good design is unobtrusive
Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user’s self-expression. By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #4
Good design makes a product understandable
It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory. By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #3
Good design is aesthetic
The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products we use every day affect our person and our well-being. But only well-executed objects can be beautiful. By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #2
Good design makes a product useful
A product is bought to be used. It has to satisfy certain criteria, not only functional, but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design emphasises the usefulness of a product whilst disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it. By Dieter Rams
Design Principle #1
Good design is innovative
The possibilities for innovation are not, by any means, exhausted. Technological development is always offering new opportunities for innovative design. But innovative design always develops in tandem with innovative technology, and can never be an end in itself. By Dieter Rams
February 2010
2 posts
Olympus PEN E-P1
In 2005, I spent $800 on a prosumer digital camera by Sony called the DSC-F828. Between 2005 and 2010, I shot around 8000 photos(3000 of those were taken in 2008 during my 3 week trip to Europe). The F828 is great in automatic mode, but performs pretty poorly in other areas. The manual mode is clunky and hard to use. It also produces a substantial amount noise in low light situations. It’s...
January 2010
1 post
December 2009
1 post
November 2009
10 posts
Question #2 from Alumni Night
On November 12th, I was part of a panel of design alumni from Northern Illinois University. We spoke to the NIU AIGA Student Group.
A questionnaire was sent to us prior to the talk.
I felt like I answered the second question pretty accurately.
2. What are the most common mistakes inexperienced designers make?
A huge mistake inexperienced designers make is thinking that design is all about...
Sweet House →
Complete and Utter Confusion
October 2009
12 posts
Listen
Weird
Earlier this month, I made a trip to CB2 in Chicago to return a few items. My friend Melissa came along. As we left CB2, I remember making a comment about the red line subway station pictured. It reminded me of the Darjeeling Limited, and is in a dismal but charming state. Apple is paying 4 million to renovate this particular stop because it is adjacent to their planned Apple store. The...
Twilight
The fact that you hate twilight makes me like you a bit more.
Listen
Horchata - Vampire Weekend
Success Secrets of Rick Valicenti →
“Should you choose to hurry your life along or do it for the money, you’ll end up being pulled back, pulled aside or pulled into a place you don’t want to be.”