On Feb 12, 2008 6:53 AM, Lukeisha Carr <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Those of you who do not ONLY do IxD for websites/web applications, what > product types did you begin your IxD experience? Then, how did you > transition from one to another? >
I may be closer to the technology side than is really healthy. My design work began with VB, Tcl, and C++ applications at a desktop software company. I did both design and development work. Then I migrated to the web, took Java classes, built many-many web pages and forms, JSP pages, Java servlets. About this same time I started doing design work on the side as a volunteer on various web projects. Another couple of leaps and I landed in a small design group in a larger company, filling a role as something of a design technologist. I created script components and page templates that the other designers and the engineering team could use, and also led design efforts on internal systems. Then a big strange sideways hop to where I am now: the right-brained design guy on the engineering team of a small software company building truly geeky communications products, technologies, and APIs. I needed to do a deep dive into the technology just to swim with the other fishes, and can now track the local discussions of multicasting, supernodes, and graph theory. Or at least mimic a knowing look and nod every so often. I don't code much here; there are too many written/graphical/conceptual design artifacts and sessions needed. When I do drop to the tech layer, it's to stitch together a graphical skin with the underlying app. Our stuff is variously created in VB, Java, C++, or as a web application. I consider all this technology work as a sort of domain knowledge; it's not really my design craft, just how it is currently expressed. When I did logistics systems, I learned about customs and container security. When I'm working on network software, I learn about TCP/IP. But I keep studying _design_ no matter where, because so much of the design craft applies no matter what the practice domain. It is useful as a designer to recognize differences and limitations between development platforms though. Web applications really sweat to maintain any sort of internal state, which can often be defeated with a single press of the browser's Back button. Mobile applications make the poor underpowered cell phone or PDA processors groan. Desktop applications involve a fragile dance with the underlying operating system's services and code modules, requiring long test cycles and the single nastiest job in the technology industry: creating software setup packages. Not sure if this is what you're after, hope it helps, Michael Micheletti ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
