The brilliant thing about Google Maps for maps is that the infinite drag and scroll technique is being used to display data that is inherently 2 dimensional and infinite (if you consider flattened projections and wrapping around the Earth, of course), so the interface is a nearly optimal portal into the data that you want to see.
On the other hand, there is nothing about a set of books other than preexisting solutions based upon the limitations of the old physical media (books on booksheves) that suggests a two dimensional layout. It's simulating the reality of books in a bookstore, but it's simulating something that ultimately is a non-ideality and an artifact of physical books and shelves which has nothing to do with the underlying information (what books are available that I might want to read). I think an "attempt to bring online as much of the real bookstore experience as possible" is a flawed concept before the pencil ever hits the paper. I don't want all of the real bookstore experience online. I want a different experience that best leverages the capabilities of being online. Are you going to make me wait in line for 20 minutes to check out? Have a smelly homeless dude sleeping at the end of the 3rd shelf of Mysteries/Thrillers? Not have half the books I want? Make me slap on one of those Nike iPod pedometer gizmos and simulate a walk to the store? Don't get me wrong, I love real bookstores. But online bookstores have a lot of advantages, and of course shortcomings as well. Trying to shoehorn a 100% real bookstore experience into a web browser would mean maintaining all the shortcomings of a brick and mortar bookstore and then topping that off with all the shortcomings of an online store. Amazon is successful not because it's a brick and mortar bookstore simulator but because it offers an experience that strives to be better than a real bookstore. In some areas it succeeds and in some it fails, but it leverages its resources to create advantages over brick and mortar where possible. Don't get me wrong, zoomii is kinda cool and I could see perhaps using it to try to recreate the experience of aimlessly browsing through a bookstore when I don't know what I want to read, but I fail to see how it's anything other than less usable and less informative than a well presented list of books (not to say I don't think there ever will be a better browsing interface than a list, I just don't think this is it). In other words, in my opinion, it's 99% eye candy. -n. On Tue, Jul 1, 2008 at 2:24 PM, Petteri Hiisilä <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I just stumbled upon something pretty impressing: > > Zoomii's bookstore uses a Google Maps -like interaction design pattern to > display Amazon's books in an impossibly big bookshelf that can be zoomed in > and out. You can fly to any shelf and pick a book. It works inside a browser > without plugins. > > It's made by an individual called Chris Thiessen and funded by his spouse. > It's his "attempt to bring online as much of the real bookstore experience > as possible". To me his early attempt qualifies as indistinguishable from > magic. > > http://zoomii.com/ > > What do you think? > > - Petteri > > -- > Petteri Hiisilä > palvelumuotoilija / > Senior Interaction Designer > iXDesign / +358505050123 / > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > "In this island, everything happens for a reason." > - John Locke, LOST > > ________________________________________________________________ > 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 > ________________________________________________________________ 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
