I would add The Sciences of the Artificial - 3rd Edition (Paperback) by Herbert A. Simon (Author) , to design theory list.
On Wed, Nov 19, 2008 at 3:48 PM, Jonas Löwgren <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Andy, > > Great initiative. > > In case you would find it useful to have an annotated list of books in > interaction design and related topics to choose from, may I suggest > > http://webzone.k3.mah.se/k3jolo/idBookshelf > > I find it nearly impossible to pick two "top interaction design must-have > books" -- it depends on who must have them, of course. > > But the three that I currently use for an introductory-level interaction > design class at Malmö University are > > -------- > > Saffer, D. (2007). Designing for interaction: Creating smart applications > and clever devices. Berkeley, CA: New Riders. > > A useful first introduction to interaction design, covering a lot of ground > in a very light and readable way. Saffer characterizes the field, discusses > the digital design materials and tools, outlines the phases of the design > process, and even touches on more advanced topics such as adaptivity, > service design, ethics and future challenges -- all very brief and > approachable. I imagine that the book might whet the appetite of many > readers to know more about interaction design. Too bad that there are no > references or suggestions for further study. > > Buxton, B. (2007). Sketching user experiences: Getting the design right and > the right design. San Francisco: Morgan Kaufmann. > > Buxton develops a clearly articulated design perspective on the creation of > digital products, based firmly in the seminal activity of sketching. The > core part of the book is an inventory of sketching techniques, presented > through well-chosen examples and illustrating a breadth of approaches to the > key question of how to sketch temporal behavior and interactivity. Buxton > lays out two parallel threads to frame the sketching examples -- a > discussion of professional product development, and a scholarly perspective > on the history and significance of sketching in design -- which makes the > book a highly valuable resource for professional interaction designers as > well as teachers and students. > > Moggridge, B. (2007). Designing interactions. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. > > A truly remarkable book, painting a rich picture of interaction design > practice by means of some forty journalistically rendered interviews with > outstanding designers and a substantial piece of reflection on the author's > own experience as an interaction designer. There are several strengths to > the book: It adopts and illustrates a consistent design perspective (as > opposed to, e.g., a HCI perspective); it gives roughly equal weight to > hardware and software design; it covers the history of interaction design > for personal computing as well as related fields including games, multimedia > and service design; it is well designed and produced in itself, with a > beautiful flow between sections and with generous and appropriate image > material. The appended DVD provides interview segments and, more > importantly, some demos to illustrate key topics. The only drawback I can > find is a slight bias towards Silicon Valley people and practices, which is > certainly historically justifiable but still constrains the overall picture > somewhat. Nevertheless, I would consider this book to be required reading > for all students, teachers and practitioners who need a comprehensive and > up-to-date view of interaction design practice. > > -------- > > For my own work in participatory crossmedia, the most inspirational books > lately have been: > > -------- > > Bolter, J., Gromala, D. (2003). Windows and mirrors: Interaction design, > digital art and the myth of transparency. Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press. > > As one of rather few examples in the literature, this book addresses the > aesthetic qualities of interaction design. It consists of a set of essays > composed around selected exhibits from the SIGGRAPH Art Gallery in the year > 2000. The main thesis is that interaction is culturally reflective as much > as efficiently transparent, and the book offers several important insights > for interaction designers. > > Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence culture: Where old and new media collide. > New York: New York University Press. > > Jenkins addresses the convergence of mass media and interactive media from a > solid background in studies of fan cultures. He builds his arguments around > three core concepts -- media convergence, participatory culture, and > collective intelligence -- which he develops in a series of well-written and > engaging case studies, ranging from online communities of Survivor spoilers > to Harry Potter fan-fiction IPR controversies and the US elections. The > focus is largely on how the established mass media "collide" with new media > cultures and practices, and the new media forms originating in the digital > realm are generally less well covered. Nevertheless, I consider the insights > offered in the book to be required reading for any interaction designer > involved in transmedia/crossmedia projects. > > Lasica, J. D. (2005). Darknet: Hollywood's war against the digital > generation. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley. > > The digital media convergence and the rapid dissemination of media > production capabilities is a challenge to many existing structures in the > media industries. Lasica looks specifically at how established entertainment > industries in music and movies react to the "threats" of filesharing, local > production, mods, remixes and other personal digital media possibilities. > The emerging picture, which Lasica paints in very lively colors using a > journalistic presentation style, is focused on restrictions, violations of > user rights, and political power plays in the interest of continued economic > gain. The perspective of the book is clearly biased in favor of personal > media, underground movements and a certain amount of Internet evangelism -- > but the underlying conflicts are extremely interesting for any interaction > designer involved in the digital media. > > Lovink, G. (2002). Dark fiber: Tracking critical Internet culture. > Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. > > A collection of essays on digital media, covering a broad scope of issues > such as net culture, language use, dotcom rise and fall, co-presence and > community. The main theme of the texts, and the direct topic for several of > them, is media activism and what Lovink calls tactical media: Using the > digital media for politically and ideologically radical means. > > -------- > > And for my academic work in interaction design theory, I would have to > mention: > > -------- > > Krippendorff, K. (2006). The semantic turn: A new foundation for design. > Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. > > Krippendorff argues for a human-centered view on design, where the core > notion is meaning as created in use. He outlines a historical progression in > the traditional design disciplines from product styling towards more > complex, relational concerns, including the possibility of a design science. > From an interaction design point-of-view, what is really interesting about > the book is that it provides a conceptual bridge between the traditional > design disciplines and the use-oriented perspectives that are at the heart > of interaction design. > > Sennett, R. (2008). The craftsman. London: Allen Lane. > > Sennett, a renowned sociologist, writes about craft based on a broad > historical base, ranging from ancient Greece to Linux open source > communities. For a design researcher, the book corroborates all that is said > in general design theory, such as the work by Schön, as well as > interaction-design specific accounts such as the one by McCullough. > Moreover, it extends and elaborates upon this knowledge in several fruitful > directions, including the social dynamics of the workshop and the asymmetric > relation between master and apprentice; the detailed nature of head-and-hand > work in complex craft skills (including the importance of rhythm and > concentration); the nature of learning crafts and the roles of instructions > and tools in learning. Further relevant themes include the concepts of > resistance and ambiguity, the ethics of craftmanship, and the relation > between play and craft. In sum, it is a remarkable book that adds > significantly to the body of knowledge in interaction-design research and > education. > > -------- > > > Best of luck with your DRB project -- looking forward to seeing how it > develops! > > Jonas Löwgren > > > > ________________________________________________________________ > 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 > -- http://designforuse.blogspot.com/ ________________________________________________________________ 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
