Re: [IxDA Discuss] Interaction09: Dont' forget, international phone plan!
Look into fring for your iPhone and then gizmo5 for the SIP service. I'm going to see if I can make this work for me this trip. Free calling! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37725 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] RED and Agile? (was Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Others could speak to Agile in depth. My take on it, from the exposure I've had to it at conferences and reading about it, is that it's a more formalized version of what I've been describing and more often found inside permanent development organizations (though some consultancies may indeed use it). One of the distinguishing characteristics of the practice I and my colleagues have come from however, is one of very diverse consulting. This entails applying our approach perhaps just once, and for the first time, in an environment significantly different (in circumstances and needs) from others. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37984 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Separate Navigation labels and page titles
Oops, my HTML was filtered out. I meant: (H1) Products (br) span (style tweak so it's not bold) Widgets, Xidgets and Zidgets (/span) (/H1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=38005 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Separate Navigation labels and page titles
The product professional in me notes they all have a point. Shouldn't something like this keep everybody happy? Products Widgets, Xidgets and Zidgets Another tactic is tasking the SEO person with creating phrases for the values - thes phrases are the default bookmark value, so they should be be usable when later appearing in the browser's bookmark drop-down. It should keep him or her happily busy for awhile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=38005 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] ID vs email address
I have not done any work or research in this area but based on personal experience, I agree with Yohan for precisely the same three reasons. I'll also add the following for your consideration: Despite being someone who has multiple email addresses, I would still have an easier time figuring out which one of them to use versus trying to remember which user ID to use (from the multitude of variations that I have had to craft over the years based on the different requirements each website has imposed). As for email addresses changing...yep it's a drawback Am currently noodling ideas for the best way to manage this on my end. Didn't think about what sites could do to help. First thing that comes to mind is something I've seen a few times...providing for an alternate email address as backup. Still has similar issues but it's a start. Sent from my iPhon On Jan 29, 2009, at 1:00 AM, Yohan Creemers wrote: The email address as user id is becoming the preferred way in my opinion. Pros: an email address is unique; an email address is easy to remember; in many cases the system requires the email address also for sending messages. Cons: still not everyone has an email address; an email address may change over time. Did you consider OpenID? http://openid.net/ - Yohan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37879 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] FW: Separate Navigation labels and page titles
I¹d love to hear people¹s opinion on how closely navigations titles should match page titles. E.g. A primary nav might include ³Products | Services | Customer Service | About Us². These titles need to be short to fit into the space and to make choosing one easy and strait forward. Clicking on ³Products² in the navigation would bring you to a page that has an top heading (H1). Questions: Should that H1 title be exactly the same? E.g ³Products² Is it OK if it is a little friendlier? E.g ³Our Great Products² Is it OK if it very different? E.g ³All the great stuff we make² The copywriter wants page titles to be witty, the search engine guy wants them to help SEO, and the UX wants them to match to avoid confusion. What do you think and how important is it to you? Thanks. Regards, John Romano | Web Developer | capstrat jrom...@capstrat.com Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Interaction09: Dont' forget, international phone plan!
cell phones baby... flat cellphone please! __ Catríona Lohan-Conway User Experience Architect 917 405 5127 clohancon...@mac.com PPlease consider our environment before printing. On Jan 30, 2009, at 5:50 PM, Nasir Barday wrote: Skype has a nice $2.95/month unlimited U.S. and Canada plan. $9.95/month unlimited to U.S. and Canada, and landlines 25 additional countries. Flat enough for ya, Catriona? - N Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Interaction09: Dont' forget, international phone plan!
Skype has a nice $2.95/month unlimited U.S. and Canada plan. $9.95/month unlimited to U.S. and Canada, and landlines 25 additional countries. Flat enough for ya, Catriona? - N Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Interaction09: Dont' forget, international phone plan!
Yes, but as someone posted earlier, you might want to leave it on for an extra month, as Rogers tends to post these things late, which means you'd incur additional fees. One more thing, turn Push notification off under your Settings menu so that you're not charged (raped) for data services. On Jan 30, 2009, at 5:40 PM, Catriona Lohan-Conway wrote: And one more thing... you can only turn on world option for the min time period and turn it off when you get home. Cheers! Todd Zaki Warfel President, Design Researcher Messagefirst | Designing Information. Beautifully. -- Contact Info Voice: (215) 825-7423 Email: t...@messagefirst.com AIM:twar...@mac.com Blog: http://toddwarfel.com Twitter:zakiwarfel -- In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, they are not. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Interaction09: Dont' forget, international phone plan!
Someone just needs to offer a flat rate world service... step up Skype. It's a flat world out there... ;-) I honestly think that people prefer transparent companies and will flock to them for good services, prices and esp. when they know they aren't being screwed. And one more thing... you can only turn on world option for the min time period and turn it off when you get home. __ Catríona Lohan-Conway User Experience Architect 917 405 5127 clohancon...@mac.com PPlease consider our environment before printing. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Ha! So you've uncovered my devious plan! I would pay folding money to see the look on your face when that question comes... ;^) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
On Jan 30, 2009, at 2:10 PM, Jim Leftwich wrote: I wouldn't get hung up on the term, as we certainly don't. Oh... I know I certainly won't since I'll be ignoring the term. But the first time some executive or client looks me in the face and asks me how I'm going to work on their product using the RED methodology, I'm going to find you. I'm going to find you and I'm going to find some way to make you compensate me for pain and suffering. 8^) -- Andrei Herasimchuk Principal, Involution Studios innovating the digital world e. and...@involutionstudios.com c. +1 408 306 6422 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
To address Andrei's issue with the term RED, I would say that it was an attempt to create a term that was at descriptive of both the short timeframes these projects often entail (Rapid) and the fact that the designers are experts (particularly in designing in high-pressure conditions, complex situations and needs, and with familiarity within the domain). I wouldn't get hung up on the term, as we certainly don't. It's problematic reducing complex approaches to terms to begin with. But as I'd stated up front, terms such as "genius design" were even more problematic, and failed even to attempt to describe what was actually occurring in at least the types of rapid development environments I and others have pursued. Hence the more descriptive term. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Interaction09: Dont' forget, international phone plan!
ATT iPhone travel woes... Get the Int'l data plan too... after a recent trip to HK, China and Ireland with my iPhone, I got a phone bill for over $2k due to data usage. Of course when I called before I left the operator said they didn't have a data plan and it turns out they did. They put me on the plan, repriced my bill and I saved over $1300! They seem to rely on people not looking into small print to make $. Not ok. __ Catríona Lohan-Conway User Experience Architect 917 405 5127 clohancon...@mac.com PPlease consider our environment before printing. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
David Malouf writes: Q: Like Jonas I have another question regarding education. When you speak of "junior designers" have these designers been through at least a formal bachelor design education like yourself? Are there things that designers should look for in that formal education, such as strong foundation skills. A: Some, but not all. One was educated as a traditional architect and picked things up brilliantly. Some have come from writing and film back grounds and have similarly been adept at learning how to design and document interactive products and software. Where these individuals are likely to differ from someone with a more formal design education might be their ability to pursue or address issues beyond simply the interactional aspects. Such as (for example) branding and graphic design, or development of physical models (for physical user interfaces), or other design skills and knowledge that could be introduced in a formal design education. I think that the kind of solid design education that you are talking about is incredibly valuable. Q: Lastly, when you review portfolios to understand the potential of a junior designer (future apprentice) what are the clues in that portfolio that highlight their potential. A: I'd look for several things, including what they might have done previously (documented work, particulary in the area of documented interaction). I'd interview them about roles they might have played on teams, and ideas they might've wanted to try but were not allowed to or unsuccessful in pursuing. A candidate's deeper background is also very helpful in understanding why they may be seeking to work in particular ways. Some designers I've met will show an enormous range and number of things they've done, all in creative areas. Those designers are proving that they have broadly applicable creative and thinking skills, so that's a plus. A knowledge and familiarity with the field, and larger development history is also valuable. And a lot of time with a new candidate or teammember is simply discussion, rather than a Q and A grilling session. The kinds of people we look for to work with aren't being sought to fill a formally-described slot. We're looking for a flexible associate with potential to contribute in a variety of ways and grow as we also continue to learn and grow ourselves. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Information through sound.
David Malouf writes: Q: Like Jonas I have another question regarding education. When you speak of "junior designers" have these designers been through at least a formal bachelor design education like yourself? Are there things that designers should look for in that formal education, such as strong foundation skills. A: Some, but not all. One was educated as a traditional architect and picked things up brilliantly. Some have come from writing and film back grounds and have similarly been adept at learning how to design and document interactive products and software. Where these individuals are likely to differ from someone with a more formal design education might be their ability to pursue or address issues beyond simply the interactional aspects. Such as (for example) branding and graphic design, or development of physical models (for physical user interfaces), or other design skills and knowledge that could be introduced in a formal design education. I think that the kind of solid design education that you are talking about is incredibly valuable. Q: Lastly, when you review portfolios to understand the potential of a junior designer (future apprentice) what are the clues in that portfolio that highlight their potential. A: I'd look for several things, including what they might have done previously (documented work, particulary in the area of documented interaction). I'd interview them about roles they might have played on teams, and ideas they might've wanted to try but were not allowed to or unsuccessful in pursuing. A candidate's deeper background is also very helpful in understanding why they may be seeking to work in particular ways. Some designers I've met will show an enormous range and number of things they've done, all in creative areas. Those designers are proving that they have broadly applicable creative and thinking skills, so that's a plus. A knowledge and familiarity with the field, and larger development history is also valuable. And a lot of time with a new candidate or teammember is simply discussion, rather than a Q and A grilling session. The kinds of people we look for to work with aren't being sought to fill a formally-described slot. We're looking for a flexible associate with potential to contribute in a variety of ways and grow as we also continue to learn and grow ourselves. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37669 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Information through sound.
Silence is golden. Leave it without a name. I've had plenty of people in
other languages not know how to convey their feeling in English (My one and
only tongue). They always get that look in their eyes and say what I want to
tell you I don't know the English equivalent for the word or phrase or their
is none. I think I like not knowing the English word rather than if they
said you make me feel R.E.D...
You know what I mean?
No pain, no gain.
I think I'm not struggling with it because I know the answer and find when
the need to explain something exceeds a certain limit it's worth to me is
minimal. I want you to find your answer though and would even enjoy hearing
what you agreed is the proper name. I might never call it that or give it
different name!
Good luck!
On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 1:48 PM, Leonardo Parra Agudelo <
lpa...@uniandes.edu.co> wrote:
>
> I was thinking that maybe "sound design" might not be the right way to call
> it, since it can be directly associated with film, if I'm not mistaken, it
> was Ben Burtt and Walter Murch who came up with the "sound design" term.
> And they work within the film industry.
> I know looking for terms can get yourself in a painful loop, but still, the
> question remains; question which also needs to be addressed within the
> realms where sound could/should be meaningful, making it even harder to find
> an adequate word (or combination of words) for it.
>
>
> traditional sound design, particularly within human-computer interaction,
>> is less of a
>> "design" discipline and more of a technical one, rooted in
>> perception or task-driven concerns. This means that, at best,
>> adopting a "sound design" stance in HCI has resulted in
>> usability-enhancing/interface-centric projects (e.g. "does it take
>> the user longer to do a particular task using an earcon (abstract
>> sound) or an auditory icon ("real world" sound, e.g. trashcan
>> emptying), and why?") or, at worst, the treatment of sound as an
>> "add-on"; something that can be done by a friend-of-a-friend who
>> owns a copy of Audacity, the end result being an incongruent mess
>> where sound and vision don't match (I don't count HCI researchers
>> within the latter though!).
>>
>>
> Leonardo Parra Agudelo
> Full Time Faculty
> Design Department
> Architecture and Design School
> Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá-Colombia [57-1]-3394949 xt 3268
>
>
>
>
>
> Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)!
> To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org
> 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 ... disc...@ixda.org
Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe
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Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Jonas Löwgren writes: My last question was about conceptual tools for articulation. Your reply referred mainly to tools/techniques for articulating design ideas. However, I was thinking also of language constructs for talking about what constitutes good interaction. The way I see it, this is one of the main elements of interaction design expertise (the "experience" we talked about earlier in this thread) and my personal approach is to try and articulate so-called experiential qualities to try and create a language in which experienced designers can express and communicate parts of their judgment skills. A: We have a lot of terms and concepts that fit this description. We've not formally compiled them (just something we don't have time to do in the manner it would require). They serve to label concepts and patterns associated with hierarchical and interrelational structure, navigational behaviors, states or situations that should be avoided (in general), and many more. Because we're always using these in context of examples (perhaps numerous examples), they're easier to grasp. I would be very interested to hear your examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Information through sound.
I was thinking that maybe "sound design" might not be the right way
to call it, since it can be directly associated with film, if I'm not
mistaken, it was Ben Burtt and Walter Murch who came up with the
"sound design" term. And they work within the film industry.
I know looking for terms can get yourself in a painful loop, but
still, the question remains; question which also needs to be
addressed within the realms where sound could/should be meaningful,
making it even harder to find an adequate word (or combination of
words) for it.
traditional sound design, particularly within human-computer
interaction, is less of a
"design" discipline and more of a technical one, rooted in
perception or task-driven concerns. This means that, at best,
adopting a "sound design" stance in HCI has resulted in
usability-enhancing/interface-centric projects (e.g. "does it take
the user longer to do a particular task using an earcon (abstract
sound) or an auditory icon ("real world" sound, e.g. trashcan
emptying), and why?") or, at worst, the treatment of sound as an
"add-on"; something that can be done by a friend-of-a-friend who
owns a copy of Audacity, the end result being an incongruent mess
where sound and vision don't match (I don't count HCI researchers
within the latter though!).
Leonardo Parra Agudelo
Full Time Faculty
Design Department
Architecture and Design School
Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá-Colombia [57-1]-3394949 xt 3268
Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)!
To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org
Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe
List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines
List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Information through sound.
yea, it's been like that since 2003. i think bazo got married. it's funny you say that though. when people send me some link to a polished design it really turns me off. i would never buy anything from a site that had beveled buttons. A developer just sent me a link for that browser...something -alon. and i did the title to fave.ico, scroll to bottom scan and asked...what is this? My only clue was it had something to do with athletics because of the -alon in the name. He said it's a browser. I'm thinking to myself, why the hell would I want another browser to comply to AND why did I not think like that when I willing and excitedly downloaded chrome. I said I will never use this EVER don't waste my time with this canned grunge. It was another slick marketing tool I could do without. It did turn out to be the browser for the olympics, why do we need a browser for the olympics is beyond me. But we have one and if someone likes using it good for them. >>A rather frugal website. I'm not sure what that implies. I was referencing him because of your interest in sound. As for the frugalness of sites. I never give just anyone the real deal. I give them enough to gauge them and see how they respond to not getting exactly what they think they want or need because I know that is what our time spent together is really going to be all about. Cheers : ) On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 1:28 PM, Leonardo Parra Agudelo < lpa...@uniandes.edu.co> wrote: > > A rather frugal website. > > > > On Jan 29, 2009, at 2:35 PM, Angel Marquez wrote: > > http://www.bazooie.com/ > > > Leonardo Parra Agudelo > lpa...@uniandes.edu.co > Full Time Faculty > Design Department > Architecture and Design School > Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá-Colombia [57-1]-3394949 xt 3268 > > > > > Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Tag clouds (and tagging)
Hi there, Yesterday I happened to stumble on this report on Tagging from the good folks at Pew Internet: http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/201/report_display.asp Cheers, Liz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37950 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Information through sound.
A rather frugal website. On Jan 29, 2009, at 2:35 PM, Angel Marquez wrote: http://www.bazooie.com/ Leonardo Parra Agudelo lpa...@uniandes.edu.co Full Time Faculty Design Department Architecture and Design School Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá-Colombia [57-1]-3394949 xt 3268 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Information through sound.
I'm game, count me in! : ) (a) sound is under-represented within interaction design, (b) there are more questions than answers in terms of how it can be encouraged, and (c) this makes it a very exciting field to work in. Join me in my journey... Leonardo Parra Agudelo Full Time Faculty Design Department Architecture and Design School Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá-Colombia [57-1]-3394949 xt 3268 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Question: Shouldn't the project (client | team) dictate the approach (agile, waterfall, top down, bottom up, side to side, wax the floor & whatever the hell RED is)? If you are providing a service for a variety of clients and depending on the nature of the project shouldn't you as a team be able to shift into different approaches smoothly at any given moment. Ramp up Agile, Production Waterfall, Ramp Down Genius because by then everyone should be an expert I didn't read any of the thread; so, I might be way off base. Happy Friday! On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 12:16 PM, Gabby wrote: > The core problem of this entire thread is that Mr. Leftwich did not > truly post an item for discussion--rather, he posted a long and > inscrutable essay that would have been better housed on (say) a > personal blog. > > I do believe that we have been used as a testing ground for a future > article submission. > > > . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . > Posted from the new ixda.org > http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 > > > > Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! > To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org > 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] What to do in an environment run by engineers??
Hi Ali: Good question. Agree with this: "If there is no pain %u2014 inotherwords, if the organization can't feel how their hard-to-use product is hurting them %u2014 then there is probably nothing you can do." - Jared Spool and this ... "I've made myself blue in the face trying to convince both clients and coworkers (simultaneously, mind you) of the value of IxD-related activities "in general." It nearly always fails until I am able to understand my clients' needs and then tailor my design approach directly to them." - Josh Evnin Both talk to an environment being receptive to the UX message. Or I call we call this "organization ripeness". We talk to some of this here -- Selling UX - http://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2008/10/selling-ux.php and here - http://www.slideshare.net/dszuc/selling-usability-in-organizations-presentation Quick tips: * Start with 1-2 engineers at a time (test your assumptions) * Don't try and sell the whole UCD process (it takes too long) and you will probably be pushing in "jargon" they may not have heard before. * Show how your UI/product improvements resulted in an improvement to business results (and share the joy with the team) Build from there ... rgds, Dan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37605 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] [PLUG] UIE Roadshow in Portland, Atlanta, and Minneapolis
[Apologies for any duplication.] Greetings, We're giving IxDA readers a special discount to our new UIE Roadshow: Secrets Behind Designing Great User Experiences, a full-day workshop, based on 10 years of UIE's extensive research, that will deliver new insights and inspire your team to create the best user experiences. This winter, we're taking this workshop on the road, to Portland, Minneapolis, and Atlanta. There, I'll share information with you that previously was only available to our biggest clients. You'll learn these secrets: - What you can learn from the design processes behind Apple, Nintendo, and Netflix - How you can get your team and designs to the next level - How constructing a solid experience vision is one of the most critical methods for getting your organization behind your UX efforts - What professional magicians know about using the art of illusion to simplify otherwise complex designs An eventful day, with a ton of detailed examples, hands-on exercises, my usual funny material, and, for the first time, live magic tricks! See the details of the full-day program at http://cli.gs/hMz45j We have limited seating in every city. We're coming to: - Portland, OR on Tuesday, February 17, 2009 - Minneapolis, MN on Thursday, February 19, 2009 - Atlanta, GA on Monday, March 2, 2009 We know the current economy is making things challenging. We also know what you'll learn in this workshop will make your design a critical part of your organization's strategy. Therefore, we've priced this seminar to make it easy to sign up. As an IxDA reader, you can use the IXDA promotion code, which qualifies you for the lowest individual price of $349 ($125 off). Or you can bring your team and group rates as low as $299 for each person. You won't find this quality of information for a price that good anywhere else. You can't afford to miss this Roadshow. Find out everything you need to know at http://www.uie.com/events/roadshow/ I hope to see you there, Jared M. Spool p.s. Register by 2/4 with IxDA to get the lowest individual rate of $399 and even lower group rates: http://www.uie.com/events/roadshow/ Jared M. Spool User Interface Engineering 510 Turnpike St., Suite 102, North Andover, MA 01845 e: jsp...@uie.com p: +1 978 327 5561 http://uie.com Blog: http://uie.com/brainsparks Twitter: jmspool Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] RED and Agile? (was Re: Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
On Sat, Jan 31, 2009 at 6:20 AM, Jared Spool wrote: > > On Jan 30, 2009, at 11:08 AM, Andrei Herasimchuk wrote: > > So, while I appreciate Jim's attempt to explain what kind of activities >> good designers practice, I'd really like to see the whole "RED" term live >> only for a brief moment as an anomaly on this list. >> > > Dammit! > > Why couldn't I have said that?? > > Jared > > I'm surprised that no-one has tied RED to Agile yet (or if they have, I've missed it, sorry) - the "rapid" bit might be the key to distinguishing a legitimate RED from Genuis from What The Rest Of Us Do. Cheers, Andrew -- --- Andrew Boyd http://uxbookclub.org -- connect, read, discuss http://govux.org -- the government user experience forum Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
Hi Helen, my 2 cents: > 1. What would be your estimate regarding the learning > curve (timewise) to becoming productive with Axure > without feeling like you are blowing the project > timelines for deliverables? I learned on the job with regular projects, putting in the extra time to watch the demos and playing around with the various patterns other users created. You can learn a lot in one day, but it'll probably take a week before you're really comfortable (I'm talking about the prototyping and/or specifications portions--dragging widgets over and making a wireframe a la Visio is obviously a snap). 2. Can you import Visio > drawings into Axure? Nope, but it's a common request so I'm sure it's something Axure has thought about. You can copy and paste but they'll turn into images which probably won't have the functionality you need when prototyping. But after the initial transfer over from Visio, you wouldn't have to use it again since your next project is from scratch. 3. My understanding is that > Axure produces html code. So how compliant is the > code when trying to ensure WCAG 2 compliant code? Like others have mentioned, the code is "optimized" for prototyping purposes. > 4. What are the downfalls of using Axure? - The widget library isn't as robust as Visio's stencil collection, but this is changing rapidly. The latest version update includes the ability to create custom widgets. - Windows-only, but you can use something like Parallels Desktop to work around this It's my favorite go-to tool! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37926 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
The core problem of this entire thread is that Mr. Leftwich did not truly post an item for discussion--rather, he posted a long and inscrutable essay that would have been better housed on (say) a personal blog. I do believe that we have been used as a testing ground for a future article submission. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
On Jan 30, 2009, at 11:08 AM, Andrei Herasimchuk wrote: So, while I appreciate Jim's attempt to explain what kind of activities good designers practice, I'd really like to see the whole "RED" term live only for a brief moment as an anomaly on this list. Dammit! Why couldn't I have said that?? Jared Jared M. Spool User Interface Engineering 510 Turnpike St., Suite 102, North Andover, MA 01845 e: jsp...@uie.com p: +1 978 327 5561 http://uie.com Blog: http://uie.com/brainsparks Twitter: jmspool UIE Web App Summit, 4/19-4/22: http://webappsummit.com Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
I was trying to stay away, but I feel compelled to interject a few thoughts here. The term "RED" is horrid. Why we (the collective we here) feel the need to first create artifice like "rapid expert design" and then get a bit too clever by then converting those terms to acronyms that read as words I'll never know. But I got turned off in the discussion a long time before simply because of the labeling. Terms like this tend to be meaningless in the long run. Largely because they unjustly redefine things that had already been defined more than appropriately in the past. My favorite conversations these days are the ones that go like: "So, how do you go about doing this? This design thing." "Oh. We follow a strict UCD methodology." "UCD?" "User Centered Design." "I see... but what about what the technology back-end? Isn't how the servers and pipes and all the coding that connects it part of your analysis?" "Absolutely!" "But that's not about the user. That's about technology. What does 'user centered' mean then?" "Oh. Part of UCD is studying the technology. And even the business needs. It's all UCD!" "Um. Ok. Well, let's move on then..." At some point, UCD becomes shorthand for what you should have been doing as a designer all along. And when people in organizations attach or put labels to such basic, fundamental things, in my opinion, it weakens the credibility of the organization and it's participants since they seem to be actively promoting the fact that they didn't know better in the first place. My take on this whole RED conversation is somewhat similar to UCD. I've long practiced doing my work in many of the same ways as Jim has described. But I was taught that those sorts of things were just basic and fundamental to how designers act. I was taught these things first in my days of set and lightening design in the theater, but I was also taught this early on in my conversion to Graphic Design. When moving over to Interface Design, I just brought those lessons over from other design professions since there was little information on what the whole thing was outside of reading Inside Macintosh. Things like, listening to the design lead, lots of iterative sketching, lots of prototyping and building, relying on cold hard experience to get past the low hanging fruit on a project quickly, taking accountability for one's own design work made with their own two hands, soliciting feedback from the very people who will use your product for their daily work, grouping up with engineers to better understand how the engine is architected and built so it's clear what is and is not possible, understanding what the person who pays your check needs and expects out of the design and engineering team, writing detailed specifications of everything about the design and engineering of the product, selling the solution to executives and making sure they agree with the course of the design, etc. Now, do I think Jim is actively trying to weaken the practice of interface or software design by creating a label like RED? No. My own personal conspiracy theory is that he did so because that's what people on this list do. They seem to make up jargon for things that don't need it. These terms only serve to act as exclusionary barriers for people getting into the field and makes us seem like aliens to those we work with on the job. It's been part of the tech sector's design practice history for a while now and it must stop, in my opinion. HCI, UX, GUI, IA, UCD etc. Give it a rest already please. Given my conversations with Jim in the past, I've never known him to resort to this shorthanded way of describing or discussing something, so I have to feel that the inertia of the group may have lead him down this path. I hope he backs up a little and rethinks putting RED into play in the profession. Why? Because the term seems like nothing more than shorthand for describing how a good designer BEHAVES. The things Jim describes are the habits that good designers learn over time, and simply become part of day to day life in the trenches. Just like anyone who practices a craft, there are things you do and that become ingrained into your blood as a matter of getting the work done. But those habits are not codified recipes or step-by-step processes. Designers have a process. Designers don't use a process. So, while I appreciate Jim's attempt to explain what kind of activities good designers practice, I'd really like to see the whole "RED" term live only for a brief moment as an anomaly on this list. -- Andrei Herasimchuk Principal, Involution Studios innovating the digital world e. and...@involutionstudios.com c. +1 408 306 6422 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe .
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
> > 1. What would be your estimate regarding the learning curve (timewise) to > becoming productive with Axure without feeling like you are blowing the > project timelines for deliverables? Spend 2 or days just playing around with it. Experiment with Masters and figure out how to emulate DHTML behaviors, etc. Then dive in. The learning curve is pretty low, but Axure only really comes to life once you figure out some of these less obvious things. 3. My understanding is that Axure produces html code. So how compliant is > the code when trying to ensure WCAG 2 compliant code? I wouldn't touch that code with a 10-foot pole. It's prototype code. Don't use it for anything real. 4. What are the downfalls of using Axure? It's Windows-only. If I could use it on my Mac, I would prefer it over OmniGraffle in a lot of cases. -r- Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Tag clouds (and tagging)
> > Does anyone know of any resources regarding the drawbacks of tag clouds or > the debate about their value versus their drawbacks. I have a bee in my > bonnet about them and would like write a point of view but want to do > appropriate research first. I can't talk about the actual data from the 40-participant usability study I was involved with about the usability and understandability of tag clouds, but I can tell you this: Almost no one understood the logic of the weighting of the tags. Many thought that certain links were larger because they were things the site designers wanted them to click. Some thought it was just "a design thing"—done purely to create visual appeal. While a few people came close, only one person accurately described how the tag cloud worked, and that was by reading to the moderator the instructive text, word for word, that explained it, and he did this only after being asked to—he ignored the text prior to this point. The instructive text appeared beneath the page title and above the tag cloud. In other cases, instructive text appeared beneath the tag cloud, at the bottom of the page, and went entirely unnoticed. Mostly, people just didn't care. It didn't help them, it sometimes confused them, and when looking for something specific, they strongly preferred the search function. In my experience, it's much more effective to use a straight, ranked list and avoid the cloud view. Giving slightly more visual weight to frequently-clicked links, as Yahoo's homepage sidebar offers, can be helpful, but I don't think it's necessary by any means. -r- Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
I've been a huge fan of Axure since making the switch from Visio. Axure sacrifices some control of the visual-flourishes that Visio allows, but if you are prototyping in low-fidelity then this is not a problem. In terms of learning curve, like others have said, it's basically similar to Visio plus extra interactive functionality. Learning these additional features is both fun and useful. As for AJAX, the Axure community has been thriving and people are working on these problems as we speak. For instance, Jeff Harrison recently came up with a very nice Drag & Drop simulation (see http://axure.com/cs/forums/post/4059.aspx - you need Axure to open it and generate to HTML). Animations are possible, they just require some magic and patience. Here's an animated drawer, for example: http://iconicarts.110mb.com/axure/drawer/ And never, ever use the prototype HTML in real production! Loren - http://acleandesign.com On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 2:32 PM, Gloria Petron wrote: > Hi Helen, > Once I started using Axure, I couldn't go back. I'm able to mock up > behavioral examples such as search and dynamic menus much more quickly than > I did in Dreamweaver. > Best, > Gloria > > Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! > To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org > 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Good examples of transitions
HI Baruch, They'll be loads of jQuery solutions... http://jquery.com/ Nik -Original Message- From: discuss-boun...@lists.interactiondesigners.com [mailto:discuss-boun...@lists.interactiondesigners.com] On Behalf Of Baruch Sachs Sent: 30 January 2009 16:53 To: disc...@ixda.org Subject: [IxDA Discuss] Good examples of transitions Hello all, Have a tabbed interface where a user will be doing work on a tab and submitting that work. Problem is the tab just goes away and goes to the next process they are working on and this has the tendency to confuse people. I am looking for examples of elegant transitions that dont require a person to to click anything or accept anything but lets them know that that something has happened and they are moving on. I have seen some good examples, but need more... Thanks, Baruch Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help This e-mail has been scanned for all viruses by Star. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] Good examples of transitions
Hello all, Have a tabbed interface where a user will be doing work on a tab and submitting that work. Problem is the tab just goes away and goes to the next process they are working on and this has the tendency to confuse people. I am looking for examples of elegant transitions that dont require a person to to click anything or accept anything but lets them know that that something has happened and they are moving on. I have seen some good examples, but need more... Thanks, Baruch Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
Hi Helen, Once I started using Axure, I couldn't go back. I'm able to mock up behavioral examples such as search and dynamic menus much more quickly than I did in Dreamweaver. Best, Gloria Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Hi Jared, > I like the name Genius Design because it means I'll never resort to it. But > I have met people in my travels who were capable of seeing and solving > problems without any research that took me years of research to uncover. > Those people are true geniuses in my mind. If one designer can come up with a good design, he should be a expert for target domain. This may means himself already in the domain for enough time, or if he's fresh, he pay for it by design research. If "solving problems without any research that took me years of research to uncover", it may means he understands domain very well before design while you are not, but this cant tell he's genius or not. And indeed there's great designer who can design effectively, but that doesn't mean he can design without insight of the domain, instead, this means he's capable of grasping the spirit in very effective way. >From this means, i prefer the expertise design instead of genius design. Genius is a description of the possible people instead of process or method. Regards, Jarod -- http://designforuse.blogspot.com/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
What does RED stand for again? Redundant Email Debating? --- On Fri, 1/30/09, Dave Malouf wrote: > From: Dave Malouf > Subject: Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.) > To: disc...@ixda.org > Date: Friday, January 30, 2009, 9:24 AM > Jonas, thank G-d! you're here. Great questions and Jim, > awesome > responses. > > Like Jonas I have another question regarding education. > When you speak of "junior designers" have these > designers been > through at least a formal bachelor design education like > yourself? > Are there things that designers should look for in that > formal > education, such as strong foundation skills. > > Lastly, when you review portfolios to understand the > potential of a > junior designer (future apprentice) what are the clues in > that > portfolio that highlight their potential. > > Like Jonas, what I see is actually quite excellent and maps > against > my own experiences of studio work and what I see us doing > here as > educators. > > I think there are a few problems in how we began this > conversation > that make for some of the antagonistic elements. First, we > were > assuming that Dan's framing of the 4 types of design is > precise, or > complete and in doing so, used the reference to > "Genius Design" as > our starting point. > > I've always had a problem with "genius" > design not so much b/c of > the arrogance of the term, but b/c of the way it does not > seem to > include all the methods that designers have been using for > the 100 > years previous to HF and HCI inclusion into the design > process that > makes up both UCD and ACD (to bring back Dan's > framework). > > Actually, despite the seeming "violence" of the > conversation, it > sounds like what you do is very much fits inside the > framework of > what I teach & have done in my own work but with some > spin and > bravado (and hard work) to make the rapid part come > together. > > I think you are right that there is no inherent > "competition" here > and in many ways, I can see how UCD approaches could > actually be > integrated into what I'm reading in your existing > framework during > stage one of information gathering. > > I still would like answers to my earlier questions about > "ideation" > and "strategy" (the question about telling got > answered). > > Can this approach of design be used for more open ended > problem sets > is really what I think I'm trying to get to? Where the > manifest > requests are not aligned with the true latent problem sets. > I.e. the > request to design a "sustainable" car, is the > manifest request to > the problem of transportation, not the problem of cars or > even > vehicles. > > You mentioned that you worked on highly complex IxD > problems like > mobile OSes (HUGE!), but still well defined. Have you done > issues > that were designing for scales to more about behavioral > economics or > other scales that are about designing 5-10 years out and > what are > examples and how did you approach them? > > -- dave > > > . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . > . . . . > Posted from the new ixda.org > http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 > > > > Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! > To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org > 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] Survey on UX conferences and workshops
I want to add that even if you've only been to one conference/workshop, please fill in the survey -- that will be an extra data point for that specific conference! *http://www.surveygizmo.com/s/99033/ux-conference-map * Thanks!! Russ -- Forwarded message -- From: Russell Wilson Date: Wed, Jan 28, 2009 at 11:12 PM Subject: Help me categorize UX-related conferences/workshops To: list IXDA I've been asked numerous times to recommend conferences and workshops to designers and usability professionals. I've decided to create a matrix to categorize the various events on two axis - 1) practical to theoretical 2) non-visual to visual If you have 5min, please take the following survey and help me create an accurate matrix: *http://www.surveygizmo.com/s/99033/ux-conference-map *I will of course publish the results as soon as I have a reasonable set of data. Best regards, Russ P.S. I may have excluded some important conferences/workshops. Please comment if you feel strongly that a particular conference should be added. Russell Wilson Vice President of Product Design, NetQoS Blog: http://www.dexodesign.com Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Tag clouds (and tagging)
Maureen, As Chauncey mentioned, there has been a lot of academic work done analyzing the effectiveness of tags and tag clouds. In addition to the ACM library, I recommend checking out CiteULike for papers about tagging (via, appropriately, the "tagging" tag). http://www.citeulike.org/search/all?q=tagging -- Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37950 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Jonas, thank G-d! you're here. Great questions and Jim, awesome responses. Like Jonas I have another question regarding education. When you speak of "junior designers" have these designers been through at least a formal bachelor design education like yourself? Are there things that designers should look for in that formal education, such as strong foundation skills. Lastly, when you review portfolios to understand the potential of a junior designer (future apprentice) what are the clues in that portfolio that highlight their potential. Like Jonas, what I see is actually quite excellent and maps against my own experiences of studio work and what I see us doing here as educators. I think there are a few problems in how we began this conversation that make for some of the antagonistic elements. First, we were assuming that Dan's framing of the 4 types of design is precise, or complete and in doing so, used the reference to "Genius Design" as our starting point. I've always had a problem with "genius" design not so much b/c of the arrogance of the term, but b/c of the way it does not seem to include all the methods that designers have been using for the 100 years previous to HF and HCI inclusion into the design process that makes up both UCD and ACD (to bring back Dan's framework). Actually, despite the seeming "violence" of the conversation, it sounds like what you do is very much fits inside the framework of what I teach & have done in my own work but with some spin and bravado (and hard work) to make the rapid part come together. I think you are right that there is no inherent "competition" here and in many ways, I can see how UCD approaches could actually be integrated into what I'm reading in your existing framework during stage one of information gathering. I still would like answers to my earlier questions about "ideation" and "strategy" (the question about telling got answered). Can this approach of design be used for more open ended problem sets is really what I think I'm trying to get to? Where the manifest requests are not aligned with the true latent problem sets. I.e. the request to design a "sustainable" car, is the manifest request to the problem of transportation, not the problem of cars or even vehicles. You mentioned that you worked on highly complex IxD problems like mobile OSes (HUGE!), but still well defined. Have you done issues that were designing for scales to more about behavioral economics or other scales that are about designing 5-10 years out and what are examples and how did you approach them? -- dave . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Tag clouds (and tagging)
// Sorry, forgot to CC the list! Please see below: Hi, Maureen! Maureen said: >> Does anyone know of any resources regarding the drawbacks of tag clouds or >> the debate about their value versus their drawbacks. Not offhand, but here's as good as any place to create a resource, eh? Tags themselves are great for a list of reasons longer than the Bayeux Tapestry. However, I have one key drawback I can think of right away about tag *clouds* and that is accessibility. As far as I can tell, the purpose of a tag cloud is 100% to serve visual users unless some fine respondent wants to shoot that down. It is at any rate not at all straightforward for the user of aural and/or low vision technologies to "get" the value of a tag cloud. Time and again, I see less popular tags in tiny, tiny text. Resize the text in the browser and the big tags fill the entire viewport! Then if you're just using CSS to do your font sizes, how do you effectively emphasise the relationships between tags for aural users? Plus we already know that Aural CSS has about as much support as Rod Blagojevich: http://lab.dotjay.co.uk/notes/css/aural-speech/ You could take a different approach by supplying additional, perhaps hidden, info. In working up to his last example here ... http://24ways.org/2006/marking-up-a-tag-cloud ... Mr Francis quite rightly bemoans the lack of semantic "infusion" but his finished example is not particularly engaging for a user of assistive technologies. Consider the effect of our poor old screenreader hacking through that tag cloud. Listening to that would be like spending a wet weekend in Bangor. Just in case you think I'm getting a bit puffed up about this, I use a badly marked up tag cloud myself on my own site. I even hide the tags themselves. Why? Well for one thing, it's my site and I'm allowed to. But really it's because when you hide the tags themselves and just show the block, then do some stuff to harmoniously randomise the colours, the result is web-based Mondrian, and I love it. It's a visual effect and I love Mondrian. But then I wouldn't presume to take a blind person on a date to MOMA. Thanks, Mike --- www.mikepadgett.com --- > >>Hi All, >> >>Does anyone know of any resources regarding the drawbacks of tag >>clouds or the debate about their value versus their drawbacks. I have >>a bee in my bonnet about them and would like write a point of view but >>want to do appropriate research first. I found one previous thread >>herein and intend to google into the wee hours but if anyone can help >>shorten my research time by pointing me in a direction, I’d be most >>appreciative. >> >>And of course, if anyone in the group has opinions, they are most >>welcome as well J >> >>Thanks, >>Maureen >> >> >>Maureen Murphy >>President >> >> >> >> >> >> >>516-670-8000 >>www.usabilitymedic.com >> >> >> >> >>Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! >>To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org >>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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Tag clouds (and tagging)
Hello Maureen, If you have access to the ACM Digital Library, you'll find some articles that might be useful. For example, here is one that has some information on the visual properties of tag clouds: Bateman, S., Gutwin, C., and Nacenta, M. 2008. Seeing things in the clouds: the effect of visual features on tag cloud selections. In *Proceedings of the Nineteenth ACM Conference on Hypertext and Hypermedia* (Pittsburgh, PA, USA, June 19 - 21, 2008). HT '08. ACM, New York, NY, 193-202. DOI= http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/1379092.1379130 Here is a portion of the abstract: "Tag clouds are a popular method for visualizing and linking socially-organized information on websites. Tag clouds represent variables of interest (such as popularity) in the visual appearance of the keywords themselves - using text properties such as font size, weight, or colour. Although tag clouds are becoming common, there is still little information about which visual features of tags draw the attention of viewers. As tag clouds attempt to represent a wider range of variables with a wider range of visual properties, it becomes difficult to predict what will appear visually important to a viewer. To investigate this issue, we carried out an exploratory study that asked users to select tags from clouds that manipulated nine visual properties. Our results show that font size and font weight have stronger effects than intensity, number of characters, or tag area; but when several visual properties are manipulated at once, there is no one property that stands out above the others." A few more Web references: Kasser, O., & Lemire, D. Tag-Cloud Drawing: Algorithms for Cloud Visualization. Proc. Tagging and Metadata for Social Information Organization Workshop. In conjunction with WWW '07. 10 pages. Available at www2007.org/workshops/paper_12.pdf Hassan-Montero, Y., & Herrero-Solana, V. Improving tag-clouds as visual information retrieval interfaces. Proc. InfoSciT2006. 6 pages. Available at http://www.nosolousabilidad.com/hassan/ improving_tagclouds.pdf Zeldman, J. Tag clouds are the new mullets. Accessed Sept. 8, 2007. http://www.zeldman.com/daily/0405d.shtml You might deconstruct tag clouds into goals, objects, and attributes and look at the consequences of changes in those items: Number of items presented Algorithms for sizing Size difference to input difference Color Font Ordering (alpha versus most frequent to least frequent) Size of text Goals and whether there is a user goal that calls for tag clouds Degree of clutter of the cloud Number of words allowed in an item in the cloud Using other variables beside frequency to create the cloud Adjusting the tag cloud (look at the cloud by gender/age/and other variables. I might be curious what items are popular with "Interaction designers" for example. Chauncey .. On Thu, Jan 29, 2009 at 1:32 PM, USABILITY MEDIC wrote: > Hi All, > > Does anyone know of any resources regarding the drawbacks of tag clouds or > the debate about their value versus their drawbacks. I have a bee in my > bonnet about them and would like write a point of view but want to do > appropriate research first. I found one previous thread herein and intend > to google into the wee hours but if anyone can help shorten my research time > by pointing me in a direction, I'd be most appreciative. > > And of course, if anyone in the group has opinions, they are most welcome > as well J > > Thanks, > Maureen > > > Maureen Murphy > President > > > > > > > 516-670-8000 > www.usabilitymedic.com > > > > > Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! > To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org > 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Jim, Thanks a lot for your comprehensive and clear answers. I believe they may add a lot more flesh on the RED bones also for other list members. Personally, I simply support more or less everything you do. Seems to me like your shop is pretty much an example of interaction design best-practice in terms of practicum learning. Your practices also agree to a great extent with my experiences from teaching interaction design in a studio setting. Just a couple of suggestions -- points where I feel you could perhaps benefit from taking the scaffolding a little further. When you talk about debriefing and knowledge sharing after projects, you largely refer to documentation and substantial discussion of design artifacts. I would imagine that there is learning leverage to be gained from a meta-level debriefing session where the design process as such is replayed, analyzed, hypothetically improved upon. All this also done in a master/apprentice model, of course, where seniors would do most of the analysis and tutor the juniors into gradually doing it themselves. My last question was about conceptual tools for articulation. Your reply referred mainly to tools/techniques for articulating design ideas. However, I was thinking also of language constructs for talking about what constitutes good interaction. The way I see it, this is one of the main elements of interaction design expertise (the "experience" we talked about earlier in this thread) and my personal approach is to try and articulate so-called experiential qualities to try and create a language in which experienced designers can express and communicate parts of their judgment skills. (I have a few examples in case you are interested.) - Again, thanks for a very interesting account of your practice! (Could I come and work for you in case I get tired of academia? ;-) Jonas Löwgren Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
My responses to Jonas Löwgren (Part 2 of 2): Q: Do you work systematically with product reviews and criticism in your teams? A: Yes, absolutely. We all constantly test and play with all manners of things. We pass things around and take turns trying out things. And we talk constantly about these things. Knowing about how things work and behave is our lifeblood. We also keep abreast of a number of industry and market trends and track a number of competitive fields. We don't do this formally. We do this informally and constantly. We also pay attention to our initial observations and first impressions of things we analyze. Contrary to the often-repeated warning that we're somehow not "regular people," we often discuss the importance of being able to understand and empathize with the non-expert lay user, and I believe it's possible for designers to develop that empathy and ability. It really is possible to put oneself in the shoes of a range of users. It's partly the lifelong job of good designers to be astute observers of people, and pay attention to them when they're using many kinds of things. A good deal, and perhaps a huge majority of what makes all manners of things easily usable are common, not specific. There are qualities that can be imbued in any interactive design, whether a product, software, service, or system that will benefit users. Easy to recognize and learn patterns, minimal navigational load, and dozens of other things we see again and again across many projects. We have many years of experience in designing small devices and systems, and playing with existing products along with our own which we've had become real, have taught us a lot. We look for opportunities to transmit this to our junior associates in as many ways as we can. We also do a lot of critiques of our iterative designs. We certainly do walkthroughs of our designs periodically to keep everyone in synch. This is necessary because there are times we'll go off and work on certain portions of a project and we'll periodically come together to integrate and reconcile our patterns and interrelationships for consistency and simplification. Our goal is the most minimal and fully functional elegance, with the fewest elemental archetypes and interactions. I've done this alone, and it simply takes longer. Multiple designers can power through a lot of options and alternatives much faster, if they're practiced at doing this and working productively together. There are certain co-consultants I work with where we speak in a dense shorthand, and can work through incredibly complex problems and solution spaces quite quickly because we share a very extensive language of concepts, models, and shared experiences. Q: Do you have procedures for debriefing and knowledge sharing after project milestones and completions? A: Yes. We generally compile a lot of documentation from our projects. This is then reviewable and can be compared to the same from other projects. We also often have real production embodiments to work with at certain milestones, so we pound on that pretty extensively, and will often grab people nearby to do the same, noting their feedback. More often than not, our designs work as we assumed they would. We use feedback to tweak the results. I don't recall ever having to start over, or make a drastic change of course. Our paper design process leads to strong confidence of how things will work, and we work close enough with engineers (either on our team or with clients) to know that the behavior can be achieved as we intend before we move forward. Q: How are you working with conceptual tools for articulation of practical knowing, such as patterns or experiential qualities? A: We use a combination of the type of paper maps, flows, and element-perfect (and later pixel perfect or CAD-perfect) specs along with copious narrative descriptions and creative ad hoc use of metaphors. Our discussions are actually very much like strings of mixed metaphors, and this is a great aid in expressing complex and interrelated concepts . It's actually here where I think language is a very imporant skill and talent for RED practitioners. Some of the best RED practitioners I've known came from writing and film backgrounds, which is not surprising. They understand flow and narrative, which are both important components of effective interaction design. Interaction design, unlike industrial design, graphic design, or building architecture, is difficult if not impossible to "capture" in an image or text description. The quality of any interaction design (beyond what's in the minds of the designers), must be used and discovered by others. We've found that some designers are much better at grasping and growing in interaction design skill. There are some young designers that after one project I know for certain that there is a very valuable master designer within them, waiting to evolve. Discovering this, is without a dou
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Jonas Löwgren writes: "However, there is at least one question I would like to ask Jim from within a traditional-design perspective. A general problem in developing design ability is the relative inefficiency of the learning process. Apprenticing and peripheral participation is the most common strategy and it generally takes a long time to reach expert levels of experience and performance. Does the RED approach contain any provisions for increasing the pace of learning? Do you work systematically with product reviews and criticism in your teams? Do you have procedures for debriefing and knowledge sharing after project milestones and completions? How are you working with conceptual tools for articulation of practical knowing, such as patterns or experiential qualities? I can't seem to find any references to learning and scaffolding of expertise development in your posts so far." My responses to Jonas Löwgren (Part 1 of 2): Jonas makes some very thoughtful observations and raises a number of important questions. These are very helpful in delving deeper. Q: Does the RED approach contain any provisions for increasing the pace of learning? A: In the same way that Marine Basic Training produces a lot of physical and mental conditioning in a relatively short time frame, so do the crucibles of RED consulting projects present young apprentice designers with much larger demands than are found in typical structured corporate settings. There are always, in the projects I've been involved with and that I've observed, frequent group review and brainstorming and whiteboarding. It's very important that the thought processes of the seniors take place in front of and in collaboration with the junior members (if a team setting). Often projects will begin with the review (individually and as a group) of an existing product, software, service, or system. Seniors usually start out by establishing (from experience) some starting directions and ideas, and using this as an opportunity to explain in depth past similar experiences and designs. We will often as part of this process bring out extensive past project documentation and show what parts may be similar, what aspects may differ, and discuss in great depth the lessons learned. Dialog is constant with young designers. In our experience, some young designers merely watch and take direction to begin with. As time goes on, it's also common for particular talents and capabilities to emerge, and those are reinforced and used as part of how we divvy up the developmental responsibilities. Junior teammembers are compelled to defend their ideas, and I believe the best master designers are very respectful toward these, and seek to draw them out and challenge them to both think bigger at times, and other times focus in. RED projects are like gyms. Designers that work on them are exercised in their skills, and in broad-based consultancies, they're exposed to a wide range of products, software, services, and systems. So it's like cross-training. RED apprentices, junior designers, associates, and seniors are always stretching and pushing. Because the situations and environments that RED tackles require a lot be accomplished in a short period of time. (Actually, over the past twenty years, the average time frame of a design project has steadily and dramatically shortened. However the complexity of the projects has often grown larger. In other words, many projects seem nearly impossible. This is where RED goes to work and succeeds - in our documented experiences.) It is my opinion and observation that designers who work with experienced RED practitioners and teams grow faster and more broadly and integrative in their skills and experiences than they might in other, more constrained, structured, managed and process-oriented design environments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
If you're looking to create WCAG prototypes, why not look at the Polypage jQuery plugin. You can then build your own xhtml/css templates and maintain complete control of the code. It also gives you a great starting point for the build as well. http://code.new-bamboo.co.uk/polypage/ Nik Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
Hi there, Helen, Couple of things to throw in on this one, hopefully without muddying the waters: *** AJAX, Axure and prototyping *** Becky Reed, earlier: "Depicting the more animated features available through JS libraries (like drag and drop) is tough" Becky's absolutely right about that. Not that I would single out Axure, it's just that the problem probably goes deeper than any particular brand of prototyping software. It's been alluded to already: http://www.andersramsay.com/2008/10/29/three-reasons-why-i-dont-use-prototyping-tools/ (and subsequently) http://toddwarfel.com/archives/three-reasons-not-to-use-prototyping-tools/ ... and attempts have been made to address it ... http://particletree.com/features/a-designers-guide-to-prototyping-ajax/ But as Anders says, the tools themselves are always playing catch-up. Vendors can only really follow up with patterns reflecting what we've already created by a consensus of good usability. Or, to put it in blunt and grossly unfair terms, they take what we created and sell it back to us as workflow! Hey, just kidding ;-) *** WCAG prototypes *** I also wondered why you were interested in generating WCAG code for your prototype. Is it because you intend to test your prototype with assistive technology users as your test subjects? With the best will in the world, Axure and friends would probably find it pretty tough to do genuinely accessible output. So if that is indeed your requirement, I would recommend that you go "grassroots" and build some basic XHTML/CSS focusing on the specific functionality you want to test (rather than building whole page layouts, for example). Mike Padgett --- www.mikepadgett.com --- >1. My experience (myself and a production designer) has been the learning >curve isn't too bad...a few days of intense work and a trial run learning how >dynamic panels and events need to be layered to work best. I've used Visio (a >lot), Dreamweaver, and a few other low fidelity options in times past...I >thought it was pretty easy for the lovely working results you get. There are >also libraries for Axure these days which would have probably saved me some >time if they were available when I first started using Axure. > >2. I have used Visio stuff in Axure a bunch. Axure doesn't format text as >nicely as sometimes required (the wrap on bullet points - even for greeked >text - distracting!) so I bring in Visio stuff when necessary. I just bring >them in as images, so I don't know if you mean that or preserving Visio >interactions that are possible with VB (never tried that - wouldn't seem >possible). > >3. Nope, nada. Step away!! Lots of image maps and so forth. Nope. Nope. Nope. >I'd love to see a prototyping tool that is actually as useful and budgetable >as Axure that does produce compliant code though...perhaps my own ignorance >here. There was a product called...mmm...don't remember...it was like the talk >of the conferences a year ago...anyway...just didn't have Axure's features and >my engineers would freak if I delivered them code...so I didn't march any >further down that front. > >4. Depicting the more animated features available through JS libraries (like >drag and drop) is tough. It's a little "Wait! Pretend this happened!" and less >"Ding!" or "Swsh!" It does seem like a loved and cared for product, so I >sit here in my cube...always hopeful. > >Since you mentioned documentation - they seem to have done a lot around that, >but I still haven't reached nirvana on that...I do a lot of stuff that seems >to work best using their notion of dynamic panels (ala web app) vs. their >notion of pages (ala traditional refresh sort of thing) and I have found >generating ready-to-go specs a bit of a challenge. > >Becky Reed > >-Original Message- >From: discuss-boun...@lists.interactiondesigners.com >[mailto:discuss-boun...@lists.interactiondesigners.com] On Behalf Of Helen >Killingbeck >Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2009 5:45 PM >To: IXDA list >Subject: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions > >Thinking about using Axure for prototyping as there are many great benefits >from a documentation point of view. >However I am wondering about the learning curve and the ability to import >previously documented high level page structures (Visio) > > >Questions >1. What would be your estimate regarding the learning curve (timewise) to >becoming productive with Axure without feeling like you are blowing the >project timelines for deliverables? > >2. Can you import Visio drawings into Axure? > >3. My understanding is that Axure produces html code. So how compliant is >the code when trying to ensure WCAG 2 compliant code? > >4. What are the downfalls of using Axure? > >Thanks in advance. > >Helen > >Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! >To post to this list ... disc...@ixda
[IxDA Discuss] Fwd: Rapid Expert Design (R.E.D.)
Elizabeth, As always the answer is - it depends...:) .. For lack of time I can only broadly 'sketch' what happens with scenarios in the context of our work - if we are calling 'scenario' the same thing... Keep in mind that everything in our world is considered through a tight lens of time-budget-expected/desired outcome... so here are a few basic points: - Often there are a bunch of "use-cases" delivered by the engineering team during the Discovery phase(as ppt, printed pages etc). - There is a quick review and analysis of these, we attempt to answer questions like: are these cases accurate? are they really relevant? Do they address what application and users are supposed to do? ... a lot of decisions here are dictated by what we already know, or learned from engineering team and from user interviews that often run in parallel. When client has nothing, no scenarios , no documented use cases -- we create all from scratch (there is a positive and negative side to it)... we do it quickly and to a necessary degree (based on Lead designer judgement) - Based on that analysis there could be a quick preliminary clean-up, compression (out of 10 use cases only 1-2 may be really important, relevant) or there could be some important scenarios missing ... or there could be a partial reframing of scenarios... Quick diagrams are created, discussed with client to make sure that we are on the same page - In the following Conceptualization phase there could be a complete rethinking of scenarios, and new scenarios (flows) created.. - If new proposed flows are so radically different - then we may create a very rough click-through and run very limited tests with users Again - most of it decided on the fly and based on lead designer judgement... - After detailed wireframes are completed there is typically a quick walk through with 2-3 users representing major user profiles/ personae ... this helps to quickly uncover small or secondary issues ... hope this helps, Yury Frolov Design Director, Studio Asterisk* GUI Strategy | User Experience | Brand 415 374 7478 voice 702 446 7840 fax www.studioasterisk.com On Jan 29, 2009, at 5:08 PM, Elizabeth Bacon wrote: Hi Jim, If you have a second, I have a question about your experience of RED. To what extent do you & your team utilize scenarios as a rapid prototyping tool? Question also extended to Yury and others who've practiced or do practice the RED approach. Cheers, Liz P.S. My bias is that scenarios are indispensible for RED even if there's no good or direct user research to utilize. P.P.S. For the record, I *much* prefer this term to Genius Design, which is far too pejorative & pretentious sounding. Hey, maybe we can get Dan Saffer to adjust the term in his upcoming revision of "designing for interaction"! ;) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37626 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions
1. My experience (myself and a production designer) has been the learning curve isn't too bad...a few days of intense work and a trial run learning how dynamic panels and events need to be layered to work best. I've used Visio (a lot), Dreamweaver, and a few other low fidelity options in times past...I thought it was pretty easy for the lovely working results you get. There are also libraries for Axure these days which would have probably saved me some time if they were available when I first started using Axure. 2. I have used Visio stuff in Axure a bunch. Axure doesn't format text as nicely as sometimes required (the wrap on bullet points - even for greeked text - distracting!) so I bring in Visio stuff when necessary. I just bring them in as images, so I don't know if you mean that or preserving Visio interactions that are possible with VB (never tried that - wouldn't seem possible). 3. Nope, nada. Step away!! Lots of image maps and so forth. Nope. Nope. Nope. I'd love to see a prototyping tool that is actually as useful and budgetable as Axure that does produce compliant code though...perhaps my own ignorance here. There was a product called...mmm...don't remember...it was like the talk of the conferences a year ago...anyway...just didn't have Axure's features and my engineers would freak if I delivered them code...so I didn't march any further down that front. 4. Depicting the more animated features available through JS libraries (like drag and drop) is tough. It's a little "Wait! Pretend this happened!" and less "Ding!" or "Swsh!" It does seem like a loved and cared for product, so I sit here in my cube...always hopeful. Since you mentioned documentation - they seem to have done a lot around that, but I still haven't reached nirvana on that...I do a lot of stuff that seems to work best using their notion of dynamic panels (ala web app) vs. their notion of pages (ala traditional refresh sort of thing) and I have found generating ready-to-go specs a bit of a challenge. Becky Reed -Original Message- From: discuss-boun...@lists.interactiondesigners.com [mailto:discuss-boun...@lists.interactiondesigners.com] On Behalf Of Helen Killingbeck Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2009 5:45 PM To: IXDA list Subject: [IxDA Discuss] Axure - Questions...and more questions Thinking about using Axure for prototyping as there are many great benefits from a documentation point of view. However I am wondering about the learning curve and the ability to import previously documented high level page structures (Visio) Questions 1. What would be your estimate regarding the learning curve (timewise) to becoming productive with Axure without feeling like you are blowing the project timelines for deliverables? 2. Can you import Visio drawings into Axure? 3. My understanding is that Axure produces html code. So how compliant is the code when trying to ensure WCAG 2 compliant code? 4. What are the downfalls of using Axure? Thanks in advance. Helen Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org 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 ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] ID vs email address
What kind of a site is it? The security you need to have should be a primary driver in this one. An email address is EASILY phishable. If I know your (or any) email address, I am half way into your account. I am just one weak password away from your details. Also, what is the user opinion on HAVING to supply you with an email address? I wouldnt cough mine up easily, but I would easily cough up my handle. If your site 100% relies on needing an email address, and your site does not have a lot of security concerns, then use it. Why not. Otherwise, consider a handle instead. Chris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37879 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Usability of accordions
1. I think is fine, especially if it is promotional content. It may actually be helpful depending on your graphic design... sometime accordions don't stand out as accordions, and need a little eye pull... just make sure it doesnt happen too frequently, too fast, or too slow, unless any of those go with the feel / message of your site. 2. I DEFINITELY ADVISE AGAINST THIS. People when they are reading tend to move their mouse around, which can cause a problem for hover-state reacting interaction elements. I find hover states best for menu's or highlighting content... not so much for manipulating things that will require attention. 3. Mouseclick to alter state is definitely preferred. A click shows intent, and accidental clicks are rare... if the users mouse is even on the accordion bar (which is rather long and narrow generally), then its there for a reason (they have figured out the functionality)... it wont take them long to figure out to click. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=36908 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] ID vs email address
There is no question that a user should be able to sign into a website account using any of the emails associated with their account, AND the username they have created for the site. For interaction on the site, it is better to identify the user by their username (as opposed to email)... but when it comes to signing in, either should work. I also now recommend, in addition to OpenID which has been mentioned here a couple of times, considering using Facebook Connect. It is not only an easy and convenient way to sign in, but it also allows the user to broadcast interaction on your site, back to their facebook newsfeed now you are getting free advertising to that users relevant social group. Secondly, integrating Facebook Connect also allows you to see that users Facebook profile information, and the information of their friends... you can only store it for a day (I think), but you can create experiences that are highly tailored to the individual user because you know so much about them. I strongly advise looking into it... it is one of the most powerful advances in SSID and the social graph that we have seen to date. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37879 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Designing for sound
Hello Jerome! In stead of theory here are some findings from projects.. For the last two years I've been working on two separate mobility (PDA) concepts, both where sound came to be a challenge. One of them is an application for security guards, where sound discipline is critical. Walking around alone at night trying to pay attention to everything without being seen, you can't have a PDA in your belt beeping away for every incoming message. But some messages are critical and urgent - and that was the challenge. After some thinking and experimenting we found that the length of the sound was the best way to divert between critical and not so critical messages. It was partly based on a suggestion that low volume sounds are hard to recognise from each other. But the most important idea was that - without any training up front - a longer sound intuitively should "feel" more important than a short one. ..together with vibration of course.. And usability tests confirmed the idea - it worked! For the other project the challenge is the oposite. Logistic workers, outdoors at a huge an very noisy industrial plant. The interesting part here is this: These guys are wearing professional ear protection, even with noise reduction. And with huge trucks and mobile cranes constantly roaring by, vibration doesn't work. This led us to a cool experiment with pitch rather than volume or pattern (melody). We're not finished yet but some inital testing suggests that we're on to some effective sounds that are able to penetrate those ear protections. Hope this was somewhat useful to you, Jerome. Any similar projects anyone? While I'm at it - is there anyone here who have some experience with the DEXTERRA mobility software? Regards Frank Dahle UX concept developer Oslo/Norway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=37774 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
