faces found

I found faces (or semi-faces) in many places (and I'm a poet, and I didn't know it) some are slight stretches, but in any case:

I found a squishy face in the butterfly chair (the lip of the chair plus 2 dimples for the eyes)

the power outlet scared face

a face on my door with the screws as the eyes and the lock as the nose.

if you squint at the remote you can see the face. (the bottom of the circle as the mouth, the plus sign as the nose, and the two buttons on top as the eyes.)

the top view of the faucet kind of looks like a giraffe face

the tower fan's screws/eyes make it look like a cross between Wall-E and r2d2

the can kind of looks like a really happy cyclops with the opening as the wide open mouth.

The top of the tower fan looks like a smile

the ethernet cable ports look like a face with something coming out of one of the eyes

cr04

This past week we talked about accessibilty as well as did our scavenger hunt for various things around campus. I found the accessiblilty lecture very interesting and as a shorter than average height person, where things aren't always made to be easy for me to interact with, I can't even imagine how hard it must be for someone who is confined to a wheelchair or has other physical disabilities.

Many times being short I have to be creative when trying to reach something off a high shelf or grabbing a hanger from a high rack in a store, although I used to watch "Little People, Big World" a Tv show of a family of little people who went through their every day lives trying to manage in a world that wasn't made for them. One of the things that really struck me was that during one episode when they were planning renovations for their home and the city wouldn't allow them to make a railing that was a comfortable size for them because it wasn't up to the city's code.

I did not particularly enjoy the scavenger hunt because I found it difficult to think of creative ways to capture interesting aspects of certain buildings on campus in sub-freezing temperatures. Not only that, but the SEL and math tower are two of the less interesting buildings on campus. Why not learn about the architect of Scott lab (I must admit, I'm a bit biased because I actually spend time in Scott, but the glass and metal combination is really cool... same with the glass bridge). I thought the scavenger hunt would be more smaller clues rather then just a few more involved clues (having to create a composition with large buildings sometimes proved challenging).

rr04

haskett 7-8

Identities:

Identities are important and can evolve overtime to reflect a new or updated image. Many times images/products are changed across different cultures, but not always.

One example of an unsuccessful presentation of an image is Sears or Black and Decker.
Both of these companies strike me as very hardware and automotive type companies, yet they both have branched off into other industries. Sears is a department store that sells clothes and Black and Decker sells small home appliances (like coffee makers). Whenever I think of Sears I only think of power tools and tires.

PS: about the Korean refrigerators... i love kimchee:)

Systems:

"A system can be regarded as a group of interacting, interrelated, or interdependent elements that forms, or can be considered to form a collective entity" (97).

There were many different types of systems mentioned in this chapter including informational, and manufacturing systems (Just-in-time, and different types of customization manufacturing)

In my experience, the best sort of design communication systems are when they work so seamlessly that you can hardly notice them. Airports and metrostations can be very confusing, but depending on how well the signage can communicate the different paths and options that people need to follow in order to make it to their destination in a timely manner.

The BART in San Francisco is an example of a good system. With all of the signage and the minimal confusion and the brightly colored lines, it is fairly clear and easy to learn.

survey

In this survey, a sampling of facebook friends took part in a surveymonkey survey which allowed for participation on their own time. In total, there were 13 respondants, 7 females, 6 males between the ages of 18 and 21. Five questions were asked of the participants including: Where are you from? What is your favorite Candy bar? What is your favorite OSU Campus food? What their peanut butter preferences are, and how they feel about Lebron James.

In these seemingly random questions I expected there to be a trend toward certain answers, though they were not always the case. When trying to steer answers to a smaller grouping of potential answers in order to find a trend (such as the candy bar question), it didn't exactly work out to my benefit. In wanting to limit people to saying their favorite candy bar, I had thought it was implied that a favorite candy bar would be made of some sort of chocolate (like 3 musketeers or Milky way), yet there were some respondents that did not answer the survey in such a way, and the results were not as clear cut as intended.

My guesses were the following:
1. cinncinati
2. milky way
3. Rpac
4. smooth
5. do not like Lebron James

Overall my guesses were about right, except for numbers 2,3, and 5.


In the following graphs and diagrams, one can see the patterns of answers that were observed:














All photos courtesy of google images search

cr03

While I'm always interested to learn more about the design process and seeing it in action, I have seen the IDEO deep dive video wayy too many times. I'll give it to you, its informative and a good example of innovation and the design process in action, but I'm just wondering how many more times I must watch it. I've seen it in high school, in one of my engineering classes, in Design 230, and now design 200? I appreciate this video for being the catalyst to my interest in becoming a product designer, and I wrote one of my college essays on it and I even got to see the shopping cart in person at the IDEO headquarters in Palo Alto, but seriously enough is enough! I sincerely hope that I will not have to watch this video in any other classes of mine because there must be another video like it (please... anything...)

heskett 4-6

These three chapters essentially cover the mediums through which the different types of designers design (industrial/product, VC, and interior space)

Objects:

Something I found interesting in this chapter is the concept that designers have to create products that people relate to. In the case of Jonathan Ives, he was behind the New iMacs of 1998 that introduced the see-through fun plastic casing. In 1998 I remember wanting this computer, not because I knew about its specifications, but merely because I thought it looked cool. Many designers, especially those at Apple understand that there are many products out there that can fit the needs that people have, but to make it so cheap so as to blow their competition out of the water, or to make their product so cool that they blow their competition out of the water (what Apple continually chooses) is the way to win.

communications:

What people don't necessarily realize is that communication is everywhere. Signs, pictures, directions, and if the function correctly, then you hardly notice them and they become a seamless part of your day, but when they don't work is when they begin to stick out like a sore thumb. An example of bad visual communication that I've experienced recently was at the Paris Charles DeGaulle airport. Exhausted from our trip, all we wanted was to get home seamlessly. Unfortunately, the directions and airport employees were not at all helpful in navigating from one terminal to the next in order to make our connecting flight. Even though many of the signs were in English, they were still not sufficiently clear, especially when traveling with an elderly person who is not able to walk quickly, or for long distances.


environments:

I always find it interesting the differences between the homes of people in America and in other cultures and continents. In america, our houses have grown since the last generation, and all we want is more...
In places such as Europe and Asia, rooms are smaller and space is used more consciously. I've seen modest apartments in Spain and i've noticed how their space and energy resources are used more efficiently, even in hotels. I think America needs to take a cue from other parts of the world and attempt to scale down from our 'supersized' lifestyles.

When re-doing our kitchen, we attempted to get help from an interior designer to help figure out the colors for paint, tile and granite, but we were not satisfied with the fact that we as the clients were not being listened to, but rather given what the designer wanted us to have.

Jonathan Ive (Long post)

Jonathan Ive
Product Designer



Jonathan Ive, the mastermind behind the design on Apple essentially possesses my dream job as the head of Apple Industrial Design group. Ive was born in 1967 in Chingford England (wikipedia.com). From a young age, Ive posessed an interest in products and objects, always wanting to take them apart and see their form and how they were made. It wasn't until around age 13 that Ive was certain that he wanted to be able to go into designing things, although he was interested in designing everything and anything (cars, boats, products, furniture...) Ive went on to study Art and Design at Newcastle Polytechnic where he learned the basics of color and shape design [http://designmuseum.org/design/jonathan-ive].

Even before graduating from Newcastle, Ive began making a name for himself in English design circles for his perfectionist approach, creating many, many prototypes in order to find the perfect solution that could "tap into the products emotion" (http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_39/b4002414.htm). As a student, Ive even won the Royal Society of Arts's student award in design TWICE.
After graduating, Ive took a job at Tangerine, a design consultant where he worked on a multitude of products, where his work could be diversified and always changing, although his work in England was not always appreciated.

In 1992 he was brought to Cupertino to work for Apple full time. From there is when he made his greatest contributions(http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_39/b4002414.htm). While Ive had enjoyed the ability to design many different types of products, working in a design consultant firm was difficult for Ive because he never desired to be the salesperson having to constantly pitch his ideas to companies who were unwilling to innovate because most of the company's critical decisions were made before the designer was even involved. When Ive accepted the Apple job he would be able to be within a company that would allow for more access and influence on the inside. While when Ive was first brought to Apple it was on the decline, soon after Jobs would return in 1997 would design and technology truly make an impact with Jobs and Ive at the helm (wikipedia.com). It was then when Ive would receive the title of Vice-President of Design at Apple, at only 29 years of age (http://www.fastcompany.com/100/2009/jonathan-ive). After Ive's appointment, Apple began launching their new products including the colorful iMacs, successfully selling 2 million in their first year. Since the iMacs, more products would be released including the iBook, 22" cinema display and the PowerBook line of notebook computers. Most notably in these few years between 1998 and 2003, the iPod portable MP3 player would be released (2001) marking the end of Apple's decline (http://designmuseum.org/design/jonathan-ive).


Ive's efforts as a designer would not go unnoticed as he garnered the attention of many with his sleek designs. In 2002 he won the first Design Museum's designer of the Year (and went on to win it 2003 as well)(wikipedia.com). Ive also was awarded the title of CBE (Commander of the British Empire) in 2006, as the Queen of England herself owned an iPod as of
2005 (wikipedia.com).

Ive works with the tight-knit, yet well equipped design group of Apple known for their sleek and technologically relevant products. With Jobs' declining health, it is speculated that someone such as Ive would be the likely successor as someone who appreciates perfection, technology and design, which is where Apple's core design values lie. While Ive has had his hand in many of the recent defining technology of our generation I'd hardly believe that he's anywhere close to being done. Jonathan Ive better clear off his shelf of awards and honorary degrees that have stemmed from his involvement with breakthrough products such as the iPhone, the iMac, and the 300 patents that bare his name (wikipedia.com). These many patents include docking, display, keyboards, and other mechanisms involved with the production of Apple's products including the iPod (http://www.patentgenius.com/inventedby/IveJonathanPSanFranciscoCA.html).

Jonathan resides in Twin Peaks (section of San Francisco) with his wife, Heather (a historian) and his twin children. He lives a simple life in a usual black shirt uniform a la Steve Jobs, though drives an Aston Martin (wikipedia.com). His future looks bright as the potential sucessor of Steve Jobs as Apple's CEO as he possesses the understanding of both the technology and the art necessary for apple's success.


photo credits:
http://kyleabaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/clamshell_ibook_ad.jpg
http://cupojoe.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/firstipod.jpg
http://www.justanothermobilemonday.com/Wordpress/wp-content/uploads//2010/05/imac_1998.jpg
http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/photos/uncategorized/2008/10/01/iphone5.jpg