Weber, T. (2010). “Why Companies Watch Your Every Facebook, YouTube, Twitter Move.” BBC News. Visited on October 4, 2010: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11450923 This article focuses on how effective everyday social networking can impact their product name, reputation and sales. By using social networking consumers get a chance to voice their opinions and experience by using social media tools such as Facebook, Tweeter, and YouTube. Conceptual Design What does the product do? In this article the product is the social media tools such as Facebook, Tweeter and YouTube. A couple of scenarios were examples that identified how people use social networking to convey a message on a brand or product. A Canadian singer, Dave Carroll complained about his bad experience with United Airlines baggage handlers for damaging his guitar. He then made a music video complaining about his experience and posted it on YouTube. The conceptual design was that he used a social media tool to post his video in order to have his voice heard about United Airlines. The interaction design part was that Dave used a powerful media tool that the general public had access to viewing and commenting on. People started viewing the video, interacting and commented about his frustration.…
Contributor
Over the years, my students write blog entrees as part of their classwork. These contributing blogs tend to review articles with an eye for product design recommendations.
Background Knowledge, Conceptual Design, Contributor, Cultural Bias, Cultural Differences, Flow, Interaction Design, Interface Design, Product Design Strategy
Using Computers to Teach Children Without Teachers
by Sheetal Elangovan •
Johnathan, F . (2010). “Using computers to teach children with no teachers” BBC News. Retrieved on 21 July, 2010: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10663353?print=true Summary of the article: The article summarizes studies conducted by Prof Mitra on the learning curve of children using computers for education with teachers. Results of the study prove that the teaching methods employed have been quite successful based on the fact that: Children who are not exposed to computers are highly motivated to teach themselves skills they want to learn Children have had a steep learning curve in picking up complex tasks with minimum supervision Learning by discussion and in groups ensures that content is retained and not skimmed through by children. Motivation levels of students are kept high with a grandmother figure in the picture. The best results of the study have been combined to create Self Learning Environments where children in groups of 4 share a computer to assimilate information. Virtually present volunteer grandmothers keep the student motivated and support the learning process. On Environment: The need for self-organized learning essentially arises in developing nations and the ones who do not have access to education. Children living in such conditions have a natural survival instinct, which keeps…
Conceptual Design, Contributor, Flow, Interaction Design, Interface Design, Product Design Strategy
On “For digital artists, apps provide new palette”
by mabelev •
Harmanci, R. (2010). “For digital artists, apps provide new palette.” New York Times Online. Retrieved on October 4, 2010: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/us/20bciart.html To illustrate the impact of mobile/handheld-device technology on the arts, this article describes the work of several individual artists who have used iPhone/iPad applications as an artistic format. In my overview, I focus on the work by Scott Snibbe and pose the following question: what is it about handheld apps that sets them apart and makes them a more successful environment for interactive art than any other? Scott Snibbe is an artist for whom interactivity, i.e. the opportunity for audience participation, is a central theme. His installations are often designed to capture human bodily actions and respond to them. The audience thus has the experience of bringing an art piece’s content into existence. For example, in Falling Girl (2008) and Make Like a Tree (2006), people’s movements are replicated, with some time lag, by silhouettes projected onto screens, while in Blow-Up (2005) people’s breath triggers fans that reproduce its spatio-temporal contour. Snibbe’s very popular mobile apps are closely based on an earlier Dynamic Systems interactive series that involved manual action, except that their original version used more traditional cursor-based interface. …
Conceptual Design, Contributor, Interaction Design, Interface Design, Product Design Strategy, Users
On “3-D Printing Spurs a Manufacturing Revolution” by Vance
by Ketil E. Jensen •
Vance, A., (2010). “3-D Printing Spurs a Manufacturing Revolution.“ New York Times Online. Retrieved on October 6, 2010: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/technology/14print.html Summary: Vance highlights the remarkable impact and wide application 3-D printing has on a wide range of traditional and non-traditional manufacturing industries. While traditional printers print on one dimensional paper, 3-D printers create a 3-dimensional physical object, usually from plastic or metal, by stacking layers one on top of another. The application of 3-D printers spans a wide variety of applications: from custom made prosthetic casings to building houses, and literally anything in-between. It may very well hold the promise of a game-changing technology for the US manufacturing industry in that the cheap labor may no longer be the “be-all” important factor it is today. User Groups While the application of technology in design and manufacturing hardly is a new phenomenon, the scale, ease of use and its wide application do provide something of a paradigm shift in a cross-section of manufacturing industries. In tomorrow’s 3-D printing world, yesteryears chasm between conceptual design and manufacturing is a non-existing obstacle. In this new 3-D printing world the virtual product concept conceived by the product creator and the material manifestation of her/his creation…
Conceptual Design, Contributor, Interaction Design, Interface Design, Perception
Sense of Touch Shapes Snap Judgments
by patrickgary •
Keim, B., (2010). “Sense of Touch Shapes Snap Judgments.” Wired.com. Visited on October 3, 2010: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/06/touching-cognition/ Brandon Keim’s article for Wired.com’s science blog provides a brief overview of recent research into the role that tactile sensations play in human interactions. This new area of psychological research, referred to as Embodied Cognition, could potentially have a significant impact on how we understand social and physical interactions. Put simply, the core findings of the research show that our physical responses to our immediate environment, combined with other factors, can directly and measurably influence our decision-making. One of the examples provided involved giving the subject a heavy clipboard to hold during the experiment; when holding the heavy clipboard, the subjects tended to regard their own opinions and problems presented to them as being more weighty and serious in nature. Other examples showed how a tactile interaction with a rough surface prior to an interview could lead to a harsher attitude towards the interviewee. The article itself is somewhat of a stub, so we are left to imagine the further implications of Embodied Cognition ourselves. What relevance does Embodied Cognition have for product interaction design? After all, it’s not as if touch has previously…
Conceptual Design, Contributor, Cultural Differences, Interaction Design, Interface Design
Antisocial Networking?
by Roman Shumikhin •
Stout, H. (2010). “Antisocial Networking?” New York Times Online. Retrieved on 3 October, 2010: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/02/fashion/02BEST.html The main topic of this article is that technology may be changing the very nature of kid’s friendships. Children used to actually talk to their friends. But now, even chatting on cellphones or via e-mail is becoming rare. Today’s teenagers and preteens, prefer to make friends and communicate using cellphone texts and instant messages, or through the very public forum of Facebook walls and MySpace bulletins. People now are more likely to use their cellphones to text friends than to call them. The article shows two opposite points of view on the topic. The author believes the quality of human interactions is becoming worse without the intimacy and emotional component of regular face-to-face communications (hence the title of this article). The ease of electronic communication may be making teens less interested in face-to-face communication with their friends, but close childhood friendships help kids build trust in people outside their families, develop empathy, understand emotional nuances and read social cues like facial expressions and body language, and consequently help lay the groundwork for healthy adult relationships. On the other hand, online social networking allows children to become…
Conceptual Design, Contributor, Interface Design, Language, Product Design Strategy, Users
Using Menu Psychology to Entice Diners
by Mallika •
Kershaw, S., (2009). “Using Menu Psychology to Entice Diners.” New York Times Online. Visited on October 02, 2010: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/23/dining/23menus.html. This article discusses how an understanding of human psychology is being applied to sculpt a restaurant menu into a lucrative tool for the restaurateur. Restaurateurs play down the importance of the cost figure by eliminating the dollar sign and decimals. Adding a personal touch to an item (‘Grandma Mary’s cake’) or a descriptive menu label (‘buttery pasta’) draws more attention to the dish. Other decoys include using a description that glorifies a more profitable dish compared to others. During the tough economic times in the last year, some restaurants were reinventing their restaurants through such menu design techniques, and were hoping that would make the difference they needed. Conceptual design: When you go to a restaurant, good food is not the only thing you seek; you are looking for a good experience. Of course sometimes, great food can make us turn a blind eye to any other inadequacy and draw us back into the restaurant. Nevertheless, a good experience overall manifests itself as a stronger loyalty. If your overall experience has made a lasting positive impression, you may recommend the restaurant…