Video: Medieval Tech Support
Oh, things just don't change, do they?
February 14, 2007
December 12, 2006
The Design Disease
Just had to mention this awesome blog post here about the "Design Disease". Some guy in London giving a visual tour of what it feels like to be obsessed with design: words, numbers, objects, colors... you name it.
I think Seattle is chock full of such people. But over here we're lucky enough to have it span a wide range of things... Yes, you've got the interesting signs, sights, and people of Capitol Hill and Fremont, but you can't help but see the design in nature itself... Looking over deep choppy water to a beautiful sky split purple/blue right through the middle, backdropping snow-capped mountains with the sun's rays pushing their way through (*sigh* that was long...) ...can't help but get your jaw to drop.
And in case you don't know what Seattle artsies look like, here's a really good Flickr ablum and website of some of them. :)
November 9, 2006
Zune Design Copies 2nd-Gen iSkin iPod Case
I'm a happy long-time owner of a 2nd-gen 10 Gb iPod. Still works great to this day. I'm not in the market for a new music player (although the new iPod Nanos are very tempting), but I couldn't help but notice the release of Microsoft's new Zune. To be honest, I don't know all that much about the features, but what struck me was the design. I guess I have a good eye for these things.
Back when I bought my iPod, I bought a nice frost white iSkin cover to go with it, for protection. When I started seeing images come out for the new Zune, I was blown away. It's pretty obvious to me that Microsoft has straight-out copied iSkin's design for an iPod cover, right down to the material.
It's tough to see from this picture (easier to see on the iPod I have sitting right next to me now), but check it out. Here's the 2nd gen iPod with a white frost iSkin cover:
And here's a picture of the new Zune, in white:
Check out the uncanny similarities:
- Two concentric circles for control
- Rectangular "border" surrounds the screen
- "Upside-down Omega" pattern extending the rectangle, surrounding the circular controls (tough to see on the iSkin picture, but look closely)
- Four directional touch buttons
Yes, the Zune's screen is bigger and there is a button on each side of the control circle, and the border is black, whereas the iSkin's border is white.
Here's more pictures of the 2nd gen iSkin, from The iStore.
Whether or not the design was intentionally copied, it's a very nice design, and I love the look of the Zune. I just wonder whether the original designer(s) of the iSkin were credited... Hm.
November 2, 2006
Windows Vista Boxes
MS unveiled the Windows Vista retail boxes:
More pics here.
Have to say, these boxes look sweet! (And really, you'd hope you can design a nice box when you have 6 years (2001-2007) to do it!) Can't wait to see the massive marketing campaign a-la Windows XP that follows... With all that money, you can throw a pretty big concert.
September 15, 2006
Apple's Man Behind the Curtain
BusinessWeek had a great article about Jonathan Ive, Apple's lead design guy. Based largely on his work with Steve Jobs, Apple was able to make its incredible comeback over the past decade.
Remember when Windows 95 was cool? Now it's iBook, iMac, iPod, MacBook, etc. etc. etc. I don't own a Mac, but I've been a happy owner of a 2nd gen iPod for many years. It still works, and looks, great. Simply, a beautiful product.
Kudos to Apple and Mr. Ive for the excellent work.
August 8, 2006
Innovation: Bring it on!
There was a recent entry on the blog Creating Passionate Users by Kathy Sierra about innovation, and how users/customers can't be held responsible for driving it. I can't agree more.
It reminds me of my electric toothbrush... maybe a few years ago I'd laugh at the idea- I mean, come on, how lazy can you possibly be? But if you've tried a good electric toothbrush (mine's the "sonic" kind), you know that feeling like you just went to the dentist and had your teeth cleaned... and trust me, you can't go back. There's something that hardly anybody would "ask for", especially when it's 7 a.m. and you're still half asleep!
I'd go even farther than Kathy. Not only can't users define innovation, but the vast majority of users/customers will often resist innovation for some period of time. Sometimes it takes time to realize that something is good for you. :) Think of the innovations that went through (or are going through) periods of ridicule or rejection before wide acceptance... cell phones ("why would I want two phone numbers?"), hybrid cars ("who wants to drive a golf cart down the road?"), botted water ("um, the tap's right there."), and of course, electric toothbrushes.
It takes vision, determination, and some faith... to not only bring innovation to users, but stick with innovation as users slowly adopt to new and better ways of living, working, and playing.
June 26, 2006
Breakdown of Modern Web Design
This is just too true...
