the soupmenu

Throughout this whole year when I tell people what my masters is in, I immediately get asked what in the world it is. Let’s see how the Interactive Design Association defines it:

“Interaction designers strive to create useful and usable products and services. Following the fundamental tenets of user-centered design, the practice of interaction design is grounded in an understanding of real users—their goals, tasks, experiences, needs, and wants. Approaching design from a user-centered perspective, while endeavoring to balance users’ needs with business goals and technological capabilities, interaction designers provide solutions to complex design challenges, and define new and evolving interactive products and services.” (IXDA)

While a solid, technical definition, this one can be confusing. A lot of people in the field like to use the classic stapler/remover example. Everyone has both a stapler and a staple remover. Errors occur so the remover is always needed. Though observation, we know that people naturally keep the stapler on top of the desk and the remover in the drawers. People staple far more than they remove staples.

To further the example, I would say interactive designers view this and then would help to design a remover that fits better in the drawer, or a stapler that blends into the desktop, or various other adaptations to smooth the natural process.

Interactive design is about finding these simple truths of human activity. Through observation, user research, and scenario building an interactive designer attempts to figure out exactly why you do what you do and how to make the world better when you do what you do so well.

Part Anthropology, part Sociology, and part Psychology, interactive design theories and processes can be added upon any design or business process. So whether you are building an art installation, developing a software application, inventing a product, or dreaming up an experience, there is a level of interactive design to it all.

Through good interactive design, teams are able to make natural and lovable products that can have a positive impact upon the user experience.

The difference between a video game and the Wii is interactive design
The difference between a mp3 player and the Ipod is interactive design
The difference between a theme park and Disney is interactive design

The question of ‘what is interactive design’ has perhaps been amplified as I begin to apply for my next job. The field of interactive design is quite new and it’s nice to see that other people are having the same issues as I am. Here is a good thread with interactive designers describing the differences between interactive and traditional user interface design.

We all will continue to have to define it correctly as well as sell it to people as the field gains more and more ground.

Btw….i’m available for consulting.

it’s no secret….i love roadtrips.

so when a dutch friend says that it’s always been a long standing dream of his to roadtrip in america….the rest works itself out.

this one will be a short one, but we are hopefully going to hit up some of my favorite places…new orleans, and austin. Perhaps with some houston and san antonio thrown in there. Of course we’re going to try our hardest to stick to small roads and local restaurants. Not much is planned though, so hopefully the randomness won’t disappoint.

i’ll be back with a full stomach, funny pictures, and some good stories.

it is done. I am back from my year of living, studying, and eating in Italy. Of course everyone immediately simply asks ‘how was it?’. While easy to ask, this question is extremely difficult to answer.

I spent the whole year trying to describe the many elements of living in Italy, and I perhaps could spend another year attempting to give a final impression now. I will not attempt to do this, and instead I will simply offer you an overview that perhaps could only be considered a thesis statement for the overall reaction.

Italy is a place of great contradictions. It is beautiful, dirty, loud, peaceful, aggressive, lazy, productive, and the list goes on forever.

Perhaps the unifying aspect of this all is the unwillingness to change. I ask you to please remove any negative connotations of the word ‘unwillingness’ as I do not aim to paint it in a poor light. Italians are slow to change, but this is not a problem. What they have is unique, good, and beautiful; why would they wish to change that?

In today’s world of mass globalization and westernization of every culture out there, Italy stands apart. Italy does not openly accept whatever new influences are being pushed upon it from different areas of the world.

In this unwillingness is the reason why everyone loves Italy. There’s a romantic passion in everyone’s hearts for the olden days. A passion for a place that is completely unbashful about what it is and what it can offer. A place where siestas take priority over everything, good conversation is worth missing appointments for, and every night is a night for going out. While other countries are trying to be large-scale Disney worlds by welcoming all, providing everything, and not offending anyone; Italy takes the opposite stance and says go somewhere else if you don’t like what they are. In this, I find beauty. I find a culture of people who are proud and confident in themselves. I find a country with so much to offer the rest of the world in terms of how to live a happy life.

I endured many annoyances such as late trains, non existent queue lines, and endless amounts of pointless bureaucracy but, in my year there, I was always offered café after a meal, was never rushed away from a seat, and was always welcomed with love and compassion.

This will never change about Italy, and I find great comfort in this. I can’t wait to go back.