A set of icons based on the visual language of Helvetica Bold. Roll over the area in the top right (the big “245″) to see the icon set preview. A very pleasant respite from the glossy, high-fidelity style of Apple-inspired icons.
Jul 9 2009
A Collection of Design Tools →
This pleasantly illustrated website, courtesy of Roberta Tassi’s thesis, catalogs a wide array of design ‘tools’ used in a design process. A tool in this case can be a ‘Use Case’, a ‘Customer Journey Map’ or ‘Group Sketching’. The nice thing about the organization, once you grok it, is that you can answer a question like: what design tools can I use to examine the interaction? Or, what can I do in the testing phase?
My favorite parts are the infographics found on the about page. For example, this one maps the tools in the context of a design process as well as the people’s capabilities required to use the tool. While this one displays the tools in the context of the disciplines that gave rise to them.
Jul 8 2009
Journal of Information Architecture →
I always dream of referencing authoritative, empirical data when discussing design – a field shrouded in feelings and subjectivity. The trouble is finding academic papers penned by authors with complicated, German names, forcing one to lean on the authority of a blog post regarding the Top 50 Cutest Typography Techniques to justify a point.
The Journal of Information Architecture seems like a step in that direction. Just reading the titles and abstracts left me feeling much smarter.
[via Konigi]
May 7 2009
Cognitive Shield
I really like the concept – especially its name – of the “cognitive shield” as described by Aza Raskin. The point is to block out information that might distract a user from their primary task, while still have it be available in case it is relevant to that task.
In the end, the affordance of the final implementation ended up getting in the way, but the concept was retained in a more understated form.
We’ve taken another tack this time at not breaking your train of thought by using default fonts and a Firefox-gray background. Instead of taking the over-the-top cognitive shield approach, we are trying to make the page “fit-in” to ameliorate a visually jarring experience. After a couple days of testing and feedback, it seems to work.
While I’m not willing to give up on the concept of abstracting secondary tasks / information in the bold way the original concept proposed, a sufficient cognitive shield will always be available in the form of a good visual hierarchy and adherence to the principals of information design.
Apr 3 2009
Little Red Riding Hood Via Graphics and Swedish Electronica
Tomas Nisson‘s superb retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, sans verbal expression. In case you want to purchase the hot jams in the States, this is your best bet. Update: or, you can just get it on iTunes.
Mar 27 2009