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Am I the only one who gets lost at Target?
Every other weekend or so I take a trip to my local Target store to stock up on necessities. Let me start by saying this: I love Target. For the most part I have a wonderful experience there…well, except for one section: the toiletries area. For some reason, I can never find the things I’m…
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You should see my sketchbook
It is truly one of my favorite design “tools:” A good notebook. Personally, I like the full size Moleskine models, but whatever you can manage to carry around will work best. I carry mine everywhere with me, always with a pencil attached. Check out these notes, if you dare, which preceded my recent talk with…
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Bill Buxton Inspires Me
The greatest lesson I learned at Interaction08 last weekend was from Bill Buxton, during his keynote talk. Here’s his list of things that, as a designer, you must know: What makes you distinct. Your value lies in your distinctiveness. That makes you a minority. There will be pressure to conform. Your value is lost in…
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Super Tuesday 2008 Infographic Design
As I’ve mentioned before, election night is one of my favorite nights of the year. All the big media outlets pull out their infographic design “big guns.” One of my favorites for the Super Tuesday 2008 Primary results is at the New York Times: It simply describes the current situation in the largest states that…
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Hello strange little popup friend
Apparently, my battery is dying. As you can see in the photo, my computer is proudly displaying the fact that my battery is “reaching the end of its usable life.” I’m not sure what that means, but boy would I like to know more. Unfortunately, when I click on that little weird box that does…
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National Back to Work Day
The holidays are over, folks, time to head back. Keep your heads high, it’s a new year. Let’s do this.
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Experiencing the power of Java
So this evening I’m reinstalling Java. Not by choice, but because the annoying little balloon keeps on popping up in the corner of my screen. Then, while it’s installing, the installer has the audacity to say something extremely stupid like: By installing Java, you will be able to experience the power of Java…” NO WAY!…
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Seeing fewer choices
Alternatively titled: On Covering Your Ass Check out that picture on the right. That’s from my credit card’s website. My favorite part is the red link on the bottom that proclaims, “See fewer choices.” You know what that option is? That’s a designer or usability person saying to the team, “Hello team, we have heard…
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Doing Good Enough
One of the greatest things about being in Israel is the abundance of amazing hummos places. These small restaurants sometimes serve foods other than hummos, but many times it’s the main course. The hummos here is different than in the US. It’s smooth & creamy, with actual garbanzo or other beans in tact. Of course,…
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On the Misleading Lexicon of Agile Development
Whatever happened to clear, consistent language? Why do we use words that have inconsistent meaning in contexts where they’ll be unfamiliar? Why, oh why? Day in and day out I work with clients in an Agile development setting. I use words that have been trained into me, that I’ve been taught over and over again.…