Tag Archives: ux

Week 7 Response: Interactive Environments & Experience Design

Timothy Nohe was the guest speaker during class for this week. He gave a presentation on his interactive work titled ‘Light City: Electron Drawing — Visual Music’.

I find it interesting that he used other methods to create an interactive installation for the festival. I think for me, it was such a unique idea. Children in the video can be seen enjoying themselves with “disrupting” the movement of the image by running their hands on the gestural infrared controller — sending voltages to the synthesizer thus creating a change of pattern to the image. It also focuses on capturing the interactivity among all age groups where viewers learn from one another on how to change the movement of the lights on the screen.

We were given the opportunity to experience the “making” of the interactive image by playing with the generating system with the use of synthesizers, mixer and joystick by connecting wires from an input to an output. We were able to play with the wavelength or frequency, and sound.

There were a few learning points to take away from the speaker: he mentioned of the sound generated affected the dolphins nearby from the location of his installation. Thus they had to do testing in order to get a sound that does not “kill” or upset the dolphins. He also mentioned to always have a spare equipment for just-in-case situations, and having extra equipment that protects the system from the rain.

I think these points could be considered in the iLight proposal as well as we are dealing with an outdoor space.

Week 1 Response: The Design of Everyday Things, Chapter 1

Chapter 1 mostly touch on the important characteristics of good design: discoverability and understanding. Throughout the chapter, I agree that designers should not only focus on making a product that works however they should also take into consideration of understanding the user’s interaction with the product itself. It would not be much of a success if the product sells well, works well, but it does not meet the needs of the human, their capabilities and behavior. In my opinion, designers hold the responsibility of fully understanding the behavior and the needs of users, then design
the everyday products based on what they have discovered.

Chapter 1 has several points that made me wonder about the products/designs that I have seen or came across these recent days/months. For example, learning about the Norman door made me think about how sliding doors, now, are designed to be opened using technology. At one point of time, users were not even aware that the doors leading to a shop were operated by push/press button thus getting pushed by the oncoming door.

Automated vs manual
(https://50daysux.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/day18-doors3.jpeg)

With relation to doors, how reliable is using technology in an everyday location? Perhaps, should the design of the button component be on the eye-level?