- Not just wireframed that way
There was a discussion on the LinkedIn User Experience group recently about what constitutes a good wireframe, and after commenting I thought it would be worth exploring in more detail.
Like so much else, the definition of wireframe (also spelled wire frame; both are correct) has evolved over the past few years. In the web world […]
- Fun is fundamental
Fun is a seriously undervalued part of user experience (perhaps of any experience). In fact, a sense of play may be a required characteristic of good UX interaction. But too often, I hear comments like the following, seen on ReadWriteWeb:
When you think of virtual worlds, the first one that probably pops into your head is […]
- Marketing by implication
The Star Trek franchise overall faced a difficult question with Star Trek Zero - how to maintain appeal to existing Trekkers and Trekkies while reaching out to potential new fans as well?
The answer: focus on what matters.
I was therefore delighted by the marketing on this “best of” trilogy of Star Trek TOS (the original series) […]
- Lunchtime rant of the moment: The definition of pragmatism
The New York Times’ Opinionator posted Pragmatism, viewed pragmatically. In it they covered blogs discussing the meaning of Barack Obama’s “pragmatism.” Some seemed to think pragmatism was at odds with idealism, a perspective I find not only unhelpful, but simply wrong.
I responded in the comments, but I hear this confusion too often. So I’m sharing […]
- Google Flu Trends turns lemons into lemonade
The New York Times is worried about the government misusing Google’s new flu tracking application. Google Flu Trends, which has been thoroughly researched and compared with actual flu statistics, uses flu-related search terms to track the level and spread of flu incidence. Some (such as the NYT Board blog, and some of the responding […]
- Nicholas of Cusa and my old statistics textbook are in cahoots
One of the two dozen or so books I tossed in the trunk of my car when I headed up to Seattle was a collection of Nicholas of Cusa’s writings (a recommendation from my husband). Another was an old statistics textbook, Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences, because I hoped the new job would require more […]
- When bell curves go wrong
When bell curves go wrong….Mandelbrot to the rescue! (Or at least there to say, “I told you so.”)
Benoit Mandelbrot of fractal fame has an alternative approach to predicting market behavior, based on fractals. This avoids the mistake of the classic bell curve-driven model, which tends to eliminate extremes, and so misses potential distasters like this […]
- What exactly is UX, and what does a UX professional do?
Even among web professionals, I am frequently asked, “What is user experience?” Here, I’ll attempt to answer that by first putting it in a historical context, then describing the focus and skills of UX professionals.
Early computer development was performed by specialists who programmed for function, apart from form. Interface was […]
- Random quotes about typeface and Helvetica
Yesterday we watched a documentary at work about the history of Helvetica, the typeface designed in 1957 that took over the world. (For example, some logos you may know that use Helvetica include: Target, Jeep, Greyhound, Panasonic, Crate&Barrel, Microsoft, Boeing, BBC News, American Airlines, and Energizer.) I strongly recommend this video to any designers or […]
- A worthwhile survey for web designers
From A List Apart, a chance to repahsent — via a survey about the state of web development and design.
