Class Analysis

Sorry this is coming up so late. I have been busy packing and doing family things.
Now to the questions:
Design contributes to my life in so many ways, since I will always be a consumer. I know how to examine products by the way they were manufactured and how they were designed. Also, I understand that companies will not change the way that a product works unless there is a constant complaint apparent to them.

For any First Year student, I advise you to learn your limits, being inside of class and outside of class. To be successful, there must be a real understanding of oneself. I have had it easy for this semester, so it was not as bad to adapt to college as another First Year student might admit. With that being said, I will have to adapt to the workload for the second quarter, which I am well and ready for.

For students in this seminar, I would just advise you to be vocal and outspoken, since we usually just do discussions. Try to get your voice out in the discussion early, you will stand out more. Also, read the whole article and understand what is going on. There have been one or two times where I did not understand what the article was talking about, so I had to sit through the discussion and not say as many points. One last important thing, subscribe to the class blog or bookmark the class link. When it is time to come up with paper topics, it is good to have that available so that you can see what other people are doing.

Chapter 9 on Time

An increase in the availability of non-alcoholic activities should decrease the influence of peer pressure in terms of under-aged drinking.

The constraints that I plan to address in this analysis in this paper are that the problem of under-aged drinking is rather a social issue than one for the institution. The trigger point that is most important consist of the fact that Kalamazoo College's brand reflects diversity, which should be true with recreation.

Five class readings that I could apply to my topic would be: The Principles of Marketing, The Third Place, The Experience Architect, The City, and The Ten Biggest Mistakes from Websites

The Principles of Marketing: The article speaks of branding, which is important to Kalamazoo College. One focal point of Kalamazoo as a school is diversity. There should be activities that coincide with the need for diversity.

The Third Place: For many, the weekend is a time to relax, and forget about the work and problems. There is a need for a third place for the weekend, and if there is only one option for a Third Place, then students in opposition of it will have nowhere to go.

The City: The article talks about how the City needs to be a urban place, where people can hang out and relax. The school should promote off-campus activities so that we can break the "K bubble".

Ten Mistakes...: Even though the website speaks of other websites' mistakes, the same applies to schools. The school should be user-friendly.

"There has been a change in residential habitats too that keeps people away from downtown areas. When fewer people live and congregate downtown, crime increases because there are no 'eyes on the street', as the writer and activist Jane Jacobs wrote... The town benefits from students spending money there; the college benefits from the resources and amenities provided by the towns."
There can be a potential decrease in crime if students were to travel off-campus together in order to create a feeling of security. Also, from the discussions in class, we spoke about how the town does not accommodate to the school, yet there was no talk about how the school accommodating the town.

Trow Lounge

The area that I observed was at Kalamazoo College, in the Trowbridge Hall lounge(s) on the first floor. Its purpose is for residents and students alike to lounge around in a social setting or even study together. I made my observations on Sunday from 8:45 to 9:30. This is usually a heavy studying time since classes are on the next day.

The Trowbridge lounges give a homely feel, with the dim lighting and rocking chairs. One of the most prominent features of the lounges are the numerous rocking chairs in each lounge. There are four in the main lounge, eight in the piano area, and two each in the respective lounges. The availability is crucial for the lounges since students are allowed to walk in and out. There is a variety of seating options, with rocking chairs, table chairs, and sofas. During the observation, there were four people inside of the main lounge, two people at the table, one person on the couch, and one playing the piano. As time progressed, three people left, and three others actually came in to replenish the room. There was one other person inside one of the side lounges. In each of the lounges, there is wooden floor panels. The steps that lead into the main lounge look like they are made of marble. The sound level differed as time went on. When I first walked in, I could hear the piano being played softly. After, I was able to hear the two students discuss their studies. After, there were visitors that came to greet their friend and then left. Later on, the group of three students conversed at high volume. I would guess that the building of the room would need wood, metal, marble, concrete, and electrical wiring.

This area projects the image of being inviting and open to the residents. It is a social gathering area where people can hang out. Even people can play the piano if bored. In the surroundings, the people usually speak with "inside" voices so that they do not interrupt other people studying. In non-studying instances, people speak normally, or gather around the piano.The most interesting fact about this place that although there are numerous lights, they are all low voltage, so that it keeps the dimmed atmosphere.

Principles of Marketing

According to the chapter, design affects marketing in many ways. The marketing of a product is dependent on the design. The product has to be able to live up to its marketing scheme. For example, a product that is marketed as "high-tech" cannot only have two functions on it, since it will be promoted to a group that is capable of handling the technology. I feel that the choice of including or excluding product mix is the most important element in terms of marketing. Companies that only sell one type of product are able to focus on that one and create a specific marketing scheme. As time goes on and the popularity of a company rises, they have to find an innovation, which is where the new products come in, introducing a new consumer group to the rest of the products. One company that does a good job of this would be Dominos. They are known for the pizzas, but with the introduction of the oven-baked subs, they were able to attract a new crowd of people. The people that go to Domino's for the pizza are now able to get a variety of things, which can boast up the number of orders.

The discussion of branding is similar to Tom Kelley's design of experience because both depend on innovation. The experience architect has to figure out how to make sure that their product, whether it be a restaurant, space, or electronic, memorable. Marketing directors have the same job when promoting their product. They need to associate their product with something positive, so that consumers will be able to benefit from it.

Kalamazoo College is branded as the small liberal arts school of the city. It is the opposite to Western Michigan University, which is the typical big party school. In order to fight against it, the party scene must be toned down, to keep the prestige. Also, the school is promoted as a strong study abroad school, so it must continue to add in study abroad programs and encourage students to join in them.

Proposal

My idea is actually split between three topics: Social Cliques, First-Year Experience, and the Health Center

How Did Reflective Turn Into Reflexive in Conversation

The main points of the article are numerous in terms how what a good experience architect. The name is self-explanatory, for the fact that this job entails of creating a lasting encounter for the consumer, whether it is with products, building, or events. The experience architect must make sure that the experiences are memorable in a positive way, so that the consumer would want to attend again. Also, another point was that the experience architect should always give something special to the customer, so that it will lead to good karma. They must be able to find an experience out of everything, where they can turn everything into extraordinary feats. One example of the experience architect performing a good job would be the anti-freeze story, where the customer was able to say time and effort would premixed antifreeze. With this, architects are able to profit off of the experience. Another point that Kelley makes is about the trigger points for experience architects. There must be one or two essential elements that make up the experience. Kelley also advices that companies "mix-it-up" in terms of products to make the experience stand out more.

The design of products are very similar to the design of experiences. Experience architects and designers both have to answer the question of what about this item will make it stand out in consumers minds, whether it be an innovation or an improvement on an existing project. Although customers look for the behavioral aspect, the most powerful aspect in terms of sales would be the reflective. If the designer spent extra time in making the product extraordinary, the customer would want to spend the extra money for it.

For a community building activity would have to be a party at the end of the quarter for the First Year students in order to celebrate the successful finish of the first college quarter in Kalamazoo College. The party would entail of dance music and strobe lights, to further the experience of fun. Also, the money would be spent on food and drinks, just in case the students do not like the party and would rather sit on the side and eat.

Wiki Article Like

The coolest Wikipedia entry EVER

That is my Wikipedia entry, it even has its own section

The Third Place

Ray Oldenburg describes a "Third Place" as a place away from home and from the workplace. The main emphasis inside of this Third Place is friendliness and conversation, since the stress from work and home are not apparent. The participants are allowed to come into the room and not be judged or worried that they are to be punished. There needs to be a real sense of comfort and support. The most common Third Places around campus would be Dino's or Biggby's, where students can just sit and chat over coffee. These places are important to well-being of college students, because they have a place to vent and have a good time if needed. Also, it is inexpensive in terms of equipment since the people entertain themselves. It serves as a place to gain information, share views, and not have to worry about being a guest or host.

The design elements that contribute to a successful Third Place would be a lot of space in terms of how big the room is. Also, the room needs to have dim lighting and sofas, which allows people to feel comfortable in the setting. This is successful in coffee shops, since the environment is casual and inviting others to talk. The place has to be somewhat secluding, so there is no worry of judgments being made or everyone listening into the conversation. The place has to have a homely feel, giving the secure feeling.

One place that has the Third Place on campus is, as previously mentioned, Biggby's Coffee Shop in the Library. Coffee is usually associated with staying up due to the caffeine, and students like to study and cramp with others in the library. If not to study, they can just sit down and talk. One thing that I would change about Biggby's would be the bright light that they have outside of the store. I would not usually talk to people over there, since my third place would be my room.

Heart of the City

The author's key points in this chapter are there are many points that make up a successful urban place. One point was that there needs to be concentrated crowding, where it feels crowded even where there is not as many people. Also, a comfortable space is necessary for busy towns. The large point was that supply creates demand. Another point to look for is the percentage of women that visit the area. Men tend to watch women walk bye, so having a lot of women around will draw in the men. Seating is also a factor in what makes a good place, as in different types and the placement.

Designing good urban spaces and designing good consumer products are similar in the fact that the consumer should be the number one factor in terms of mapping. If people do not like the way that something is made, the chances that they will spend are slim to none. The place that they differ is that people do not keep the urban spaces. They buy the products for the go or for the home.

The guidelines would consist of having a higher number of women than man, concentrated crowding, and a great range of seating. Supply leads to demand, so if seating and restaurants are available, then the turnout will be great.

Downtown Kzoo

The Downtown Kalamazoo business area is a very conserved area, which is compared to my vision of the downtown area in Brooklyn. The first thing that confused me was the name itself, since it was called the Kalamazoo Mall, yet it is just an area of outdoor stores. During the first assignment where we had to find a store, I spent at least 15 minutes walking around trying to locate this huge building, but found nothing. One thing that I found interesting was the placement of certain stores, like the hair salon next to the optical shop. There was some good placement of stores where the sports clothing store and the rock climbing store right near each other. There was a cafe right across the street from the Arts theater, which is a great design tactic. Also, Kalamazoo followed a similar design to Brooklyn, where they situated a large Public Library next to an open park, where people can relax and read outside.

The main things wrong with downtown is the advertisement. There is not enough emphasis put on to the downtown area for it to grow into a popular area. The city has a great hotel in the Radissan, but there is not much emphasis on it. Also, the fact the strip of stores is actually called the Kalamazoo Mall throws off tourists. It should be renamed as the Burdick Strip or something along those lines. Another suggestion would to place the map that is available on Burdick Street on the other streets surrounding it so that there could be a better directory.

"This is not the kind of question that planners and architects often ask themselves. They tend to see streets and sidewalks strictly as a civic realm, a social environment where people meet and interact, and they tend to favor the sorts of attractive sidewalks and streetscapes that seem to promote sociability. If they are not greatly concerned about the impact of their work on the welfare of haberdashers and stationers, that is not surprising. They belong to professions that are often at war with commercial interests." - Lagerfeld
This passage reminded me of Burdick St, due to its red brick pavement. It gives the city that historical look, where it is not modernized. Kalamazoo's downtown is a sociable area, due to Bronson Park and the Rave theater in the area. Also, the passage reminded me of what we talked about in class about how designers do not think of the user, they think of the projects in its art form.

Main Street versus Shopping Mall

Robert Gibbs uses many things to evaluate a "Main Street". Those include:

• the placement and color of the trash cans, benches.
• how clean the area is
• the material for the pavement
• how secure the area is
• placement of specific retailers
  
• the type of retailers
• The left turn rule

I do not believe that Main Street should be a mall, for the fact that consumers would not have as many options in terms of environments to shop in. While shopping in a mall, customers have a different mindset than when shopping on the Main Street. Also, the whole point of the Main Street is to attract tourism and to make people want to walk all around the city, and if the Main Street would be made into a mall, it would take away from it.

For my own checklist, I would include cleanliness, type of retailers and security as the main points for a successful main street. Consumers must feel safe around where they shop, so they would be comfortable to spend large sums of money. Also, there should be a variation of type in terms of retail, so that there is a competition between many stores.

Retail Analysis

The store that I chose was an old favorite, Michael's, the Arts and Craft store. The store is located on South Westnedge Ave. The store markets to all ages, just anyone in need of art and craft supplies. Outside of the store, the set-up is similar to most department store. The store has one level, but is stretched wide. The store itself contains two long glass mirrors, separated by the automatic doors. The top of the store contains the classic red-lettered Michaels sign. Inside of the store, there was "elevator" music, which was played at a decent level. It was low enough not to annoy someone who was not interested in the genre, but loud enough to notice. There was not many people inside of the store, so there was not much customer-employee interaction. Since it is the fall season, the store is decorated in the front with last minute sale Halloween crafts. Each aisle is equipped with a long wide shelf, about 7 ft high, where the shelves are separated by sections. The floor is tiled with black lines. The crayons and paint are in the front of the story, the knitting materials are in the back. As for the sign, there were not as many signs there, only for the front and for the special items in the store. The cashier area is just four registers, right across from the exit, making it an easy trip for the customer.

Michaels the store is trying to portray the image of all-inclusive in terms of arts and crafts. The store has items for every art project of every kind. It gives that sense, due to the massive space the store takes up on the block. The store did not have many customers there, but the ones that were, they seemed to know what they wanted. Myself on the other hand, was lost in the store. I had the simple task of trying to find the fabric paint, which took about two minutes, since I had to walk around the whole store to see everything. The fabric paint aisle was separated by brand, color, style, and size. Along with the paints, there were the t-shirts on the side and press on letters for making clothing.

The thing that made Michaels so interesting would be the huge red sign on top, where you could recognize it from a mile away. My friend and I were driving around, and we saw Michaels down the road and dedicated to stop in. She is a knitter, so she needed to get her materials. Also, employees are so friendly in Michaels. I would probably be bored out of my mind in there, but they make it seem fun.

American Shoppers Don't Pay Attention

The most important point from this article would be that some designers and marketing directors actually keep the consumers in mind. In class, the earlier discussions of product design usually contained the question of "Why don't the marketing directors and the manufacturers ever include the opinion of normal people?". This article proves that someone has been "taking notes". The interesting about this article would be the Decompression Zone. From experience with working in retail, it has been shown that customers do not pay attention to what is near the entrance. As a customer myself, I usually walk into stores, and turn to the right to see what is on the wall, and then walk around store to see if there is anything I like. Also, the "butt-brush" is an interesting topic to examine as a whole.

As a consumer I think I am highly influenced by a store's design. If a store has interesting window displays, I would be more likely to go inside of that store just to look around. This would include updating clothing and shoes or other products that the store sells. The environment of the store is important too. For example, music is a factor in whether customers stay in the store or not. If a store is playing country music at loud volumes, I will probably not go inside of it. The workers also attract customers in, due to their outer appearance.

Things that a store would need to qualify as attractive would be a compelling window displays, attractive and/or outgoing employees, decent music, a collection of products in relation to the space available in the store, fashionable mannequins, and prices relative to the quality of the product.

Advertisement: Clever Wordplay and Bright Colors

After reading both articles, I have come to the conclusion that packaging in marketing is very important. Without the marketing, consumers would not know which functions of the product should be highlighted, nor the advantages of using the product. For example, the marketing of the Apple iPhone was and still is brilliant in its composition. The commercials are simple, only having the white background, the Caucasian hand, and a magnified perspective of the iPhone. The narrator describes the convenience of having the iPhone as a mini computer on the road and the ease of use for the applications on the phone. Also, the narrator describes the new 3G network with only mentioning of the faster speed. This is the idea of marketing to all consumer groups. The marketing idea brings me back to Norman's Emotional Design, to the discussion about the water bottle. The example of packaging techniques would be Fiji water. The bottle itself is a clear wide cylinder type, which is different from most water bottles. Then, the designers put graphics of flowers on the bottle, making the water seem more "natural". After the packaging is finished, the water costs around $2.50, which brings in the idea of "If its costs more, it must be special".

Other products that have iconic packaging would be Degree deodorants and its separation between scents and genders. The Degree for Men bottles are simple in terms of design, with a grey, or the classic blue-green containers and "manly" scents. The design for the Degree for Women bottles are similar, making the container more slim with a mint green color, with sweet smelling scents. Also, the Vitamin Water bottles has an iconic packaging. The label is manufactured as the same color as the drink, which brings a visceral aspect to it. For example, one might see the Kiwi flavor and like the color pink, and buy the drink just for that color.

Some issues with packaging that exist are packaging that do not cater to the product. For example, heavy products with large boxes that do not have strong handles on the box. It is very annoying to have to carry heavy boxes with both arms, having them slip out of your hands due to inadequate grips. The ones that do have grips, they are made out of cardboard, which is definitely not the most dependable material in terms of lifting.

Biggest Mistakes

The reading relates to user-focused design in many ways. The first principle that Flanders spoke of is that the reader does not care about the author or the process of making the website. The user only cares about how the website can help him/her. This involves gaining information, donating, searching for entertainment, or to be apart of a community. This is what Norman wrote about in his book "The Design of Everyday Things". The product should be user-friendly and user-focused, or else the goal will be missed. The topic of user-friendly also connects to the Emotional Design, where Norman speaks of behavioral design, where function is key. Visibility is important in terms of physical design, and it is also important in terms of website designs. Another key point brought up in Flanders article was the "heroin content" on a website. The same thing goes for the products. If companies figure out how to constantly update functions, they will create a heroin effect, similar to iPods.

The most important points have been mentioned already somewhat. The fact that users don't care about how much work goes into the website, nor the creator of the website is indeed factual. The heroin effect is also important because I deal with that everyday. There is a certain website where I get all my fashion and entertainment information from a certain website and I check it everyday to see updates. Also, the excess use of flash animation is very annoying, so using it in moderation is important.

My list would have to entail knowing that the user comes first and making sure that they can interact with the site and leave feedback. The most successful sites on the web allow the users to comment on the design or contact the user. Also, the constant updating of information will cause the users to always come back to see what is new. Using flash animation in moderate use is important. Another important feature is making the website compatible with all web browsers, because from personal experience, when a website is not compatible with my particular browser, I just forget about it. Lastly, the use of navigational links are important. They will make or break a website.

Topic Change... Somewhat

Chuck, I just wanted to inform you, that I am broadening my topic from just HYPE to the whole Service Learning section in Kalamazoo College. There is no mention of any of the programs on the Wikipedia, and it would be easier to write 4-8 pages about several program than just to focus on one specific program that was just recently implemented in the school.
HYPE -----> SERVICE LEARNING at Kalamazoo College

Wikipedia, I Will Defeat You

The author, Stacy Schiff, touched on many points in this article. The first was to introduce the phenomenon of Wikipedia and the comparison of it to its predecessors. Wikipedia was created in 2001, and in those seven years, it has taken over the online encyclopedia field by force. Its main appeal is the process of becoming all-inclusive in terms of articles, allowing online readers to edit articles and a "checks and balances" style of reviewing amendments to each article. [A side note, Wikipedia has an article about Wikipedia on the website]. As many users have found out and love about Wikipedia is that they have articles about everything, which is an advantage that it has over Britannica. The next point is how Wikipedia includes diversity in its makeup, due to the inclusion of articles written in over two hundred different languages. Next the articles speaks of how far back encyclopedias date back, which is over two thousand years ago. The next part of the article describes Jimmy Wale's education and the process he underwent in order to become involved with the project. The rest continues to talk about the concept of Wikipedia.

"Wales’s most radical contribution may be not to have made information free but—in his own alma-matricidal way—to have invented a system that does not favor the Ph.D. over the well-read fifteen-year-old. “To me, the key thing is getting it right,” Wales has said of Wikipedia’s contributors. “I don’t care if they’re a high-school kid or a Harvard professor.” At the beginning, there were no formal rules, though Sanger eventually posted a set of guidelines on the site. The first was “Ignore all the rules.” Two of the others have become central tenets: articles must reflect a neutral point of view (N.P.O.V., in Wikipedia lingo), and their content must be both verifiable and previously published. Among other things, the prohibition against original research heads off a great deal of material about people’s pets". This passage is effective, at least in my opinion, because of the distinction of how easy it is to post on Wikipedia. The comparison of a high school kid versus a Harvard professor shows the wide range of knowledge that contributes to the website, as well its encouragement for users to create, no matter their brain capacity. Also, the neutral point of view is an important aspect of Wikipedia articles, because it is not a forum, it is an online encyclopedia of facts and information.

The design of Wikipedia depends on simplicity, showcasing its ease of use and compatibility to users of all ages. The background consists of white space, with the Wikipedia symbol in the top left hand corner. The articles are separated into sections, with separate links, allowing the reader to skim through the page and find the specific facts that he or she needs. Britannica is similar, but contains more things in terms of the background. It contains a navy blue background, links that overlap on the top of the page. Another noticable different would be the advertisement on the top of the Britannica homepage. Also, Wikipedia is written in the wiki software tool, while Britannica uses javascript.

Post-Presentation

The concept of simplicity and complexity contributes to the three levels of design in various ways. They are linked directly to the way a consumer views the product. A product may be naturally attractive to someone on the terms of how simple or how complex it is. For example, if a child was to see a white ball and then see a multi-colored ball, the child, nine times out of ten will go for the multi-colored ball due to the variety of colors. His/her mind is drawn to the complexity. Behavioral Design works the same way. The simplicity of a product may draw in an elderly, less experienced user, while it may turn away a younger, more experienced consumer. It is vice versa for complexity. For example, today's generation is all about cell phones. When they came out, they were only used to make calls and maybe text message. As the years advanced, so did the technology. Now, users are able to make phone calls, send text/picture messages, watch mobile television, play video games, browse the internet, record videos, hold walkie-talkie conversations, etc; Those new and complex functions are necessities to some, while more confusion for others. Reflective is basically the combination of those two. Consumers may feel superior, or want others to view as high classed with certain products. The class touched upon the topic in the discussion about fabric quality, where Gucci t-shirts are horrible in design, but costs $150 due to the prestige. In comparison, some people might prefer Hanes t-shirts because they are of better texture and cheaper cost. To sum it up, complexity and simplicity control the three levels of design.

"This article illustrates many elements of design including ease of use. There had been other MP3 players made but most of them were difficult to navigate through many of the songs. The iPod had as few buttons as possible to assist with ease of use as well. The actually style of the iPod is very aesthetically pleasing with its clean and crisp appearance. The iPod was also made somewhat affordable with pieces used to make it being relatively inexpensive. The shape was very carefully thought out making sure it would fit in a pocket and was relatively lightweight. The iPod showed the element of innovation by making a product that filled a new niche. The element of durability was also tested with a drop test. " - Liz

"At the risk of sounding obsessed, the one product that stands out to me for all of these design categories is Apple's iPod. On a Visceral level, the iPod is essentially, pretty. It looks and feels nice, and it' s something that feels nice and is visually appealing. On a Behavioral level, the iPod does everything it says it will and more. It functions exceptionally well, and meets the needs of a handheld music and entertainment device. Lastly, on a Reflective level, there are few products that match the iPod. Few products have had such a cultural impact. It promotes a good self-image and it sends a positive message about the owner. " - Hannah

I took those two posts from Liz and Hannah in order to prove that simplicity and complexity both control the three levels of design. The iPod is the perfect example of the paradox. The design of the iPod is simple which draws in the older crowd. Behaviorally, the iPod has few buttons, but the buttons allow more features on the iPod itself. With the click on the menu button or the button in the middle of wheel, a longer list of options appear on drop-down menus. On a reflective level, the iPod was made out to be the social norm, meaning if you did not have one, you were not as cool as if you did.

Proposal

My topic for the Wikipedia article would be the HYPE program that is associated with Kalamazoo College. The relationship between college and prison is always interesting. Wikipedia does not have any information, but I do not know if I can find that much.

Simplicity is... Bliss?

One product that I found appealing due to its complexity would be the Sidekick LX, when it was first introduced to the world. The flipping of the screen always intrigued me, especially after seeing my friends using it during high school. When I first used it, the visibility for the flip was confusing. The screen seems like it can be flipped both ways, but there are hinges on the left side, so it can only flip to the right. Also, the buttons on the sides are not labeled, which made the process even more complicated. After I figured out how to work it though, I decided that I did not need one, because I could find a phone that is less complicated, but with more features. Hence, me and the Blackberry Curve have finally united.

Complexity is justified when the innovative technology becomes comfortable. Drawing back to "Hannah's" interpretation of the correlation between innovation and obselence, once a product becomes the "norm", designers must strive to create something new, something that has not been d0ne before. This is when most designers try to introduce more complex set-ups while keeping easy interfaces. Norman's answer to the question of simplicity is sufficient enough for the rest of this blog, but I guess I will add more."Make it simple and people won’t buy. Given a choice, they will take the item that does more. Features win over simplicity, even when people realize that it is accompanied by more complexity. You do it too, I bet. Haven’t you ever compared two products side by side, comparing the features of each, preferring the one that did more? Why shame on you, you are behaving, well, behaving like a normal person."
Simplicity is only important in terms of use. If you bring a cellular phone without any features, no one will buy. Nowadays, a camera, music player, and internet is standard for any phone. The complexity is needed, but the ease of use is highly appreciated.

"I had a very hard time using a microwave once. It had a plethora of buttons; however I couldn’t find one that simply let you heat something for a designated time. This shows a lack of adequate visibility of a basic button. Instead of the button being located somewhere which made sense or being clearly labeled it was hidden amongst many specialty buttons. This arises from mapping errors as discussed by Norman. If the most used button was mapped in an obvious or central location, it would be easier to identify" - Liz

I found this passage interesting for two reasons. For one, I haven't heard or seen the word plethora used ever since I left New York[that is a good thing]. The second reason would be that I could relate to this situation. My microwave at home has so many buttons, but it is confusing to use. Older models of the microwaves just used the numbers 0-9 and a start button, maybe adding in a time set button here and there. Now, there are only 10 secs, 1 min, 10 min, and 1 hour buttons, along with popcorn, frozen dinner, and other ones. There are so many problems with this set up. First, why would you ever need to put something in the microwave for an hour? Secondly, the specialty buttons that Liz mentioned do not work correctly. The popcorn button puts microwave popcorn under radiation for 2:30 min. By the time it comes out, all of the kernels are burnt. Also, new microwaves introduced the "power levels". I remembered Jeff tried to bring this up in one of the conversations, but no one listened to him. The power levels bring even more confusion to one of the simplest machine created. The main selling point of a microwave was rapid cook time, but if it takes two hours to figure out the set up, it becomes a waste of time.

Emotional Design

"Adult humans like to explore experiences far beyond the basic, biologically wired-in preferences. Thus, although bitter tastes are viscerally disliked (presumably because many poisons are bitter), adults have learned to eat and drink numerous bitter things, even to prefer them. This is an "acquired taste," so called because people have had to learn to overcome their natural inclination to dislike them. So, too, with crowded, busy spaces, or noisy ones, and discordant, non-harmonic music, sometimes with irregular beats: all things that are viscerally negative, but that can be reflectively positive. The principles underlying visceral design are wired in, consistent across people and cultures. If you design according to these rules, your design will always be attractive, even if somewhat if simple. If you design for the sophisticated, for the reflective level, your design can readily become dated because this level is sensitive to cultural differences, trends in fashion, and continual fluctuation. Today's sophistication runs the risk of becoming tomorrow's discard. Great designs, like great art and literature, can break the rules and survive forever, but only a few are gifted enough to be great." - Norman [67]

This passage was the most interesting part of the chapter, due to its effect on the reader. I had an epiphany-like experience while reading this passage. Most of the things that Norman spoke of made a lot of sense. The fact that bitter things displease us as human beings, since it is not viscerally positive. We are used to searching for the sweet scent or taste, so when we smell or taste something different, the response is usually negative. This is also true with music, because I stopped by the Fine Arts Building and heard someone playing a tune. Some of his chords sounded "bitter", so the first instinct was to label the chord as a mistake, but really it flowed with the song.

The terms visceral design, behavioral design and reflective design are useful to me as a reader. Norman is able to discuss his definitions of the words throughout the chapter successfully, so there is no problem. For someone who had not read the chapter, the terms may be confusing. If I had to rename the terms, I would use Appearance instead of Visceral, Function instead of Behavioral, and Message for Reflective.

I believe that a designer would have to look at the rest of the market in terms of products that already exist and decide what he/she wants to make the main focus of the design. For example, if a refrigerator designer saw that all of the competition made refrigerators rectangular, he would add more detail to the rectangular shape for visceral, add more compartments to the rectangular shape for behavioral, or make the refrigerator circular or triangular for reflective design. Most reflective products are usually reflective and visceral or reflective and behavioral. Referring back to the conversation on Monday, in terms of shoes, consumers buy Jordans for the behavioral aspect as well for the reflective design. Most wear Jordans in order to stay in style, well others wear Jordans for its comfort or the stability.

Norman 18 Years Later

The main points of the article would be the use of visceral, behavioral, and reflective design. Visceral design is defined as a natural design to a product. With a natural design, there also brings a natural attraction to a product from the consumer. Norman gives the examples of flowers and fruits in terms of their preparations for seed movement. The flowers evolve to have a sweet scent, so the birds and bees would be attracted. The same goes for fruit, where most fruit are sweet, so that the mammals would be able to spread the seeds around. The key factors to an effective visceral design would be shape, form and the aesthetics. The next is behavioral design. Behavioral design is defined as a product created just for function and use. The appearance of the product is not important in comparison to visceral design. The behavioral design's effectiveness is measured in innovation and enhancement. The example given by Norman in this chapter for behavioral design is cup holders in automobiles. When cars were first created, there was no need for cup holders, because the innovation of mobility was enough for society. Since having a car was the "norm"[the U-shaped correlation of technology], the companies were forced to add something to new to appease to the consumer. The last level of design is reflective design. Reflective design is defined as a product of use for cultural design, or a product to deliver a message. Norman contrasts two different digital watches in terms of reflective design. The square-face watch is different in terms of design, which might attract many.

The writing in this chapter is very similar to his writing eighteen years before in The Design of Everyday Things. The examples that he uses in Emotional Design are more up-to-date, which makes the reading more relevant. This ties back to the point that Hannah brought up in class last week. Also, Norman's writing seems to be of more psychology than design. This may be because of the topic of the paper, but it is a notable difference between the two books. There are still some similarities though. Norman still uses the idea of conceptual versus actual models in both chapters. This chapter introduces sections to explain the findings of his case studies. In the Design of Everyday Things chapter, Norman talked about his findings as just examples.

The use of the three level design is apparent in today's culture. Not to be shallow, but one visceral design would be women, nowadays. Most celebrity females are only seen for their aesthetics instead of their talent. Companies know that women attract men to products, so sexuality is used in advertisement. In terms of behavioral, music collecting consumers prefer a 80 Gigabyte iPod instead of a 4 Gigabyte, due to the function of storage. The 4 Gigabyte may look better due to its small design, but the 80 gigabyte carries more space for more music and video. With reflective, in New York, many people wear Gucci and Prada and Louis Vuitton shoes. When comparing their design to other sneakers, the high-fashion brand are not as great. Even with this being true, most will choose the high-fashion brand, due to the prestige that comes along with it. Like Norman described earlier in the chapter, "if it is expensive, it must be special". This is the impression most consumers have in terms of the shoes.

The Design Part Two

"I stand at the blackboard in my office, talking with a student, when my telephone rings. Once, twice it rings. I pause, trying to complete my sentence before answering. The ringing stops. "I'm sorry," says the student. "Not your fault," I say. "But it's no problem, the call now transfers to my secretary's phone. She'll answer it." As we listen we hear her phone start to ring. Once, twice. I look at my watch. Six o' clock: it's late, the office staff has left for the day. I rush out of my office to my secretary's phone, but as I get there, it stops ringing. "Ah," I think, "it's being transferred to another phone."... In fact, I could have retrieved the call from my office, had I acted quickly enough."

This passage was one of the most interesting, due to the paradox of ease of use versus innovation. The call forwarding function on the phone was made for those office workers who were out of the room or out of town, allowing callers to reach another line. This was made so that businessmen or women would not miss any important calls. The irony of this story is that Norman actually created more work for himself by chasing the phone call from one line to the next instead of taking two seconds out of his time to answer the call initially.

Although the book was published twenty years ago, the same rules apply in today's society. Companies want to keep "pushing the envelope" in terms of technology. As time advances, so must technology. The market is created for obsolescence, so that every year something new has to come out. Due to this time constraint, developers do not have as much time to test these products. This is why most companies advertise surveys for consumers to complete, but usually no one fills them out. If there is no feedback generated, then the companies continue to follow with the same design.

The factors would be used to evaluate the design of a product would be style, size, simplicity, affordance, cost, conceptual verus actual model, visibility in terms of function, shape, slickness of the material, sharpness of the design, color, durability, and separation of functions. Products are usually made smaller in order to conserve more space. With a smaller design, there is a less space for buttons, knobs, and controls. Although it is better for the size, if there are too many actions assigned to one control, the outcomes might be unfortunate.

Wait, How Do I Open The Door

After reading the first chapter of this book, the author seems to be hitting a few key points for the guidelines of design. The first would be visibility. Since the human mind needs clues to interpret use and functionality, the design must have some visible aspects in order for people to figure out how to work it. The door example that Norman gives makes sense, since it has happened to many people before. If there is no door handle or indication of how it should be opened, then the user will be lost and might just walk away. Basically, great quality design needs an easy interface in order to allow consumers to use the product with ease instead of struggling with frustration and confusion. The next key point that Norman discussed was affordance, as in what the product looks like it is for versus its actual function. Designers have to take in account what each material can be used for and make the product accordingly. Another key point was the amount of parts that society considers "everyday" things. Also, the functions need to be clearly mapped out in terms of design. If a consumer can not distinguish what each part's function is, the simplicity is lost. The product needs to have a high degree of usability, and the concept must match the product. The last key point would be feedback. With the feedback, the designing team will know what works and what does not.

One object of difficult use would probably be the Epson printer that was purchased for this laptop. Just to load paper, there were at least 7 steps. The whole set-up process was ridiculously confusing. After the paper was loaded, the cartridges needed to be loaded. Instead of having the normal "black" and "color" cartridges, it has the old school CMYK cartridges. After all of that, the paper jammed during the print test. The problem is that Epson printers are not user-friendly. The conceptual model was not the same as the one in practice.

The designers of the iPod addressed the principles that Norman discussed, but in reverse order. The feedback from other MP3 players were the most important concept for Apple, since the designers would have the edge of history on its side. Apple would be able to captialize on the strengths while improve on the weaknesses. Also, the interface is user-friendly, so consumers of all ages will be able to enjoy it.

The Perfect Post

The article "The Perfect Thing" by Steven Levy is an interesting overview of the technological design business. Fadell's experiences with the electronics business, along with his trials with the model iPod shows the whole "guess-and-check"-like process. He moved from company to company in order to find somewhere that worked for him. It was the same thing for the model iPod. He had to continously try to figure out how to be innovative, yet functional. Due to the other failures on the market, Fadell was able to learn from the mistakes or setbacks of the other products.

As for the factors for creating and evaluating the "perfect thing" would be to follow the pathway that Fadell took. This is, to research the rest of the products on the markets, look at the drawbacks, find a way to improve them, and ultimately make them better while adding something new. It sounds difficult, but that is what separates the "men from the boys" metaphorically. The factors for evalauting success with a MP3 player would be size/shape/mobility, storage, ease of use in terms of the interface and the programming software, sound quality, price, battery life, and overall popularity in terms of advertisement. Since Ipod was able to figure out how to manipulate this formula, the product was successful.

While reviewing the Apple iPod, it seems like a pretty reliable product. Apple created a variety of music players, allowing consumers a choice of products in terms of price and storage. The iPods range from the iPod Shuffle, only storing up to 512 MB, to the iPod Classic 160 GB. The interactive interface is easy to use, allowing consumers of all ages to enjoy. The video quality on the iPod is better than most, with access to television shows and music videos from iTunes. In terms of drawbacks, most criticism is directed towards the battery life, durability, and popularity in theft. The iPod commercials advertised fourteen hours for playback time, but in reality, the battery lasted on average around eight hours. For the issue of durability, iPods are actually very frail. After being dropped once, the screen will most likely crack, or leave horrid digital crack. The "digital crack" is when there is no physical damage to the product, yet the screen is cracked, causing a complete hassle when trying to find music. In terms of theft, there was a season of iPod stealing. Around 2005 or2006, there was a rash of theft in the New York area. At the height of iPod sales, people were getting mugged left and right. Thieves were spotting out the infamous white headphones and targeting their prey respectively. Although iPods are the highest selling digital audio player, Microsoft Zunes are still better.

First Time Around

This is me, Dion, or as I like to say Seymour Green, as my pen name, since it is a life goal. I feel as a human being, I was created to make money, sort of like the US Mint. As this is my first post, and there is no forced length, I will keep this short. With college, I want to start it off on the right foot. Coming from New York, it is a different feel out here in Michigan. Everyone is friendly, I am not used to all of this. Well, as the culture shock sinks in, I will finally get the chance to adapt and adjust. That's enough for today I guess, time to go to sleep