This winter has been a good one in the MidWest, if you like snow. I like snow when its white, and fluffy, before it gets boring and brown. Snow makes me enthusiastic to get outside and go snow boarding and to just be outside experiencing it all. Some people hate snow and the mess it creates on the street, but I don't let the nay sayers get to me. I've enjoyed the hills in Wisconsin this season. And while I do long for the days growing up in Vermont, when many great ski resorts were just minutes away, I'm content for now, enjoying what I have.

A company I continually come back to throughout my life is Burton. Growing up in northern Vermont, Burton was hard to avoid. My first board was a Burton Air. Jeff Brushie went to my high school, long before I was there. But I'd think about this every day when we'd pass the half pipe that stood as monument to his achievements in his parents yard.

Burton has an exciting past, pioneering the way for modern snow boarding and culture as we now know it. The thing that never ceases to amaze me it that Burton has always payed close attention to their design. This statement is inclusive of everything from their catalog, to their clothing and products, which are always well engineered. I keep coming back to Burton throughout my life for many reasons. For one, it wasn't until recently that I began snow boarding again. I think for many years while I was in school in Milwaukee I was resentful of how small the hills are here. But lately I've taken the attitude that I have to snowboard because it something that I still love to do. And any riding is better that no riding at all.

I recently attended Jeff Johnson's Web Bloopers seminar at the Center for Technology Innovation at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. I'm familiar with and enjoy the thoroughness his books GUI Bloopers and Web Bloopers but was skeptical that the all day seminar would be dry. I knew keeping the room engaged I knew would be a challenge. To my surprise Jeff Johnson was able to hold the room. He kept the audience engaged by showing examples of web interface bloopers that people could relate to and interjecting some witty commentary.

The over all structure of the workshop was broken up in a similar fashion to the Web Bloopers book, by blooper type; content bloopers, task support bloopers, navigation bloopers, form bloopers, search bloopers, text bloopers, link appearance bloopers, and graphic design bloopers. Jeff brought up many good points that even the most well read web design professional would benefit from revisiting. The entire time I couldn't help but think: Blooper is the funniest word, simultaneously wrong and right on so many levels. The seminar was also supplemented by a lab, which was a nice touch to the traditional CTI format.

While Jeff's talk was good, it could have been better. I know it is impossible to cover everything in one day and I will commend him for approaching the volume of content appropriately. One aspect of the seminar that I did not enjoy was the use of the stereotypical older relative who doesn't understanding anything on the web. Yea, we get it older users and users less familiar with web conventions are easily confused. Why does the usability community constantly fall back on this steroy type in order to explain things? If it's personas we're after than lets use them, and stop relying on this 'older' stereotype.

Tonight is Gallery Night in the Third Ward and the opening of the Communication Design alumni show at MIAD. The exhibition will run from January 21st - March 19th. The opening reception will be held next week Friday, January 28th at the Fredrick Layton Gallery, from 5-8 p.m.

Fredrick Layton Gallery
273 East Erie Street
Milwaukee, WI 53202

Illuminated exteriors on buildings are nothing new. From Times Square to Tokyo, we see screens on buildings presenting images and messages. For the most they're trying to sell us something. Two projects have stood out in my mind as examples of new applications of illumination technologies applied to build form.

The first is the BIX project. Circular florescent bulbs create a black and white low resolution display. The second, the Seoul Galleria Mall exterior by Rogier van der Heide. The Seoul Galleria is a refreshing and appropriate interpretation of the act we all love and adore, shopping. The exterior has been constructed from color LEDs mounted behind frosted glass. Each LED can be controlled individually resulting in a low resolution, full color display. The building's illumination interface can display 16 million colors, can write text and display low resolution images. There is even a web interface to control the display remotely. In an interview with Metropolis Magazine vad der Heid States “It’s a new kind of architecture, a mall that’s constantly presenting itself differently.” While 'a new kind of architecture' may be pushing it, the illuminated building exterior definitely is a new way in which a building is able to present itself.

Potentially, if a buildings illumination system could react to the inhabitants, the building could come alive (similar to Calatrava's Milwaukee art museum coming alive for its visitors, only theoretically the response could be more direct). As more people are active in the building, the exterior skin could respond, the form could potentialy respond. How will we perceive built form in the future? How will screen technology when combined with built form change peoples perception of what a building can be? Both projects are sure to inspire and offer insight into how built form in conjunction with applied technology and lighting can create compelling experiences that engage visitors in new and meaningful ways.

Critique of products is something I'm unfamiliar with. While I've spent years talking about typography, graphic design, and interaction, I have not officially studied product design. I do know what kinds of products I like to use and to some degree through observation of my own habits, I know why I like using them. The only other exposure to product design criticism and analysis is by listening to Michael McCoy speak about product semantics at the Image, Space, Object conference and by reading The Ice Palace That Melted Away by Bill Stumpf. In the text George Nelson tells Mr.Stumpf "Study life, not just design." and this is mainly what I am guilty of.

I know what websites I like and I know what products I like too. Most recently, the product that make me happy to use it is a stapler, The Red Stapler by Swingline. The Red Stapler is a well designed object, from the form to the materials. The important thing is that using it makes me happy.

You may already be familiar with The Red Stapler from the movie Office Space. The neurotic, balding man, Milton, who ended up with all the cash at the end of movie? The red stapler he was so crazy for? That's the one. Little did I know it has become the cult classic of office supplies (if something like that could even exist). Its the only stapler I'm aware of that has a website devoted to it (that wasn't put up by a company trying to sell staplers). As the legend goes, The Red Stapler was originally produced for the move. However, the director simply painted an existing model red. The color and the hype are only two of the factors of what makes this stapler cool and enjoyable to use. The feel of the stapler is really what makes it enjoyable. Its cast iron construction make you feel like there is substance in your hand as opposed to flimsy piece of plastic. Its form is reminiscent of a locomotive from the 30's, like a Cassandra poster. The action is powerful, the staples feel firmly attached. I never thought I'd have a affinity for an office supply but I do. Using it makes the experience enjoyable and in the end isn't the experience what design should (to some degree) be about?

Adobe's interview with Stephan Sagmeister is insightful and motivating. The interview offers a window into the designer's thinking and gives him a chance to explain his work in his own words. In contrast to Adobe's interview with Paula Scher, the interview offers a subtle insight into the designers creative process.

During the interview, Sagmeister states that 'the final piece should show the process visually'. The design process, the creative process and production process are different. Partially what makes Sagmeister's work unique is that the process of producing the work bridges and is unified with the idea. In his poster for Adobe's Design Achievement Award we see coffee cups being filled which are positioned to make an image of a trophy. The direct reference is to the motivational brew that drives designer while simultaneously the act of producing the image is captured. We're given insight into the production while at the same time into the idea. Another example of how Sagmeister bridges the gap and blurs the line between the creative and production process is seen in his o-so-famous AIGA Cranbrook poster. Sagmeister explains how etching text into his skin is shows angst amongst designers and dispels preconceived notions of the graphic design industry being pristine. We see the production of how the image was created while simultaneously receiving the message and understanding the creative process.

Sagmeister's work is notoriously bleeding edge in most circles, but not in the same aggressive, overbearing, layered, 3D style we've come to expect form ultra-modern designers. Typically, ultra-modernists trends fade quickly because their style is bound to a fleeting aesthetic. What Sagmeister has done goes beyond an aesthetic which makes his work even more meaning full and interesting.

With the turning of the calendar its time to assess what's valuable in our lives and set some goals for the new year. This year, the focus of my writing will be commentary on design, interaction and technology. While this may be a large umbrella, the term 'focus' is key, with an aim to contribute to the increasing amount of design intellect growing on the Internet. Bloggs like Design Observer have lead the way challenging design education and the often elusive design theory publication. Designers need to think about what we are producing. We can not seperate our thoughts from our actions. It is an additional goal to connect myself with others who share similar interests in design and interaction, theory and criticism.