Steampunk Gadgets

This is interesting - some intriguing gadget design fusing "intersection of technology and romance where the future meets the past: Victorian era inventions clash with often dark alternate realities." This might feature well in the Critical Design aspect of the unit 'Research * Development'. These designs are obviously unnecessary, but they force us to confront our notions of what technology should look like.

http://oddee.com/item_96830.aspx

Inspiring Visuals - Liquid splashes

Just came across a selection of 'Amazing Liquid sculptures" - photographs taken in the moment of liquid splashes. I love this kind of stuff and would like to create my own. I like the 3D and almost tactile quality, and the ephemerality of it. It just makes it really special, the thought that this only existed for a split second - and was formed organically.

http://funlok.com/index.php/creativity/unbelievable-liquid-sculptures-10102008.html

Technology... with personality?

Anna's Transformation project on the acceptance of technology and the phenomenon of Robots has caused me to blog this article. It is written from the point of view of interaction/experience design and gives a few good examples (looking at visual anthropomorphism for example) as well as insights into how to convey emotion. Turns out Experience Designers Shedroff and Noessel back up my point about R2D2, even though a practical non-anthropomorphic robot, appeals to the human emotion through his sound.

http://johnnyholland.org/2009/12/09/does-technology-need-personality/

Digital Magazine Experiments pt 2

This project by one of the MA DDM students, Anna, is really shaping up to be interesting - and looking at the recent developments could be a more than pertinent investigation. As Paul pointed out, the fact that Apple is intending to release a handheld tablet device could breathe new life into the e-reader and digital reading experience...

A more traditional (!) attempt by Wired Magazine, recreating page-turns and adding interactivity

http://www.wired.co.uk/promotions/sampler200907.aspx

Sports Illustrated designed to be viewed and interacted with on a handheld tablet device... the real estate of the screen is really being used in a clever way, and appropriately to the functionality of Digital Media. The interaction design is reflecting the essence of magazine reading - e.g. browsing, focusing - and not just copying the physical act of page turning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntyXvLnxyXk

Hopefully, Anna will find out more in her research about our relationship with and experience of magazines....