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Adam Griffin
Benjamin Carsten
Brad Twitty
Summary:
This book talked about the three parts of design: visceral, reflective, and behavioral. These cover the look, the use, and what we think about objects we use. It did not go into too much depth of each type, but instead gave a feel for why each type was important. The book seemed to be more of an overview in which you should go on to make your own conclusions versus the source of knowledge. This book is a jumping point for moving on.
Discussion:
This book for me was the accumulation of the semester. It took many of the books we read and combined them into one giant lesson. As I read Don Norman's other books I felt that they always missed the other parts such as reflective choices. This one seems to balance all of the choices into one book. The first 3/4 of the book were probably my favorite book of the semester so far. Chapter 7 seemed off topic to me as he discussed emotions in robots. It seemed to be less about design and more a social commentary on what could happen. I probably liked the book because I believe that people buy on look as much as use. Even if they narrow it down by use, they probably take the one that looks better. Human's are pre-wired to start make judgments as soon as we see something. A very useful product may never be touched because it does not look good. I am not sure how useful the book will be looking back, but I do feel that his points were mostly correct and insightful. Long story short is that his other books offered depths into topics, but this one seemed to get the bigger picture.
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I agree that many buy on look as much as use. It might be more common to buy on look than anything else. Unless you spend extra time to research a product and read reviews, you're left buying the one that appears to be what you want.
ReplyDeleteI think it was a good choice to read the other two books before reading this one. Had the order been reversed otherwise, I'd probably feel a little different about him while reading The Design of Everyday/Future things.
ReplyDelete"but this one seemed to get the bigger picture." I agree. I am glad we are reading this one to the end, I would not have gotten as much out of this read if I had no read the others first.
ReplyDeleteGood points. People do buy things based on looks. For instance, some cars get 40mpg on the highway and you still hear people saying they would never buy it because it's too ugly. Even though it may not be superior in quality, some people buy products solely based on their visceral appeal.
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