Comments on: Creating Controversy for its own Sake (and How Humility is a Rare Bird Indeed on the Web These Days) http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/ A Collection of Serious Thoughts on Work, Faith, People, & Creativity Sun, 14 Mar 2010 04:27:11 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3 By: Yves http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10401 Yves Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:51:57 +0000 http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10401 I like your view. To me, the interesting part of this whole story is how American Airlines is handling it, and how it will affect their business. My complete comment on my blog: http://www.zlok.net/blog/2009/11/14/branding-is-more-than-a-logo/ I like your view.

To me, the interesting part of this whole story is how American Airlines is handling it, and how it will affect their business.

My complete comment on my blog:
http://www.zlok.net/blog/2009/11/14/branding-is-more-than-a-logo/

]]> By: Brian Kalma http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10394 Brian Kalma Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:40:04 +0000 http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10394 From my perspective the positive thing with all of this is that people are talking about the obstacles that prevent the world from looking at prettier things. That is the area the community should focus on and rally around. I have to applaud Dustin and Andrew for not just speaking their mind, but for having a solution. That is extremely rare! Andrew wrote about the site I work for, Zappos.com. And as I noted in my response to him (http://blogs.zappos.com/blogs/inside-zappos/2009/09/16/an-open-letter-response-to-youre-killing-me-zappos) I believe he hit on all the right design principles, but did not address the "why" behind his solutions. Design at Zappos is a verb, it is a process to solve a variety of problems. if a company goal (let's say Apple) is to always have aesthetics be a primary factor then it will be so. For Zappos, we have clearly not gotten there yet. Our focus has been in areas that will eventually enable better experiences, we are laying the framework. Let's just remember this: all companies (and their sites) have a target audience and have very specific goals. I like to think that we all design to achieve goals, not to make other designers smile. That would be too idealistic. Love, Brian Kalma From my perspective the positive thing with all of this is that people are talking about the obstacles that prevent the world from looking at prettier things. That is the area the community should focus on and rally around. I have to applaud Dustin and Andrew for not just speaking their mind, but for having a solution. That is extremely rare!

Andrew wrote about the site I work for, Zappos.com. And as I noted in my response to him (http://blogs.zappos.com/blogs/inside-zappos/2009/09/16/an-open-letter-response-to-youre-killing-me-zappos) I believe he hit on all the right design principles, but did not address the “why” behind his solutions. Design at Zappos is a verb, it is a process to solve a variety of problems. if a company goal (let’s say Apple) is to always have aesthetics be a primary factor then it will be so. For Zappos, we have clearly not gotten there yet. Our focus has been in areas that will eventually enable better experiences, we are laying the framework.

Let’s just remember this: all companies (and their sites) have a target audience and have very specific goals. I like to think that we all design to achieve goals, not to make other designers smile. That would be too idealistic.

Love,
Brian Kalma

]]> By: dalas v http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10393 dalas v Wed, 11 Nov 2009 01:39:31 +0000 http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10393 I enjoyed your coverage and commentary here. I enjoyed your coverage and commentary here.

]]> By: Jay Fienberg http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10389 Jay Fienberg Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:37:07 +0000 http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10389 One thing to add, that's maybe worth saying to people who cares about design or user experience, is: if someone produces a mockup to show how "it'd be better if so-and-so did this": one should always be critical of whether that mockup is a "real design for a real world" or just an idea or sketch / mock-up. Sketching / mocking-up redesign ideas can be good for lots of things: suggesting alternative approaches, starting a conversation, breaking out of legacy approaches, imagining a better world, etc. But, it's also possible to fall into a trap of thinking mockups are obviously going to "work better" because they obviously "look better." At some point, one always has to ask the questions: could this company really do this? could this designer really follow through with all the design details? could this designer and this company work together to make it really happen across all the details? If the answer is "no" to any of those questions, then it's useful to recognize that the mockup is a fantasy--which is totally fine--but remember it's fantasy. One thing to add, that’s maybe worth saying to people who cares about design or user experience, is: if someone produces a mockup to show how “it’d be better if so-and-so did this”: one should always be critical of whether that mockup is a “real design for a real world” or just an idea or sketch / mock-up.

Sketching / mocking-up redesign ideas can be good for lots of things: suggesting alternative approaches, starting a conversation, breaking out of legacy approaches, imagining a better world, etc.

But, it’s also possible to fall into a trap of thinking mockups are obviously going to “work better” because they obviously “look better.”

At some point, one always has to ask the questions: could this company really do this? could this designer really follow through with all the design details? could this designer and this company work together to make it really happen across all the details?

If the answer is “no” to any of those questions, then it’s useful to recognize that the mockup is a fantasy–which is totally fine–but remember it’s fantasy.

]]> By: Chuck Skoda http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10386 Chuck Skoda Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:13:56 +0000 http://soserio.us/creating-controversy/#comment-10386 This is an excellent article. I feel that while Dustin and Andrew are pointing out some legitimate poor and/or dated designs, they should instead be exercising their consumer rights. No one made Dustin fly on AmericanAirlines, or Andrew shoe-shop Zappos. I think it's fine to air your opinion of a site, or even mockup a proposed redesign. But both of these articles assume designer influence is stronger than consumer influence, and when it comes to the corporate world that isn't true. These corporations are looking at the bottom line, i.e. people giving them money. Of course designers care about the particulars of a website design/interface, but AmericanAirlines doesn't care about designers. They're concerned with consumers. Of more interest to them would be a random blogger of relative prominence saying something like: "I was looking for a flight yesterday on AA.com, and I had such a terrible time. One of my friends recently mentioned how satisfied they were with a flight on Virgin America. I went to their site, and was so impressed. I had the perfect flight booked in minutes. It was such a great experience!" If you want to affect a corporation, you need to be a consumer before you're anything else. This is an excellent article. I feel that while Dustin and Andrew are pointing out some legitimate poor and/or dated designs, they should instead be exercising their consumer rights.

No one made Dustin fly on AmericanAirlines, or Andrew shoe-shop Zappos. I think it’s fine to air your opinion of a site, or even mockup a proposed redesign. But both of these articles assume designer influence is stronger than consumer influence, and when it comes to the corporate world that isn’t true.

These corporations are looking at the bottom line, i.e. people giving them money. Of course designers care about the particulars of a website design/interface, but AmericanAirlines doesn’t care about designers. They’re concerned with consumers.

Of more interest to them would be a random blogger of relative prominence saying something like:

“I was looking for a flight yesterday on AA.com, and I had such a terrible time. One of my friends recently mentioned how satisfied they were with a flight on Virgin America. I went to their site, and was so impressed. I had the perfect flight booked in minutes. It was such a great experience!”

If you want to affect a corporation, you need to be a consumer before you’re anything else.

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