Signature Sheet

Signature Sheet- I meet with Doug, Tony, Melanie, and Sigrid.

Dark Horse Wine Project Sheet.

Strangers on a Train Project Sheet.

Steak Ninja Project Sheet.

KY Jelly Ad Campaign Project Sheet.

Marilyn Monroe Project Sheet.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES:

Doug suggested that with my Steak Ninja project I show some work without the crosshair handle bar in my process book. He didn't like my Strangers on a Train typography music video. He said it was slow, boring, and didn't showcase anything of me, only what the program can do. Doug liked my Marilyn Monroe typography video, though. He suggested I try to make it sexier. As far as my KY Jelly Ad Campaign, Doug hated it. He said I was misdirected in art direction and he doesn't understand at all what I've done with it. He thinks it makes my work look uncreative and boring. The only critique he had for my Dark Horse was to grunge up the type.

  

Melanie liked my Dark Horse wine branding. She suggested that I actually create the bottle so I could take better photos to show. She also wanted me to mock up the parallax website. Melanie liked both my Marilyn Monroe and Strangers on a Train video. She wanted me to make sure overheard is one word and not two and she caught a terrible typo. She loved my KY Jelly Ad Campaign. She wants me to create a tradebooth or a parade float for it. She thinks that it would be great if I could get sachets manufactured. She wanted me to build out at least 2 physical packaging items that I can show.

Sigrid didn't have much critique for my Dark Horse Wine branding. She suggested that I change the envelope size for the stationery mock up. She also wants me to right align numbers in all of my projects and table of contents. She liked the idea of making sachets for the KY Jelly Ad Campaign. She wasn't sure of the three words at first, she felt that kinky and lucky fit together but silky didn't. After explaining the target audience for the specific silky ad, she agreed that it worked. Sigrid really liked both the Marilyn Monroe and the Strangers on a Train videos. She found them to be fun and well done. She suggested that for Steak Ninja I show an example of how I would have kerned the logo (the K needs to be opened).

Tony really wanted me to create the physical bottle for Dark Horse wine as well as the gift box packaging. He suggested to get the desired effect of a matte bottle with a shiny logo I use sand blasting. He wanted to emphasize the importance of having a mocked up website for Dark Horse. He didn't have much to say about Marilyn Monroe or Strangers on a Train. Tony suggested that I create some sort of meta data back end ideas with the My Moodboard App. He wants the app to create hashtags so that mood boards can be searchable. As far as the KY Jelly Campaign, Tony suggested I create a web banner ad with Adobe edge. He also liked the idea of doing a tradebooth and sample packets. I showed Tony my potential Smoking PSA Ad Campaign. He really liked the imagery and suggested I make it the hero and make the information much smaller so the images can draw the client in. He thought both the mobile and the pacifier were the most successful photos and that the teddy bear was a bit lacking in comparison. 

Artifact Ideas

Portfolio Timeline

TIMELINE

WEEK ONE

Establish projects for panel

Establish projects for website

Collect projects

WEEK TWO

Meet with Tony to discuss projects

Start website

Select theme/template or muse

Work on Darkhorse website mock up

WEEK THREE

Meet with Melanie to discuss projects

Meet with Nathan to discuss projects

Artifact sketches due

Start laying out process book

WEEK FOUR

Meet with Doug to discuss projects

Finish website

Signature sheet due

Job packet for Rene due

Marilyn & Strangers projects completed

WEEK FIVE

Present Steak Ninja & My Moodboard to Melanie for signature

Present Marilyn and Strangers to Nathan for signature

Work on KY Ad campaign 

Preliminary mock up of artifact due

Work on personal identity

Logo

Resume

Business card

WEEK SIX NO SCHOOL

Begin work on senior project

Update menu/action upon food received 

Personal identity prints ordered

WEEK SEVEN

Meet with Tony/Melanie for sign off on Dark Horse and KY ad campaign

Meet with Doug

Continue progress on senior project

Grey Scale Process book

Designed CD due

WEEK EIGHT

Artifact due

Signature sheet due

Projects finalized

WEEK NINE

Finalized website with all projects/photos up

Send Scott progress of process book

WEEK TEN

Have all printed materials gathered

Business card

Resume

Projects

Project Books

Mounted prints

Final process book due

Artifacts ready

Prepare for panel presentation

Doppelganger

If you could be anyone that you wanted, who would it be? This question is not one that haunts me often. I'm quite pleased with who I am and the direction I'm heading in. However, for the sake of this class and this blog post, I'll pretend I ponder this. 

During Career Development, we were required to set up informational interviews to attend to learn about the "real life" graphic design field. Possibly my most memorable meeting was with Jennifer, or Jenn, Stewart. She and Gage Mitchell were the soul designers and owners of Modern Species Graphic Design Firm. I set up a group interview with Gage and Jenn but they suggested I also do a personal interview and bring them some projects to see. 

I brought a few projects and showed them during the interview as I would if I were interviewing for a job. They enjoyed my presentation and offered good advice for future interviews. After I finished showing my work they showed me some of their projects.

Modern Species specializes in working green and sustainable. Both Gage and Jennifer have an intense love for the environment and prefer to leave less of a footprint where possible. Their clients are brands that I am familiar with (So Delicious, Craft Beer Week, etc). 

Before Jenn joined Gage in the graphic design endeavor she was a copy writer. I've always been interested and passionate about writing. One of my favorite things about design is having the ability to create clever tag lines and change/write body copy. 

Jenn and Gage are both active in AIGA. They are a happy team in their business and private lives. I look up to both of them for their views on sustainability, design, and love-business balance. For these reasons, if I had to be someone else, I would choose to be Jennifer Stewart, the mostly vegetairian with a penchant for sweet things. 

Thesis Proposal

SENIOR THESIS PROPOSAL

For my senior thesis, I would like to tackle design of massive magnitude: creating my own bar from the floor up. In doing so I will learn about environmental graphics, information design, architecture, bar design, and experiential design.

INTRODUCTION
What makes a place experiential? How do you use design tools including architecture, graphic design, package design, branding, and environmental design to bring out a feeling? Experiential design focuses on a cohesion throughout collateral that goes as deep as architecture to menu design. When experiential and environmental design are done right you can feel it.

Have you ever been to the Rainforest Cafe? The ceilings are shrouded in faux shrubbery, a starlight sky underneath. Elephants, apes, and mountain cats adorn the walls and are animated to appear real. The furniture and signage make you feel as if you are on a jungle safari. This is experiential design.

THESIS STATEMENT
Experiential marketing focuses on how consumers connect to a product or service; The experience of it leads to brand loyalty. I would like to research how restaurant and bars use experiential marketing throughout their business. Graphic design is vastly encompassing and allows the designers reach to cover furniture, space, printed material, web material, and more.

In creating my own bar from the ground up, I will be allowed full control to entirely design a brand physically and visually. I will explore traditional branding as well as environmental design. I will learn to use all areas of graphic design to create a cohesive look and feel that helps establish and keep brand loyalty.


SENIOR PROJECT BIBLIOGRAPHY

AvroKO. "Best Ugly: Restaurant Concepts and Architecture by Avroko." Harper Design. 2008.

Baer, Kim and Jill Vacarra. “Information Design Workbook: Graphic approaches, solutions, and inspiration plus 30 case studies”. Rockport Publishers. 2008.

Berger, Craig M., Skolnick, Lee; Lorenc, Jan; "What is Exhibition Design." RotoVision. 2007.

Braun. "Drink! Best of Bar Design." Braun Publish. 2009.

Calori, Chris. "Signage and Wayfinding Design. A complete guide to creating environmental graphic design systems." Wiley. 2007.

Daab. "Bar Design." DAAB MEDIA. 2007.

Dernie, David. "Exhibition Design." W.W. Norton & Co. 2006.

Editors of Phaidon. "The Phaidon Archive of Graphic Design." Phaidon Press. 2007.

Fiell, Charlotte. "New Graphic Design: The 100 Best Contemporary Graphic Designers." Goodman Books. 2013.

Fili, Louise. "Elegantissima: The Design and Typography of Louise Fili." Princeton Architectural Press. 2012.

Finke, Gail Deibler. "You Are Here: Graphics That Direct, Explain, & Entertain." Watson-Guptill Publications. 1999.

Gibson, David. "The Wayfinding Handbook: Information Design for Public Places." Princeton Architectural Press. 2009.

Grote, Jason. "Significant Objects." Fantagraphics. 2012.

Heller, Steven. "100 Ideas that Changed Graphic Design." Laurence King Publishing. 2012.

Helvetica. Gary Hustwitt. Plexifilm, 2007. DVD.

Herriott, Luke. "1,000 Restaurant Bar and Cafe Graphics: From Signage to Logos and Everything in Between." Rockport Publishers. 2007.

Hora, Mies. "Official Signs & Icons 2." Ultimate Symbol. 2005.

Hunt, Wayne. "Environmental Graphics." Collins Design. 2004.

Katz, Joel. "Designing Information: Human Factors and Common Sense in Information Design." Wiley. 2012.

Krauel, Jacobo. "Clubs & Bars Design." Links International. 2011.

Lorenc, Jan and Lee Skonlnick with Craig Berger. "What is Exhibition Design?" RotoVision. 2007.

McLuhan, Marshall. "The Book of Probes." Gingko Press Inc. 2011.

Mollerup, Per. "Wayshowing > Wayfinding: Basic & Interactive." BIS Publishers. 2013.

Neumeier, Marty. "The Brand Gap: Expanded Edition." Peachpit Press. 2005.

Passini, Romedi. "Wayfinding: People, Signs, and Architecture." Focus Strategic Communications. 2002.

Petar, David. "How to Build a Bar That Lasts & Do It Right So It Doesn't Fall Apart." David Petar Publishing. 2012.

Poulin, Richard. "Graphic Design and Architecture, a 20th Century History: A Guide to Type, Image, Symbol, and Visual Storytelling in the Modern World." Rockport Publishers. 2012.

Poulin, Richard. "The Language of Graphic Design: An Illustrated Handbook for Understanding Fundamental Design Principals." Rockport Publishers. 2012.

Quartino, Daniela Santos. "New Bars & Restaurants 2." Harper Design. 2010.

Rendgen, Sandra. "Information Graphics." Taschen. 2012.

Shaoqiang, Wang. "Night Time: Innovative Design for Clubs and Bars." Promopress. 2013.

Skinner, Tina. "Design for Restaurants and Bars Inspiration for 100s of International Hotels." Schiffer Publishing. 2003.

Stones, John. "Very Small Cafes & Restaurants." Laurence King Publishing Company. 2011.

Treu, Martin. "Signs, Streets, and Storefronts: A History of Architecture and Graphics along America's Commercial Corridors." Johns Hopkins University Press. 2012.

Tufte, Edward R. “Envisioning Information.” Graphics Press. 1990.

Van Der Vlugt, Ron. "Logo Life: Life Histories of 100 Famous Logos." BIS Publishers. 2012.

Venturi, Robert and Steven Izenour, Denise Scott Brown. "Learning from Las Vegas - Revised Edition: The Forgotten Symbolism of Architectural Form." The MIT Press. 1977.

Viction Workshop. "Palette 01: Black & White - New Monochrome Graphics." Victionary. 2012.

Wheeler, Alina. "Designing Brand Identity: A Complete Guide to Creating, Building, and Maintaining Strong Brands." Whiley. 2006.

unit 9: people make mistakes

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
This chapter focuses on mistakes and tries to convey that they aren't always a bad thing. It's important to learn from mistakes, especially in the world of design where we are typically designing an interface for someone else to use. Nothing is fail safe and it's good to realize that you can always build and fix after realizing that there is a problem.

As I mentioned, there is no fail safe product. Trying to think ahead as to where there might be mistakes allows you the time to change the design to prevent such mistakes. It's important to prototype and test the product multiple times to know how people respond to it. Knowing that people will make mistakes means that you should also prepare to have an error message. An error message should be in plain language that a user can understand and should also explain what was done, what was done wrong, how to correct and an example. People tend to make more errors under stress- in the design world that can mean when people are performing a boring task raise their arousal level with sound, colors and movement. When the task is more difficult it's good to lower the arousal level with muted colors, no sound, and no movement.

Mistakes are not always bad. Errors may sometimes have a positive consequence, an action that doesn't give the desired result but provides info to help achieve the goal. Errors also may have a negative consequence,  a dead end, return to starting point, or the action cannot be reversed. Testing for mistakes allows you to find where people commonly struggle so that you can make it a smoother transition by correcting the errors.

People make predictable errors and use different error strategies to solve their problems. There are three types of performance errors: commission errors (additional unnecessary steps taken), omission errors (omitted steps), and wrong action errors (appropriate point in the procedure but the wrong action is taken). Categorizing the type of errors that people are making helps you find a solution. There are three kinds of error strategies: systematic exploration (explores all possible ways to find what is needed), trial and error exploration (tries different actions symbols, menus, icons, controls, etc.) and rigid exploration (same action over and over even though no good result occurs). Collecting data on which error strategy a user experienced can help you solve the problem. It's good to think about your target audience and if they are young or old and if they are a novice or expert. However, don't discredit older populations because they can still solve tasks, they just might do it differently than a younger population.


CHAPTER ANALYSIS
I think the moral of this chapter is a really important take away: it's okay to make mistakes and it's okay when people make mistakes in your design. When people make mistakes using your interface it's good to record it so that you can fix the problem so it won't continue to be a mistake.

I felt that this chapter reiterated what our previous book said: test users! Probably the most beneficial thing you can do for your design is test users to help you notice which mistakes you can change. As the last chapter suggested, people have short attention spans and tend to get frustrated with things that don't work correctly or that take too long. It's good to correct mistakes in your design to avoid a negative feeling about the product.

Overall I found this chapter to be full of good information that it's important to realize as a designer. Instead of thinking of a mistake as a flaw think of it as additional information in order to create a smooth system.


RELATED LINKS

http://www.osu.edu/eminence/E2ENews/eminenceblog/779.htmlRSA
You need to make mistakes to get ahead.

http://www.nfib.com/business-resources/business-resources-item?cmsid=57071
Four website design errors and how to fix them.

http://inspiredm.com/web-design-mistakes/
How to fix common web design mistakes.

http://99u.com/articles/7108/staying-strong-under-stress
How to stay strong under stress and not make mistakes.

http://99u.com/articles/19442/the-key-to-great-feedback-praise-the-process-not-the-person
Give feedback praising the process and not the person.

unit 8: how people feel

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
How People Feel is a chapter that really dives into emotions and emotional response. When designing, it is important to remember that certain design elements can change how a viewer feels.

There are seven basic universal emotions: joy, sadness, contempt, fear, disgust, surprise, and anger. Emotions are expressed physically as a result from a specific event and typically lead to action. Moods are longer lasting than emotions, usually a day or two, and they may not be triggered by a specific event. Attitudes are a cognitive conscious brain component. It's important to remember that people identify the seven basic emotions in photos and it's best to not only pick the most emphasized version of an emotion but to use real-looking emotions, not fake.

New research is showing that muscle movement and emotions are tied together. Botox (a product that essentially freezes muscles from movement) and the emotional ties to muscles has been tested and found that if you cannot physically feel emotion (for example mouth muscles pulling upward for a smile) that you are less likely to not feel the emotion at all. In design it is important to watch for unintended facial expressions as a reaction to your design choices, for example type that is too small may lead to squinting which creates a frown-like face and can create negative feelings.

People are programmed to enjoy surprises. People typically find enjoyment in new and novel things that capture their attention. People are also happier when they are busier. Idle time is usually incredibly frustrating and makes people equate the amount of waiting time with worth for finished object. It's important to keep interest during times of waiting (think loading animation). People also find more difficult things to be more enjoyable, for example, when joining an online community if there are more steps to become a part of it, people tend to enjoy it more. Think of Facebook, and how you create an entire profile.

Listening to music releases dopamine and it makes people happy. Of course, music taste is not universal, so it's good to allow people to individualize their music for a website, product, design, or activity. Your favorite music induces euphoria. Smells are also important to consider, though not digitally (yet!) Smell is the most powerfully linked sensation to memory. Companies actually use smell for branding purposes. Did you know that in Disneyland scents of vanilla and peppermint are released through the vent systems in Main Street?

Speaking of branding, look and feel is an indicator of trust. People are quick to make a decision about what is and what isn't trustworthy so it's important to keep in mind design factors that can help make it through the first trust rejection phase. Design elements such as color and font should be consistent throughout the branding. People tend to want what is familiar when they are sad/scared. Think of comfort food for the brain.

Finally, this chapter explains how people usually overestimate reactions to future events. They also typically feel more positive before and after and event than during it. It's smart to take their opinion of something a few days after use to get a higher satisfaction rate.


DEFINITIONS
Amygdala versus Thalamus- The Amygdala is a part of the limbic system that is involved with processing memory and emotional response. The Thalamus regulates consciousness, alertness, and sleep while also aids in relaying sensory and motor signals to the cerebral cortex.
"Welcoming Warmth"- A blend of scents used by the Sheraton to make people feel welcome. The blend contains fig, freesia, and jasmine.
Nucleas Accubens- A part of the brain that is active when a person experiences pleasurable events. Also plays a role in pleasure, indicating laughter, reward, fear, aggression, impulsitivity, addiction and the placebo affect.
Attention Restoration- After voluntary attention and focus is spent, a person can experience a number of things that can restore their attention bank. Mark Berman found that people who had taken a break and walked through the city's arboretum after being depleted of their voluntary attention scored higher on an attention based test than those who had walked through the city. Other studies have shown that people who could see nature scenes from the hospital needed less pain medication and had shorter stays than those who could see brick out their window.


CHAPTER ANALYSIS
I truly found this chapter to be the most interesting so far. As incredibly emotional creatures, it is so important to design with the parameters in mind that people can be affected emotionally by any and all design choices, such as typeface, type size, color, layout, etc. There are many design choices that are not obvious but control feelings in users.

I think that my biggest take away in this chapter was learning about how people are happier when they are busier. I applied this thought to my own life. I realized that once I had finished my grocery shopping I was increasingly frustrated in the amount of time I had to wait in line. If I had been interested in the gum or candy or magazines by the register, I may have been distracted enough to not get upset. In design I can think of a handful of times where waiting is just painful. The idea of using loading animations and interactive advertisements are really valuable assets to keeping people happy while they wait.

The book stated that people not only overestimate their reactions to future events but also feel more positive before and after an event than they do while it's taking place. These were really interesting points to me. People are not good at predicting their feelings therefore it's good to take opinions about future changes with a grain of salt. Have you ever said that you would not use a site or app if it overhauled the way it worked, only to find that it made life incredibly easier? Reactions after the fact will ultimately not be as strong as the user imagined it would be.

unit 7: people are social animals

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
This chapter discusses the magic of human nature and how we are incredibly social animals. It shares a lot of interesting information about how people empathize, lie, interact, and laugh. It is important to understand how people interact to understand how to design for them.

While we are incredibly social animals, testing has been done to find out how our social groups work. Dunbar, an anthropologist, tested primates and found a correlation between brain size and average group size. His studies have come to suggest Dunbar's number which indicates that the maximum social group size (that is close and stable) per person is 150 people. Tying in to Dunbar's research, we are also told that the brain responds differently to the people that you know personally. We are programmed to pay special attention to friends and relatives. Understanding this is the first step to knowing that all social media is not created equally (facebook versus twitter versus linkedin).

The chapter also discusses that uses of imitation and empathy. People can be influence with use of imitation. Mirror neurons explain how someone might react as if they are doing one thing just by watching another person perform an action. The book suggests that using stories can help influence people and gain empathy.

It is also important to understand in this day and age that it is very important to follow social rules in online interactions. When designing think of a person to person interaction and design as close to that as you can. Usability guidelines tackle these issues.

Synchronization can help users understand what you're trying to explain. Using live video with audio can help create a social attachment. It's important to know not to rely on reading if you want people to understand information clearly.

Finally, the chapter discusses the power of laughter. Laughter is a bonding agent between any people. It is universal, a form of social communication, and as you might have experienced before, contagious. According to the book, women tend to laugh twice as much as men and the speaker telling a story typically laughs twice as much as the listener. Along with laughter, smiles are also important to creating a relationship with your customer. Real versus fake smiles make a difference in your believability.


DEFINITIONS
Dunbar's Number- the cognitive limit of people whom one can keep a stable social relationship with.
Mirror Neurons- a neuron that fires when one subject does or witnesses another subject perform an action. Neuron firing when the subject is only witnesses the action creates a mirrored response to the subject doing the action, thus mirror neurons.
Synchronous Activity- do an activity simultaneously with multiple subjects. Includes moving at the same rate, existing at the same time, having identical periods and having identical phases.
Duchenne Smile- a "real smile" that not only involves the muscles of the lips lifting upwards, but also includes the muscles of the eyes contracting.


CHAPTER ANALYSIS
This chapter was very informative and conveniently tied in nicely with my current Psychology class. It also reminded me of a book called Tipping Point. I appreciate the importance of a relationship between a user and their experience. Most graphic designers are designing digitally and it's important to not lose the personable experience in doing so.

I love Dunbar's number and the experiments that came from it. In the book Tipping Point, there is a chapter about a business who uses the idea of this number as a business model. Everyone is on the same level (there are no bosses) and the business successfully thrives. After the business reaches over 150 people they break up the people into sections. I think it is important to understand how our social networking blankets us and makes people feel like they have more relationships than they do. It is also really important to understand which networking sites are for what.

The other part of this chapter that I found to be very interesting was the bit on how people lie differently. People tend to lie the most over the phone and the least when writing with pen and paper. This comes in handy to know when trying to get feedback. Feedback tends to be most accurate when shared one on one. People tend to be more negative towards others when using email versus pen and paper.

project three: deliverables timeline

project three: project statement

unit 6: what motivates people

MARSHMALLOW EXPERIMENT
First, I should note that Scott your link is no longer correct. http://youtu.be/QX_oy9614HQ This link will take you to the video that I'm guessing you wanted us to see.

This was a really cute video that packed a powerful punch. The experiment shows different test subjects (children) that are placed in a room with a marshmallow. They are told that if they are patient and wait to eat the marshmallow until the leader comes back in the room they will get two marshmallows. Knowing children and their love of all sugary things, we come to expect that most will not be able to wait. We get to see them agonizing over whether they should wait or not.

*SPOILER ALERT*
It turns out that most of the children do, in fact, wait until the leader comes back in the room. The motivation of having another is definitely enough to wait to eat the marshmallow.

The fact that this experiment uses kids is interesting to me because we don't credit them with much critical thinking. If you were to test adults this same way I think you would have to use something much different than a marshmallow. Money, perhaps. Regardless, the results from this test show us that we are willing to go through more waiting if we are thoroughly motivated.

The show Community had an episode where they did a social experiment with waiting. I highly recommend you check it out.
Teaser:
http://youtu.be/5_2IR454jQg

Full episode (you have to pay for it but it's worth it):
http://youtu.be/uH0Iq_ZBpHQ


CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
Chapter six focuses on how people are motivated. As a designer, it's important to engage and motivate your users to create "repeat customers." It's surprising to learn in this chapter that the typical thought of using money as motivation is not always the best option.

As we discussed last week, people are motivated to complete a task the closer they are to the end of the goal. This is called the goal-gradient effect. People tend to focus on whats left than what is completed. However, once a customer has reached a reward they are at higher risk of becoming a lost customer, or at least taking a break from the service.

Rewarding is really important and interesting as motivation. The chapter talks about the casino and how they use a variable reward schedule. Your reward must be desirable to the audience. You might be surprised to learn that people are more responsive to intrinsic rewards than extrinsic rewards. Intrinsic motivation is like playing a board game because its exciting, not because you win money at the end. Extrinsic motivation is like studying so that the reward will be a better grade. If you are using extrinsic rewards it is important to keep it unexpected.

This chapter talks about dopamine and how it aids in making people addicted to seeking information. It ties in the fact that small amounts of information keep people interested in searching to find more. People are also motivated by progress and mastery. There are a few more important take-aways: the ability to delay gratification starts young (see marshmallow experiment), people are inherently lazy, forming a habit takes a long time, people like to do things themselves, and people are motivated to compete when there are fewer competitors.

CHAPTER ANALYSIS
This chapter was very interesting and so far has felt like one of the most important chapters. I do believe that there are a few conflicting points. For example, the book talks about how people are motivated to compete when there are less competitors. I feel like this contradicts the statement that people do things for a challenge (when discussing intrinsic vs extrinsic rewards). Personally, I prefer to be challenged. I can honestly say that I have felt deterred from something before if there was a lot of entries, however, when it comes to trivia night, for example, I prefer to play where there are the most teams for a better challenge.

One thing that I found strangely humorous was the section about how people are motivated by progress. I was just having a conversation the other day where I described to Charles the strange psychological feelings of seeing a percentage of completeness on a social network profile. Facebook has recently adopted a bar that shows "how complete" your profile is. My immediate response is to feel somewhat incomplete if my profile is not at 100%. I feel like I need to fill in all of the information in my profile so that I will get a reader bar that shows 100% complete. However, I do not feel like it is necessary to have all of the information the website is asking me for (privacy purposes). It is an interesting idea to play on this idea that people want to be "complete."

Overall, I felt that this chapter had some great take aways for a designer to utilize. Rewarding can be helpful to bring repeat customers. Habit forming takes a long time and it's important for you as a designer to be patient when "training" your users.


RELATED LINKS

http://youtu.be/u6XAPnuFjJc
RSA Animate video based on a Dan Pink's speech about how we are motivated.

http://youtu.be/wfcro5iM5vw
Dan Ariely Ted Talk discussing the essence of human motivation.

http://zenhabits.net/get-off-your-butt-16-ways-to-get-motivated-when-youre-in-a-slump/
How to get out of your slump and get motivated by Leo Babauta.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2013/07/19/how-to-stay-motivated-and-accomplish-anything/
How to be motivated and accomplish anything from Forbes magazine.

unit 5: how people focus their attention

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
This chapter goes into detail of how people focus their attention. It's starting to become apparent that many of the processes in user experience are related. We are starting to see a lot of repeat in these chapters, which let's you know that really everything ties together.

People have selective attention (and hearing). Usually a viewer is going to focus on large photos and text/colors. There are certain things that your unconscious scans for such as your own name, food, sex, and danger. That being said, the items that can help in your design to garner the most attention are as follows: danger, sex, food, human faces (especially if they are looking at the user), stories, loud noises, and anything that moves (think flash ads on websites). When utilizing sound for attention vary noises according to intensity and attention level needed. For example, the sound of a foghorn typically is a high intensity noise that gets attention well whereas the sound of chimes is a low intensity noise that people typically don't pay attention to.

As we found in the last chapter, people like to organize things on their own if you do not provide organization for them. People in the same fashion filter information. It's important to use hierarchy to control what people focus on. Make important items stand out 10 times more that you think necessary. Salient cues are when people only pay attention to what you need for a given task. This is an interesting article that pertains to salient branding using examples of branding from Subway.

The two most important informational bits I found in this chapter were the Suzuki method information and the myth-busting of multitasking. First, the Suzuki method explains that constant repetition doesn't require constant attention. The book gives examples of learning music and how at some point you do not actively think about what you are doing, instead you just do. Secondly, multi-tasking isn't a real thing. The human brain isn't really capable of juggling multiple thought-conscious items at once. Designing where the user has to rely on multi-tasking leads to errors in what you're asking them to do. Sustained attention doesn't last more than 10 minutes, so it's important to keep demos and tutorials under 10 minutes and if you need more time than that to take a break in between.


CHAPTER ANALYSIS
What I found most difficult about this chapter is that fact that it didn't capture me as the others have so far. Is that because I am reading about how people don't really focus and it's then created a thought that I shouldn't focus on the reading? I'm not sure, but I did find it ironic.

I think the most useful information in this chapter is the 10 minute attention span detail. When I think about videos, tutorials, or steps I've had to take in any endeavor, I know that I avoid anything that looks too long. I may find a video that seems interesting, but when I see that it's 15 minutes I am quick to turn it off or lose interest. It's important to keep this in mind when designing so that your viewer doesn't miss any information or lose the point of your piece.


RELATED LINKS

http://www.wikihow.com/Focus
This article discusses ways in which you can focus. Who couldn't use a bit of help in that arena?

http://unbounce.com/landing-pages/designing-for-conversion-8-visual-design-techniques-to-focus-attention-on-your-landing-pages/
Visual cues to use in design to drive focus and attention.

http://blog.usabilla.com/getting-your-design-priorities-right-with-focus-on-the-user/
How to create a design focusing on the user's needs. Includes hierarchy tools.

unit 4: how people think

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
The importance of understanding how people think is huge when you realize that you are designing for said people. If you cannot understand how they think and read you cannot design in a way that gets your message across. This chapter covers many mental processes that can be utilized to effectively create a design piece.

As we have previously learned, people tend to process small bits of information at a time rather than large bits of info. Mental processing can be seen in loads that have varying amounts of cognitive (memory), motor (action), and visual (seeing) skills. Fitts Law discusses that there is a relationship between speed, accuracy and distance. As a designer, it is important to evaluate loads of processing and take into consideration that sometimes more "clicks" is better because it requires less cognitive and more motor skill (which is easier for the user). It's also important to keep in mind that people have wandering minds so it's important to give hyperlinks to make your way around a page. It's also good to get people's attention with the use of storytelling because it makes the information understandable, interesting, and memorable.

Cognitive Dissonance Denial focuses on the fact that as a being we are somewhat stuck in our opinions. The less we know about something, the less likely we will pay attention to someone convincing us of it's ability to be better at something. The book uses the example of an avid iPhone user being shown a new Android yet not really paying attention because they already like their phone and don't care if the person says the Android is better (I definitely have personal experience with this one).

Mental models and conceptual models are very important to understand as a designer. They relate to usability and UX. Mental models are a thought process and opinion of how someone might expect something to work, while the conceptual model is how the interface actually works. It's also important to keep in mind that people understand and learn best from examples such as photos and videos of a process (imagine downloading a new app and the first time you use it you see a tutorial of what each section is with fake examples).

There were definitely a lot more take-aways in this chapter than we have seen thus far. I think it's important to remember that people tend to create organization for themselves if you haven't presented it, that people are affected and see things differently depending on their culture, time is relative and it's always helpful to show process indicators and to break up steps to create ease and functionality.

DEFINITIONS
Goal-gradient Effect- states that you are more motivated to complete a goal as you near the end. A behavioral trait that was studied using rats in a maze. Research found that the rats would run faster the closer to the end (food) goal.
Operant Conditioning- a type of behavioral modification where a specific behavior is increased or decreased through the use of positive or negative feedback. When training a dog you are told to praise good behavior, thus increasing the likelihood that the dog will preform the behavior again to receive your positive feedback.
Dopamine- an organic chemical found in the brain and outside the nervous system. Dopamine functions as a neurotransmitter in the brain to send signals to other cells. In the brain, it helps function with reward, motivation, cognition, etc.


CHAPTER ANALYSIS
This chapter has been the most informative in my opinion thus far. I definitely felt that there was a lot of repeat, and that could come from the fact that it shares many points with the "Don't Make Me Think" book.

I agreed with many points that the chapter made. I found the storytelling bit to be interesting and eye-opening. I can think of many different examples where I've seen or read storytelling and thus become engrossed in something. I also felt that storytelling tied into the part about the flow state in the chapter. It is an interesting concept to attempt to create a flow state for a user. I try to imagine a time where I am "in the zone" and I'm engrossed and focusing my attention. The book suggests to give people control over their actions, break difficult stages into chunks so that the user feels like the goal is challenging yet achievable, give consistent feedback, and minimize distractions. I think that when trying to create a flow state it is immensely important to keep in mind the wandering mind points.

My favorite part of this chapter was the part that talked about ways of being creative. While I felt like it was slightly out of place (because I struggle to imagine a situation where you need to design to induce creativity) I really found the types of creativity interesting. Deliberate and cognitive creativity requires previous knowledge of a subject. It is basically the act of putting together existing information in a new way. Deliberate and emotional creativity requires quiet time. These are described as "A-ha!" moments that deal with feelings and emotions. Spontaneous and cognitive creativity require the user to stop and walk away from the problem. I feel like this is most prominent in school (I can hear Sigrid or Scott saying to take time away from a project and revisit it later with a fresh mind). Basically the conscious brain stops working on a problem and the unconscious brain has time to solve the problem. I remember when I was coding my website I came up with this strange problem that a certain piece wasn't showing. I searched my code and wracked my brain for hours but couldn't figure out why. I left to go to a meeting at work. On the drive back home I suddenly realized my problem since I had given myself time away. I simply forgot to close a tag. Finally, there is spontaneous and emotional creativity which cannot be designed for. It's an artistic moment of epiphany or like a religious experience.

I really appreciated the section about the importance of time. It immediately made me think of an online shopping cart and how the sections are broken up. First you enter your log in. Next, if you do not have one you create one. It typically starts with name and email. Then you move on to mailing information. Finally purchase info. These sections are broken up in a way that takes about the same amount of time per page, and allows the user to feel a break and an accomplishment before moving on. If you simply have all of these steps on one page a user might not feel they have time to complete everything.



(side note: Scott, I could use a lot more dopamine for motivation for these blog posts)

thesis ideas

I've been contemplating thesis ideas over the span of the past few quarters. Senior year can seem really ominous with the realization that senior project is coming. After writing all of the ideas I came up with down I started to weed it out and these are three possible senior thesis options (thus far). 

First option:

Vegan made sexy.
Project: create an app and packaging design that work together interactively to make vegan recipes seem less hippie and more mainstream. 

Thesis: Food and gender marketing. Sexualization of food products. 

Initially I thought that it would be really fun to create a vegan restaurant or food truck. I could expand product to grocery stores and local markets. The idea of a food truck has been really over-done (in my opinion) lately by seniors coming out of my school. As it is important to stand out I decided to drop the idea of a food truck and look into the idea of an app. App design showcases an ability to create UX and usability as well as differentiates graphic design students from one another. 

After meeting with Tony, I decided to chose one of the two following options:

Second option:

Ballard Grill & Ale House or 4B's Redesign/Overhaul

Project: create an entire branding and environmental graphics for 4B's bar in Ballard. Take the existing bar and change it to create an experiential brand and bar design.

Thesis: Experiential Branding. Creating the perfect bar.

For this project I would like to take real life design projects and create them during school. I currently work at the bar and we do not have a logo, business cards, or any REAL look and feel. The current managers have tried to create some consistent feel but haven't quite maneuvered it. I would like to change the environmental design as well as create a logo, business card, signage and menus. 

Third option:

Bar Design.

Project: create a bar from the ground up. Come up with any and all design that will be seen in the bar.

Thesis: Experiential Branding. Bar creation and user experience. 

This project would allow me to create my own bar. I would chose an experience that I would like create in the bar (for example apothecary style) and design the bar and collateral in a way that exemplifies that. I could potentially work with an ID student to create three dimensional items and architecture blueprints. I would create environmental design, menus, logo, signage, etc. 

project two: deliverables timeline (updated)

project two: project statement (updated)

unit 3: how people remember

CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
Chapter 3 goes in depth with how people tend to remember. It discusses the pros and cons of memory as well as the human reaction to memory. It is important to understand how the memory works when designing to help those viewing your design.

As you may have experienced in life, short-term memory can be unreliable. Working memory is memory that you need for less than a minute. For example, when you are at a web page and you fill out a form, the next page might have a captcha (the box that asks you to retype the letters/digits you see). You use working memory when you read the word and then look away from it to type it. In order for working memory to be successful, the user must have their attention focused. In design it is important to not ask people to remember information (such as numbers or letters) from one page to another.

As we understand, memory can be created from repetition. There are a few ways that this chapter suggests that we help create memory. People can handle 4-item chunks of information (think of phone number clusters 3-3-4 instead of 10 individual numbers). Memories are patterns of connections between neurons, so repetition can help the user create a memory. Recognition is easier than recalling something. Typically a user will be more successful in recognition because it will utilize context whereas recollection can lead to false information. People tend to remember the most recent information that they have been given, so it's important to focus the most impertinent information toward the end of whatever you are showing the person.

This chapter also discusses that memories can change. When we dream our mind is recalling events from the day and making them into memories and associations. Memories can change each time they are recalled. Flashbulb memories are usually relating to traumatic or dramatic events that become vivid memories to the storyteller, yet usually full of errors. The book uses an excellent example of a flashbulb memory when they discuss how you might remember the attacks on September 11th, 2001. The event was very traumatic, thus revving up the emotional amygdala that happens to be near the long-term memory coding part of the brain, the hippocampus. Emotions get tied up in the memory, causing information to change.

While discussing the importance of giving your viewer what they need to remember it is important to understand that it is okay for the user to forget. It's not a conscious effort to forget something (usually) and it is usually more helpful than detrimental. If you have important information that the viewer needs to remember its best to provide it in the design, or make it easy to find that information.

CHAPTER ANALYSIS
This chapter has been my favorite thus far. There was a lot of really great information to use as a designer and just for life in general While I feel like I have a good grasp of the lacking ability of short-term or working memory, I was surprised by the information that I read about memories and the fact that they are no concrete.

In my experience with online classes I have found it incredibly hard to read e-books. One of my biggest arguments is that the way the pages get broken up. For example, one page will have text that relates to an image that is on the next page. Typically in hard-printed books these pieces of information would be together. Online, I am forced to go back and forth multiple times to remember what the information about the picture is and to see the picture. This can be seen as an issue with working memory.

The fact that memories can change is also an interesting one. I have heard my mom on more than one account retell a story but not exactly how it happened. Maybe feelings were misplaced from the beginning of the story and it has changed the whole feel of the story. I used to find it really annoying because it felt like she preferred exaggeration (the jury is still out on that) but now I know it might just be a serious of connections and patterns that are trying to be created and turned into memory (even if it is wrong memory).

contest entry options

My first potential entry into an illustration competition is an illustration I did of Wednesday Adams. I used mauve colored Canson paper as a base, hadowed with Prismacolor grey tones, and color with Prismacolor colored pencils. This is one of my favorite conceptual illustrations from school. The idea is that this is Wednesday's reaction to bringing home the new Adam's baby.

My second contest option is this image I manipulated in Photoshop. I took a photo of this building during the day (see below), created a night time scene, and painted the photo so that it looked like lights were on and illuminating the trees.  

Original photo.

Another possible contest entry. This is a charcoal illustration I did to pay homage to various fairytales. It's a bit like a photo hunt to find and identify each piece that comes from a story. This would be for the Forsaken Nature competition.

thesis response four

The fourth thesis I read is by Eric Davey called The Effects of Mise en Scene on Motion Graphics. Elements of mise en scene include "costume and makeup, setting, lighting, and point of view." These elements may also apply to motion graphics, which is what Eric decided to base his paper on. My initial problem with this thesis is that it didn't IMMEDIATELY give a non-dictionary definition of mise en scene. After googling to find out what it meant I suppose I could have figured it out know what a mise en place is, however, it would have been nice to get a person to person verbalized definition. Mise en scene basically covers what is scene on the screen at a given time including set, characters (in costumes and makeup), etc.

Being a picky designer, I found it humorous and ironic that when the author was discussing how important setting is and how an overwhelming set can cause confusion or lack of interest in the main object Eric's paper was presented in a way that was confusing. The fusion of images spread throughout the text caused my eyes to drift and created hierarchical difficulty in reading. But, back to the writing. I did like his examples of set design and how they did or did not affect the viewer negatively. His points about how important color usage is really rang true to me as a designer. It is so important to know the meanings of colors and hues and to be able to use them in a way that create a feeling without being overtly obvious to the viewer. I felt like the color could have been tied in with the lighting since they really work together. However, I did find his examples about key lights and fill lights to be very interesting.

Point of view is very important, not only in motion graphics but in all graphic design. I do believe that this was potentially one of the most important areas to describe mise en scene. I feel like Eric appropriately discussed it's use in movies however I feel like he fell short on examples of motion graphics.

In conclusion, I enjoyed Eric's thesis. I do feel like it left something to be desired as far utilizing motion graphics as examples. I found most examples to be strictly movie examples and that made me pull away from the subject of the paper. I also think that it would have been beneficial to incorporate videos into the paper like Corina did to really nail down what a motion graphic is for the reader.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1683194/ais_classes/portfolio_pres/13wi/thesis/Davey%20Thesis.pdf

thesis response three

The third thesis I decided to read was Cultural Fusion in Brand Strategy by Aeson Chen. This thesis focuses on Aeson's belief that "cultural hybridization which avoids the pitfalls of gentrification, exoticism and orientalism... will have a huge impact to create a new value to the world." While some might argue that cultural fusion can "dilute the original traditions and styles," I too believe that the future of design is a more conglomerate of many styles and cultures.

Aeson describes the potential problems of fusion as gentrification, exoticism and orientalism. Gentrification is a common term used in real estate that describes the action of renovation of housing to bring in an upper or middle class citizens while displacing lower income businesses and families. Exoticism is our draw to the unfamiliar. We often find ourselves interested in styles that we aren't used to and we might utilize a style to represent a look and feel of something. However, this can turn out negatively because misrepresentation can occur and it can lose its traditional meaning. Orientalism is a type of stereotyping that can again create misrepresentations and create a negative impact on a culture.

In his thesis, Aeson chose really interesting examples cultural fusion that has failed and succeeded. I appreciate that he incorporated food, fashion, and design. I too have found it interesting that most "foreign" food to Americans we take and bastardize to our taste. Italian food (pizza, pasta), Mexican food (tacos, rice and beans) etc. all take form of something foreign to the original food culture. Many people may find that when they travel the food doesn't taste like American versions of the food they are eating. I found the examples of successful fusion to be VERY beautiful and exciting.

In conclusion, I felt Aeson's thesis was very interesting and it made a beautiful argument for fusion the right way. We have come a long way in art and design and being inspired by other cultures and styles can create some amazing work.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1683194/ais_classes/portfolio_pres/12fa/thesis/chen_aeson_thesis.pdf