tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68687281642117751182011-08-02T16:21:29.061-04:00The musings of a graduate student studying graphic design and the world at large.LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.comBlogger571100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-44184254648412742882010-02-20T15:31:00.000-05:002010-02-25T15:36:18.310-05:00

I feel pretty good about this study for now. I think it's a solid idea, and that there are a lot of places for me to go with it. It certainly embraces and highlights the idea of triage.From Martha's feedback (and reaction) I can see the the whole shifting/sliding/filmstrip notion won't work. Which is fine. I think the solutions she and I talked about (making the left-hand space a history line,

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-85060764433771595132010-02-18T15:28:00.000-05:002010-02-25T15:31:30.490-05:00

So after much thinking, and some sketching, I revamped and re-presented Visual Study #2 to Martha. I think this a much better direction. It's still very loose in my mind (and in form), but I believe it will function in a much more interesting way.Here, the system is taking over more directly, however, the user is still able to manipulate and move through information. I had envisioned this

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-19220705493846488282010-02-16T15:21:00.002-05:002010-02-25T15:26:17.570-05:00

And here is my initial attempt at a visual response to sub-question #3:In what ways can design address the shifting nature of attention within the framework of online searching?This interface acts as a way to take a user through the steps needed to research their question. This is based on the idea of a narrative guide taking the user through something they don't already understand.Thesis: Visual

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-21562540347390971182010-02-13T15:06:00.000-05:002010-02-25T15:21:06.067-05:00

So after some analysis, and re-consideration, here is another study for visual study #2, which is responding to this question:In what ways can online tools enable users to sort, prioritize and retrieve information according to personal criteria?Here, the information is organized using a spine which represents a larger category. The spines hold information together in these categories—clumping

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-45292972791731209572010-02-12T15:04:00.000-05:002010-02-25T15:05:40.849-05:00

It is obvious I had to start somewhere, and I certainly consider this study just that: a start. Just a beginning. Pulling back and looking at what I've done, I can see that I really got caught up in the conventions already found on the internet. Search results will be sorted into a gridded list, they will be clickable, they will all look the same. Users can implement tags, which will function in

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-30734219392519578662010-02-11T15:02:00.000-05:002010-02-25T15:04:00.270-05:00

What about structuring this in terms of a narrative? If the system is taking control to help the user triage, how could it be like a journey with a guide?Perhaps it cold function like a Choose Your Own Adventure book (or I dichotomous key, I suppose) taking a user on a path through steps, but then allowing them to make pertinent decisions along the way.

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-4201008718430131052010-02-10T14:51:00.001-05:002010-02-25T15:01:50.012-05:00

A thought occurred to me tonight (while reading Visible Signs by David Crow), which took me back to Johanna Drucker and our interview with her over Christmas break.Dan asked her about a recent article she had written regarding archiving ("Blind Spots" from the Chronicle of Higher Education), and she talked about the peculiarities of physicality…the coffee stain on a file folder that you use to

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-42686236932295964532010-02-08T14:27:00.000-05:002010-02-25T14:47:59.625-05:00

So, without further ado, here is my first visual study. (It is #2, because it corresponds to my second sub-question, even though it is the first study I'm attempting.)Some details:This is housed within a browser as a standalone program (like Viewzi). I have been thinking about this as a system that allows the user to click, and drag and drop items and objects within the interface. This would be

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-30442871353392300882010-02-03T13:46:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:51:41.364-05:00

Now is the time when I need to start making things for my project. However, this is proving a very daunting task. I have no idea where I want to begin, and making that first mark is very overwhelming.So, to overcome this paralysis, I decided to do some low-stakes experimentation using objects at home and stop-motion photography. Here is a series of form studies I put together to begin thinking

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-11758253907244713202010-02-02T13:41:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:46:31.404-05:00

I had the opportunity to meet with Karen Dewitt, head librarian at the Design Library here at NCSU. She had a lot of great insights and ideas to share with me.Karen Dewitt brought up faceted searching during our meeting, and showed me the advanced search functions of WorldCat and the faceted functions of NCSU’s online portal. This is very much in line with how I want to structure my

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-34774691939543060382010-02-01T13:40:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:40:50.601-05:00

Another thought about triage—even in the medical sense, this is about facing an overwhelming situation (chaotic and full of anxiety) and using a strict structure and routine (complete with very clear and concise criteria for decision making) to act. Without this structure and criteria for judgement, a user/person would be paralyzed and unable to begin making sense of things.So my system could be

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-64090988280965686452010-01-28T11:23:00.001-05:002010-02-14T12:16:12.805-05:00

Every two years, NC State's graduate graphic design class develops, plans, orchestrates and hosts a graduate student symposium. This past weekend marked the culmination of five months of planning by 18 grad students and a few brave faculty members. We began brainstorming in the last sweltering days of August, in several white-board/post-it sessions that looked like this:Over the months we refined

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-17882381315082979592010-01-27T18:40:00.000-05:002010-02-14T18:48:30.683-05:00

Based on this quote:I started thinking about user search paths, and what shapes those might take online. Here are some sketches in that vein:Attempting to visualize these search paths begins to illuminate the fact that there are many different kinds of users using search tools, and that their experiences can be very different, depending on individual skill level, context for the search at hand,

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-75016288819281432252010-01-27T13:36:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:37:46.561-05:00

The feeling of satisfaction when it comes to interface is really important to me. But, how do you parse that out? What are the elements, the bits and pieces that shape an interface that is satisfying to use? It has to be how the entire system acts, reacts, looks and sounds—but it is also in every single minute detail as well.It could be really interesting/freeing/fun/challenging to conduct some

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-62304791685752623772010-01-27T13:30:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:39:51.516-05:00

Triage is also about the distillation of elements or processes to what is most essential, as well as most pressing. It is an ultimate act of focus—against even human nature for compassion—to deal with the immediate task at hand for the greater good.

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-33725261398907288872010-01-17T13:31:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:32:07.101-05:00

This is interesting because it directly links to information anxiety in general. Not only are people overwhelmed by all the information online, but they are also overwhelmed by all the information (often very confusing and/or conflicting) regarding nutrition.

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-84965220732772495622010-01-13T13:26:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:29:16.088-05:00

Could an important aspect of my system include this idea of constant accessibility to an overall goal? Could this goal be displayed/designed to remind a user of what they’re trying to accomplish at all times to cut down on distraction? How could that work?Or, is this more about helping keep users on task at any given time. Is it more important to keep the system completely flexible at all times,

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-21462806011670765292010-01-12T13:23:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:24:46.765-05:00

A THOUGHT—on triage…if medical triage is about maximizing the number of survivors—treating those most likely to recover or eventually be healthy—then what is info-triage attempting to do? “Save” the most useful or pertinent information? I think while this is a useful and applicable metaphor, that it can only go so far in its strict medical definition. My use, for information and making decisions,

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-72677001360431618062010-01-03T13:18:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:20:56.941-05:00

The above is essential to ponder further. If this new order of order is limited by the use of geography and mapping and giving it/things a shape—design can step in and create systems for reshuffling information into unlimited shapes. We still need the shapes because that’s how we cognitively make sense of the world—we constantly sort/sift/categorize/re-categorize and cluster everything around us.

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-34512811157540702972010-01-01T20:46:00.000-05:002010-02-14T13:21:25.177-05:00

My task for final review this semester was to sum up the origins and directions of my thesis, and to encapsulate my thesis proposal to date: my researchable question, sub-questions, working definitions, directions for exploration, justification, and bibliography. I wanted to post my presentation file here, for your consideration.Thesis Proposal Presentation: Shown at final review fall 2009 from

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-52053555398416175422009-11-20T22:16:00.001-05:002010-01-05T22:30:12.166-05:00

Some questions I've been asking myself:• Could a filter be developed to visually show relevance?• Are there different ways an interface might display complex information without using hierarchical lists?• Can a designerly language feel authentic to an existing web forum community?I wanted to examine the ways in which information can be delivered to a user, and the ways inwhich that user can

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-35347888869623064422009-10-30T22:12:00.001-04:002010-01-05T22:29:44.849-05:00

Please see my previous two posts for more information about this project.This is my second attempt at creating a filter for relevance. This interface is an application housed within Facebook. The critique this was presented at was a silent one (we wandered around and viewed each other's work with no explication), so this presentation includes more visual explanation than I normally would have

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-37977619666844695442009-10-26T22:33:00.007-04:002010-01-05T22:12:32.136-05:00

My main thesis question is:How can the design of an online information triage system support users in managing information and making decisions about nutrition?My point of intersection between thesis and our symposium is:Relevance (and triage, authenticity, credibility, trust, critical thinking, filtering)My investigation for project #3:How can a filter be designed to visually privilege relevance

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-65996995898787654492009-10-23T20:41:00.003-04:002010-01-05T22:11:08.875-05:00

Denise's assignment for project 3:Propose and complete a design study that addresses an intersection (a point) rooted in (1) your thesis questions and (2) an aspect of the symposium theme "Design, Community and the Rhetoric of Authenticity." The proposal/project will be:Supported by precedents, textual and/or visual.Pointed and specific.Investigative of design issues.Manifested in artifact(s).

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-45297719970936850192009-10-21T20:28:00.002-04:002010-01-05T22:12:15.049-05:00

Denise's assignment:Project 2.5 : "An Initiation" ConclusionsWrite a critical text responding to Project 2 results. Refer to your own approach and design outcome, of course, but also support your conclusions by referring to works done by other students, as well as published work you have found.Following are a few of my observations/questions to fuel your inquiries.• Overall, the initiations

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-5703687616441064682009-10-19T16:35:00.002-04:002010-01-05T22:11:58.110-05:00

Please see my previous post to read the brief for this project.After the feedback I received at crit, I began to develop an overlay to the DiscussCooking website, which would act as a hack the first time a user encountered it (forcing them to engage with it, either to explore further or to turn it off). My goal with this widget-interface is to introduce my community to the RDA (recommended daily

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-19538865517384472832009-10-17T16:05:00.002-04:002010-01-05T22:11:43.783-05:00

Here is the (very brief) brief Denise posted for project number 2...Project 2 : An Initiation1. Read : assigned sections on "discourse communities" from Shaping Information: the Rhetoric of Visual Conventions (Kostelnick and Hassett). (This and other reading reference posted here.)2. Identify : existing visual conventions of the community you have selected to study in seminar.3. Design : An

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-84380782166924301412009-10-15T10:04:00.001-04:002010-01-05T22:09:54.226-05:00

After the critique of our initial culture probes, Denise asked us to consider what the class had discussed—regarding the speculative success or failure of probes like these, but also the nature of ritual itself—and re-work our culture probe.I wondered if changing my probe into something digital could drastically change the nature of the experience. Would a digital/animated experience be more

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-35266993369790132882009-10-12T15:19:00.008-04:002009-10-17T21:42:56.016-04:00

For our first official project, Denise assigned the following:Project 1 : Anatomy of a Culture ProbeAs you venture into "thick analysis", in studio we enlist your imagination to interpret and extrapolate from the explicit evidence you observe. Based on observations culled at your coffee house:Design a Culture Probe that aims to discover what/how/why ritual exists within the experience.Speculate

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-3906536928221980302009-10-12T14:56:00.004-04:002009-10-12T15:46:37.865-04:00

We were asked to choose a community to deeply investigate over the course of the semester. This was the first project involving that community. We were to observe and examine the community according to Dori Tunstall's five characteristics (mentioned in an earlier blog post—historic consciousness, life goals, organizational structures, relationships, and agency) and organize this information into

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-22400064537359572492009-10-10T17:20:00.009-04:002009-10-17T21:52:21.527-04:00

For our first Studio project, Denise assigned the following…Project 1 : Anatomy of a Culture Probe As you venture into "thick analysis", in studio we enlist your imagination to interpret and extrapolate from the explicit evidence you observe. Based on observations culled at your coffee house:Write a story from the perspective of a player in the experience, i.e. a particular

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-7024384132768321032009-10-07T11:23:00.005-04:002009-10-10T17:20:40.758-04:00

We are focusing on the concept of community (and the ways we can get at culture through that lens) in both studio and seminar this semester. To do this, we are using a framework of qualities about community put forth by Dori Tunstall (design anthropologist). She posits that a community displays/contains the following five characteristics (in varying degrees):• Historic consciousness — an

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-84120876455424569312009-10-06T12:54:00.007-04:002009-10-10T17:16:21.474-04:00

This semester we are talking about Design as a cultural experience. At the outset, I have many personal questions about the construct of culture...How are artifacts read and understood (or not)? What are the cultural constructions societies agree on (or not)? Where is the place that design slips into the cracks of a culture? Or is it laid atop everything in multiple layers and overlapping levels?

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-41869121016030900472009-09-19T18:03:00.003-04:002009-09-19T18:23:18.504-04:00

And here it begins. Thesis. That six-letter word that we all knew loomed in our futures....but it almost seems inconceivable that the process has begun.The amazing thing about the thesis journey at NCSU is that not only is there a tried-and-true system and method for us to follow, but we are being guided by Meredith Davis as we travel along the path. We met with her, back in May, directly

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-18442368110663350852009-06-25T19:33:00.004-04:002009-06-26T19:58:00.646-04:00

At the end of the project, Denise requested that we somehow string together all six of our moments into one "thing." Then we all gathered in Burns Auditorium (conveniently located next to our studio space), and had a screening night. It looked like this, but without the illustrious Modern Dog in attendance, and the audience was approximately 90% smaller.(Image of Burns Auditorium from AIGA

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-22709837090231246442009-06-25T19:31:00.009-04:002009-10-18T17:19:18.284-04:00

Again, the synopsis from my last post:For this set of moments, we were to again, take a motivation and an attribute of experience and create an interactive moment. The twist this time, was to play that moment out within three different modes of interface. I chose to use the motivation of playful and the attribute of quirky. The three modes I chose were a single player game, a social application

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-55873575248840537022009-06-25T19:27:00.007-04:002009-10-18T17:16:57.075-04:00

Synopsis from my last post:For this set of moments, we were to again, take a motivation and an attribute of experience and create an interactive moment. The twist this time, was to play that moment out within three different modes of interface. I chose to use the motivation of playful and the attribute of quirky. The three modes I chose were a single player game, a social application that would

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-10067917459316087582009-06-25T19:16:00.009-04:002009-10-18T17:14:36.160-04:00

For this set of moments, we were to again, take a motivation and an attribute of experience and create an interactive moment. The twist this time, was to play that moment out within three different modes of interface. I chose to use the motivation of playful and the attribute of quirky. The three modes I chose were a single player game, a social application that would function within a chat

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-90535323794923798452009-06-25T19:11:00.006-04:002009-10-18T17:12:36.483-04:00

Here is the second part of the interface moments project. I chose the motivation of curiosity, and the attribute of experience of fragility to create these two moments. The beginning portion shows a rollover and then click for the elements. The second part of the movie shows how adding elements can change the behavior of the user. By adding fuzzy dots and a scoreboard, the behavior changes from

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-49043524511781330872009-06-25T10:01:00.005-04:002009-10-18T17:11:41.603-04:00

For the first moment, I chose the motivation to examine and the attribute of experience delicious. I really wanted to experiment with stop motion animation for this project, so I created a tableau and moved the elements around to achieve the effect of movement. I also wanted to remain somewhat abstract in my visual language. The word delicious is ripe with connotations—I did not want to simply

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-29990522229729330422009-06-25T09:39:00.006-04:002009-10-18T17:05:52.875-04:00

Here is the brief we worked with for project four…Project 4Design Six Dynamic Interface MomentsDetermine three motivations for a person to interact with an interface.Determine three different possible attributes of experience a person might have interacting with an interface.Using stop-frame animation, video, Flash, or mechanical means, combine a motivation with an experience in six different

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-31638732375653204682009-06-03T13:59:00.007-04:002009-06-26T10:11:07.044-04:00

So, after many more type experiments and much thought, here is my revised typography interface. I completely redid the interface in Flash, and wanted the piece to feel ambiguous and softly gritty (if that makes any sense).Ambiguous Propensity: Take Two from Liese Zahabi on Vimeo.The user comes to the site, and sees the grainy landscape of letters. A few of the letters beckon to the user by softly

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-55773078144124426792009-06-03T11:55:00.005-04:002009-06-26T10:11:29.202-04:00

Here is my first stab at creating an interface using my plastic helvetica type. I decided to work in AfterEffects, which was a mistake, because the file size was enormous, and the project became very laborious. I had a difficult time making the application do exactly what I wanted (due to user error and ignorance, I'm sure), so this initial attempt is nowhere near where I wanted it to be.I also

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-86859499826909143642009-06-03T11:36:00.006-04:002009-06-26T10:11:47.226-04:00

I took some photographs of the laser cutter in action, and decided to string them together into a little movie. The music is Baby Elephant Walk by Henry Mancini, and there is a small cameo appearance by my classmate Tony Fugolo. Enjoy!The Laser Cutter Dance from Liese Zahabi on Vimeo.

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-60498938146756714262009-06-03T11:13:00.015-04:002009-06-26T10:12:07.855-04:00

After pondering my poem, I decided to experiment with the materiality of type (I also really wanted to play with the laser cutter here on campus). The notion of these experiments was to create type that had texture and weight and physical presence, and then place it in a digital environment and animate it—playing the two aspects against each other, physicality and digital-ness.I experimented with

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-90112864994668753752009-04-10T19:36:00.017-04:002009-10-18T16:57:04.054-04:00

And on to project number three...Project 3Design a Typographic Interface Free write in response to "interfaces for interfaces."Jumping off from a thought in the free writing, compose a text (fiction, essay, instruction manual, or other rhetorical form) about an experience with an interface.Read/perform the story in class accompanied by some typographic representation.Design an interface using

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-40876208501949077792009-03-25T22:27:00.008-04:002010-01-05T10:22:41.055-05:00

The next step in this (now becoming extremely complex) taxonomy project was to create a visual language and representation—to build an interface in which to access the taxonomy about navigation interfaces. (Yikes!)Here is one of the interim attempts:The logic behind this design is as follows:• Each object was created using numbers, generated with a complex mathematical process (the average size

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-80054627914243689952009-03-15T16:34:00.011-04:002009-10-18T16:51:47.252-04:00

This was another attempt at visually representing my taxonomy. Each round shape represents one of the objects in the taxonomy, and were created using shrinkable plastic and transparency material. The mobile is organized around several different gradients of categorization, attempting to show multiple viewpoints at once.The map objects are represented by the transparency material; the device

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-87823188948285553672009-02-19T00:03:00.006-05:002009-06-27T16:36:07.974-04:00

Because my genre of interface has everything to do with movement and location, I decided to try to create my taxonomy as a mobile. To do this I first had to tightly structure my categorization and items. In order to fully wrap my head around that, I created this concept map (my very first solo one!)My final definition of navigation interfaces is: Objects, systems or devices which are used in the

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-25642355873174448482009-02-18T23:51:00.009-05:002009-06-27T16:35:53.458-04:00

After much sweat, thought, research and categorizing, I carved out a beginning taxonomy for my genre of interface. In an attempt to give said taxonomy a visual form, I created the following artifacts:We were asked to give our taxonomy some kind of visual form, and were asked to not just create a list, meaning that the information should spatially show relationships, values, gradients, etc.

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-61876241604391733872009-02-18T23:22:00.010-05:002009-10-18T16:48:41.077-04:00

Our second project is now fully completed, so it's time for a recap.First, the directive given by Denise:Project 2Design an Interface for InterfacesSelect a genre of (designed) interface. Parse the genre into a taxonomy.Represent the taxonomy of the genre in some form.Design an interface for accessing the taxonomy.The outcome should foreground a point of view or commentary on the genre.We took

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-39049788460034237202009-02-18T21:27:00.008-05:002009-06-27T16:35:22.434-04:00

A few weeks ago, as an exercise (given as a way to loosen us up, I believe) Denise took us through some free-word-association activities via iChat, which were great fun. We all sat at our computers in studio, all 12 of us crammed into one tiny chat room, all silently digitally hollering out answers at once. Paired with the real-time, real-life giggles and off-hand comments, it was a pretty

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-72568704503572982572009-02-03T22:08:00.004-05:002009-06-27T16:35:07.562-04:00

First off, here are my teeth:I recently went to a brand new dentist and was very cognizant of the way the experience was designed for me. This dentist had opened his office in a beautiful brand-new building. A fountain greeted me in the vestibule to the suite, and just beyond it a beautiful waiting room. After filling out the mounds of paperwork, I relaxed on a beautiful leather couch and watched

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-82794676975438372042009-02-03T15:02:00.009-05:002009-06-27T16:34:52.966-04:00

So. After a few weeks of contemplation (and much needed distance), I want to present a refreshed take on this project.But first, a few photos of the patterns I created....So, after digesting things more, I have decided that in my (evolving) definition of interface, a coffee mug does not apply. When I applied a heat sensitive cling to the face of the mug, I was not intervening in an actual

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-92057716479924146762009-01-20T22:25:00.005-05:002009-06-27T16:34:38.608-04:00

But is it an interface? And moreover, is it a real intervention in the condition of contact?Here is my submission, in all it's glory. First, a photo of the proposed object: a wrap placed on a travel coffee mug. The wrap is heat sensitive and changes it's pattern (like a chameleon) as the temperature of the coffee inside the mug changes, giving the user a visual cue to what's happening inside the

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-43198691264934938822009-01-11T23:46:00.004-05:002009-06-27T16:34:20.270-04:00

Coffee. Coffee in the morning. The metal travel mug between me and my coffee in the morning. The lack of an interface between me and my coffee in the morning.These are the things keeping me awake at night lately.I have a deliciously ritualistic (and let's face it, religious) relationship with my coffee. I can't live without it. Simply cannot function without the precious. And when I say

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868728164211775118.post-20909182575334565882009-01-11T23:19:00.007-05:002009-10-18T16:42:28.793-04:00

What a monumental subject to tackle right out of the gate. Interface. What is an interface? What does it encompass? What does it suggest? What does it think about? Who are it's favorite authors? Is it lonely? Is it tired?What does my first source for definitions (the handy dandy hand-held dictionary, of course) have to say for itself?Interface: 1) a plane forming the common boundary between two

LIESE ZAHABIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07120123336536164128noreply@blogger.com0