The Madison PC User Group meeting was a success. It was a beautiful day, I had the opportunity to sit outside the UW Madison student union and watch people sail (though I was the only one without a pitcher of beer in front of me), and everyone who attended the meeting was very friendly. They asked some really great questions at the end as well.
I spoke about the history of Red Mercury, and about the introspection we did before doing our first Windows products.
It had been a while since I had reviewed the design influences page on the Red Mercury website. It still rings true, and it is a viable basis for an enduring set of values for software design.
Many of the values listed on that page are very hard to achieve. Here are some highlights (see if you can spot the theme):
“The album covers that Peter Seville designs are beautiful and simple to behold, with embedded complexity that adds pleasure without nagging the observer for attention. The attention is granted willingly…”
“The simplicity of the Nintendo Game & Watch conceals the complexity of its electronic core, and only the essential and pleasing elements of this complexity are exposed to the user.”
“The outer shell (of the Fabergé Chanticleer Egg) is beautiful and enjoyable to look at, but underneath the shell is a hidden storehouse of functionality that is exposed only in ways that the user finds pleasing and entertaining.”
“Bauhaus design emphasizes the importance of designing for widespread use. A product cannot assume anything about the user. The design must present its functionality in an obvious way. Unneeded decoration should be stripped away, leaving clean lines of function.”
etc.
Read the full page for more. It seems to me that those influences are just scratching the surface of what could be a long list of giant’s shoulders to aspire to stand on.
Oh, and Madison, thanks for the t-shirt(s). I’ll be sporting one tomorrow!
Scott
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