Re: FN-FORUM: An interesting experiment? - What would you do differently

date posted 1st August 2004 09:48

At 18:56 on Saturday, 31 Jul 2004, Nigel Rogers wrote:

>
>>
>> Yep, there are many people who see design simply as 'how things look'.
>> To me
>> though, coding is just one of the many facets to design.
>
> second that.
>
> Don't confuse graphic design with web design.
> Good design is always more than appearance.
> And I still would like to see this idea taken forward.
> Are there any takers?
> Just a nod on the forum from enough interested parties
> prhaps we(I) could take it on, set it up.
>

Here's my take on the idea.

having seen a few of these come and go (maccaws, gawds etc), what follows
is a pragmatic view on how to get the best from the experiment.

set up a website with the design brief - let's discuss what that brief
should be (from real-life examples perhaps?) (but set a time constraint on
the discussion)

let's create and supply some images and content that must be included - a
logo etc.

let's keep the site small so that the time consumed is not too great.

let's promote the idea as a sort of "apprenticeship piece" - anyone can
take the design brief, download the compulsory content and create their
interpretation of the brief - which, to save time and energy, will be
hosted by them.

we then have a wiki linked from the design brief so that all "entrants"
can add a page that describes their approach to the brief, why they did
what they did etc and a link to their interpretation of the brief, then
anyone can visit their entry and comment on their wiki page (entrants will
maintain their own pages ;o) )

there are no deadlines, and no timescales - everyone can work at their own
pace and in their own environment.

the outcome will be a resource, similar in scope to the CSS zen garden but
with no constraints on execution, just the constraints of the design brief.



here's some of the benefits as I see them:

we get to exercise our skills and gain some peer review where everyone
knows the original brief and can therefore be more objective in their
assessments.

we insist n trust and an adult approach - all solutions are valid, we
might even ask for days spent on the solution to enable some quantity
judgement.

all solutions are freely commented on - only spam and abuse will be edited
from the wiki page - negative comment is as valid as positive.

over time the site, it's wiki, and the different solutions could become a
resource for inspiration.

the solution site you create can be maintained and updated providing a
portfolio example where all factors are public - you can show clients the
brief, your interpretation and everyone else's and the client would have a
better understanding of the complexity of design and the factors involved.



next steps?


volunteers to set up the core site
discussion on what the brief should be
creation of compulsory content.



I'm up for it - anyone else?