... but it's a hilarious read: rock, paper, scissors on wikipedia.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
there's something beautiful about this picture
something about how the petal has kept the area around it moist, while everything else has dried out. parallels to how we should be perhaps?
what do you think?
what do you think?
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
usability notes
so I'm looking more into design and usability now, which is also what I've studied... two interesting quotations:
"Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity."
- Charles Mingus
"In most cases, if a user could achieve his goals magically, without your product, he would."
- Alan Cooper
definition of design from dictionary.com:
To create or execute in an artistic or highly skilled manner.
and a link to design patterns.
"Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity."
- Charles Mingus
"In most cases, if a user could achieve his goals magically, without your product, he would."
- Alan Cooper
definition of design from dictionary.com:
To create or execute in an artistic or highly skilled manner.
and a link to design patterns.
when the student is ready...
... the teacher will appear.
a Buddhist proverb that I think really deserves a moment of contemplation.
there.
it's all about being ready for what may appear in front of us, what passes before us, or something that is said. obviously also in relation to this post...
I think one of the best examples of this is newton's apple story which got him to formulate the universal law of gravitation. since this happened in the 1660s, I can assure you that there had been plenty of apples falling, and plenty of people seeing them. but what happened? they just weren't ready to figure out what happened, and why.
what have you missed today?
a Buddhist proverb that I think really deserves a moment of contemplation.
there.
it's all about being ready for what may appear in front of us, what passes before us, or something that is said. obviously also in relation to this post...
I think one of the best examples of this is newton's apple story which got him to formulate the universal law of gravitation. since this happened in the 1660s, I can assure you that there had been plenty of apples falling, and plenty of people seeing them. but what happened? they just weren't ready to figure out what happened, and why.
what have you missed today?
Monday, January 28, 2008
I'm linked!
ok, very, very random... looking a bit at usability here and there, and surprisingly enough I found my thesis paper! paul hibbitts works with usability and stuff, and on his webpage he has a bunch of resources and links, and if you go to his links about usability and distance, and scroll down a bit, you'll see "Remote user studies". over there you have my paper, overcoming distance in user-centered design. cool stuff!
no more questions?
it seems my faq was so exhaustive that there's nothing more to ask? :)
if you have anything, post a comment and I'll respond in a new post.
if you have anything, post a comment and I'll respond in a new post.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
pearls before breakfast
you've probably heard the "if a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?", but what about "if a great musician plays great music but no one hears... was he really any good?"
that's what this very interesting article talks about. joshua bell, world famous violinist was asked to take part in washington post's study. one morning, he "dressed up" in jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt and a baseball cap, and played beautiful music on his million-dollar violin outside one of the metro stops in washington dc. what were the reactions? shockingly enough: not too many. excerpts from the article:
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
-- from "Leisure," by W.H. Davies
If we can't take the time out of our lives to stay a moment and listen to one of the best musicians on Earth play some of the best music ever written; if the surge of modern life so overpowers us that we are deaf and blind to something like that -- then what else are we missing?
read the article, even though it is very long, it's worth thinking about what makes us stop and think in life. do we not notice when something beautiful passes right in front of us (or we pass right in front of it), but just keep being so extremely busy in our own lives that we forget to look around us. and as the article says, what else are we missing if we miss something so obviously close to us?
reminds me of this short post of mine...
I feel compelled to make a reference to where I am, and what I am experiencing. being so close to this beautiful place of spiritual significance, it's very easy to take things for granted. I try to keep myself aware of where I am, why I'm here, and what I'm doing. but tell you the truth, it's difficult at times, because it easily becomes routine/habit to just walk up to work, do your thing, and then come back home. it's important to keep one's head up, at all times, in case something passes by that you really shouldn't miss.
that's what this very interesting article talks about. joshua bell, world famous violinist was asked to take part in washington post's study. one morning, he "dressed up" in jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt and a baseball cap, and played beautiful music on his million-dollar violin outside one of the metro stops in washington dc. what were the reactions? shockingly enough: not too many. excerpts from the article:
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
-- from "Leisure," by W.H. Davies
If we can't take the time out of our lives to stay a moment and listen to one of the best musicians on Earth play some of the best music ever written; if the surge of modern life so overpowers us that we are deaf and blind to something like that -- then what else are we missing?
read the article, even though it is very long, it's worth thinking about what makes us stop and think in life. do we not notice when something beautiful passes right in front of us (or we pass right in front of it), but just keep being so extremely busy in our own lives that we forget to look around us. and as the article says, what else are we missing if we miss something so obviously close to us?
reminds me of this short post of mine...
I feel compelled to make a reference to where I am, and what I am experiencing. being so close to this beautiful place of spiritual significance, it's very easy to take things for granted. I try to keep myself aware of where I am, why I'm here, and what I'm doing. but tell you the truth, it's difficult at times, because it easily becomes routine/habit to just walk up to work, do your thing, and then come back home. it's important to keep one's head up, at all times, in case something passes by that you really shouldn't miss.
beautiful picture
I took this shot before our orientation started, in the end of october, just haven't had a chance to put it up. but here it goes, it's an absolutely beautiful picture of the Shrine of the Báb:
Friday, January 25, 2008
trust your instincts...
... drink sprite?
no, that's not what this post is about... but there's a book called blink, that deals with trusting instinct and making split-second decision, through "thin-slicing" pieces of information and quickly making a decision. it's a really interesting book, well worth reading and thinking about how it affects you and the decisions you make.
now, why is this relevant? well, it's an issue I've been struggling with now... I'm evaluating two pieces of software, and like one more than the other. both have good qualities and functions, the other one even perhaps slightly better, but I just like the first one more and seem to enjoy working with it more...
how well can I trust my instincts? because it's a bit difficult to base quite a big decision on it, saying "I just felt like this one was the better", even though in the end it might've been the right decision. have to keep on evaluating and testing, and try to be detached and unbiased. it's difficult.
no, that's not what this post is about... but there's a book called blink, that deals with trusting instinct and making split-second decision, through "thin-slicing" pieces of information and quickly making a decision. it's a really interesting book, well worth reading and thinking about how it affects you and the decisions you make.
now, why is this relevant? well, it's an issue I've been struggling with now... I'm evaluating two pieces of software, and like one more than the other. both have good qualities and functions, the other one even perhaps slightly better, but I just like the first one more and seem to enjoy working with it more...
how well can I trust my instincts? because it's a bit difficult to base quite a big decision on it, saying "I just felt like this one was the better", even though in the end it might've been the right decision. have to keep on evaluating and testing, and try to be detached and unbiased. it's difficult.
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