I need your help to get to UX London
UX London is a unique three-day event combining inspirational talks with in-depth workshops presented by some of the industry’s biggest names. It is THE conference for UX designers.
Being the broke student I am, I don't have the cash to register, but I am determined to make it, and I need everyone's help to get there. Check out the UX London page for details.
Image from sodahead.com
I picked up “Practical Calligraphy” by Nash and Fleuss from the local library, it’s a very informative book on the intricacies of lettering. It discusses stroke weights, width of letters, their placement in with respect to the baseline and headline and lots more. So, here are a few pointers I think will prove useful to dealing with lettering and typography. I’ll start this series out, with Roman Capitals, which are the basic capital letters with serifs (the little feet).
The letters of the alphabet are divided into three ‘families’ of widths:
Square - O Q C D G M W
O - All arched and curved letters are based on O, when determining the proper width of strokes it is important to remember that the letter O is defined by the ‘counter’ or white space inside. This space should be shaped like an oval, not a circle.
Q – Is exactly like the O except there is a tail that is added bottom right, slightly above the baseline. The tail curves down first, then back up.
C & D – Both letters are slightly flattened on the top and bottom. This is what differentiates them from simply being the letter O with parts cut off.
G – Is the same as the letter C with an additional vertical stroke that comes to the horizontal center line (half way up the letter’s height) and is finished off with a tiny horizontal stroke above it.
M – Is a tricky one as it involves two different pen angles to achieve it. You could explain it as a wide V, with each side drawn with different weights, that was fitted legs on either side, that are slightly off perpendicular
W – Is essentially two narrowed V’s next to each other. Remember: It is not an inverted M.
Half Square – B R P E L F K S J
B - The upper bowl of the letter is slightly smaller than the bottom, and the two meet just above the horizontal center line, not on it. If you make both the same size the letter will look top-heavy.
R – The bowl is the same size as the upper bowl for the letter B and the tail comes down and ends smoothly in a brisk manner, it doesn’t just drop straight or go too far.
P – The bowl of the P is slightly bigger than that of the R.
E - The horizontal strokes of the E should be the same length, save for the bottom one which can be a tad longer for balance.
L – Really just an E without the top two strokes.
F – The top stroke is like the letter E and the second one is shorter than the first and it is drawn just below the horizontal center line, so it doesn’t look too high.
K – The top of the letter should contain slightly less white space than the bottom, the two join just above the center line. The tail should flourish like that of R and Q.
S – To create the perfect S, you should draw two circles one above the other, with the top circle slightly shifted to the right, then the letter is drawn along the edge, if the two circles are perfectly aligned the letter seems to lean to the left.
J & I - Was not in the original Roman alphabet (Who knew?), so it is a twist on the letter I.
3/4 Square – V A N X Y Z H U T
V & A – The legs are drawn wider than the rectangle, for the A, the horizontal stroke.
N – Don’t think of this letter as one to fit in a square, because it has to extend beyond the baseline to avoid looking too short.
X - The strokes of X connect just above the center line, making the upper v shape hold less space than the bottom, giving the letter it’s balance.
Y – Unlike the X, the top has the full width and the two strokes meet on the center line and the vertical line descends from there.
Z - The horizontal strokes are drawn thinner than the diagonal stroke.
H – The vertical strokes are thicker than the cross stroke, which sits on top of the center line.
U – The bottom curve of this letter follows the lead of the letter O, but is dropped slightly as not to look too high.
T - The horizontal stroke is drawn just below the headline, and it is shorter than the vertical stroke.
This is something I have noticed while working with a series of clients from one specific ethnic origin, they all focus their marketing, advertising as well as web efforts on the wrong audience. I think it is somehow understood that if they use images of people from their background in their marketing collateral it might turn away others that might read that decision as their attempt to communicate that the business is exclusive.
If I see a black woman on a brochure for a bank I wouldn’t assume that only black people go there. The same goes for any other race or ethnicity. I think there is a inferiority complex that needs addressing but that’s another blog post.
Personally when I am watching ads and I see that they include diverse individuals they are showing a welcoming approach that embraces diversity and are trying to convey the universality of their products. Some companies fear that if they were to include say a woman wearing a headscarf their loyal customers might be put off. Others have the exact opposite view and would only have people that ‘look the part’ in their ads or marketing materials. I agree that there are specific audiences that they want addressed by their ad and in that case this would seem like the right thing to do.
However, when I know that on a case by case basis that these businesses offer services to the community at large then they are letting their insecurity speak louder than anything else. It is even strong than their desire to appeal to their most profitable client base and as a result achieve lower profits.
My point is that if your clients are mainly from a specific background then maybe you should include their image in the brochure or website.
That’s all.
I have officially fallen in love with UX design. There is so much drama about how to define it or how it isn’t one single thing but a combination of other disciplines (and this is all true by the way).
User experience (UX) in relation to technology (not just web, software, etc.) involves translating business goals into creative solutions for interaction design, information architecture, usability and visual design.
It most commonly refers to the result of a planned integration of software design, business, and psychology concerns. In the web world, user experience is sometimes conflated with usability, information architecture (IA), and user interface (UI) design, all of which are components of it. User experience addresses and integrates all user-facing aspects of a company, from email and web sites to off-site presence in print and on other sites.
User experience designers lead interaction design and collaborate with internal and external design resources—corporate identity, editorial, usability and advertising. They plan, prioritize, coordinate and conduct user requirements analysis, task analysis, conceptual modeling, information architecture design,
interaction design and usability testing, and perform design reviews
and usability testing during various phases of the product development process to evaluate and iterate designs.
I’ll try my best to tell you what it is in the simplest way possible.
UX stands for User Experience, it means making the way you deal with a program or website make perfect sense, go smoothly and not give you a heart attack.
The reason why I am so in love with it is because it isn’t as simple as designing something pretty or something that can do lots of tricks. Its about making things that are easy for people to use, well-thought, well-planned, brilliantly designed stuff that make sense.
UX design is the perfect marriage between creativity and common sense.
This font really caught my eye, it’s called Memoriam
it was designed by Patrick Griffin from Canada Type.
It’s smooth and dramatic.
love love love.
Check it out and purchase it at:
Andy Rutledge said, “constraint is a designers best friend”.
When I thought about it, I really used to see it as the exact opposite. Whenever the project was defined and it wasn’t what I thought it should be I would feel that I wasn’t doing it the right way. My sense of (subjective) right and wrong isn’t what should define a design but the constraints are. By knowing the boundaries, what the client wants, what they don’t want, how they want things to come off, what their audience would react to etc. I can create a more effective design. It shouldn’t be limiting in any way, it should come as a relief that I am not shooting in the dark.
The more constraint I am given, the more accurate my response (design) can be. Just as in any type of mathematical equation, the solution can’t be worked out until all the variables are defined. The same idea applies to design.
“Without constraint there’s no need for design. Because, design without constraint is art.”
This is another very important point. When I follow my instinct or whims to design something the way I like it or I think it should look versus the way the client needs it to look then I am thinking like an artist. I have to think like a designer, because design is like art with a purpose, direction and function. Design has to be directed and focused, it isn’t a free pass to express myself.
Check out his podcast at http://www.designview.com very potent stuff.
photo via ffffound
We all might have the same tools,
maybe even some of the same influences and inspirations,
but our creativity is the only thing that limits what we can create.
Obviously someone is in love.
photo via ffffound
Business fluctuates like everything else, and having s positive attitude is the only way to weather the storm.
Opportunities are everywhere and we have to suck it up and go for them.
Here we go…
photo via fffound
There is a constant sturggle when it comes to finding your personal style. The design industry will push you to make sterile corporate designs with lots of grays and blues. That isn’t what you thought being a designer meant.
You expected creative freedom and that you would let your boundless imagination loose to tackle all the ugly in the world.
Design is a skill and at the end of the day you will have to make some dull designs but they can still be witty or sharp, you can add your own touch anyway. When you have the freedom to create something vibrant and lively you can go all out.
If you were considering doing something more high-end or elaborate then you should do that too. Versatility is a good thing.
Don’t let anyone tell you anything else.
