Found on facebook: “Today we put up our Little Free Library! I’m excited to get our official registration to add the finishing touch but hope that all the walkers in our neighborhood will like and use it! “
Smallest library ever?
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Author Archives: jillx2
A functional cardboard bike
See the video here: http://vimeo.com/37584656
A really smart Smart Car
Use what you have
Some MacGyvering seen in Austin, TX:
What does “Open Open” do?
Anybody know?
Over-designed Car Parking UI
In Walla Walla, WA, drivers are not entrusted with determining how much space they need for parallel parking their cars. The city does it for them, by marking off spaces of pre-determined length. I’m suspicious this wastes space (as not all cars are the same size) when the spots are back-to-back – and I’m definitely sure it does when the spots have additional space left between them (see photo below).
Why you should not group unrelated things.
On a recent visit to the airplane bathroom, I was confused as to what this set of icons was meant to tell me.
I knew what each of them meant individually, but here they were grouped together, and their pairing was confusing. The problem here, is that despite the visual suggestions that these items are related (wide border separating them from other items on the wall, shared background space) – they are not. The yellow icons mean “get back to your seat – the fasten seatbelt sign is also turned on” and the red stuff is a call button with pictorial label – and that is all.
The yellow stuff disappears when the pilot deems it safe for you to be up and about, but you don’t know that unless you happen to be in the bathroom at some other time when it’s not displayed.
If you never see it in the off state, you may never understand what it is intended to mean.
(Note: second image was edited in Photoshop to simulate the off state.)
Ugly or Not?
A friend on Facebook, living in China, posted about how he disagreed with CNN’s assessment that the Shengyang Fangyuan building deserved being included on the top ten ugliest buildings list. His defense was that it was a bank in the shape of a Chinese coin and therefore genius.
While a concept may have merit; that doesn’t automatically mean the execution of the idea is successful. I go back and forth on my opinion about this particular building – I really enjoy the cleverness and wit behind the design, but visually, I do think it’s ugly. In part, because it is is like nothing else around it, interrupting the flow and harmony of the cityscape – which I understand to be relevant criteria when evaluating architecture objectively. Context is important.
What do you think?
A browser too new?
Being told my browser is too old is mildly irritating to me because it suggests I am lazy and should really try harder to keep up with the rest of responsible society. Being told my browser is too “modern” penalizes me for the fact that someone else has not kept up with technological advancements. Telling me it could be one or the other? Pretty much useless.
If I knew which scenario was causing the problem, I could take action – by either installing the latest version of IE, Safari, or Chrome or trying to access this particular site on my old desk machine which is still running Windows XP. I don’t really want to do either of those things, and now I might have to do both?
I think I’ll just look for someone else to buy stuff from.
Usability Rescues the 2012 Presidential Election
Today we are highlighting the work of Dana Chisnell, a UX researcher who has been working on ballot design for several years.
Read more about Dana’s work or support her current project to provide usable ballots in time for the 2012 Presidential election.
Let’s fix this!:
