When the business model doesn’t match the user experience or… when nobody seems to understand what the business model is, the designer can’t know if they are helping or hurting the company by creating a better experience for the user.
Author Archives: Alex
The Business Model and User Experience
9/24/2008 – 10:10 am
Thoughts on A Complete Experience
9/23/2008 – 11:35 am
I recently posted a quote from Steve Ballmer discussing a key difference between Apple and Microsoft, which I titled A Complete Experience. Having spent a bit more time thinking about it, I thought I would capture some of those thoughts…
A Complete Experience
9/16/2008 – 11:35 am
In the competition between PCs and Macs, we outsell Apple 30-to-1. But there is no doubt that Apple is thriving. Why? Because they are good at providing an experience that is narrow but complete, while our commitment to choice often…
Burning Chrome
9/2/2008 – 10:12 am
Google Chrome Comic
Google plans to release a new browser soon, based on Webkit, but with a new JavaScript engine, which is expected to be significantly faster than most browsers and will be sandboxed to ensure that a crash in one tab…
Rethinking Education, Degrees and Achievement
8/15/2008 – 9:16 am
The BA acquired its current inflated status by accident. Advanced skills for people with brains really did get more valuable over the course of the 20th century, but the acquisition of those skills got conflated with the existing system of…
Orwell’s Diaries
7/30/2008 – 10:13 am
George Orwell’s Diary Entry from September 3rd, 1939. Image from George Orwell Archive, UCL
Starting August 9th, the Orwell Prize will serialize George Orwell’s diary, publishing each entry 70 years to the day after it was originally written. The topics are likely…
In Search of Useful Prototypes
7/29/2008 – 10:00 am
Dangerbird Prototype Screenshot
Normally a post describing a site launch doesn’t grab my attention, as they cover the same ground (base level descriptions of the design process, technologies used, how great the client is etc.). But the write-up the launch of…
This Ain’t Right: Fight the Orphan Works Act
7/23/2008 – 1:53 pm
Jeffrey Zeldman pointed out the dangerous Orphan Works Acts making their way through Congress. This act has far-reaching implications for everyone, but the impact is even larger for those who work or publish on the ‘Net. Ultimately Congress is attempting to reduce your…
Austin Twitter Blood Drive
7/2/2008 – 5:33 pm
Photo courtesy of makelessnoise
An amazing group of people getting together to give a little of themselves. It’s a simple as that.
A lot may be made of the social media aspects of this event (organized and advertised via Twitter, by people…
Designing Milk
6/30/2008 – 1:45 pm
The New York Times is running a great article titled Solution, or Mess? A Milk Jug for a Green Earth (thanks to Sarah Kampman for posting it to the IxDA list). In the piece, Stephanie Rosenbloom covers a major shift in the…