I'm going to start something new called "WORD OF THE WEEK". I'm going to pick a random "online-related" word and simply define it. If there are examples, I'll include some. There is new "web lingo" created by the minute, it seems, so in an effort to educate the masses enough to say "Oh, yea, I've heard of that", I'll try and define some of them...until I run out, that is :)
WORD(s) OF THE WEEK : Branded Utility
I've seen this phrase creep up in a lot of the blogs I've read. So what does it mean? Simple: Brands being genuinely useful to their customers, employees, suppliers and the people they touch. Creating an online tool, application, system, etc...that will truly be useful to their customers (and that contain advertising within it). The goal of this is to help the brand ingrain within someone's life; having a tool that helps them and makes their life better.
Here's an example, the "Price Checker" tool within Tesco's website (I'm guessing it's a grocery store). It allows you to type in the name of a product and it'll give you the costs at Tesco + competitive stores.
Another is the AccuWeather widget that lives on my desktop and tells me the current temp. outside and the 5-day forecast.
Moma Exhibit - An Elastic MindI'm going to just place someone else's blog posting (Thanks Space 150). It describes this exhibit and website. It's a pretty crazy website and the information design throughout is fascinating. Not necessarily always functional, but certainly fascinating. Including the "Search" function/results. Since this is about "art" and not selling a product, they are able to take some liberty in their usability.
by: Todd Lintner, Space 150
The elastic element of the title denotes the flexibility of the modern mind necessary to process large amounts of information, while the design aspect acknowledges the role that it plays in our creation and incorporation of new ideas and practices. In the spirit of the show, there is even more innovation to be found on the accompanying website, with 50 pieces that are not included in the physical installation. It’s a massive, mind-boggling site; to help focus matters, we’ve included links to some of Shawn’s favorites.
Design helps us process and synthesize the information overload. The show has been assembled to approach this challenge from many different angles, mixing the pragmatic with the provocative. Architecture and Justice exposes the relationship between U.S. incarceration rates and neighborhoods. It strikingly visualizes the phenomenon of “million dollar blocks” – residents of one city block can cost states $1 million yearly in jail expenses. Although disturbing in its implication, the work also inspires the possibility of reform.
This idea of data visualization carries over into Aaron Koblin’s Flight Patterns. Combining art, science, and statistics, the work uses FAA data to construct animated flight paths that reflect the actual movement of planes across North American airspace. It dynamically demonstrates actual traffic while also showing a high-level perspective of the network’s structure.
There is also work on display that uses tech for less serious purposes. Philip Worthington’s Shadow Monsters updates the traditional pastime of shadow puppets by using custom-designed vision-recognition software. By using a modest toolset – computer, camera, projector, and light box – hand gestures become living, software-enhanced entities. In this set-up, the hand that imitates a canine’s profile actually turns into a growling, fanged wolf.
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Starbucks and their new Social Networking site
Everyone is aware of Starbucks attempt at a new start (or almost everyone). And everyone is aware that Starbucks success revolved around the social aspect of the coffee craze. Well, Starbucks has created a social network (or "online community" - call it what you will) around this promise of a refreshed Starbucks experience. Share your ideas of an improved Starbucks experience, vote on others, discuss things and see changes that have been implemented. I applaud the interface designers. It's a simple design, great navigation structure, has nice detailed elements and makes the whole process seem like it's easy-breezy, if not even downright fun. And they carried this quality design throughout the entire site. Nice job, Starbucks. If I wasn't such a Caribou fan, I'd sign in and give you my thoughts! (Thanks for this link, Kim!)
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