Speculations: Joseph Hornig and Gillian Eiserman
Welcome to UCI’s campus in 2028. It is clear to see that campus has changed a bit – nearly all surfaces of campus buildings are covered in screens that mimic the look and feel of industrial material, but are actually screens showing posters created by students. Students at UCI now have the power to create and express themselves on nearly any surface in campus, and their work and words are now an incredibly prominent feature on campus. The use of posters has grown to cover even more of campus than ever before, with posters denoting anything from job listings to “missed connections” to goofy inside jokes between clubs. From the advances in technology, these posters can be quite decadent – featuring animations, realistic metallic shimmers and shine, and opulently covering what used to be plain and boring surfaces. Communication and interaction amongst students is at an all time high and all one has to do to be a part of it is simply look around.
Personas: Joseph Hornig
Homer is a UCI freshman from Victorville, CA. There were only a couple hundred students in his senior class, so campus can feel a little overwhelming now that he’s one of more than 6,000 freshmen. He’s joined the ultimate frisbee team, which has been a good experience, but he wants to get more involved. He likes soccer, hiking, and video games. Sometimes a flyer along one of the walkways will catch his eye, but there’s always so many people that it’s too hard to read. Plus, he tends to oversleep, so he’s usually rushing to class.
He just heard that UCI recently installed new touch screens on the tables at the Student Center to display all the flyers from around campus. Apparently you can send things of interest to your phone in case you you want to add an event to your calendar or follow up with the contact person. He’s interested to see how they work.
Narratives: Joseph Hornig
Peter the Anteater, this is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back.
Choose the Hawaiian pizza, and you’ll wake up on the sandy beaches of Oahu, believing whatever you want to believe.
Choose the Supreme pizza, and you’ll stay at UCI to fulfill your destiny as The One, our supreme mascot.
Remember, all I’m offering is the truth. Nothing more.
Geographies: Joseph Hornig
The first half of my journey, I was making very detailed observations, stopping to draw intricate objects I found interesting, and really spending the time to absorb my surroundings. The second half of my journey was spent on a major road with zero shade, so I was baking in the sun. I was also starting to walk much further in between decision points, so I began to experience fatigue from the assignment. Whereas during the first half, I would stop to take note of something before I had even reached the next decision point, by the second half, I was using one illustration to sum up multiple decisions points.
I learned that the environment really plays a factor in one’s ability to observe effectively. When the environment was quiet and peaceful, I was alert, thorough, and at ease. But when I was walking along a very busy and noisy street, and feeling hot and sweaty, I was more distracted and hasty with my observations.
Informations, Part 3: Joseph Hornig
A Sign I Find Effective
The black and yellow color choice definitely helps this sign stand out. It breaks through the noise by contradicting the typical mental model that political signs should be blue or red. The color choice is also employing threat detection – in nature, black and yellow typically signifies danger or poisonousness, as the two are often seen on bees, spiders, and snakes.
Black and yellow is also a common color combination for warning signs. In this way, the color choice is being used as a framing device – voters should act cautiously before voting for Katie Porter. The association with higher taxes is another negative framing device.
The framing is so persuasive that Katie Porter’s supporters felt compelled to add a clarification, hoping to alter the negative frame to a positive one (although in Orange County, it’s uncertain that proclaiming higher taxes on the rich will be seen as a positive frame).
The sign’s simplicity, symmetry, and the iconic representation of the equal sign all contribute to increasing the design’s visibility as well.
A Sign I Find Ineffective
This sign is completely illegible. It’s using uppercase, title case, and mixed case words; multiple typefaces; bold and italics; and inconsistent spacing and alignment. This is a textbook example of why highlighting methods should be used sparingly – this sign is noisy, ineffective, and impossible to read.
Architectures: Joseph Hornig
Project 2: Joseph Hornig
Final Map
Isolated map:
Final Map Drafts
(legends still to come)
Revised Forces
After some reflection, I felt I took too much of a marco focus with my initial forces: I identified a lot of green space, a lot of dorms, a lot of anteater landmarks, etc. But it was the geometry of the campus’ layout that I found the most interesting. This was the area of campus that I wanted to explore as I continued down this project.
So I did another round of observations, and I realized that despite having this large, beautiful park right in the middle of campus, the heart of campus activity is actually along the circular path surrounding the park. Students walk through the park, but they don’t really spend time there. So I wanted to identify the forces that were causing Ring Road to be the hub of student activity.
Force #1: Buildings
Force #2: Foot Traffic and Seating
Force #3: Food (and most importantly, coffee!)
Force #4: Bike Racks
Force #5: Flyers and Announcements
Previous Forces
In total, UCI’s campus spans more than 1,500 acres, but I’ve been focusing on the main area circling out from Aldrich Park. The primary forces I’ve observed are geometry in the campus’ circular layout; the abundance of green space, anteater landmarks, and student housing; and the heavy foot traffic among the 30,000+ students.
Geometry
UCI’s campus has a unique circular layout. Almost every undergraduate school is placed along Ring Road, a 1.4 mile circle surrounding Aldrich Park. Despite being a large university, UCI’s campus feels small: the circular layout makes it easy for one to get around.
Green Space
In southern California, it’s rare to see a place as green as UCI. There are more than 100,000 trees and shrubs throughout campus and in the heart of campus is Aldrich Park, a lush 19-acre oasis. On the north side of campus is a botanical garden and arboretum.
Landmarks
UCI students clearly have a lot of school pride (you see a lot of UCI apparel walking around) and images of Peter the Anteater (the school’s mascot) are everywhere. There are two anteater statues on benches by the Student Centers that students often take selfies with, a giant anteater statue by the Bren Events Center, and an anteater on the water tower.
Housing
There are two main freshman residence halls just off of Ring Road: Mesa Court, which recently unveiled brand new towers, and Middle Earth, where brand new towers are currently under construction. In addition, there is a smaller housing community with less students by the science library. There are also a host of privately owned and operated apartment communities just across the street.
Student Foot Traffic
There is a lot of foot traffic on campus, with the most densely populated areas being the Student Center plaza and the main academic plazas off of Ring Road. There is also a lot of congestion outside of Aldrich Hall where many student clubs and organizations table to raise money by selling food and boba. While cutting through Aldrich Park provides shorter routes for getting from point A to point B, it seems that most students simply walk along Ring Road to get to where they’re going.
Informations, Part 2: Joseph Hornig
This is a hand-drawn map of the UCI campus that we (the undergraduate admissions office) hand out to visitors who are looking to explore campus on their own. We also use it at college fairs to give students an idea of what campus looks like, where things are, and how green it is.
Biophilia Effect
People are attracted to nature, and images and depictions of nature tend to increase the aesthetic value of a design or environment. By using a green background and depicting an abundance of trees and bushes, the map is illustrating how lush and beautiful campus is, while also being aesthetically pleasing and vibrant itself.
Ockham’s Razor
The admissions map favors simplicity over complexity. Compared with the official UCI campus map (pictured above), the admissions map eliminates unnecessary information and presents a simpler, cleaner design. Especially for visitors who are looking to take a walking tour of campus, the admissions map is a much more effective and usable design than the official campus map.
Depth of Processing
The map has so many fun little details scattered throughout that enhance the map’s richness and depth of exposure. The anteater illustrations are distinct and unique and allow users to deeply engage with the material. It’s almost like a Where’s Waldo picture, and the extra attention required to discover everything increases retention of the information.
Graphics: Joseph Hornig
Objects, Part 2: Joseph Hornig
Couch
This couch was my first big, adult furniture purchase—I got it right after moving to California, a year before moving in with my boyfriend. When I first sat in it at the store, I just melted into it and instantly knew it was the one. We pretty much sit on it every night to eat dinner, so I definitely spend more time sitting here than anywhere else in the apartment. It’s also the perfect size for both of us to lie down in, and every day I come home from work to find my boyfriend sprawled out on it, which makes the apartment feel like home.
Bar Stools
Every time we have guests over, they all immediately slide into the bar stools at our kitchen counter. Guests tend to gravitate toward the kitchen anyway, so having the stools there is perfect. They also have a very industrial, gastropub look to them, so I think that naturally encourages guests to sit down and have a beer. Though we rarely use them when it’s just the two of us (sometimes we’ll sit there and eat breakfast).
Dining Chairs
Our dining chairs were selected to match the white table. I like their beachy look and they help keep the apartment airy and casual. This has become my primary workstation at home and they are the perfect height for the table. However, without the red cushions that we added, they’re not very comfortable.
Balcony Stools
These are a new acquisition from Craigslist. The stools are comfortable, but since they’re used, the cushions do sag a little. They also aren’t quite high enough to be ergonomically typing on a laptop, so when I want to do work outside, I usually bring out one of the bar stools from the kitchen and use these stools as a footrest. But their sturdiness and durability are nice for when we have guests.
Bed
I often sit up in our bed to read or do work. It’s a memory foam mattress and very comfortable. I feel calm and relaxed when I’m sitting in it, and it’s a nice indulgence when I need to de-stress or unwind (though I can still be quite productive). But as my first memory foam mattress, sitting up in it actually took some getting used to. I was used to a firmer mattress without as much give. After three years though, I’ve completely gotten used to it.
Bedroom Balcony Chairs
We have a table and chairs on the porch off our bedroom that I hate. They are made of all weather wicker and the interwovenness of the material means it is impossible to fully wipe them clean of pollen. When I do sit there, I have to lay a towel over the chair so that my clothes don’t get covered in dust. They frustrate me so much that I’d prefer to just get rid of them.
Driver’s Seat
My initial mindset when buying a car was that I simply needed a vehicle to get me from point A to point B. And since I had just moved to California, where I knew I would be doing a lot of driving, I wanted something practical with good gas mileage. But a sleek silver coupe caught my eye. It had an all-black leather interior, with a modern dashboard and stereo, and when I sat in the driver’s seat for the first time, I felt like James Bond. Despite being a coupe, it’s actually a mid-size car, so the seats are very spacious. I can spread out and stretch my legs, and the leather has a nice give to it so it’s extremely comfortable. There’s an undeniable cool-factor with my car, and it makes driving that much more enjoyable.
Office Chair
My office chair is fine, it’s comfortable, I can appropriately lean back, and it has been tweaked and adjusted by the UCI ergonomics team. But because my desk is too low, that throws the whole equation out of balance. My chair should probably be a little higher, but as of now it occasionally scrapes the bottom of my desk whenever I pull it too far forward, so the height can’t be adjusted. It’s also the same kind of chair that we have in the conference room, so it doesn’t add any prestige or status to my office, despite being one of the corner suites.
Objects, Part 1: Joseph Hornig
Object that I HATE
Headphone Jack-Less iPhone
Besides being a texting device or personal computer, my phone is most importantly a music player. Listening to music in the car helps get me energized in the morning and de-stressed in the evening. It helps keep me awake during long road trips or when I’m driving late at night. But when I upgraded my iPhone, a new constraint restricted my possibilities for playing music.
The iPhone no longer sports a headphone jack, effectively severing my ability to both play music and charge my phone at the same time in the car (my car doesn’t have a USB plug, so I need both an aux cord and a lightning port).
In order to do both, I had to buy a $50 adapter in addition to using Apple’s headphone jack adapter. This results in frequent breakdowns whenever I drive over bumps. I will lose audio connection and have to unplug the adapter (while driving) and plug it back in.
Unfortunately, there is neither feedback nor visibility on the interface as to whether or not plugging the adapter back in successfully reconnected the audio. The music doesn’t automatically start replaying, and nothing on the screen indicates a connection, so I have to manually press play and hope that music comes through the speakers. If it doesn’t, sometimes I have to unplug the adapter multiple times (again, while driving) before it finally reconnects.
There’s also no feedback or visibility of the system status regarding what’s causing the breakdowns. Sometimes the audio will disconnect from the tiniest bump, while other times it will be just fine going over huge ones.
What’s most frustrating is that the removal of the headphone jack wasn’t in response to some major design flaw. It was just a shameless ploy by Apple to force us all to buy their new #$@&%*! Airpods.
Object that I LOVE
Apple Airpods
Unfortunately, I love their #$@&%*! Airpods. There is immediate habituation: once they’re in my ears, I totally forget they’re there—they fit perfectly, they don’t become loose or jostle around, and they don’t get in the way of my movements when I’m performing other tasks.
There is a visible indication of the system status (a green light in the carrying case indicates a full charge, whereas an orange light indicates that a charge is needed) and there is feedback to my actions (they make a noise or automatically start playing music when I put them in my ears, and they pause the music when I take them out).
The Airpods have very clear affordances (they’re the same shape as the previous Apple earbuds) and very clear constraints (each Airpod only fits in its corresponding charging slot).
The mapping between the controls and their effects is also very simple and straightforward. There is only one charging port on the carrying case and only one button (which is used to pair the Airpods with a Bluetooth device).
Overall, the Airpods are extremely intuitive, easy-to-use, and make my life a lot more convenient. I love them.
Team 6 Principle #7: Highlighting
Highlighting is a way of calling attention to a specific area of content. Since users favor scanning over reading, highlighting can actually help guide users through the content.1 But to be effective, highlighting methods should be used sparingly (10% or less of the overall content), otherwise the content will become noisy and ineffective.2 Popular methods include using a different color, bold typeface, or all uppercase letters.
This article from the Baymard Institute uses bold typeface sparingly to add emphasis to important words and enable users to quickly scan the content and glean its main takeaways.1
The homepage of the Harvard Business Review‘s website uses color sparingly to draw the user’s eye to the headline of the featured article.3
This cover of The Atlantic uses color sparingly to draw the user’s eye to the focal point of the issue’s main story.
1Holst, Christian. “Scannability: How to Highlight Text on the Web.” Baymard Institute, Baymard Institute, 30 Nov. 2010, baymard.com/blog/highlighting-text-online.
2Whitenton, Kathryn. “Decision Frames: How Cognitive Biases Affect UX Practitioners.” Nielsen Norman Group, Nielsen Norman Group, 11 Dec. 2016, www.nngroup.com/articles/decision-framing-cognitive-bias-ux-pros/.
3Harvard Business Review, Harvard Business Publishing, 29 Sept. 2018, hbr.org/.
Team 6 Principle #4: Framing
Framing is a technique of using words, images, and context to present information in a way that influences the thoughts and decisions of users. Framing information in a positive light tends to get users to do something, while framing information in a negative light tends to prevent users from doing something.1 In fact, depending on the frame used, the exact same information can lead to opposite conclusions.2 To neutralize the effects of framing, both the positive and negative aspects should be mentioned so that users can use their own thought processes to make a decision.1
An example of negative framing. By associating alcohol with crime, poverty, and waste, this cartoon attempts to dissuade voters from opposing the prohibition of alcohol.1
An example of negative framing. By referring to the Kavanaugh hearings as disgusting and a ‘travesty,’ the author hopes to persuade members of Congress to put an end to them.3
An example of positive framing. By showing smiling dogs and encouraging users to ‘be kind,’ the community hopes to convince residents to pick up after their dogs.
1Lidwell, William, et al. Universal Principles of Design. Rockport, 2010.
2Whitenton, Kathryn. “Decision Frames: How Cognitive Biases Affect UX Practitioners.” Nielsen Norman Group, Nielsen Norman Group, 11 Dec. 2016, www.nngroup.com/articles/decision-framing-cognitive-bias-ux-pros/.
3Gingrich, Newt. “Newt Gingrich: Is There Even One Democrat Decent Enough or Disgusted Enough to End This Kavanaugh Travesty?” Fox News, FOX News Network, LLC, 28 Sept. 2018, www.foxnews.com/opinion/newt-gingrich-is-there-even-one-democrat-decent-enough-or-disgusted-enough-to-end-this-kavanaugh-travesty.
Histories: Joseph Hornig
In this month’s Marketing News, J. Walker Smith writes, “the analog edge isn’t going away just because digital technologies are taking over.”
As someone who still takes handwritten notes and keeps a handwritten to-do list, I’m comforted by Smith’s prognosis.
It’s also why I’m inspired by the Rocketbook Smart Notebook. It allows me to continue using the analog method of writing that I prefer, while incorporating digital technologies that increase usability and convenience.
Features include:
-
- Scan and save notes in the cloud
- Copy and share with collaborators
- Easily sketch on dot grid pages
- Microwave to erase and reuse pages
These features align with a number of Dieter Rams’ principles of good design: the Rocketbook is useful, innovative, long-lasting, and environmentally-friendly.
It’s also an example of how a product in a seemingly stagnant and saturated industry (paper notebook manufacturing) can be modified or improved.
But what inspires me the most is that the Rocketbook uses technology to complement and enhance an analog practice, instead of attempting to replace one.