Comments on: Creative Columns #4: User-Thingy-Contraption http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm Designers' point of view Tue, 06 Jan 2009 04:52:03 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Jan van der Asdonk http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-149 Jan van der Asdonk Wed, 13 Dec 2006 11:14:16 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-149 in the world of literature invention and innovation are not far apart; * innovate verb [I] to introduce changes and new ideas: The fashion industry is always desperate to innovate. * invent verb [T] to design and/or create something which has never been made before: The first safety razor was invented by company founder King C. Gillette in 1903. however, i for one [and many others alike] see striking differences between invention and innovation. inventing something has, to me, more of a engineer or professor kind of feel to it; inventing something new, a technology or method or whatever. now this invention can be innovative. we invent the technology of a light bulb. accordingly we design the light bulb. you might call it an innovation. i think designers do not invent, they design, and occasionaly innovate. imitation is something we try to avoid, though this does not mean you can only adopt an innovation, but that is the most preferable step of immitation; copying the best of the best. i don't see innovation as something which is limited to the commercial aspect of a product. you can innovate without bringing something to the market. incremental innovation is more like creating yet another product that stunts people, but which does not differ much from its competitors. so no real innovation. to translate it to your marketing book: radical innovation == innovation. that's all. you innovate, or you don't. period. in the world of literature invention and innovation are not far apart;

* innovate
verb [I]
to introduce changes and new ideas:
The fashion industry is always desperate to innovate.

* invent
verb [T]
to design and/or create something which has never been made before:
The first safety razor was invented by company founder King C. Gillette in 1903.

however, i for one [and many others alike] see striking differences between invention and innovation. inventing something has, to me, more of a engineer or professor kind of feel to it; inventing something new, a technology or method or whatever. now this invention can be innovative. we invent the technology of a light bulb. accordingly we design the light bulb. you might call it an innovation.

i think designers do not invent, they design, and occasionaly innovate. imitation is something we try to avoid, though this does not mean you can only adopt an innovation, but that is the most preferable step of immitation; copying the best of the best.

i don’t see innovation as something which is limited to the commercial aspect of a product. you can innovate without bringing something to the market. incremental innovation is more like creating yet another product that stunts people, but which does not differ much from its competitors. so no real innovation.

to translate it to your marketing book: radical innovation == innovation. that’s all. you innovate, or you don’t. period.

]]> By: Martijn http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-148 Martijn Tue, 12 Dec 2006 14:45:04 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-148 last night i just couldn't get a sleep and then all of a sudden i knew what was wrong! where the bias in communication lies. i grabbed my management books and found the following definitions: invention: the act of creating or developing a new product or process innovation: the process of creating a commercial product from invention imitation: the adoption of an innovation by similar firms furthermore i found.... incremental innovation: builds on existing knowledge bases and provides small improvements in the current product lines radical innovation: usually provides significant technological breakthroughs and creates new knowledge so i guess jan is talking about invention/radical innovation last night i just couldn’t get a sleep and then all of a sudden i knew what was wrong! where the bias in communication lies. i grabbed my management books and found the following definitions:
invention: the act of creating or developing a new product or process
innovation: the process of creating a commercial product from invention
imitation: the adoption of an innovation by similar firms
furthermore i found….
incremental innovation: builds on existing knowledge bases and provides small improvements in the current product lines
radical innovation: usually provides significant technological breakthroughs and creates new knowledge

so i guess jan is talking about invention/radical innovation

]]> By: Jan van der Asdonk http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-146 Jan van der Asdonk Sun, 10 Dec 2006 18:05:26 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-146 hiring a insightful future-minded marketeer to seek out the market potential of all that innovativity you, as a designer, create. and if there is no market; create one! that's what i call innovation! hiring a insightful future-minded marketeer to seek out the market potential of all that innovativity you, as a designer, create.

and if there is no market; create one! that’s what i call innovation!

]]> By: Brian http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-141 Brian Fri, 08 Dec 2006 00:42:54 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-141 The true goal of a product designer is to find the unarticulated needs in the market, and solve them in a creative/innovative way embarking new technologies, making use of new materials but most of all by making use of our imagination something the average consumer can't do. One of the greatest tools designers have over say marketeers, managers or psychologists is the fact that product designers CAN imagine what this world will be like in 5, 10 or 15 years, and what kind of products will emerge. But of course it's useless to design products without having a market, a business plan and a distribution channel. So I hate to break it to some of you, but there is no such thing as industrial design, without working together with marketeers. The question is "how do you work together in a multidisciplinary environment (read: company), without sacrificing too much of the creativity?" The true goal of a product designer is to find the unarticulated needs in the market, and solve them in a creative/innovative way embarking new technologies, making use of new materials but most of all by making use of our imagination something the average consumer can’t do. One of the greatest tools designers have over say marketeers, managers or psychologists is the fact that product designers CAN imagine what this world will be like in 5, 10 or 15 years, and what kind of products will emerge. But of course it’s useless to design products without having a market, a business plan and a distribution channel. So I hate to break it to some of you, but there is no such thing as industrial design, without working together with marketeers.

The question is “how do you work together in a multidisciplinary environment (read: company), without sacrificing too much of the creativity?”

]]> By: Martijn http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-140 Martijn Thu, 07 Dec 2006 21:44:23 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-140 well i think we all agree upon this, however the problem is the interpretation of the word problem. is a problem something evident, somehting tangible, or is it just a feeling. maybe the cave-men/women was looking for jewels, however he/she was definitely in need of achieving a higher social status... but didn't knew how, so the problem isn't the fact that there weren't any jewels, but the lack of social status of this person. when he/she found the jewels, they felt good and made him/her feel like giving back their social status. nowadays the same problems are faced by fashion designers.... the people (although all of us able reading this-> being connected to the www) are able to buy clothes, however a fashion designers has to jump into certain unknown needs, but beyond these needs there are problems, like a lack of social status. damn erik, which study do you propose? sociology? psychology? ;) well i think we all agree upon this, however the problem is the interpretation of the word problem. is a problem something evident, somehting tangible, or is it just a feeling.
maybe the cave-men/women was looking for jewels, however he/she was definitely in need of achieving a higher social status… but didn’t knew how, so the problem isn’t the fact that there weren’t any jewels, but the lack of social status of this person. when he/she found the jewels, they felt good and made him/her feel like giving back their social status.
nowadays the same problems are faced by fashion designers…. the people (although all of us able reading this-> being connected to the www) are able to buy clothes, however a fashion designers has to jump into certain unknown needs, but beyond these needs there are problems, like a lack of social status.
damn erik, which study do you propose? sociology? psychology? ;)

]]> By: Wu Pei-Yi http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-139 Wu Pei-Yi Thu, 07 Dec 2006 17:12:20 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-139 From what I've seen so far, designs that are deemed as successful to me are those that are first inspired by user problems, and then further developed upon in creating the innovativeness. This innovativeness is something that industrial designers and marketers can work upon together. I believe both faculties are creative and just as important, and should never override one another. A talk to a design seminar by Dick Powell made me realise that how important design should revolve around a user problem definition. What strikes me about them was how they tackled the user problem definition with trying out new materials and challenging new methods of using things we normally utilise. One of their achievements was that they designed a lightweight motorbike that looks like a bicycle for commuters in the cities. In their process, they shared about how often designed things by daring to dream, and think beyond. Check this link out for interviews about their philosophy about design and marketing, and their talk show " Better by Design". (http://www.channel4.com/community/showcards/B/Better_By_Design.html) From what I’ve seen so far, designs that are deemed as successful to me are those that are first inspired by user problems, and then further developed upon in creating the innovativeness.

This innovativeness is something that industrial designers and marketers can work upon together. I believe both faculties are creative and just as important, and should never override one another.

A talk to a design seminar by Dick Powell made me realise that how important design should revolve around a user problem definition. What strikes me about them was how they tackled the user problem definition with trying out new materials and challenging new methods of using things we normally utilise. One of their achievements was that they designed a lightweight motorbike that looks like a bicycle for commuters in the cities.

In their process, they shared about how often designed things by daring to dream, and think beyond. Check this link out for interviews about their philosophy about design and marketing, and their talk show ” Better by Design”. (http://www.channel4.com/community/showcards/B/Better_By_Design.html)

]]> By: Jan van der Asdonk http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-138 Jan van der Asdonk Thu, 07 Dec 2006 15:08:05 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-138 true argument. however, as i said in the column, some problems are discovered after the solution presents itself. and sometimes there just aren't any problems. what about jewelry? i don't think the first piece of "jewelry" back in the stone age was made to give other cavemen-or women a social attachment or any other kind of memory to an event or persona, as they usually do now. and there are a lot more of examples that would fit such description. true argument.

however, as i said in the column, some problems are discovered after the solution presents itself. and sometimes there just aren’t any problems.

what about jewelry? i don’t think the first piece of “jewelry” back in the stone age was made to give other cavemen-or women a social attachment or any other kind of memory to an event or persona, as they usually do now.

and there are a lot more of examples that would fit such description.

]]> By: Kay http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-137 Kay Thu, 07 Dec 2006 14:49:37 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-137 I'm not seeing the point of creating, designing, making, whatevering something when there is no problem (hence purpose). I look around and everything in my room has a reason (a certain problem to be solved) to exist. I'm not a designer, but I can't even see how you can make up something that doens't solve a problem... I’m not seeing the point of creating, designing, making, whatevering something when there is no problem (hence purpose).
I look around and everything in my room has a reason (a certain problem to be solved) to exist. I’m not a designer, but I can’t even see how you can make up something that doens’t solve a problem…

]]> By: Eric http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-136 Eric Thu, 07 Dec 2006 13:29:19 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-136 just frustrated by chinese copying... just frustrated by chinese copying…

]]> By: Eric http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-135 Eric Thu, 07 Dec 2006 13:27:18 +0000 http://www.studio469.com/blog/2006/12/creative-columns-4-user-thingy-contraption.htm#comment-135 hihi... nothing personal in there btw... hihi… nothing personal in there btw…

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