Recently got back to the Twin Peaks series, I was struck by this quote form the log lady in the seventeenth episode: "Complications set in--yes, complications. How many times have we heard: 'it's simple'. Nothing is simple. We live in a world where nothing is simple. Each day, just when we think we...
Touch / don't touch
Above in Paris, below in lyon. Duality of signs to encourage or prevent people with certain norms (use of the red color...) How can I not be intrigued by this odd sign that prevent people from using a specific device (a container of salt to be put on sidewalks)? This gentle "touch" hand with a cr...
Defensible space in the subway
Two intriguing examples of defensible space in the Paris metro, or how a certain steel structure prevent people to stand below the tv-screen. Curiously enough, it looks as if someone who stand in there to give you the same information delivered by the screen. ...
Ownsership and design
Signage to indicate that "This remote control will only work on hotel TV set", seen in Paris yesterday. Sort of ownership inscription. ...
"slow" in "slow innovation"
A nice read in the last issue of Design Mind (by Frog Design): "Slow Innovation: Good ideas take a long time to perfect" by David Hoffer. Taking various examples (from Edison’s cylinder phonograph invented in 1877 to its plateau-ed end in 1910 or the 80 years duration of vinyls), the author shows t...
Lessons from Sci-Fi predictions
CIO has a recent article about the lessons learned by science-fiction writer about predicting the future of technology. This journal asked authors such as Larry Niven, Robert Sawyer, Nancy Kress and Charles Stross to discuss technology-related predictions. The whole article is a good read but I poi...
this is not a prototype
Intriguing sticker found in Paris yesterday. Surely some trendy street-art phenomenon but the observing how it's inserted in the urban fabric is very compelling, as if the city infrastructure was referred to as "this is not a prototype"... as if people needed to be aware that this pipe was real an...
Slow evolution of social LBS
... as attested by this recent news which shows that Google is shutting down the mobile social network it bought few years ago (Dodgeball). Dennis tells us more about hiss perspective on the near future of social LBS: "And just on a sidenote, the whole mobile + social space is still pretty open. Ev...
About automated journeys
A good list of papers from the Automated Journeys workshop (at Ubicomp 2008) has been put on-line recently. This event was about examining how automation reconfigure people's interactions with cities and speculate on what innovations might be to come. I unfortunately missed it, although this is a ...
Just-in-time feedback device
As seen on an Air-France counter, a tactile device to get people's feedback. What is interesting here: On the HCI side: The absence of screen on the device, what is important for the company is only the answers, nothing is really needed to be shown to the person who is pressing the buttons. It's ...