Thursday, December 04, 2008

Design Process, the Maker Way

This post is proud to have been syndicated to the Ponoko blog.

Design Process from Make

Chris Connors over at Make has posted a great piece that those of us without a formal design education may well appreciate, and even those with. Chris was writing in response to PBS' Design Squad program, from which the image opposite comes, and references the Android G1 phone and iPod iterations as examples of contemporary designs that blur the traditional deadline of 'product shipping' into simply another phase of testing and development:

"When your product is sufficiently complete, and you have resolved the most pressing problems determined in the process, it is time to deliver. This does not mean that the project is done forever, instead, it means that it is ready for more testing in a real world environment. As you (and your team, as may be the case) see the product in the world, you will hopefully be looking at it for examples of where it can be changed and improved. As you find aspects of the project that need refinement, you make a plan for revision and implement it. Hopefully these flaws you find at this point are not tragic enough to seriously stall or ruin the project."

Chris also recently posted a hugely inspiring 10 minute chat with Mitch Altman, recorded at the Austin Maker Faire. I've gushed about Altman before, and this clip does nothing but reinforce my view of him as an inspiration amongst open designers!

via Make

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