Hi, Victor.
I was pleased to see your question appear on this list, as is an issue that
I am interested in, too.
The best source that I'm aware of for thoughtful and timely writing about
how products are used is not a specialized design publication or list, but
rather the New York Times. Many of their journalists do a good job of
recognizing and analyzing important developments in product use. David
Pogue's technology columns are, in my opinion, an important form of
nuts-and-bolts design criticism that I suspect do actually have an impact on
how subsequent products get designed (certainly if I were a manufacturer or
designer of electronic products I would hang on his every word).
However, apart from Pogue's detailed assessments of individual product
models, over the last few years I've read many other excellent and memorable
essays by various NYT writers that discuss how people use, for example,
their cell phones and BlackBerrys ("CrackBerrys"), although admittedly these
usually rely on anecdotal rather than statistical data. They are compelling
nonetheless. I print many of these out (a bad habit) and assign some of them
as readings in my classes. On my desk right now are printouts of a recent
(July 29, 2007) essay by G. Pascal Zachary that advances the thesis that
despite all the hype about user-generated content, "many of the most popular
new products, like the iPod, are dominated by a top-down, elite innovation
model that doesn't allow for customization," a sweeping claim that may seem
counter-intuitive, but that is certainly worth thinking about. It's the kind
of short, easy-to-read essay that often sparks good student discussion, and
that is hard to find in "regular" design publications.
Anyway, I guess I'm agreeing with you that "We seem to leave...questions
related to the social consequences of designing to other disciplines." Or to
journalists. It's very puzzling.
Carma R. Gorman, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, History of Art and Design
School of Art and Design
Allyn Building 113, mail code 4301
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
1100 S. Normal Ave.
Carbondale, IL 62901
United States of America
voicemail: 618-453-8634
fax: 618-453-7710
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