Terry,

I don't have a dog in this fight (Genibo robot or otherwise)* but I'm interested in this:

On Sep 22, 2014, at 10:33 PM, Terence Love <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> theorising about
> design activity due to the ways tools, information and objects outside the
> designer, but involved in the design activity of the designer, influence
> independently of designer agency. Examples include design examples, the
> constraints and facilities provided by design tools and design ideas in
> currency that influence in ways beyond designer agency. A classic example is
> the automation of font metrics by software. Not only are many designers
> unable to understand, calculate or design using control of font metrics,
> many designers have no idea that automated font metric control is
> continuously polishing their designs to make them different from their own
> agency (i.e. not-design is design).


I'm still not clear on the design/design-related-activities taxonomy. In terms of graphic design practice, we used to make the distinction between design and production. Designers developed ideas, laid out form, and made decisions. Production artists followed graphic designer or art director decisions to prepare things technically for printing. It was rare that either of them thought about kerning (except, perhaps, large headlines) because typographers worried about that for us. (Is kerning what you meant by control of font metrics or are you talking about overall fit or something else?)

How does any of this differ from the use of manufactured pencils and automatic pencil sharpeners rather that making one's own and sharpening it with a knife? The latter gives greater control and encourages a certain mindfulness but even fairly extreme advocates of handcraft don't tend to think it pulls human agency out from under the feet of pencilists. (Is there a gender-neutral replacement for "draughtsman"?)

I'll spare you any "point" jokes and just let you respond as you see fit.

*I did have a pit bull named Carthage but we had to have him destroyed after the incident with the elephants.


Gunnar

Gunnar Swanson
East Carolina University
graphic design program

http://www.ecu.edu/cs-cfac/soad/graphic/index.cfm
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Gunnar Swanson Design Office
1901 East 6th Street
Greenville NC 27858
USA

http://www.gunnarswanson.com
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+1 252 258-7006


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