On Jan 30, 2008, at 10:43 AM, James Bond wrote: > I have been doing customer support and network design most of my > career and have started looking for a change when I discovered > Interaction Design. This debate is important to me for the simple > reason that I don't have a background.
As a quick aside: One of the best things about being a designer, it's like being a writer. No amount of school, degrees, learning, etc., will prevent you from being one even if you lack formal training or background. Why? Because design, after all is said and done at the end of the day, cannot be faked. Anyone who learns how to do it can do so regardless of background or how they obtained that background. So take that as encouragement to dive in if you feel so inclined. But the water will probably be icy cold in those first few moments. Don't worry... you'll acclimate soon enough. > To completely honest I am a bit overwhelmed and frustrated. I have > read this board (I may not post, but I pay attention!), been to Core, > been to EVERY link that is mentioned (I have massive amounts of one > off reading), I am on safaribooksonline reading, and I have tapped > most of my resources. The verdict: no one knows! I'll let others chime in here, because even though I'm the trenches to a large degree, even after 20 years of practicing what I do for a living, I'm still in the same boat as you here. Now imagine how I feel! > This is a little disconcerting as there does not seem to be any real > way of knowing if I am learning the right material to become an > interaction designer. The only other way to cover my bases is to > learn everything under the sun which is a major undertaking. One way for you to narrow the scope to get on a path that leads in a tangible, more definitive direction: What kind of products do you want to make or be part of making? Software? Web Sites? Digital Devices like an iPod? Appliances like in your home? Environmental spaces? Do you have something in mind you really want to do? If you ask the list: Where should I start if I want to learn how to design the interaction for the iPhone? I'm more than sure you'll get a plethora of very good answers to help you start down a path to get the ball rolling. > I am sorry if I come off as grumpy I have a ton of reading / research > to do on this topic and I am battling a cold. Neither seem like it > will ever end! Fair warning: Being a designer is like a life long journey on a ship. If you are prone to sea sickness from the off and on occurrence of swells, then either bring along some dramamine or learn to love the rocking of the waves. On days when I can't handle the motion, my drug of choice is a really good bottle of Ridge. -- Andrei Herasimchuk Principal, Involution Studios innovating the digital world e. [EMAIL PROTECTED] c. +1 408 306 6422 ________________________________________________________________ *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help