On Mar 10, 2009, at 8:59 AM, Russell Wilson wrote:
Why is that surprising??? We (us, the industry, etc.) have to agree
on a name for our role.
Agreed.
This contains two pieces:
1) A formal name, which has been beaten to death (by me of course).
But too many people still think is a non-issue when it's obviously
been one for at least two decades. I still claim "interface designer"
is far more appropriate for the *software* medium, which will also
include pretty much everything that requires code and a screen as its
end product. I'm not concerned with IxD as it pertains to industrial
design or general product design or systems design. However, if
"interaction designer" is going to be the term and that term is going
to be pushed onto the software world and shared by other industries,
it has to stick. The HR people need something to stick, and we do too.
2) What the role does. This is actually more important.
I got derided at IxDA for making the claim that "interaction"
designers need to learn how to draw. I still found that reaction to be
the most telling moment of the conference and where this community
stands in the year 2009. (Which is, still not far along as some think
is or wish it was) Some agree with me, many vehemently seem to oppose
the notion for reasons I have yet to get.
Well, it's 2009. Saffer said it as well, Time to wake up.
If the title in the software world is going to be called "interaction
design" then that person needs to know these hard skills:
* Understand type, color and layout composition/grid and can execute
on those design fundamentals with their own two hands
* Know the fundamentals of I/O and behavior with hardware (like a
mouse and keyboard, and now with multi-touch displays)
* Understand how algorithms, code, frameworks, databases and other
software engineering aspects of the product work under the hood
* Draw and sketch with real pen, pencil and paper
* Use professional software tools to make design and process
deliverables (specs, mockups, wireframes, posters, etc)
* Use professional creative software tools to make production ready,
final assets that ship in the release build
* Write code at the HTML, CSS and JavaScript/ActionScript level to
build prototypes; more is always better
* Create an interface architecture and strategy that can be coded and
built within schedule constraints
* Write specs and documentation
There are a variety of softer skills needed as well:
* Communicate product vision
* Conduct or lead research team with customers
* Be the customer/use advocate and expert
* Communicate with managers, directors and executives about the state
of the project
* [Insert a few of your own here]
Without these skills, the Joel Spolsky's of the world will continue to
do what they do and claim someone else does your job, because in the
end the person they are looking for to help them design their software
is what I listed above. And they are right to do so quite frankly.
--
Andrei Herasimchuk
Chief Design Officer, Involution Studios
innovating the digital world
e. and...@involutionstudios.com
c. +1 408 306 6422
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