(Adapted from Kristof and Satran, Interactivity by Design.)
|
Design Step |
Core Description |
Design Activity |
|
Idea |
An Artifact's intended "meaning" based on user and product goals |
Goal |
|
Form |
The "physical" entity or product that will result from design: book, online information, poster, film, etc. |
Organization |
|
Idiom |
The "school" of art or design with a vocabulary of style & gesture that governs the design process; Also called "Genre." |
Style |
|
Structure |
How a work is composed or put together; what elements are included and how they are arranged. |
Content |
|
Craft |
The practical aspects of constructing the work, applying skills, practical knowledge, invention, problem-solving, and the like. |
Development |
|
Surface |
Deciding how the artifact will be physically perceived: its production values, finish, and other superficial elements |
Production |
When we create information we tend to focus our efforts on a narrow range of issues. Writers, for example, will likely consider content and development before all else. At some point, especially during the editing task, they may switch to questions of organization and style. Often, both production values, because they are routinely handled by production editors and graphic artists, and information goals, because they seem most ephemeral, receive the least attention.
Imagine the above table as a box, or a set of nested objects. The outside object, the one we can see, represents the "form" or "production." It is also this object that we immediately react to. Although it is largely a subjective response, it is typical of information seeking behaviors.
If we open the box and remove the next box inside, we begin to get a sense of the thinking that went into creating this elaborate series of nested boxes. Someone deliberately and accurately planned each succeeding step, their "craft" or "development," in the boxes construction. We might also begin to understand the metaphor that links the boxes. For instance, they might be representations of specific people or place.
When we open that box to view the third one we can confirm that metaphor and further appreciate the intricacy of the boxes construction, their "structure" and "content." We may also begin to see the organizing principle. For example, the boxes might, indeed, represent specific people, the stages of life, the development of an idea, etc.
The next box allows us to place the "idiom" or "style." At this point we begin to associate the authoring techniques with a specific "school." If we were considering a painting, we might say it was "pointillist," "abstract," or "classical." The same might be true for a text.
Opening that box to reveal the next one would allow us to see the ways in which the physical structure underlies the entire piece. We have seen a repetition of the "box" and, finding it embedded this deeply in the structure allows us to say that it underlies the entire structure This level provides a sense of "form" and "organization."
The final level--the "idea" or "goal"--represents the core of our design. If you think back to your composition class this would be characterized as a "topic statement." But, you need to think of this more globally. In this example, for instance, if the stacked images have a purpose, this box should be the culmination and restatement of that purpose. Unfortunately, this is also the level most often neglected or forgotten during the remainder of the process.
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