Coming Up For Air: Updates & Links

Hey there fellow Think Bloggers – we know it has been a while since the last update, but things have been really hectic around 201 Fayette the past few weeks – not that we’re complaining! I know some of the other folks have a few entries cookin’, but until we get something more substantial posted, a few updates and links:

1. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out our latest job posting for a Sr. Experience Designer on LinkedIn.

2. We’re headed to An Event Apart in early May to frolic with some of the big dogs in the design world – and are very excited for a little Think Brownstone field trip (“make sure you know who your buddy is, and don’t lose them!”) . Maybe we’ll see you there!

3. I’m continuing to catch up on reading books people have been talking about for a few years now – the latest being Alan Cooper’s The Inmates Are Running The Asylum (a great read so far, with fantastic case studies). As usual, I’m gathering a little collection of favorite quotes from it that I’ll be posting after I finish it…and am again reeling at the juxtaposition of this book and Kurt Vonnegut’s 1952 masterpiece Player Piano (which I just finished). The experience and usability undercurrents in that book, particularly how they play against self-worth, belonging, and satisfaction, are simply mind-blowing – it just goes to show that these concepts are universal, timeless, and sociological; they are certainly not tied only to computers or the computer age, although they may be exacerbated by it.

4. If you have a few minutes, check out our buddy Jeff Lyons over at Used Wigs and his latest design rant about the design of The Huffington Post website – a super solid design critique delivered in his characteristically snarky (and hysterical) style.

Over and out.