Tiago Serra's µblog (without imported items)

(Video)

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:07:49 GMT

Mark Roth studies suspended animation: the art of shutting down life processe...

Sat, 27 Mar 2010 11:54:45 GMT

Mark Roth studies suspended animation: the art of shutting down life processes and then starting them up again. It's wild stuff, but it's not science fiction. Induced by careful use of an otherwise toxic gas, suspended animation can potentially help trauma and heart attack victims survive long enough to be treated.

"The success of the masterpieces seems to lie not so much in their freedom fro..."

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 20:28:03 GMT

"The success of the masterpieces seems to lie not so much in their freedom from faults - indeed we tolerate the grossest errors in them all - but in the immense persuasiveness of a mind which has completely mastered its perspective. "

–Virginia Woolf, "The Death of the Moth"

"Perfection is an admirable goal, but not always the most creative."

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:26:03 GMT

"Perfection is an admirable goal, but not always the most creative."

–Aaron Koblin in "Beautiful Data"

A must see documentary. Since our Home natural resources are getting s...

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:16:20 GMT

A *must* see documentary.

Since our Home natural resources are getting scarce and climate change is growing catastrophically, this message needs to be spread widely, because we all depend on it.

Thanks Ricardo Reis for sharing this with me ;)

(Video)

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 23:43:24 GMT

"Five guidelines for the best interface text:Be authentic Be engagingBe s..."

Sat, 23 May 2009 22:23:55 GMT

Five guidelines for the best interface text:

Be authentic

Be engaging

Be specific

Be appropriate

Be polite

–Erika Hall

(Video)

Sun, 17 May 2009 09:26:00 GMT

OFFF screen

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 10:20:10 GMT

We'll be taking part of the OFFF Screen challenge this year. See you all at OFFF anyways ;)

http://offf.prt.sc/

"The more complicated the gesture, the fewer the people who will be able to pe..."

Sun, 12 Apr 2009 19:00:45 GMT

"The more complicated the gesture, the fewer the people who will be able to perform it."

–Dan Saffer - Designing Gestural Interfaces

"The complexity of the gesture should match the complexity of the task at hand."

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 12:37:43 GMT

"The complexity of the gesture should match the complexity of the task at hand."

–Dan Saffer - Designing Gestural Interfaces

(Video)

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:55:22 GMT

(Video)

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:20:48 GMT

(Video)

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 15:01:11 GMT

World Builder from Bruce Branit on Vimeo.

Utterly beautiful work.

Sun, 01 Feb 2009 09:33:53 GMT

Utterly beautiful work.

"Lasers and sensors are used to scan the band Radiohead into a three-dimensional particle-driven data experience. The code and data are launched on Google Code as an open source "music video without video" project"

Article

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 17:10:03 GMT

Article

(Image)

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 23:20:19 GMT

(Video)

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:12:58 GMT

"While designing the game Raid on Bungeling Bay in 1984, Will Wright discover..."

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:46:22 GMT

"While designing the game Raid on Bungeling Bay in 1984, Will Wright discovered that flying an attack helicopter over a swath of islands wasn't half as fun as designing the islands themselves. Out of interest in city planning and computer modeling theory, he conceived of a game that would let players build cities and watch them function. The first SimCity was published in 1989. Since then, the SimCity series has paralleled and influenced the now omnipresent, if not always well-conceived use of computer simulation in a contemporary urban planning."

–Space Time Play - Computer games, architecture and urbanism: The next level

Scratch Input: Creating Large, Inexpensive, Unpowered and Mobile Finger Input Surfaces

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 22:59:24 GMT

Scratch Input: Creating Large, Inexpensive, Unpowered and Mobile Finger Input Surfaces

http://chrisharrison.net/projects/scratchinput

"'Zeitgeist, The Movie' and 'Zeitgeist: Addendum' were created as Not-for-Pro...

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 13:58:04 GMT

"'Zeitgeist, The Movie' and 'Zeitgeist: Addendum' were created as Not-for-Profit expressions to communicate what the author felt were highly important social understandings which most humans are generally not aware of. The first film focuses on suppressed historical & modern information about currently dominant social institutions, while also exploring what could be in store for humanity if the power structures at large continue their patterns of self-interest, corruption, and consolidation.

The second film, Zeitgeist: Addendum, attempts to locate the root causes of this pervasive social corruption, while offering a solution. This solution is not based on politics, morality, laws, or any other "establishment" notions of human affairs, but rather on a modern, non-superstitious based understanding of what we are and how we align with nature, to which we are a part. The work advocates a new social system which is updated to present day knowledge, highly influenced by the life long work of Jacque Fresco and The Venus Project."

http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/

"Ultimately, we are deluding ourselves if we think that the products that we d..."

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 18:42:27 GMT

"Ultimately, we are deluding ourselves if we think that the products that we design are the "things" that we sell, rather than the individual, social and cultural experience that they engender, and the value and impact that they have. Design that ignores this is not worthy of the name."

–Bill Buxton - http://www.billbuxton.com/

"The core idea is that nature, imaginative by necessity, has already solved ma..."

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:13:43 GMT

"The core idea is that nature, imaginative by necessity, has already solved many of the problems we are grappling with. Animals, plants, and microbes are the consummate engineers. They have found what works, what is appropriate, and most important, what lasts here on Earth. This is the real news of biomimicry: After 3.8 billion years of research and development, failures are fossils, and what surrounds us is the secret to survival."

–Biomimicry by Janine Benyus

MIX08

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:03:40 GMT

MIX08

Edge-Based Markerless 3D Tracking of Rigid Objects using multiple hypotheses.

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 13:01:58 GMT

Edge-Based Markerless 3D Tracking of Rigid Objects using multiple hypotheses.

"Q: What is your definition of "Design?"A: A plan for arranging elements in su..."

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:01:01 GMT

"Q: What is your definition of "Design?"
A: A plan for arranging elements in such a way as to best accomplish a particular purpose.

Q: Is design an expression of art (an art form)?
A: The design is an expression of purpose. It may (if it is good enough) later be judged as art.

Q: Is design a craft for industrial purposes?
A: No - but design may be a solution to some industrial problems.

Q: What are the boundaries of design?
A: What are the boundaries of problems?

Q: Does the creation of design admit constraint?
A: Design depends largely on constraints.

Q: What are constraints?
A: The sum of all constraints. Here is one of the few effective keys to the design problem - the ability of the designer to recognize as many of the constraints as possible - his willingness and enthusiasm for working with these constraints - the constraints of price, of size, of strength, balance, of surface, of time etc.; each problem has its own peculiar list.

Q: Does design obey laws?
A: Aren't constraints enough? "

–Charles Eames with Madame Amic

"1. A complex system of many functions can be simplified by carefully grouping..."

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:46:36 GMT

"1. A complex system of many functions can be simplified by carefully grouping related functions.
2. The positive emotional response derived from a simplicity experience has less to do with utility, and more to do with saving time.
3. When the richness of an experience is increased in a manner that facilitates the perception of the overall intent, but all means don't skimp. Add more!
4. The more you know about something beforehand, the simpler it will ultimately be perceived.
5. A material's failure to comply to a specific application provides indication that is more natural usage lies elsewhere.
6. In order to 'feel', you gotta have noise. Too much noise, and all you've got is noise.
7. The more care, attention, and effort applied to that which is less, the more it shall be perceived as more than it really is.
8. Recognize not only the absolute laws of physical universe as important constraints, but also the artificial laws as of equal importance when striving for simplicity."

–John Maeda's Laws of Simplicity

"We ended up with this monochromatic thing. I think this is much more appropri..."

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:05:45 GMT

"We ended up with this monochromatic thing. I think this is much more appropriate to the music, because there's so little to look at, and it allows you to focus on what you are listening to. The most satisfying designs for me are those that are paired down to the bare essentials of what is being communicated; there are no excess gestures, pictorials, or experiences. It's just completely about that thing. That to me is the ultimate pleasure -- laser-sharp focus!
(http://www.philipglass.com/glassengine/)"

–Mark Podlaseck in "Designing interactions - by Bill Moggridge"

"[...] The movement away from designing the object itself to designing the exp..."

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:26:40 GMT

"[...] The movement away from designing the object itself to designing the experience, which everybody talks about, is really profound in my opinion. Designing experiences and services takes you away from the nuts and bolts, for a while anyway, and gets you into understanding people and their needs. I personally believe that technologists and engineers are even more motivated by doing something that has value to people than they are by technology. The think, "We're going a service or an experience that people really want and need, and their lives are going to be changed by it." This motivates them to do even better work, to push the technology even further, to work even harder, or knock themselves out to be more innovative, because they have more empathy for the person they are designing for."

–David Kelley in "Designing interactions - by Bill Moggridge"

"When I hear the words "designing interactions," I think of designing for peop..."

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 18:44:41 GMT

"When I hear the words "designing interactions," I think of designing for people. When I was a student at Carnegie Mellon, I took Fortran. Fortran was a language for scientists, so you learned it and became an expert, but it really wasn't very interesting until you actually used it for something that resulted in work, something that made sense to someone. I see interaction design as the opposite of that. It's not something learned scientifically that you can then use for some technical purpose. Interaction design is using your technical knowledge in order to make it useful to people, to delight someone, to make someone get excited about the new technology they're using. I guess I would say that interaction design is making technology fit people.

[...]

–David Kelley in "Designing interactions - by Bill Moggridge"

"This watch requires that I use my other hand to get it to reveal itself: I mu..."

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:35:10 GMT

"This watch requires that I use my other hand to get it to reveal itself: I must press the button on the side to get the current time. Wholly inefficient, compared to most other watches. Surely no one would want a device that requires more effort to use? Surely this would be a commercial disaster? Of course not. Why? Because we're humans, full of "flaws" like emotions and taste. We're not machines that make decisions based simply on efficiency."

–Analog IN, Digital OUT - Brendan Dawes on Interaction Design

"So was it a disaster? Not at all - as long as we acknowledge our failures, un..."

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 16:01:10 GMT

"So was it a disaster? Not at all - as long as we acknowledge our failures, understand them and see ways around them. We did our postmortem and now we know what to fix. In this field, being humble is useful. But being honest is a condition of survival.
...
To this extent, we are really modern, and our references are Marshall Berman's descriptions of the Crystal Palace, the Brooklyn Bridge, the making of St Petersburg, Rimbaud and Mallarmé in All that is Solid Melts into Air. We could define ourselfs as Modern because of our ambition, and as Postmodern because of our attitude that cannot escape irony.
Thirty years from now, we want to build an airport that embodies Archigram's playful irony, not high-tech arrogance."

–4dspace - Interactive architecture - Walter Aprile and Stefano Mirti

"I am a bootstrapper. I have initiative and insight and guts, but not much mo..."

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 15:54:06 GMT

"I am a bootstrapper. I have initiative and insight and guts, but not much money. I will succeed because my efforts and my focus will defeat bigger and better-funded competitors. I am fearless. I keep my focus on growing the business—not on politics, career advancement, or other wasteful distractions.

I will leverage my skills to become the key to every department of my company, yet realize that hiring experts can be the secret to my success. I will be a fervent and intelligent user of technology, to conserve my two most precious assets: time and money.

My secret weapon is knowing how to cut through bureaucracy. My size makes me faster and more nimble than any company could ever be.

I am a laser beam. Opportunities will try to cloud my focus, but I will not waver from my stated goal and plan—until I change it. And I know that plans were made to be changed.

I’m in it for the long haul. Building a business that will last separates me from the opportunist, and is an investment in my brand and my future. Surviving is succeeding, and each day that goes by makes it easier still for me to reach my goals.

I pledge to know more about my ﬁeld than anyone else. I will read and learn and teach.
My greatest asset is the value I can add to my clients through my efforts.

I realize that treating people well on the way up will make it nicer for me on the way back down. I will be scrupulously honest and overt in my dealings, and won’t use my position as a fearless bootstrapper to gain unfair advantage. My reputation will follow me wherever I go, and I will invest in it daily and protect it ﬁercely.

I am the underdog. I realize that others are rooting for me to succeed, and I will gratefully accept their help when offered. I also understand the power of favors, and will offer them and grant them whenever I can.

I have less to lose than most -- a fact I can turn into a signiﬁcant competitive advantage.

I am a salesperson. Sooner or later, my income will depend on sales, and those sales can be made only by me, not by an emissary, not by a rep. I will sell by helping others get what they want, by identifying needs and ﬁlling them.

I am a guerrilla. I will be persistent, consistent, and willing to invest in the marketing of myself and my business.

I will measure what I do, and won’t lie about it to myself or my spouse. I will set strict ﬁnancial goals and honestly evaluate my performance. I’ll set limits on time and money and won’t exceed either.

Most of all, I’ll remember that the journey is the reward. I will learn and grow and enjoy every single day."

–The Bootstrapper's Bible - by Seth Godin

"Most journalists do not take things too seriously: After all, this business o..."

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:14:27 GMT

"Most journalists do not take things too seriously: After all, this business of journalism is about pure entertainment, not a search for truth, particularly when it comes to radio and television. The trick is to stay away from those who do not seem to know that they are just entertainers and actually believe that they are thinkers."

–Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets - Nassim Nicholas Taleb

"By encouraging content to be customized, and art to be mediated, museums have..."

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 19:41:16 GMT

"By encouraging content to be customized, and art to be mediated, museums have precipitated new paradigms of informal learning and reinforced the widespread value of their public spaces as places to freely explore the personal significance of cultural value. Exhibitions using interactive elements have moved on from being hermetic, to adopting physical, experiential tactics and strategies based on the testing of visitors in their use of interactive and audiovisual elements."

–4dSocial - Interactive Design Environments

CamTrax’s core technology is a pure software solution that allows nearly any ...

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:26:18 GMT

CamTrax’s core technology is a pure software solution that allows nearly any ordinary PC webcam to track up to four objects, even as small as 5mm, in real-time and with very high accuracy and reliability.
http://www.cam-trax.com Play any game with your web-cam :p

"If I had to design a mechanism for the express purpose of destroying a child’..."

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 16:05:48 GMT

"If I had to design a mechanism for the express purpose of destroying a child’s natural curiosity and love of pattern-making, I couldn’t possibly do as good a job as is currently being done— I simply wouldn’t have the imagination to come up with the kind of senseless, soul-crushing ideas that constitute contemporary mathematics education.
"

–Paul Lockhart [pdf]

[Reposted from c3o]

Try, eventually fail, but refuse to give up ! ;)

Fri, 30 May 2008 17:42:18 GMT

Try, eventually fail, but refuse to give up ! ;)

First LIVE images and videos of FULLSCREEN Android

Fri, 30 May 2008 10:36:13 GMT

First LIVE images and videos of FULLSCREEN Android

"Donald Norman highlighted how an attractive device improves interaction in te..."

Fri, 23 May 2008 11:36:11 GMT

"Donald Norman highlighted how an attractive device improves interaction in terms of usability: since the person is charmed by the object, he will be much more creative in finding out how to interact with it, and will better accept the problems that could arise."

–Emotional Design, Basic Books, 2003

Tiago Serra's µblog (without imported items)

(Video)

Mark Roth studies suspended animation: the art of shutting down life processe...

"The success of the masterpieces seems to lie not so much in their freedom fro..."

"Perfection is an admirable goal, but not always the most creative."

A *must* see documentary. Since our Home natural resources are getting s...

(Video)

"Five guidelines for the best interface text:Be authentic Be engagingBe s..."

(Video)

OFFF screen

"The more complicated the gesture, the fewer the people who will be able to pe..."

"The complexity of the gesture should match the complexity of the task at hand."

(Video)

(Video)

(Video)

Utterly beautiful work.

Article

(Image)

(Video)

"While designing the game Raid on Bungeling Bay in 1984, Will Wright discover..."

Scratch Input: Creating Large, Inexpensive, Unpowered and Mobile Finger Input Surfaces

"'Zeitgeist, The Movie' and 'Zeitgeist: Addendum' were created as Not-for-Pro...

"Ultimately, we are deluding ourselves if we think that the products that we d..."

"The core idea is that nature, imaginative by necessity, has already solved ma..."

MIX08

Edge-Based Markerless 3D Tracking of Rigid Objects using multiple hypotheses.

"Q: What is your definition of "Design?"A: A plan for arranging elements in su..."

"1. A complex system of many functions can be simplified by carefully grouping..."

"We ended up with this monochromatic thing. I think this is much more appropri..."

"[...] The movement away from designing the object itself to designing the exp..."

"When I hear the words "designing interactions," I think of designing for peop..."

"This watch requires that I use my other hand to get it to reveal itself: I mu..."

"So was it a disaster? Not at all - as long as we acknowledge our failures, un..."

"I am a bootstrapper. I have initiative and insight and guts, but not much mo..."

"Most journalists do not take things too seriously: After all, this business o..."

"By encouraging content to be customized, and art to be mediated, museums have..."

CamTrax’s core technology is a pure software solution that allows nearly any ...

"If I had to design a mechanism for the express purpose of destroying a child’..."

Try, eventually fail, but refuse to give up ! ;)

First LIVE images and videos of FULLSCREEN Android

"Donald Norman highlighted how an attractive device improves interaction in te..."

A must see documentary. Since our Home natural resources are getting s...