Brian:
Ch. 7, Emotion:
Here John Maeda speaks about simplicity, and how for the most part, simplicity can be considered ugly, in the sense that it shows no warmth or emotion. For the most part, simplicity brings emotionless design, where things have been stripped of anything extra, exposing the cut-and-dry most efficient way of displaying the object. This often makes for a very cold experience for the user, and if it is a product, the need to accessorize it. There is a universal human need to better express emotion, which is sometimes forgotten about with great design.
This chapter is especially meaningful to our group as we are dealing with something that is very emotional and important, and it most certainly requires the need to show emotion, and to have a sense of comfort. As Maeda states, “The true challenge is achieving comfort.”
Ch. 8, Trust:
Trust is something that does not come easy or quick. It’s something that acquires over time and in increments. Trust is the quality of leaning back and enjoying something for what it is, and it is important for us in this project, especially with the topic of health, to pay close attention in creating something that the audience can trust. “We can only truly relax when we trust that we’re in the finest hands and are treated with the best intentions” speaks volumes to us as a group in this project. While having complex visualizations is a very important aspect, I feel that gaining the trust of the user is just as valuable.
With the acquisition of trust also come power. Once you’ve gained the trust of someone, you possess a power of persuasion. This is also an important aspect when creating an experience, and as a group through our design and development, we have to make sure that power is balanced equally between the user and the experience. We want the user to feel as though they are in the right hands, and at the same time that they do have a say in what they are submitting to.
Tom:
LAW 7 Emotion
Meada poses the other side to simplicity, the side that non-designers and modernists see. Simplicity tends to have a rather cold emotion to it’s presence. His analogy about designers simplifying an object to it’s core compared to a sheep that has been fleeced strikes the question: is simplicity the cause for making objects so cold? We as consumers feel the need to decorate and accessorize our “naked” electronics with a sense of human warmth as Maeda puts it. Modernism was the design movement responsible for the rejection of the unnecessary decor of objects, leaving them emotionless and cold to some. Great design should produce clear messages while also taking comfort into consideration.
LAW 8 Trust
Trust plays a major role into our concept of creating an application that will guide the patient back to health and educating them along the way, all while making them feel comfortable in it’s “hands.” We only truly relax when we know we are in the best hands possible, and that knowledge is key to trusting technology. The more faith our users of our application have in it, the more they will continue to use it. The more our system knows our patients, the less they have to think.
