The title of this Web site, Experiencing Design, is an allusion to one of my favorite books on architecture, Experiencing Architecture, by Steen Eiler Rasmussen. Rasmussen gives the reader an informal tour of concepts in architecture, illustrating them by specific examples in cities and buildings across Europe and the U.S.

My goal for this Web site is comparable; I'd like to introduce readers to some informal concepts in design. A few essays are given below. I'll post more on an occasional schedule, as time permits. For the most part, the essays will examine cases of poorly designed objects and environments, attempting to explain how and why a design can be inadequate.

You might ask, "Why poor design? Wouldn't it be more helpful to see examples of good design instead?" In many ways we are surrounded by good design; things work largely as we expect them to, and they work well. Furthermore, when things don't work well, we adapt our behavior to the situation, often unconsciously, so that we hardly notice that something has gone wrong and needs to be fixed. Have you ever turned on the wrong burner on your stove, or pressed the wrong button on your car stereo? Your natural response is probably, "Oops, I made a mistake there," but the design of the artifact that you're interacting with sometimes makes mistakes more likely than they should be. By highlighting situations like this, people may recognize poor designs and adapt to them, before mistakes happen.

If you have an example of poor design in the real world that you'd like to see an essay on, feel free to send me email.

On with the essays.

Waking up on time (7 June 2003)
Buying drinks (3 June 2003)
Shouting "Fire!" in a crowded classroom (3 June 2003)
Acommodation (October 2004)
Everywhere a sign (January 2005)
What were they thinking? (April 2005)
Getting better all the time (July 2005)
Tools of the trade (October 2005)
Fearful symmetry (January 2006)
Finding one's way (April 2006)
Learning to skate (July 2006)