This site is for those seeking inspiration from logical and rational thinking in design and culture.
It is content-heavy: 500 files and over 5,000 images. Why it is called WensdayBlog. Subscribe to the RSS feed here .
Filename to share this blog home page: http://www.jamesrobertwatson.com/home.html. Search this website here:

FEBUARY 1, 2012
YES, FEBUARY IS SPELLED THE PREFERRED WAY.

Recent updates
Photos of Jim's dogs
Photos on Flickr (or fotos on Phlickr)

This is just poor taste

Promo copy from the official 9/11 Memorial in NYC:
9/11 Memorial Motorcycle: MyFoxNY.com Paul Tuetul Jr, of "American Chopper" fame, and 9/11 Memorial President Joe Daniels appeared on Good Day New York to debut the motorcycle built to support the 9/11 Memorial and talk about the raffle to win the bike. Read more at myfoxny.com. Raffle tickets were available online, at the 9/11 Memorial Preview Site, and at the 9/11 Memorial Visitor Center. A live drawing of the winning raffle ticket took place at the 9/11 Memorial Preview Site.
For more information, please visit 911memorial.org.

Yes, a raffle - a joyous contest to win this cool bike. Yuck. 9/11 was a terrible day in America (and the world.) The Memorial is a site where almost 3,000 innocent people died horrible deaths. Yes, we should move on and get back to our daily affairs, but a raffle contest at this sacred site is just too tacky and inappropriate. The 'winner' of the motorcycle would likely get all excited and joyous - poor emotions at the Memorial. This contest crossed a line of decency and respect for the victim's families. A raffle!

I emailed the Director of the Memorial to convey, as a donor, that this was inappropriate. I have yet to receive a reply.

This is the normal state of these sinks

These horizontal surfaces are at the sinks in the bathrooms at the Museum of Modern Art - an otherwise well thought-out facility with a strong eye toward design and detail.
Lesson: Horizontal surfaces collect junk and get messy.
Solution: Pedestal sinks with shelves and hooks within reach and sight for personal belongings. A larger sink basin would also better contain spray and splash.

What a great way to design these towers.

These electrical transmission towers sit all across the landscape. Here is a fun way to turn them into more than just utilitarian support devices.

A minimal wallet

I used to have a bunch of frequent buyer cards - Qdoba, Panera, Whichwich, yogurt places, etc. I computed the freebies earned and realized the payoff wasn't worth keeping up with all those cards, so I cashed them in and got rid of every one of them. I like the ease now of ordering and paying without having one more pesky thing to keep up with.

Ways to reduce bulk in a wallet:
• Keep a folder in the car to hold insurance info, parking permit, museum membership cards (I always drive to the museum), and others. I do have to lock my car because of the exposed iPod, so the cards are both hidden and locked in the car.
• I input my dental/med info into my phone which is always with me. Also in my phone: AAA info, license plate number, and any other info I might need easy access to. All this info is backed up on my home computer and on a hard copy printout.
• Cut out all the other wallet pockets and windows to reduce bulk.
• The key attached to the wallet means I can't forget my wallet when driving.
I look forward to using my phone for all purchases (not just Starbucks) so I can get rid of the one credit card in my wallet. That day is coming soon.
My phone is also my watch and my notepad.

JANUARY 25, 2012

More on app design: strive to minimize scrolling

Two apps for motel sites. Well done. The main menu is contained within the home page.

App with poor layout. The main menu has two primary links, like in the two examples above, but, in this example, the user must scroll down to see the second option. There is much wasted space: about 40% allotted to a useless photo of clouds and too much white space among all the elements. This one long page (requiring scrolling) could easily be tightened up to allow all the info to be contained on one home screen, as shown on the right.
Lesson: See the design through the eyes of the end user. Consider their needs, desires, and habits.
Tip: Determine the hierarchy of information. Make sure that unimportant elements don't hog too much space.

More info and tips on App Design.

How do I pour the Half & Half?

Whole Foods is typically lauded for thoughtful attention to detail. But what is this about? Do you close the open slot to open it? Open the close? It makes so little logical sense that I don't even remember now which was correct.
Tip: A customer should be able to glance at a creamer and easily understand how to open and pour the contents.



The real issue for Election 2012


God allows college student to die after tweeting, 'Thank you God'
A student at Gardner-Webb University, who was in a religion class, has died after she collapsed in class on her 21st birthday. She had tweeted that day, "Thank you God for another year of life." An emergency medical technician who is a student in the class helped with CPR until an ambulance arrived. Patterson died - she was a senior majoring in religious studies and went to high school in Rutherford County.
By The Associated Press, January 19, /2012, Boiling Springs, NC

Images from Facebook

Okay, there's yet another passage telling you to shut-the-fuck-up and get back in the kitchen.

JANUARY 18, 2012

Before & after examples of advertising manipulation

Brand name burgers: ad photo on the left, actual burgers on the right. The photos of the actual burgers were shot from the most flattering angle. I wonder if we consumers will ever get disgusted enough with this that we ask for more honesty in advertising images. Or have we just accepted that it is normal for advertisers to deceive us and we are now just numb to such outrageous claims. The consequence of that is the line of what is acceptable is moved more towards dishonesty.
I have often wanted to order at a fast food place, point to the photo in the menu board overhead, and state, "I want my burger to look exactly like that one!"

Oklahoma City Public Schools is proposing a new identity
A survey was sent out that showed the 3 finalists in preliminary judging. These are the options, with my comments:

1. The figure is a bit too awkward - a person with multiple heads, juggling balls, balloons, tree with weird fruit? There doesn't seem to be a clear meaning behind the mark. Its just too random. The text type does not relate to nor respect the mark - they're just near each other.

2. This one reads clearly as Kansas City Public Schools or KCPS, a radio station's call letters. The apple mark doesn't form a good letter O. The apple symbol for education is a bit overused and is now just a trite cliche.

3. The synchronized sperm swimmers may not be a good message for public school students. The mark serving as the letter O is too extreme - not enough connection between the sperm ring and the rest of the word Oklahoma. The circle of swimmers does represent the runaround of going in circles in school administration. The synchronized figures suggest all students fit into the same pattern - other than color, it denies individuality.

4. One could also vote to keep the current logo:

The existing mark has the best concept - a figure reaching for the stars. But the text type is too clunky and dated.

Here is what I would propose




The existing logo with improvements to the figure and text
• The figure:
      • Provides continuity to the existing familiar logo.
      • Is a brighter and more lively blue.
      • Has lost a bit of weight.
      • The head of the figure is the same shape and angle as the O in Oklahoma.
• The star:
      • Is rotated to a more familiar and stable orientation.
      • Is centered between the hands.
• The text:
      • Set upper & lower case in a friendly font.
      • Italicized to suggest forward movement and growth.
      • Tucked into the figure to better integrate the two.
      • Tag line forms a stable foundation as public education provides a foundation for lifelong learning.
• The colors:
      • Green and blue are eco earth colors; blue sky, green grass.
      • Green represents the growth of the student and of the district.
      • Tag line about preparing students and the student figure are the same color.
The new identity is lighter, more agile, and more appropriate for a district heading into the future.

Lesson: Strive to integrate all elements of a logo. It is an identity that should hold as one cohesive unit.

The truth about 'secular' America
As America has become more secular in recent decades, "most indicators of moral and social health have gotten better, not worse.,"
Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune, January 12, 2012
Religious conservatives insist that feminists, liberals, and gay marriage have undermined traditional morality, and that only a return to our Christian roots will cure what ails us. American culture is sick, and secularism is the cause of our disease.
But all evidence suggests that this view is not only backward - it's wrong.
America has become more secular in recent decades; "most indicators of moral and social health have gotten better, not worse." Crime has plummeted. Teen pregnancy is down by 39 percent. Divorce rates are dropping. Abortion rates among adolescents are half what they used to be.
Which states continue to have the biggest social problems? The Bible Belt states, not the supposedly sin-ridden blue states. Mississippi has the nation's highest rate of church attendance, and also the highest murder rate. Liberal Vermont's murder rate, on the other hand, is 25 percent of the national average. Massachusetts, the first state to legalize gay marriage, has the nation's lowest divorce rate. So please, spare us "the moral decline fairy tales." Secular America is doing just fine.

JANUARY 11, 2012

Recent essays
A better way to display museum hours

New quotes
If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions. - Albert Einstein
My thoughts are free. A believer is a bird in a cage, a free-thinker is an eagle parting the clouds with tireless wing. - Robert Ingersoll
The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else's highlight reel. - Steven Furtick
Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken. - Oscar Wilde

Before & after examples of kerning


Facebook absurdity

If your lover treats you to a lovely dinner, please thank them in person, not on a public social media website. Such a thank-you is personal and private and doesn't deserve to be broadcast to the world on Facebook. We seem to have lost sight of true social media. This one is worse than all those petty Status Updates that inform us that someone couldn't sleep, had coffee in the morning, or that they are playing a game.

The latest news from Mitt Romney
If you do not already receive the newsletter from Andy Borowitz, here is the link.

Easy way to keep people out of Hell
If I am a true Christian, I am required to believe that God will torture 4 billion Muslims, Jews, and non-Christians in hell for all eternity.
If I am a true Muslim, I am required to believe that Allah will torture 4.4 billion Christians, Jews, and non-Muslims in hell for all eternity.
If I am an atheist, none of those people have to suffer in hell. None.

Why do so many 'Christians' not follow the teachings of Jesus?

Tim Tebow is a great sales rep for atheism. He reminds us each game just how ignorant many Christians are - is there a Bible verse in which Jesus instructs us to demonstrate our faith in a showy display in front of millions of people? There are, however, verses such as these:

Matthew 6:1
Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

Matthew 6:5-6
When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. - New International Version, 1984
But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. - New Living Translation, 2007

Luke 5:16
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. - New International Version, 1984
But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. - English Standard Version, 2001

Reading the Bible is a great way to become an atheist again.

JANUARY 4, 2012

Why you should never, ever use two spaces after a period.

An article every designer should read.

No tips for horn honkers!
A solution to obnoxious taxicab horn honking in the city

New York City is full of energy. But, the down side is there's lots of noise and distractions. A major contributor is car horns,most often honked by taxi drivers. The city has posted the warnings shown above and recently, they have vowed to crack down on honks and issue more fines. But, its not working.

A solution
An effective way to address the problem is to implement a public campaign in which cab riders vow to warn a cab driver that if he honks the horn, it will affect his tip. This can be done with a verbal statement upon entering the cab:

    "Good morning, 5th Avenue at 59th Street, please.
      If you honk the horn for any non-emergency, you will forfeit any tip."

Or by handing the driver a card as shown below. The cards can be sized to fit in one's purse or wallet - business card, credit card, or dollar bill. The cards are a more effective way for the rider to get the point across without seeming as confrontational. The bright cards might have a longer shelf life and would help push the campaign along. The notices for the drivers should be easy to store and carry, convenient to access, and convey a clear persuasive message.

The plan hits the drivers exactly where it can have the most impact. It shouldn't take long before a cab driver is motivated to change his honkin habits.
Once a critical mass of people use this threat, the drivers couldn't be sure which entering fares will cooperate.
The yellow and the band of checks convey the connection to taxicabs and the font and upper case is as is used for TAXI on the vehicles.

Items to promote the campaign
Flier to post around town, and ads to run in papers:

Sticker to post on doors of taxicabs and Bumper sticker:


Items for cab riders to hand to cabdrivers
Business card sizes:

Credit card size and Dollar bill size:


Friendly reminder

Please do not drive 45 miles an hour down a freeway on-ramp when the freeway traffic is going 70 miles an hour. Those on-ramps are designed to give the driver time and distance to get up to freeway speed to merge with the flow of traffic with minimal disruption.

Obeying God
• Michele Bachmann said that she felt a "calling" to seek the GOP nomination. "I've had this calling and tugging on my heart that this is the right thing to do. And that's really what that means. It means that I have a sense of assurance about the direction I think that God is speaking into my heart that I should go."
• Herman Cain says that God told him to run for president. "I prayed and prayed. I'm a man of faith, I had to do a lot of praying for this one, more praying than I'd ever done before in my life. And I finally realized that it was God saying that this is what I needed to do."
• Thank God that both of these delusional (voices in their head) people are no longer doing what God told them to do.

From Adbusters magazine:
Listen up, you fat cats
There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Nobody.
You built a factory out there? Good for you. But I want to be clear: you moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for; you hired workers the rest of us paid to educate; you were safe in your factory because of police and fire forces that the rest of us paid for.
You built a factory and it turned into something terrific. Keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is that you take a hunk of that and pay it forward for the next kid who comes along.
By Elizabeth Warren

DECEMBER 28, 2011

How to make The New York Times crossword app even better
The Times has established itself as a leader and authority in crossword puzzles. Its app for the iPad provides archives of puzzles and a user-friendly navigation on the puzzle page. However, the menu pages are not as well thought out. There are at least 6 pages of menus on the existing site:


Notice how much space is wasted on several of those pages. The photo of the skyline is unnecessary as the Times is basically a national paper and the puzzle app is sold world-wide. The banner The New York Times doesn't need to be quite so large - the user already tapped the app and saw the loading screen. The user must also tap to other pages to get info.

Improved app layout
Those 6 pages shown above could be combined into just one. Here are two layout options:



On the left is the app in a newspaper style layout with columns, photos, and text. The example on the right includes a column of menu items on the left. App users soon learn item and menu placement and procedures. They scan the menu to find what they are seeking. The single menu column makes that quite easy and comfortable. On the right side of the page are the puzzle calendar and a window for info from the various links:

Putting all the links on one page minimizes links to other pages. Some of the menus can be combined to also reduce the number of links.
While both options are an improvement over the existing app, the one on the right better exploits the medium of apps. It doesn't include gimmicky references to a newspaper: grey background and selvaged edges.
Lessons: Embrace the new medium and design apps that reflect the technology.
Avoid simply transferring the design principles from other media to the app medium.

Side by side comparisons


Iraq: What was gained, what was lost
The Week, December 22, 2011
After nine bloody years of war, some 4,500 US troops dead, more than 33,000 wounded and maimed, and nearly $1 trillion spent, many Americans question whether our achievements in Iraq were worth the staggering cost. This war may turn out to be one of the biggest mistakes in US history. It was "launched under false pretenses" by the Bush administration, which exploited the nation's post-9/11 fears and manufactured evidence that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. Between 150,000 and 400,000 Iraqis were killed in the war and the bungled occupation and civil war that followed, and another 1.3 million were displaced from their homes. And what did their losses - and ours - produce? A destabilized Middle East, a newly emboldened and empowered Iran, and "widespread hatred of the U.S."
The US is also leaving behind a giant US Embassy and 16,000 contractors and State Department personnel.

Post on a Facebook Status Update
I am sitting in a wonderful little coffee shop that I frequent and that I know a lot of fellow Christian brothers and sisters hang out in and it disturbs me how many times I have heard "Happy Holidays". I am so sick of this politically correctness folks? What happened to tradition? I have many Jewish friends and I respect you and Happy Hanukkah. To my Christian friends stand up and be bold. We don't celebrate a holiday! We celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Merry Christmas!

My reply
In a situation where one knows the religious beliefs of the other, it is most appropriate to say Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Blessed Eid, or whatever. However, you were in a public place where strangers are greeting each other. Because religious beliefs are so personal, one won't always know another's beliefs. Therefore, in those instances, it is more respectful and appropriate to wish them a Happy Holiday (Holy Day). And, you are celebrating a holiday. Jesus was not born on December 25 - that date is merely symbolic of his birth and is now regarded as a Holy Day. Happy Holidays has been a tradition for decades - we are sticking to tradition. Its just not your personal tradition. But, your personal spiritual beliefs should not dictate how others behave in a public coffee shop. Relax a bit, Erick, and enjoy this wonderful time of year. So what if others don't use the phrase you prefer? Will that harm your beliefs or how you celebrate Christmas? I hope not. Jesus taught us to love others and be patient with them - not to be sick and disturbed by them. Merry Christmas.

Clerics clash in Bethlehem brawl at Jesus' birthplace
From USA Today, December 28, 2011

Up to 100 Greek Orthodox and Armenian Apostolic priests and monks swinging brooms clashed inside the Church of Nativity today in Bethlehem in a frenzied turf battle. The fighting broke out during cleaning of the church in preparation for Christmas celebrations, as each side jealously guarded its territory.
Palestinian police, using batons and shields, broke up the fighting inside the basilica. "It was a trivial problem that ... occurs every year," said the police Lieutenant. He tells the news agency that there were no arrests "because all those involved were men of God."

Favorite politically correct holiday greeting
To my friends,
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive and gender neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all; and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2012 but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great (but not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country) and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, gender, religious faith, choice of computer platform or sexual preference of the wisher.
[By accepting this greeting you are accepting the following terms: This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable, but without alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for him-or-herself or other and is void where prohibited by law and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.]
Keep in touch

DECEMBER 21, 2011

A thoughtful idea

From Reuters: Ever wanted to meet and greet your loved ones at the airport to be sure they don't miss you in the crowds? Then try Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, which now has the world's first vending machine capable of printing out personalized giant canvas banners in just a few minutes. You can pick your message, whether that is "Missed you Mummy," "I love you," "Will you marry me?," or anything else that makes you stand out from the crowd, choose the font and background design, pay between$6 and $20 depending on the length of the banner, and hit the button.
"We came up with the idea because when we were at the airport we'd see all these people welcoming their friends and family with their own banners made of bed sheets and we thought what a hassle using sheets, wouldn't it just be easier to make the banner at the airport," said BannerXpress's co-founder Thibaud Bruna. If the waterproof banners prove popular, he hopes to install the vending machines in other locations. "We hope have them in other airports, but also in stadiums for sporting and music events," Bruna said.
Lesson: Be observant of everyday situations around you. There is almost always room for improvement.

Another great idea

A useful gadget to ease the chore of painting - a brush rest and a can opener. Well thought out.
Lesson: When addressing 1 problem, explore the total experience to see if other weaknesses can be addressed.



Salma Hayek asks Jesus for some boobs

"I was getting tested a lot because everybody was older and I was the skinny tomboy. I went to a church that had a saint that was supposed to do a lot of miracles. I put my hands in holy water and prayed: Please Jesus give me some boobs."


Mythology: today a religion, tomorrow a fable.

DECEMBER 14, 2011

A better layout for 

Google introduced a new news reader app. There are lists of stories in a variety of categories. On the iPad page, there is a given amount of 'live area' - the screen space that can be used to display information, as shown on the left. On Google's site, a large amount of space at the top is devoted to a collage of often-meaningless photos. Some photos repeat, some are just filler, and almost none have value to any of the stories. Taking up that much live area requires the user to scroll more to run down the list of articles. On the right I built a layout without the photos to allow the page to list 8 stories instead of 4. I hope in a future update, they provide a setting to allow the user to turn off the photo band at the top.

Better layouts for The Weather Channel app

The High/Low temperature timeline. The format to display temps in the app is a left-to-right sequence of time. However, the low temperatures don't adhere to this theme. The low temps are directly below the high temps (which is impossible - to have 2 different temperatures at the same time). Often, the low temp is in the early morning hours of the next day. Thoughtful: The Weather Channel color codes the temps - yellow for day/high/warmer and blue for night/low/cooler. But, to better convey the sequence passing, the low temps should be between the Highs, as in the doctored example on the right. The example below conveys the temps more clearly and accurately.


Use space wisely. On TWC site, when you tap a date, it expands to show the hourly temps and precip. But it only shows 3 hours worth. Notice how much space is wasted and used for useless information, primarily the inaccurate photo in the background at the top. Reducing that space and some at the bottom allows 7 hours to be displayed at once - over twice the number. This allows less scrolling by the user.
Tip: Layout web/mobile sites to require minimal scrolling.
Lesson: Critique your use of live area to see if its being used efficiently.

A few important Christmas lessons

The Christmas season is a joyous time of the year. If you choose to celebrate it as a religious holiday, please consider:

Jesus is not the reason for the season. The actual reason is an ancient Pagan festival celebrating a good fall harvest. Biblical scholars acknowledge that Jesus was most likely born in the spring. Early devout Christian sects refused to celebrate Christmas as it was not Biblical nor respectful of their faith. Most of the season's trappings - Santa, tree, decorations, cards, feasting, parties, and endless shopping were swiped from other cultural traditions or added by retailers.

The word Xmas is just as reverent as Christmas. X is the greek symbol Chi which represents Christ, as are the symbols c h r i s t. Xmas just takes up less space so advertisers can put more into their ads. But, its not particularly disrespectful nor irreligious; its just different.

The cross is not an appropriate symbol of Jesus's birth. It is a symbol of a violent horrible instrument of death, as was used for the crucifixion of Jesus. Ignorance of this lesson is very obvious in Oklahoma City where large skyscrapers blatantly display the crucifixion death symbol in December, rather than in the spring for Good Friday. (read more)

WWJD is inappropriate during the Christmas season. There is almost nothing we do during this time, except for maybe donating to charities, that Jesus has asked us to do or would do himself. This cultural holiday is not very Christ-like.

Jesus was not about 'family'. Jesus commands us to leave our families to follow him. Please read: Matthew 19:29, 10:21, and 10:34-37, Mark 10:29-30 and 13:12, and Luke 12:51-53, 14:26, 18:29-30, and 21:16.
Saying either Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays is fine. Christmas is more of a cultural season than a religious one, so Merry Christmas doesn't have to be literal. There are no authentic Biblical Holy Days associated with December 25 but there are other religious holidays at this time, so Happy Holidays has merit. Either one seems to work just fine.
And, all the whining and complaining about people 'stealing' Christmas will not make it any more religious.
Lesson: Enjoy the Christmas/holiday season, but don't mistake it for an authentic religious observance.

Just too many options

My new dog, Brooklyn, is recovering from surgery which means I have to keep her indoors. Despite several bathroom walks during the day and night, she still pees in the house. Nature's Miracle is a great product for removing the odors and stains from dog pee. But, look how many options there are now:
    Nature's Miracle
    Nature's Miracle Advanced Formula
    Nature's Miracle OXY Formula
    Nature's Miracle 3in1 Odor Destroyer
    Nature's Miracle Urine Destroyer
What is the difference between Advanced Formula, and Urine Destroyer? Each product claims to destroy urine effectively. So, I asked the clerk at Petco. He had no clue what any differences were.

I almost threw up.

Snip. Snip. Snip. What is that sound? Its so familiar, I recognize it. Of course, its the sound of nail clippers on a fingernail. I looked around - this guy was clipping his fingernails! At a table in Panera Bread in Edmond, Friday, December 9, 3:24p. What is so bad in his bathroom at home that motivated him to cut his nails in public, in a restaurant?
Lesson: Please complete all personal grooming tasks before leaving home.

DECEMBER 7, 2011

New favorite fotos or phavorite photos

LEFT: A thoughtful considerate idea: mount the sanitizer outside the restroom doors so one can sanitize hands after leaving the restroom, touching the door knob, and closing the door.
MIDDLE: The thoughtless act of texting or checking Facebook while kissing.
RIGHT Caption: Before I set this sandbag down, Father, I need you to clarify whether the flood is Your will and we're subverting Your judgement by stopping the water, or whether its Your will that we sandbag the flood, meaning that You visited this horrible act upon us intentionally.

NOVEMBER 30, 2011

A better way to display museum hours

The confusion
Like many people, I check a museum's website to confirm their operating hours. The web makes it easy to get such info. But, often, the info listed is not a clear, easy-to-comprehend format. The hours listed on different websites are inconsistent formats and the museums are closed on different days. Here are three examples

There's gotta be a better way. Considering the increase of information clutter and the desire to find answers quickly and easily, the principles of information graphics might work well here - providing the information in a visual, easy-to-understand format.

Sketches


I explored a vertical format, but realized that familiar calendars have the days of the week in a horizontal line with the sequence moving from left to right. But, many people are seeking the hours for just one day - "When do they close on Friday?" The hours ought to be within each day's column. Yes, that makes more sense and is easier to understand.

Introducing the hours chart

The concept is simply a visual graph that clearly denotes days and hours.

Objectives
• Easy to understand, familiar layout of days.
• Adaptable to variety of formats.
• Easy to recognize on both webpages and print brochures.
• Use minimal amount of space.
• Visually convey those days that have late hours.
• Legible and easy to read typography
• Ability to customize the graphics identity of institution and medium.

Features
• Don't need am and pm - its quite clear that a museum opens in the morning and closes in the afternoon.
• The days are grouped into logical sets - weekdays are grouped together and the weekend is grouped together. That respects the way we live our lives.
• Easy to pick out of a busy webpage or brochure.
• Easy to understand - familiar images and layout.
• Takes up little room.
• Adaptable to variety of media, uses, formats.

Lesson: Visual images are more appealing, intriguing, and memorable than text.
Tip: When feasible, consider using charts, graphs, and other visual images in lieu of text prose.

Samples, Existing webpage and proposed




A show of arrogant ignorance

Every Christmas season, two skyscrapers in Oklahoma City turn on lights on their facades that form Christian crosses. Unfortunately, they serve as large beacons of ignorance and bigotry in Oklahoma. Not a good message for the movement of Oklahoma City towards becoming a major league city - displays such as these keep Oklahoma in the minor leagues. Major cities do not condone such ignorance. A few concerns:
Irreverent: WWJD? Jesus would likely be disgusted by the showy display. He taught his followers to share one's faith, but in a more respectful manner. As is too often the case, Christians don't act very Christ-like.
Inappropriate: The cross is a symbol of the crucifixion - a terrible painful instrument of torture and death. Not very appropriate for the season of Santa, toys, carols, and shopping.
Ignorant: The cross is more closely associated with the holiday of Easter and Christ's death and resurrection, not Christmas, which is more about birth and joy. Someone simply goofed by using the Easter crucifixion during the birth holiday.
Arrogant: There are likely many non-Christians that work in those buildings. There are thousands of non-Christians in the metro area that these crosses shine over.
Divisive: The USA is in the midst of a religious war - this just heightens the division and animosity. As stated, the crosses are not about Christmas, but a blatant show of Christianity
Exclusive: A city should avoid alienating any of its citizens. While these are privately owned buildings, they do serve as symbols of the city and take on a more civic role and responsibility.

Other inappropriate displays of ignorance

These are two large Interstate Highway Crosses: one in Effingham, Illinois and one in Edmond, Oklahoma. As a devout Christian, I read and studied the Bible many times. I could never find any verses in which Jesus recommended that his followers spend money on large structures of the symbol of crucifixion. If you know of any Bible verse that confirms that Christians should build such ostentatious structures, please email me at the address below. Thanks.

NOVEMBER 23, 2011

Occupy Wall Street


This quote from Adbusters says it well: Our system of economic growth, of ineffective democracy, of overloading planet earth, of unfettered corporate greed plus a trillion dollar ad industry urging us to consume ever more - this system, our system - is in the process of eating itself alive.

Negro Burial Ground

During construction for another Federal Building in 1991, some graves were discovered. It was a part of a much larger burial ground used by African immigrants to early America. An estimated 15,000 Negroes were buried at the site until it was closed in 1794 when the land was divided and sold as lots. in 1992, 419 graves were dug up, researched, and reburied at the site and a memorial and National Park Visitor's Center was established. Well worth a visit - fascinating stories, artifacts, and the very well-executed visitor's center is free. Website.

New entry to the flagship NYC Apple Store


Steve Jobs had explored extensive use of glass, beginning with the staircase in the factory for NeXT Computers. When he Returned to Apple, he took the glass fetish with him. It is now a trademark icon of the Apple Stores. Steve was never quite satisfied with the glass cube at the entrance to the store on Fifth Avenue by Central Park and the Plaza Hotel - it had too many panes. In the fall of 2011, the cube was removed and a new one, with fewer panes, was installed.
Critics and advisors told him to not invest in retail stores - Apple only had a few gadgets and computers on sale, why store? People said there wouldn't be enough traffic to justify the expense. The store is open 24 hours and often has to use queue lines outside the store to manage the crowds. All of the product info is now on iPads.

An evening at the Metropolitan Opera


I love music by Philip Glass. I first heard it while watching Koyaanisqatsi in the 1980s. Mesmerizing. I had been hoping to catch a Glass concert in NYC, but they never coincided with my visits there. This fall, The Metropolitan Opera produced one of his operas, Satyagraha. Great. A Glass opera at the Met. I'm not a huge opera fan (heck, I'm not even a small opera fan), but The Met and Philip Glass. Gotta do it. It was a fun evening. People were really dressed up. I no longer have dress-up clothes so I wore a white dress shirt and khaki slacks. I felt a bit self-conscious, so I walked up to the upper levels where the cheaper seats were. People up here looked more like me. Aah, I could fit in a bit better. Right before curtain time, I walked back down to the dressy sections and took my seat. It was a long opera: 8p - 11:50p, with 2 30-minute intermissions. During the first, I bought a delicious sandwich of smoked salmon and cream cheese on pumpernickel bread. I took it outside and sat under some trees and enjoyed my dinner at the Met.

Astor Place lightpoles


This is a great area of Manhattan. It is between NYU and Washington Square and the East Village. Going off in one direction is St. Mark's Place where Jimi Hendrix played and Madonna lived. To the south is Cooper Union, both the original classic building where Abe Lincoln spoke and the new building where the Herb Lubalin Study Center is located. Nearby are McSorley's Bar and Bill Graham's Fillmore East concert hall. Milton Glaser did huge murals down below in the Astor Place subway station. It is a center of creativity in the busy city. Here are light poles ablaze in bright colors. Simply cable ties wrapped around the poles.

ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
Design: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Culture: 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Jim Watson
New York City