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brilliant corners pointed me to an article that touches on some some similar thoughts that I have been having lately.
late last year zeldman did a public redesign of his site. visible changes happened daily. some minor some major, some even seemingly contradictory to changes made the previous week or sometimes day. At SxSW in the spring he talked about the redesign. his main reason for doing it publicly was to share the redesign process and the thoughts in action with his readers (largely made up of web developers). his was not the first to transform before his users eyes, but definitely the first high profile site of some one regarded as a direction setter in the industry.
i am a great fan of zeldman, but this irritated me greatly. it seems like a whimpy way out. as a visual designer, i take a stand right or wrong with my designs. the potential for failure has always been an accepted risk. as a visual designer i am presenting a specific identity or persona to my users. I only want them to see the finished product, i do not want them peeking behind the curtain.
so, why are we seeing this more and more often?
because we can. technology is the enabler. css and content management systems make radical visual design changes easier than changing your shirt.
because the precedence has been set in the software industry. i wonder what percentage of my software is the latest most current version available. i bet less than 5%. remember when beta versions were only released to power users? all software now seems to be in a beta like state. browsers are probably the worst offenders, i have always felt that my browser is work in progress rather than a finished product.
because the adoption of user centered design processes justify it. making changes and adjustments on the fly as they are identified in the users actions makes sense. i think back to the days when user testing was only done to "finished" products and laugh. such a simple concept.
because it is a much more casual world than ever before. i used to wear a suit and tie to work every day. at some point the world realized the suit and tie had no correlation to the quality of my work. the quality of the product is more important than an untucked shirt tail now and then.
because this economy sucks. no one is willing to pay for a major redesign. phased approaches are the only thing people are willing to spend money on. identify and fix elements, pay as you go.
i feel all these reasons are valid. so, i will accept these changes to be successful, but i will do it kicking and screaming. i so want to return to the old days. as a visual designer, i love the pomp and circumstance around a relaunch. i love the shock and awe of a newly finished design. i love the debates spurred by a radical redesign. i love the feeling of finishing something.
change is the nature of the beast in this industry. i am fairly certain in 15 years i will look back and laugh thinking of grandiose relaunches of the past and the archaic processes used. processes that had roots in print design, a medium that shares very few similarities to new media.
Posted by griff at June 18, 2003 12:11 AM