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Since my last post, we have gone from version 3 to version 6 (all in a matter of two days). This has seen a series of rapid changes (mostly quite small), and the addition of all pages.
Version 6 seems to be one we are all happy with, and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel from here. I think there will be only minor changes to the site from here.
Below are the screen caps from version 6.
The publication is going well and is almost done (we intend to print in a couple of days). The tasks are working their way down. The major tasks left are: getting everything printed and bound, working out precisely what we will say in our presentation, and creating presentation visuals. There are a few other tasks, but they seem relatively small.
It seems unthinkable that with just a few days left I can go to bed at 10pm, but we’re surprisingly organised, it seems (fingers crossed)!
The website has so far been through a sketching by hand phase, as well as three on-screen revisions. The fourth revision is in progress, and may very well be the last one, as it is looking like it is nearly there.
Version 1
This was really us just getting our ideas down and merging them into something we could work from. It was a combination of what we had discussed and drawn. We focused on the Your Place page, as it was the most complex and most important, and built the site on the basis of it.
Version 2
Based on the criticisms and problems we had with version 1, a second version was created, still in black and white, just to get the ideas and functions down before starting to really design it.
Version 3
Version 2 was a lot closer to what we wanted, so from there we began designing in colour! We removed a couple of the bottom panels for fear of it becoming cluttered. We felt these details were subsidiary, and could be communicated to website members via email, much like Amazon do with their members. For Place, it wouldn’t be selling products, as such, but letting people know where they fit in in the scheme of things (ie: people who bought what you bought also bought this).
We also added the other pages:
‘Did you know’ fact from: http://www.energy.com.au/
Info graphic from: http://ninemsn.com.au
Info graphic from: http://ninemsn.com.au
Version 4 will just be minor changes, and filling in the full content. It should be finished soon.
We are also working hard on the publication, which is coming along nicely.
All is coming together!
We began design by starting with the Place Cards. We developed a logo, and then used the Place Cards to develop a brand identity/style. Here is an example of one:
The cards are colour coded according to their category, ie: this card is an entertainment card and is red, the colour for kitchen appliances is yellow, etc.
These cards have now been printed to be shown during our presentation.
We’ve been busy over the last few weeks. We have moved on significantly from where we were, perfecting our concept and ideas. The notion we are following is similar to what we posted in our entry about the session with Stefan Meisiek.
Below is an excerpt from our proposal that explains what the outcome of this semester’s study will be:
The main product of our outcome will be a website called ‘Place’, acting as a domestic technology tracker. In addition, we are also proposing a card system to be implemented throughout a domestic goods store, such as The Good Guys or Harvey Norman.
As research has shown that people want technologies to fit in with their lives, our outcome will be designed in light of this. The main focus of the website is to provide users with information on the technologies they have and intend to purchase. The range of products will not be limited to only new ones, as it is equally as important for people to be informed on the products that they already own. The website will impart information including how much water and energy a product uses, standby power usage, energy and water star ratings and running costs.
The information will mainly be imparted via the ‘Your Place’ section of the website. This section features a houseplanner, in which users can lay out individual rooms. As users drag technology products into the space, they will receive hints and tips, as well as specific information on the products. Once users are happy with the room they have created, they will be able to receive a readout on the room.
‘Your Place’ will also enable users to see how technologies they intend to purchase will fit in with their existing technologies, and how these would all look together in the context of a room. Research showed that people were interested and concerned by how technologies would look and how they would fit in with their homes.
A further function of the website is that it will act as a data collection point. By asking users for a small amount of anonymous demographic information, the virtual homes created could lead to a body of research focusing on domestic technologies, looking at who chooses what technology, and thus forecasting patterns of adoption for technologies in the future.
In parallel with the website, will be a card system to be implemented throughout a domestic goods store. It would work much like the Dulux Swatch system, where one takes a paper colour ‘chip’ from a wall. This system would involve each product having a set of cards, which customers are freely allowed to take. These cards would include information on the specific product, and could be taken home for comparison and consideration.
There is the opportunity for the cards in this system to be adopted as the standard for all new technologies, similar to the energy and water star ratings on fridges and washers, but on a much larger scale. Having one system in place makes it much easier for people to understand important information.
The cards would be tied in with the website by each having a product serial number, thus allowing users to enter in a code and place the technologies they sourced in the store in their online ‘virtual homes’ without having to find them on the site. The cards will also be available for browsing on the website.
We hope that equipping people with knowledge about domestic technologies will inform their purchases and practices in the home. We aim to encourage and invoke thought, which in turn will hopefully influence people to think about the ramifications of their technology use.
We have split the remaining work between us and have set milestones to work to. We have made a Gantt chart to keep track of this.
Our proposal is complete and final, and our designs for both the website and Placecards are well underway. We aim to have both of these completed shortly in order to have time to implement them into the publication and screen presentation. In parallel to working on the cards and website, we are also getting the design for the publication underway.
