Chopsticker

Robert Barlow-Busch’s thoughts about user experience and product design, all rolled up into one reasonably tidy and occasionally tasty blog.

Month: December, 2007

Heading to Interaction 08

Just registered for Interaction 08, the first conference organized by the Interaction Design Association (IxDA). Very excited about this, and not just for the opportunity to visit Savannah, Georgia in February! IxDA is growing into a terrific organization and has attracted most of the world’s top talent in interaction design; for instance, keynotes include Alan Cooper, Bill Buxton, Sigi Moeslinger, and Malcolm McCullough. The conference will also be a fabulous opportunity to put faces to familiar names from the IxDA discussion list.

Check out the conference, but FYI it’s likely to sell out by mid-January.

Heading to Interaction 08? Drop me a comment and hope to see you there!

The cordless extension cord: Proof that impossible ideas don’t stay impossible forever

Talk about innovation! For years, I’ve joked that the product I most desire is a cordless extension cord (followed closely by the microwave freezer).

Looks like the idea isn’t so ridiculous after all.

The other day, I read with interest a story about WildCharge, a very cool product that charges devices such as phones and MP3 players when you place them on its conducting pad. This led to a story I’d missed back in June about some MIT researchers who’ve been able to wirelessly power a lightbulb.

Fantastic!

Reminds me of the importance of encouraging ridiculous or even impossible ideas when attempting to innovate a product or service. If you start from somewhere safe, you’ll end up somewhere boring. Start from somewhere crazy and you might end up with a terrific idea that’s practical to pull off.

Roger Martin in Waterloo on December 20 to discuss “Design Thinking”

The Waterloo User Experience (UX) Group is hosting Roger Martin at our monthly get-together. This is a terrific opportunity to spend time with Roger, as he’s quite in demand as a speaker on the topics of design and business.

It’s a free event. Head over to the UX Group’s blog for details on the time and location.

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