Weekly-Reading

Each week we as a class were assigned some reading. We were given some free reign in the way we took the reading. Some papers we may want to read, annotate and really take in, others may not have had an affect on us and we may have just skimmed the contents. What I took from this exercise was that it was in an effort to broaden our ideas in the area design and study.

Week One:
The first paper was called 'Circles and Props – Making Unknown Technology' and it was written by Kristina Andersen and Danielle Wilde. The subject of the paper was a sort of arts and crafts workshop in which they gathered select groups of people to develop concepts for improbable or impossible technologies. The process involved taking the individuals development of their not yet determined technologies in different and unexpected directions at multiple points. This resulted in products like the ‘Mastication Amplifier’.

I read this paper through, and enjoyed reading it. The vocabulary was easy to understand and the subject was interesting. My main thought of the process was that it was interesting but I didn't quite see the substance or direction of the subject. I didn't think the paper had much to offer on the subject of developing new technologies but I did think it was an interesting commentary on how individuals can develop a final product completely free formed without planning or pre-conception through a specific method.

Paper URL: http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=2168944

Week Two:
The second paper we were assigned to read was titled 'Annotated Portfolios' and it was written by Bill Gaver and John Bowers from Goldsmiths University. I remember having serious trouble reading and understanding this paper. I actually couldn't get through it. When we discussed this paper in class I was relieved to find out that I was not the only one. I found the language and writing elongated and inaccessible. I did gain an idea of the purpose of this paper from my peers who managed to read the whole thing and comprehend it well. However I was only able to skim the paper and grasp the most basic of theories from it, if that. I feel like once I have more experience in the study and industry of design I may be able to revisit this paper and gain some perspective from it, but right now the whole thing is over my head.

Paper URL: https://blackboard.uwe.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-4461924-dt-content-rid-7875423_2/courses/UFCFT6-30-1_15sep_1/Gaver%2C%20Bowers%20-%202012%20-%20Annotated%20portfolios.pdf

Week Three:
Week Three's paper was on the subject of research and how it may be more valuable to take our time with it to gain more from the process. The paper was titled 'Taking Our Sweet Time to Search' and it was authored in collaboration by Marian Dörk, Peter Bennett and Rosamund Davies. After the last paper this one was a great relief. I enjoyed reading it and found the theories interesting and valuable. The main idea of the paper was that if you don't use instantaneous methods of searching to research a subject you may gain a broader understanding or range of information. Although at points I found the article romanticized I feel they would often play devils advocate with their own ideas which made it much easier to accept them. This paper is probably the one I took the most from to take into my own life as an academic. The idea that if I just spend some time searching for information in a more ludic fashion I might come to a more contemplated and broader pool of research has changed my perspective a little.

Paper URL: https://blackboard.uwe.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-4461925-dt-content-rid-7875425_2/courses/UFCFT6-30-1_15sep_1/Do%CC%88rk%2C%20Bennett%2C%20Davies%20-%202013%20-%20Taking%20our%20sweet%20time%20to%20search.pdf

Week Four:
This paper is titled Overcoming Procrastination with ReMind and is written in collaboration by a group from the Folkwang University of the Arts. ReMind being a piece of Interaction Design developed to attempt to help overcome the issues of procrastination and to push the user to get tasks done in good time. As someone who struggles with procrastinating and motivation in general I was interested to read this paper. I did find it fairly specific and at points it dragged on so I skimmed some areas of the paper. The product ReMind is a sort of calendar with an interesting system for setting your own deadlines for tasks. I found the design of the product fairly interested however I doubted the value and effectiveness of it. Although this is fairly interesting due to its mechanics I don't see how this could prevail over the countless other motivation techniques being developed in other mediums e.g. mobile or computer applications.

Paper URL: https://blackboard.uwe.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-4494398-dt-content-rid-7935061_2/courses/UFCFT6-30-1_15sep_1/p77-laschke.pdf

Week Five:
The Fifth piece of reading was titled 'New Media, New Craft?' and it was authored by Andrew Richardson. This paper is maybe the most relevant to our course and our future professions. The papers subject is how new media, digital media has become it's own craft just like traditional crafts. It states how a craft is a practice in which the craftsman must understand the ins and outs of their material in order to manipulate it. The idea of the paper is that new media and the development of it has become a new craft and that in order to become a craftsman in that craft you must master the field.
This paper definitely makes a lot of sense and for us on the digital media course it brings up some very good points and perspective for the effort and study that is required to truly be a good designer and developer in our future field. I also found the paper easy to read and the vocabulary was comprehensive and concise yet not over complicated.

Paper URL: https://blackboard.uwe.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-4494399-dt-content-rid-7935062_2/courses/UFCFT6-30-1_15sep_1/richardson-new-media-new-craft.pdf