Design in Progress

Design is an iterative process. In almost every case, numerous ideas and variations are put together and discarded in an effort to hone in on an ideal design. Inevitably, I get attached to some of these early pieces, or at least I'm intrigued by them - often they can be a bit offbeat or downright weird, sometimes they can be quite effective and attractive, and yes, occasionally they're just plain bad.
I thought it would be fun to trace a branch of the evolution of a design, from the first concept screen through to completion. If for no other reason, I finally get to put some of my discarded work to good use.
The screen shots below were developed for the Syntropy Corporation website (the Shockwave version). After making a few rough sketches and establishing a few basic parameters (number of controls on screen, a trackball device, open space for pop-up selections, etc.), I set off to build some screens. Other basic aesthetic objectives included a desire to incorporate more fluid, organic shapes and to create a distinct visual signature. The trackball control is part of a unique method of providing additional information while keeping screen clutter and information overload to a minimum. This is better experienced than described - visit the Syntropy site to try it for yourself (this version is still currently under development).

Weirdness
This is the very first on-screen iteration. It does indeed qualify as fairly unique - perhaps a bit too unique. On a more practical level, it also has problems with placement of labels for each control (where do I put them?). A funny psychological side note... after completing this image, I came to a startling realization... this shape, with its little spherical eyeball-like things on curvy stalks emerging from a central core, comes straight out of my subconscious. This image is a recurring theme that emerges when I doodle randomly with pencil on paper... I guess you never know when things like this will resurface...

Groovy
After the excesses of the first design, I swung to the other extreme with a much more conservative look. I retained the fluid curves of the first design in the grooves linking the trackball to the content buttons. One new idea incorporated here is the progressive revealing of additional choices and images when a content button is pressed. The 'Syntropy... About Us' button started as a small window like the others, but widened to reveal more options and more of the image behind it after being clicked. This serves the dual purpose of managing the amount of information displayed on-screen at one time and it gives the intended impression that there is more information 'behind' this initial screen. This was an interesting effort, but it is a bit staid and it doesn't use the screen real estate very efficiently.

It's Organic!
Swinging back to the other extreme again, I took the basic idea behind the Groovy screen and moved it to a more dramatic and organic look. No more straight lines, no more dull gray textures here... It also has a subtle 3-D look in the bulges around each button. Once again, this look verges on the bizarre and the screen looks a bit disjointed, without any real integration among its parts and shapes. My main impression was that it just needed a better fit among the shapes on the periphery. Oh, and I thought the vaguely sperm-shaped buttons were a bit much, too.

The Real Thing
I put together this screen combining the color scheme, subtle 3-D and highly fluid shapes of the Organic screen, the progressive revelation technique of the Groovy screen, and the idea of better visual integration of the images and controls. The content is better organized and spatially integrated along the periphery of the image. The central area is reserved for the pop-selections associated with the trackball (again, this is better experienced than explained). All in all, my first impression was 'It's a bit weird, but I think I like it...'

author: Gerry Manacsa

Send praise, thoughts, criticisms or whatever to: gerrym22@aol.com
Last updated 6-30-96

[ Out of Balance ]

Design is an iterative process. In almost every case, numerous ideas and variations are put together and discarded in an effort to hone in on an ideal design. Inevitably, I get attached to some of these early pieces, or at least I'm intrigued by them - often they can be a bit offbeat or downright weird, sometimes they can be quite effective and attractive, and yes, occasionally they're just plain bad. I thought it would be fun to trace a branch of the evolution of a design, from the first concept screen through to completion. If for no other reason, I finally get to put some of my discarded work to good use. The screen shots below were developed for the Syntropy Corporation website (the Shockwave version). After making a few rough sketches and establishing a few basic parameters (number of controls on screen, a trackball device, open space for pop-up selections, etc.), I set off to build some screens. Other basic aesthetic objectives included a desire to incorporate more fluid, organic shapes and to create a distinct visual signature. The trackball control is part of a unique method of providing additional information while keeping screen clutter and information overload to a minimum. This is better experienced than described - visit the Syntropy site to try it for yourself (this version is still currently under development).
	Weirdness This is the very first on-screen iteration. It does indeed qualify as fairly unique - perhaps a bit too unique. On a more practical level, it also has problems with placement of labels for each control (where do I put them?). A funny psychological side note... after completing this image, I came to a startling realization... this shape, with its little spherical eyeball-like things on curvy stalks emerging from a central core, comes straight out of my subconscious. This image is a recurring theme that emerges when I doodle randomly with pencil on paper... I guess you never know when things like this will resurface...
	Groovy After the excesses of the first design, I swung to the other extreme with a much more conservative look. I retained the fluid curves of the first design in the grooves linking the trackball to the content buttons. One new idea incorporated here is the progressive revealing of additional choices and images when a content button is pressed. The 'Syntropy... About Us' button started as a small window like the others, but widened to reveal more options and more of the image behind it after being clicked. This serves the dual purpose of managing the amount of information displayed on-screen at one time and it gives the intended impression that there is more information 'behind' this initial screen. This was an interesting effort, but it is a bit staid and it doesn't use the screen real estate very efficiently.
	It's Organic! Swinging back to the other extreme again, I took the basic idea behind the Groovy screen and moved it to a more dramatic and organic look. No more straight lines, no more dull gray textures here... It also has a subtle 3-D look in the bulges around each button. Once again, this look verges on the bizarre and the screen looks a bit disjointed, without any real integration among its parts and shapes. My main impression was that it just needed a better fit among the shapes on the periphery. Oh, and I thought the vaguely sperm-shaped buttons were a bit much, too.
	The Real Thing I put together this screen combining the color scheme, subtle 3-D and highly fluid shapes of the Organic screen, the progressive revelation technique of the Groovy screen, and the idea of better visual integration of the images and controls. The content is better organized and spatially integrated along the periphery of the image. The central area is reserved for the pop-selections associated with the trackball (again, this is better experienced than explained). All in all, my first impression was 'It's a bit weird, but I think I like it...'