Google UX Talk Thoughts, Once Removed

So, I didn’t see Marissa Meyer speak at BayCHI about Google’s approach to user interface design, but Rashmi and Luke did, and I found some of what they related to be quite interesting. The thing that most grabbed me was this comment from Rashmi’s notes: “Marissa also addressed whether User Experience is a sustainable competitive [...]

The Unbearable Sadness of Exquisite Eating

Last Sunday, I ate at the French Laundry with Stacy and Janice, thanks to the generosity of a dear friend who couldn’t utilize her reservations. For those unfamiliar, The French Laundry is considered one of North America’s premiere dining establishments, and it’s chef, Thomas Keller, has developed something of a cult following. The meal was [...]

Once Again, with more Activity Theory

Professor Nancy Van House has posted her evolving syllabus for IS212, Information in Society. Lots of good stuff, many with direct links to the papers themselves. From my experience auditing the course last semester, my favorites are: Engeström,Yrjo. Expansive Visibilization of Work: An Activity-Theoretical Perspective. Computer Supported Cooperative Work 8: 63–93, 1999. Nardi, B. (1996). [...]

London

I don’t think I’ll have time to write up my travels to London, so, in it’s place, you can view my piccies.

Happy New Year from Adaptive Path

In what is becoming a tradition, our 2005 inaugural essay lists resolutions from each member of Adaptive Path. There’s some good stuff in there — check it out! Separately and additionally, don’t forget Jeff Veen and I are teaching our “Make Your CMS Work For You” content management workshop in our offices in San Francisco [...]

Heading to Ol’ Blighty

From 9 Jan to 17 Jan, we will be visiting London. Staying in Barbican with a friend. Wondering what on earth to do. Not for a lack of things to do — frankly, there’s too much! If you’re there (or will be) and want to hang out, email me. Would love to hook up with [...]

Mob indexing? Folk categorization? Social tagging?

For folks interested in free tagging systems such as those seen on del.icio.us and Flickr, Adam Mathes’ essay, “Folksonomies – Cooperative Classification and Communication Through Shared Metadata” is required reading. It’s probably the single most thoughtful discussion of the issues at hand. Among other things, Adam takes me to task for using “ethnoclassification,” because classification [...]

Abbot Kinney – The best contemporary architecture walk in America?

Yesterday we wandered along Abbot Kinney Blvd in Venice. A mix of shops, restaurants, businesses, bars, and residences, it is, for my money the premiere contemporary architecture stroll in the United States. The photos shown here are from my Abbot Kinney photoset on Flickr. And I didn’t capture all that I really liked. What works [...]

peterme.com

Links, thoughts, and essays from Peter Merholz