// engageID // 05.06.04
the institute of design bi-weekly newsletter

--> id news
--> student activities: IDSAB Meeting Recap, Liz Sanders: AWF Keynote
--> alumni spotlight: Toby Bottorf
--> of interest: Vienna!, ID Student Show, Grillin' and Chillin'

Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey, GOODBYE!

And good luck to all of our graduating graduates! We hope things wrap up nicely
for you here and that your futures are bright and full of work (in a good way).
Thanks for all the good times and helpful advice! Enjoy the coming festivities and
congratulations. Last but not least, go out there and stick it to the man! We will
miss you all.

As for the rest of us, we aren't far behind.

This will be the last newsletter of spring '04 so have a great summer and we'll
see you next semester!

-engageID posse

--> id news

All this news and more is available on the ID website at:
http://www.id.iit.edu/news/news.html

About, With and For in I.D. Magazine
Since this is the last newsletter of the year, we are informing you ahead of time
that there will be a letter to the editor published in the June edition I.D. magazine
regarding the About, With and For conference to come. The letter, co-written by
Sara Cantor and Phillip LaFargue, addresses the importance of students and
professionals taking the initiative to hold forums for conversation about
collaborative design and user research.

Sharon Poggenpohl in InForm, the Rock issue, vol. 14 no. 3
Sharon Poggenpohl writes about the current state of graduate design education,
and the nature of living life as a professional designer, in "About Learning and a
Life ... in Design", for AIGA Chicago's InForm journal.
Download the article(PDF, 200k)

Many projects came under budget this year, which bodes well for future projects.
The review went a little like this:

- voting was smooth thanks to Doug, IDSAB committee heads were voted in this
year as well, even though they were uncontested
- recruitID, you've heard enough about this.
- Lecturette Series, it rocked
- Student Show, it will rock
- Intl dinner, yum
- Beer Socials, great for speed quarters and to drink beer at
- Annual, man, I'm glad it's done, looks good too, next year's will be digital
- New Student Initiative, like a sneak peek seeID for new students, coming soon
- Newsletter, bi to tri-weekly: it's informative, if you don't think so then stop
reading, it's also archived now
- AWF conference, was great, will be greater
- butcher paper, great way to get the word on the street
- don't forget the CALENDAR!!! thank you to Sara

The current board (James Schulman, Cobie Everdell, Phil LaFargue, Hillary
Schuster, and Laura Patterson) will remain in power until next January, at which
point they will be voted out for being too old. Ideas and projects will continue over
the summer, so contact any one of them if you would like to stay involved, and if
you just can't get ID out of your system.

- Lucas Daniel

The About With and For preposition conference taking place at the Courtyard Marriott this October has confirmed a keynote presentation and possible workshop by Liz Sanders, president of Sonic Rim. She is a pioneer in the use of participatory methods in the design and branding of consumer and office products, systems, interfaces, and spaces. Basically, for those that don't know her, this is a big deal, because she puts butts in seats. She is widely respected in the design and corporate community and is probably one of the best keynotes the conference could have given this year's theme: "Involving, Engaging, and Educating Others."

Dr. Liz Sanders, President, Sonic Rim

Here is an excerpt from our rough abstract about the theme of this year's
conference:

"As social scientists, researchers, designers, educators, consultants, and project
managers, we must often involve and engage others in the process of user
research, design analysis, and synthesis. It is sometimes difficult to go beyond
the confines of our accepted lexicon, our own assumptions, and our own
methods to include a new audience into the process. Coupled with this challenge
is the abundance of user-focused positions in the corporate world. Terms like
"research ethnographer", "user-centered", and "user experience"
have become commodities and buzzwords in the business world. But the proof is
in the pudding: effective research lies in the ability to communicate findings to a
diverse crowd; good analysis rests in the ability to communicate the value of
sound methods; and successful synthesis (resulting in successful products &
services) requires common frameworks to understand user and business needs.

This year's About With and For conference will address these concepts and
focus on how to involve, engage, and educate a third party audience (be it clients,
colleagues, students, research participants, or executive decision-makers). Liz
Sanders, President of SonicRim, will deliver a keynote address and lead a
workshop on this subject. She is a pioneer in the use of participatory methods in
the design and branding of consumer and office products, systems, interfaces,
and spaces."

- Lucas Daniel

This summer I'm hauling my family to Boston, so I can direct the design efforts at
WGBH Interactive. The tools and outlook I learned at ID are one of the more
compelling things that made me attractive to them. I'm a little stunned. I expect
I'm about to do the best work I've ever done.

Tell us how your time at ID prepared you for your professional work:

It's still preparing me for my professional work. Teaching workshop is a hugely
valuable infusion of intelligence and idealism into my work life. The community of
students at ID is somehow, organically, a great role model. Students set high
standards for each other, and want each other to do great work. That positive
attitude may be even more useful than the tools and methods. Certainly, it's what
allows our methodological approach to be used with imagination, play, and great
purpose.

What advice do you have to offer ID students?

It doesn't have to be conceptually perfect before you start building it. ID students
are way too reluctant to dive in and make lots of (probably mediocre) things fast.
But doing so early in the process is faster, more fun, and leads to better work.
Testing prototypes, and showing what you mean are way more productive than
talking about the idea of the thing. It's so much easier to critique something that
exists.

Finally, when faced with an either/or decision, choose Both.

-Phillip LaFargue II

--> of interest

Vienna – City of Conferences, Culture, and Cheese Sausages

Although the forecasts on weather.com had predicted a week of showers and thunderstorms, my time in Vienna was filled with an almost too-bright sunshine, and I came home with a sunburn. During that week, Ric Edinberg and I met design students from countries around the world, including industrial designers from Sweden, information retrieval Ph.D students from Canada, and anthropology students from South Africa.

Photo with a Swedish design team in front of our posters

During the four days of the Sig Chi 2004 conference, which was held in Vienna, Austria this year, we attended several formal meet-and-greet events, as well as ID professor Kei Sato’s lecture on Context-Sensitive Design, which was a roaring success. The discussion was engaging and thought-provoking, and Professor Sato ended the session only by promising the attendees that it could be continued electronically via the Sig Chi discussion board. Although professor Den Douros was unable to attend, his case study on Motorola’s project in automobile-sensor systems was well-received as well.

Conference reception in the town hall

Ric and I also met the other student presenters during a private party for student
competitors, then presented our projects during an afternoon to three judges. As
Sig Chi is mainly concerned with human-computer interaction, the judges were
mainly concerned with physical interface features of the design solution. The
winning team from the Savannah College of Art and Design, team iVo, had
designed an ingenious product-based solution which translated a spectator’s
natural body motion into a scoring system. Their poster, self-described as made
from “90% sharpie and 10% illustrator”, was also very eye-catching and creative.
I was glad to have had the opportunity of meeting such talented design students,
and enjoyed discussing design methodologies with them.

During our “off-time” in Vienna, Ric and I attended the legendary Vienna Opera, buying standing room tickets for 2 Euro each! That was probably the best deal in Europe. I also enjoyed eating as many cheese sausages (kasekrainer) as I could. Grilled to juicy perfection, the sausages were stuffed with cheese and served with spicy mustard and a slice of rye bread. Other Austrian delicacies include pastries, great coffee, and amazing produce from the fresh markets. Although we did not come home with a gold medal as I had hoped, Vienna was an amazing time. Thanks again to everyone at ID who made this opportunity possible!

The sausages I can't stop raving about

- Jenny Fan

release: join us for the institute of design's
2004 annual exhibition of student works

re:place
350 n lasalle st
floors 4 & 6
chicago il 60610
id.iit.edu/show2004

re:date
may 14
6 - 9pm

As most of you know, ID's 2004 Student Show will be held on Friday, May 14th
this year, from 6-9pm. We will also be having an after party, which will most likely
be at Rock Bottom Brewery (more details to follow).

The Student Show is an annual exhibition of student work, the main purpose of which is fun (not recruiting). It is mainly a time to celebrate the work we've all done in the past year, to show off what we've been working so hard on, and to take a look at some of cool projects that we've been hearing about. Of course, every student is invited to come, and can invite their friends/family/ loved ones to come check out what they've been working on. Printed postcards have arrived and are available for you to send out, as well as the electronic postcard shown here.

Release: ID's Spring 2004 Student Show

submitting work
We're soliciting student work for display at the 2004 ID student show, which will
be held the evening of Friday, May 14. All kinds of work will be accepted, as long
as it was done this past academic year (September 2003-May 2004). Also, as we
will be displaying the work by process, work that isn't completely polished is fine,
too. We would love to see prototypes, etc that may not be final, but represent a
stage of your work. As long as its fun, interesting to look at, and indicative of
what you've been working on this year.

If you would like to submit, please email me directly, or just bring it up to the 6th
floor between 1-4pm on Thursdays. One of the student show committee will be
sitting around to accept the work.

photos
We're also collecting photos of student life to project during the student show.
There is a "Student Show Photos" folder on Temp - dump any photos of yourself,
team meetings, ID outings, ID profs, etc in there, and we'll try and put them all up
during the show.

contact
Any questions or concerns can be directed at Yi Leng, Hillary, or Jenny (jenny is
in Vienna for the next week—so she might not be your best bet)…
yi@id.iit.edu
hillary@id.iit.edu
jenny@id.iit.edu

- Hillary Schuster

Grillin' and Chillin'
It is time once again for everyone to enjoy the delicious stylings of Lucas Daniel's
famous southern barbecued pork shoulders! And don't forget about the cheese
grits, collard greens, and beer. Rumor also has it the Eric Holubow will be laying
it on thick with his Hollybowdelic skirt steaks. Furthermore, you are all invited
(and beseeched) to bring your own drinks, food, and belly dancers to ensure
there will be enough to go around.

So, spend the next week or so working hard, getting prepared for the summer,
bracing for graduation, etc. and then enjoy a weekend of graduation dinner (for
those graduating), the student show, the student show after party, all capped off
by an afternoon and evening on the luxurious and accommodating balcony of
Lucas D. This will be the last hoorah and perhaps the last time you see some of
your classmates for a long time! Don't miss it.

Don't wallow in hung-over land following the student show after party, party some
more!! (please, no throwing of pork)

Details:

END OF THE YEAR PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS:
Grillin n’ Chillin
Q n’ Brew
Steers n’ Beers

WHAT’S COOKING?
LUCAS D. --> Southern BBQ (smoked pulled pork), Collard Greens, Cheese Grits
ERIC HOLUBOW --> Marinated Skirt Steak

WHEN?
Saturday, May 15th, 6PM - ?

WHERE?
1307 N. Greenview #2R (directions below) in Wicker Park

WHAT YOU CAN BRING/COOK?
Beer
Jack Daniel’s, Mint, Sugar, Ice (for mint juleps)
let me know if you plan on making any of this:
Mac N Cheese
Potato Salad / Cole Slaw
Corn Cakes/Bread
Red Beans and Rice
Hush Puppies
Black Eyed Peas
Baked Beans
Green Beans
Fried Okra
Jambalaya
Sweet Potato Pie
Pecan Pie
Cobbler

DIRECTIONS -->
CTA Blue Line Division stop, head left out of the turnstiles, up the stairs,
turn left, cross MILWAUKEE, head east on DIVISION towards Hillary’s Urban
Eatery (towards the freeway), take a LEFT on GREENVIEW, go 2 blocks, it’s
1307, ring #2R.
DRIVING, take 90/94 Kennedy to Division, head West off freeway, take a RIGHT
on GREENVIEW, go 2 blocks, it’s 1307, ring #2R

CALL 773.384.1392 if nobody hears the door ringer, it’ll be in the back on
the 2nd floor back deck

Click here for help finding the place.

- Phillip LaFargue II and Lucas Daniel

HTML Authors: Geoff Colbath

Contributors: Lucas Daniel, Hillary Schuster, Sara Cantor, Jenny Fan, Philip
LaFargue II, Christine Choi, Taylor Lies, Eric Holubow

to send newsletter submissions: newsletter@id.iit.edu