Color Analysis

I think the color tests work to match people's personalities only because of the cultural associations we have to certain colors. Outside of the cultural connection I don't think the tests hold much weight since everyone has their own personal response to color. Because of this I don't think the personality tests are based on sound theory or psychology. In one of the tests we had to choose colors in a random order and the results were supposed to say something about the relation between our color preference and our personality. I could have first picked a brilliant red color because I remember my mother wearing a scarf that color when I was a child. Because I picked this color first doesn't mean that I am (or am not) a high energy person, it simply means that color resonates with me. My color results were not a surprise because I could tell from the questions that the qualities I chose were directly related to our cultural association with a particular color, for example blue is a calm, collected color and green signifies tranquility.

The Debate about the Exit Sign

A recent article in the online magazine Slate, by editor Julia Turner, addressed the global argument about the use of America's exit sign. The concern is that we are the only country that uses the red lettering and people who are not familiar with the sign could be endangered. In our culture the sign makes sense but for others, the use of red in the sign can be confusing. In most cultures the color red is associated with danger and stopping a motion before it results in injury. The argument being made is that if people cannot read the word they may think the doorway is off limits because of the bright red color.

Most other countries use a sign with a green man running through a doorway to indicate an emergency exit. This is only logical, international designers argue, because green universally means go, and is the color of safety. While the U.S. faces this safety dilemma, we have to acknowledge that as a culture the red exit sign works for us because we have seen the sign for so many years. To make an overnight change from the red exit to the green running man could jeopardize Americans' safety. The obvious solution, which is already in place in the subways of New York, is to post dual signs with both the green icon and the red lettering. This is one more step towards uniting a global society.

http://www.slate.com/id/2246107/?from=rss

Color Continued

Lupton and Phillips argue that color is rhetorical because it is seen differently by people according to their personal knowledge and experiences. Color conveys information that can effect the mood or invoke feelings in the viewer. Color has cultural connotations that can cause a design to be perceived differently. Lupton and Phillips give the example of how the color white is seen as virginal and pure in Western culture but is the color of death in Eastern cultures. In this way color is subjective and unstable.

Hue is the placement of color withing the color spectrum. Lupton and Phillips give an example of red which looks brown with low saturation and pink at a pale value.

Lupton and Phillips give the definition of value as the light or dark character of the color. Shade is when black is added to the hue and tint is the addition of white to the hue. Elimnating the hue altogether converts the image to either black or white.

Changing the elements of hue and the value of a color can make an image stand out or disappear into the design. Knowing when to use contrasting or complementing colors will be essential to creating a successful design.

Color

Color works for websites because of the messages it conveys. It is a branding mechanism that evokes a feeling in the viewer and can either attract or repel the consumer. Boyle says this is one more way in which the the designer needs to know her audience because colors can be perceived differently depending on the generation of the audience. Just as color is important in fashion trends, color is as important to design and the designer must know which colors are currently popular with the intended audience. Colors have different cultural connotations as well so it is important to know the target audience and how the message will be received.

On a website text should be in a color that is readable and easy to distinguish from the background. Links should be in a brighter color to make them stand out from surrounding text. This keeps the user on the sight longer because of the contrast in text. A visited link should be darker so that the non-visited link stands out and keeps the viewer's attention.

The browser safe color palette is made up of the 216 colors that are common to Macintosh and Windows operating systems. The palette contains shades of red, green and blue since these particular colors are electronically activated on a user's screen.

This color palette is different from the CYMK model which is used in printing. The CYMK palette is subtractive and reflective rather than RGB which is radiant color. Each is important because the way the viewer sees the material can change according to the context. CYMK and RGB are interrelated because a designer wants the electronic media to be viewed the same when the work is printed. A conversion process is necessary to make this happen for the viewer.

Readablity/Legiblity

Williams argues that just because someone is accustomed to reading a certain type of typeface, doesn't make the font any more readable than another. Basically the design of a text is what makes it readable. A highly designed text can distract the reader, thus making the text more difficult to read. Serifed fonts tend to be more readable since the eye is drawn from one letter to the next. Text that is in all capital or all lowercase letters can be a problem for readers since we also read in shapes and a word that contains letters of all the same shape are seen as a square rather than seeing the ascenders and descenders that are intended to create shape.

Letterspacing, wordspacing and line spacing are all important to consider when creating a large amount of text for an audience. The author should respect the reader enough to not make them overwork their eyes with a start/stop motion when reading. Allowing adequate space through tracking, kerning, linespace and leading makes reading an easier task.

Williams addresses legibility as well, which is how easily we can read short amounts of text such has headlines or websites. When we are searching for information we want to be able to process the words quickly without spending time deciphering each letter. Williams suggests that sans serif fonts are more appropriate for short amount of text because they look clean and brisk, allowing the reader to quickly recognize their shape. The x-height and weight of the letter are both important elements for the designer to consider. Mixed caps is intended for titles only since they slow a reader down.

Williams' message is to use any sort of highly designed font in moderation in order to make text more readable and legible.

Typeface

Typefaces are letterforms that are made up of different materials used to produce and copy text with the purpose of distribution. The first typefaces were based on calligraphy but the influence of other cultures eventually brought about the fonts that we know today.

The Renaissance influenced the Roman and Italic typefaces since people preferred these more casual fonts over the previous blackletter text that had been used. Cost and class influences typography choices in publishing when comparing the materials used and to what audience it is intended for. For example, the printing press allowed for the distribution of a large amount of text which made literature more affordable to people in the lower class. The wealthy were more likely to spend money on the more elaborate texts and materials, such as gold engravings.

Anyone working with text needs to be cognizant of the rhetorical impact a font can have on an audience. Using bold or italic font may be appropriate for headings but in larger amounts of text it can make readability difficult. Lupton suggests that designers should know the history of a typeface along with the intended audience to make sure the rhetorical message is appropriate.

Application of the White Space Principles

Using the elements I discussed in the previous post regarding white space, I looked at The New York Times online to see how these elements are used and how effective they are. The articles of most importance are placed in the center of the page and the headlines are in a large, bold font that is in a blue text to make it stand out from the black body text. A one inch margin is on the left and right side of the screen but there is little sinkage since the top of the screen is used for advertisements and the title. Overall, the placement appears clean and organized since the reader can easily distinguish the topic headlines and the subheadings on the page.

The designers use a flush-left/ragged right setting which is common in newspapers. This allows even word spacing and helps with the readiblity for a page that contains a large amount of information. The amount of leading also assists in the readiblity since there is enough white space between lines to keep the reader's eyes moving along the page.

I think the New York Times is a good example of how a designer can take a large amount of text and apply the priciples of font and spacing to make the piece reader friendly.

White Space

While placement and choice of font are always imporant when creating a document, white space is an element that is just as crucial to the piece in order for it to be readable. The areas where white space are most necessary are in the margins, leading and paragraph spacing. This allows the reader's eyes to easily travel down and across the page. Even spacing makes the document look organized and clean which again contributes to the readability of the piece.

White space is also considered when determining the darkness of a text. The darker a font is can show how important the information is in relation to the rest of the work. Off-setting this with white space can help these elements stand out even more to the reader.

Chart Junk

I found an interesting article, Chart Junk vs. Eye Candy: What's the Difference? The article makes the argument that chart junk is just a badly designed graph while eye candy is a graph that can be considered a work of art.

http://flowingdata.com/2009/09/25/chart-junk-vs-eye-candy-whats-the-difference/

The article provides a link to GOOD magazine to give examples of what "eye candy" would look like. From this example I have to agree with the author that graphs can be highly designed and still provide information to the audience. The examples shown are effective since they interpellate the reader but still display the information in a way makes sense.

The author of the article asks for the reader's opinion as to whether they agree with the fact that there is a difference between chart junk and eye candy. My response is that I agree a graph can be highly designed and still be effective. My definition of chart junk would be that a graph is so overly designed that the information becomes misleading.

Tufte

Edward Tufte is a well-published information design theorist. His idea of an effective design is that it should not display "chart junk" or be excessively designed. He believes a design should be without distraction in order for it to be functional

I think the proper format of information design depends largely on the intended audience. In a professional setting, the use of too much design can distract from a presentation. In a less structured setting, I think more design is appropriate.

A centralized network contains a common point in which the network branches out from. A decentralized network has a spine with radiating elements.

The "Tuned In" diagram in the GD is most similar to my own culture identity map because the nodes have a special significance according to their placement and the the connections between them are demonstrated with lines.