...when 140 characters are not enough

Here is the introduction from my capstone paper. I need to come up with a good title for the project. I am open to suggestions. As always, your feedback, criticism and critique are welcomed. You can read the Abstract, which is the first entry in this series, here.

Introduction
What is design?
Who are designers?
Can non-designers design?
What is the language of design?
How do designers and non-designers interact?
Can non-designers speak the language of design?

It would be absurd to expect this capstone project to be an expansive study and explanation of these questions. Others have allocated many years of research and study trying to bring clarity to these questions. Design researchers and practitioners are still not even in agreement about the methods and approaches for addressing these questions, much less in identifying answers (Rogers 2004; Zimmerman, Forlizzi et al. 2007; Stolterman 2008).

What is the importance of asking these questions?
The global use of information and communication technology is growing at an unprecedented rate. Technological advancements are yielding exponential improvements in processing speed, storage capacity and the transfer of information. We are now able to share and consume text-based, audio and video data easier than ever before in the history of mankind. The transformation from the analog age to the digital age is well under way.

When compared to the iMac from 1999 [Figure 1], the current standard iMac is equipped with a processor that is ten times faster, has forty times as much memory and video memory, can store at least 100 times as much data, and is equipped for wireless networking. The current iMac has a 21.5-inch LCD display versus a 15-inch CRT, twice as many USB ports, built-in Bluetooth, stereo speakers, microphone, video camera, DVD/CD read/write optical drive, and is more environmentally friendly (Apple.com).

Smartphones, the iPod Touch and other popular mobile devices are as powerful as desktop computers from a decade ago. Broadband, wireless and 3G phone networks are making internet access available in restaurants, on busses, in airplanes, in classrooms, and in the car. At the same time, the price of technology is becoming more affordable.

The impact of this massive global expansion of technology is still not clear. Organizations of all sizes and types are struggling with gaining an understanding of the transformational effect this technology is having. During its lifetime, fixed telephone lines (land lines) were barely able to reach 20% of the worldʼs population. In less than ten years, mobile phone subscriptions not only surpassed fixed phone lines but are now in use by over 60% of global inhabitants [Figure 2]. In addition, the number of internet users is doubling approximately every five years with an increasingly larger percentage of them having access to both fixed and mobile broadband. (International Telecommunication Union 2009)

What will the next ten years bring? Can we continue to grow at such a steep curve? How will our methods of communication be different? How will it affect our personal and professional lives? What roles will designers play? How will it change?

I have a very strong and heartfelt desire to explore and examine each of the questions posed above. That desire is born from my own personal experiences. We process all new information through the phenomenological experience filter of our lifeworlds. We use these prior experiences as contextual tools and resources to create meaning and understanding of new information. We relate new information to our own previous experiences. We try to make relative sense of this information so as to make it useful and usable (Gadamer 1975; Smith 2001).

I worked in the business world for almost thirty years. I witnessed the advent of the personal computer, the fax machine, the internet, and cell phones. I experienced the changes they made on how every manner of business was conducted. I remember the struggles people had in adapting to these innovations. I saw people lose their jobs as new technology increased our capacity to be productive, simplify processes and allow for decentralization in the form of outsourcing and cheaper labor. I know people who were able able to improve their lifestyles as a result of gaining access to previously unattainable resources. This is the lifeworld I brought with me when I enrolled in this program.

When I started studying Human-Computer Interaction Design (HCI/d) my understanding of the subject was profoundly influenced by my work experience in the world of financial services and business over the past thirty years. I realized almost immediately that many of the fundamental principles of design were being appropriated every day in the workplace, usually without any attribution towards design. While I was working I never understood that these methods and techniques were grounded in the discipline of design.

Another observation I made during the past eighteen months was that there is quite a large disagreement about what design is and how it is practiced (Garrett 2009). Further, there is a substantial communication gap between design and non-design professions. This is especially true when it comes to determining where design is situated in the overall scheme of change, progress, innovation and adaptation. This dissonance hinders progress, interaction, and collaboration on all fronts.

The overall purpose of this project is to develop a deeper understanding of design, especially interaction design, by exploring the questions stated above. It is my intention that this research will allow me to help others appropriate design principles and thinking more fully, whether or not they consider themselves to be in the design profession. Further, I would hope that the findings from this research will facilitate more effective communication and interaction regarding the role of design within the overall goals and objectives of organizations of all types and sizes. This project will be successful if it enables others to move in this direction.

References
Apple.com. "iMac (21.5 and 27-inch, Late 2009) - Technical Specifications."   Retrieved 12/28/09, from http://support.apple.com/kb/SP576.

Apple.com. "iMac (333 MHz) - Technical Specifications."   Retrieved 12/28/09, from http://support.apple.com/kb/SP131.

Gadamer, H. G. (1975). Truth and method. London, Sheed & Ward.

Garrett, J. J. (2009). "The Memphis Plenary." ASIS&T IA Summit 2009, from http://www.jjg.net/ia/memphis/.

International Telecommunication Union (2009). Measuring the information society : the ICT Development Index. Geneva, International Telecommunication Union.

Rogers, Y. (2004). "New Theoretical Approaches for Human-Computer Interaction." Annual Review of Information Science and Technology (ARIST) 38: 87-143.

Smith, P. (2001). Cultural theory : an introduction. Malden, Mass., Blackwell.

Stolterman, E. (2008). "The Nature of Design Practice and Implications for Interaction Design Research." International Journal of Design 2(1): 55-65.

Zimmerman, J., J. Forlizzi, et al. (2007). Research through design as a method for interaction design research in HCI, San Jose, California, USA, ACM.