M Train_Design Reflections_Allison Ing

DAY 1

Mind Mapping

Design Thinking 101 was the premise of Bootcamp Design’s first class. Putting mind mapping to use in order to evaluate the networks between the Parsons School of Design and DT was a great refresher for someone who’s practiced UX Design in the past. It was a great way to kickoff Bootcamp, and visualize the possibilities available to us in MFADT!

DAY 2

Good vs. Bad Design

This class pushed us to understand the differences between subjective and objective views when approaching a critical analysis of design. Remembering the tenets of Don Norman’s ‘Design of Everyday Things’ put into view the importance of functional and meaningful design.

 

DAY 3

Designing Solutions

Taking into account the value of iterative design, we were tasked to think of a problem and ideate solutions. I decided to investigate analog and digital solutions to bicycle theft in NYC. Using domain mapping via post-it notes, I was able to categorize issues surrounding the topic and get creative with my ideas.

DAY 4

Design Statement

To address the design problem decided upon on ‘day 3’, I formulated a design statement that answered the: who, what, where, and how of my possible solutions to bike theft in the city. We used storyboards to create a narrative for our design solution that empathized with the needs of the user.

DAY 5

Design Process – Brew Box

I presented the UX design process I followed for the web re-design of a previous client, Brew Box. It also was interesting to hear about the rest of the M Train’s design experiences and their take on iterative design.

 

Final Thoughts.

I’m excited to further my investigation into the issue of bike theft in the coming weeks and explore how physical design can be mixed with digital interfaces to create a dynamic solution.

 

A.I.