Hasta La Ideas

This is a project whose concept is meritorious enough to look at, but problematic enough that we should talk about it. Deskbloks are a system of technology-embedded oak squares which end users are meant to assemble together into a desk. There are five varieties of these blocks, as seen below:

The idea is that the user orders the blocks they want, then assembles the desk in a size and configuration of their choosing. Okay, that sounds nifty enough, but what will the actual UX be like? This is where I have my doubts.

First off, the key benefit of the concept appears to be that it tackles cable management. 

The legs are even hollow, allowing one to route cables through them. 

But I’m not sure that I want to plug anything into the front or side edge of my desk (and certainly not the rear). Perhaps this is particular to me, but I have a wide desk with work taking up the full width of it, and I roll my chair left or right to address different areas at different times. Having cables sticking out of the front would get in the way for me, and I do not have access to my desk’s sides.

I find the headphone jack/speaker modules to be the most puzzling: Who wants to crawl under the desk to plug a jack in? Nor can I see any advantage in floor-facing speakers.

The joinery method also seems problematic. The blocks appear to be user-joined with mending plates, only, on the undersides. And the blocks are made from oak to boot. This doesn’t seem like a structurally-sound way to support a heavy horizontal surface, and I have little faith that your average consumer—they who apparently have trouble assembling Ikea furniture—will be able to pull this off.

The development team is trying to get the project funded on IndieGogo. But while I laud their honesty, I do find their production woes troubling:

The process is expensive because we need to make 10-20 bloks in order to get just 1 perfect bloks. If the campaign proves to be a success, we’ll be able to optimize the production and create more bloks more easily.

Starting off with a part rejection rate of 90%-95% just does not sound promising to me.

Lastly, I think that the buying process also needs to be thought through. The average consumer will probably need an online configurator, allowing them to create different assemblies while it spits out final dimensions and prices.

I know it sounds like I’m crapping all over this project, but that’s not my intent; I think the concept has some merit, but needs several rounds of really thoughtful iterations. This seems like the kind of idea that might be presented at one of those Ikea design labs, and might start to hit its stride in the fourth or fifth round of development.

So, if you were part of this development team, what changes would you make? For starters, I’d say the oak has to go in favor of an engineered wood. I’m all for natural wood desks, but not when there are multiple components meant to be fit together; the problems created by any wood movement or warping might prove insurmountable.

Your thoughts?

Le graphiste italien Gianfranco Gallo s’est amusé à établir les portraits des personnages phares de la célèbre série Game of thrones d’une manière plutôt originale. En une seule silhouette, on distingue d’un côté le personnage comme il l’est dans la série, de l’autre, on le découvre comme il l’est en réalité, à la mode d’aujourd’hui.

Arya Stark / Maisie Williams

Jon Snow / Kit Harington

Tyrion Lannister / Peter Dinklage

Sansa Stark – Sophie Turner

Daenerys Targaryen / Emilia Clarke

Petyr Baelish / Aidan Gillen

Eddard Stark / Sean Bean

Cersei Lannister / Lena Headey

Jaime Lannister / Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Architecture firm FXFOWLE has unveiled plans for a new museum beside the Statue of Liberty, featuring a green roof and viewing platform overlooking New York harbour (+ slideshow).

The 26,000-square-foot building on Liberty Island will provide information and exhibits for visitors, after access to the current museum inside the statue was restricted following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

It will be located behind the iconic copper statue, designed by Gustave Eiffel – the French engineer behind the eponymous Parisian tower – and completed in 1886.

FXFOWLE‘s design includes a wide external staircase that will lead to a rooftop viewing platform, providing views of both the statue and the Manhattan skyline beyond.

Grass will cover the remainder of the roof, including portions that will slope down to a circular plaza between the museum and the landmark.

“From the start, the design of the Statue of Liberty Museum was conceived as an extension of the park,” said FXFOWLE partner Nicholas Garrison. “The goal was to engage with the park’s formal, axial plan and respond to its spectacular setting.”

The new $70 million (£56.3 million) structure will feature “bird-safe” glass walls and portions of bronze cladding. It will be raised above 500-year flood levels and built to withstand hurricane force winds.

“The island’s landscape is lifted and merged with the architecture to create space for the Museum in a new geology,” Garrison said. “The building’s angular forms and spaces are shaped by its views and the irregularity of the water’s edge, celebrating liberty.”

Inside, exhibits created by ESI Design will include contents and artefacts relating to the history of the statue – a gift from France.

“With state-of-the-art exhibitions and iconic artefacts including the statue’s original torch, the new Statue of Liberty Museum will ensure that future generations know, understand, and appreciate all that Lady Liberty represents in America and around the world,” said John Piltzecker, Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island superintendent.

The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, which restored the statue for its centennial, has named fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg as chair of the campaign to raise $100 million (£80.5 million) for the museum’s construction and upkeep.

Von Furstenberg and husband Barry Diller are also benefactors for the Thomas Heatherwick-designed Pier 55 park under construction over the Hudson River.

“Lady Liberty is the symbol of everything America is about: freedom, hope, possibility and resilience,” said von Furstenburg. “It is she that millions of immigrants saw first as they arrived in this country, their hearts full of dreams for a brighter future.”

“Now it is my hope that the Statue of Liberty and her incredible story will live on and on, inspiring generations for years to come,” she added.

Access to the museum, due to open in 2019, will be included in the price of ferry tickets to visit Liberty Island and Ellis Island. Liberty Island will remain open to visitors during the construction period.

The post FXFOWLE reveals Statue of Liberty Museum for New York’s iconic landmark appeared first on Dezeen.

Facebook’s Instant Articles loads publishers’ content almost, well, instantly, making for a great reading experience. However, it comes with a price to the outlets, and that has turned some off.

In an interview with Digiday, Bloomberg Media’s global digital head Scott Havens explained that Bloomberg doesn’t use Instant because they believe in their own capabilities. “Our view is, why not create a really fast mobile template ourselves? Publishers are better off controlling their own destinies, content-wise, experience-wise, with their own customers.”

A spokesperson for NPR, another outlet that doesn’t use Instant often, said speed wasn’t enough of an attraction because NPR “has been consistently among the fastest news websites.”

ESPN simply said they already have a large enough audience, and thanks but no thanks to the boost Instant might provide.

The Economist is joining Snapchat’s Discover feature, where it will publish 14 or more snaps that are focused on one theme. The stories will be posted during the weekend.

If The Economist and Snapchat sounds like an odd pairing, that’s because it is. The magazine prides itself on in-depth coverage of complex subjects, which don’t exactly lend themselves well to short, disappearing videos.

However, The Economist—like every magazine—needs as many revenue streams as possible, and so Snapchat it is. In fact, the first installment of The Economist’s snaps will be packed with Goldman Sachs ads.

In a statement, The Economist’s deputy editor Tom Standage made the magazine’s case for Snapchat users by saying, “We think our global, comparative and evidence-based outlook, with a dash of wit for good measure, is a perfect fit for the Snapchat generation.”

That might all be true, but what he was really doing was selling the magazine to advertisers. “The Economist is young and hip, too! Come, spend your money!”