Our Geek Life

Form and Function: Creativity and Usability Unite

Posted by shegeek on April 8th, 2009 | No Comments »

What is the foot without the little toe?

Or the head without a heart?

 
Could you walk without your little toes?  Can you imagine thoughts without emotions?  That’s exactly what you experience when you visit websites created without design and usability as complementary components – emotionless thoughts, thoughtless emotions, footless toes and toeless feet!   

In “Form or Function: When Creativity and Usability Collide“, I discussed the often oppositionary principles of creativity and usability.  This is a subject near and dear to my heart because nothing irks me more than beautiful design that is not functional and functional design that is flat out ugly.  While it can be challenging to blend form and function, it is not only possible, it is necessary.

Did you hear what that crazy guy Sullivan said?

 
In 1896, architect Louis Henri Sullivan said, “Form ever follows function.”  Unfortunately, the simple elegance and beauty of this statement is lost and bastardized into meanings that Sullivan never intended.  Regardless of what you may have heard or been taught, this chunky little nugget of wisdom was never uttered to imply that function was more important than form.   It is also important to acknowledge that contrary to pop-culture “wisdom”, dying for one’s art is highly overrated, particularly when the art becomes the means to the end. 

Sullivan’s statement started the debate about form and function.  However, Frank Lloyd Wright made it perfectly clear by stating, “Form and function are one.” 

All ego aside, the naked truth is simply this:  Form and function are inseparably intertwinable. Good sites render an understanding of this ideal.  Great sites exemplify it.
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I like square butts

Posted by shegeek on April 6th, 2009 | No Comments »

Seriously, y’all – our goal is not to post videos but to post about our geeky life. But somehow, the commercials I’ve seen lately make me go WTF!!

Shake it. Shake it. Shake that cubicle butt. LOL!

#fail ice cream cone???

Posted by shegeek on April 6th, 2009 | No Comments »

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