web site as a graph >>

I know that many of you out there have been aware of website as a graph for ages and many of the blogs I read were talking about this last year showing what their sites look like. I have never tried dgthekneelo so I thought I would today & here is the result.

there is something beautiful about this little application.

What do the colors mean?

blue: for links (the A tag)red: for tables (TABLE, TR and TD tags)

green: for the DIV tagviolet: for images (the IMG tag)

yellow: for forms (FORM, INPUT, TEXTAREA, SELECT and OPTION tags)

orange: for linebreaks and blockquotes (BR, P, and BLOCKQUOTE tags)

black: the HTML tag, the root node

grey: all other tags

millau bridge >> montpellier >> architecture

I know always bore people with stuff whenever I go off on my visits work or otherwise. this time I hopefully be short enough with the words to not be so boring.
just have a look at these pictures (not fantastic quality they were taken on a mobile phone). I was travelling up to calais from narbonne plage, having spent a short time in montpellier.

my thinking is that the mad dog english often get things a wrong. It was about 2 in the afternoon and the place was empty (having a sleep probably) good for me just pasing through looking at the archictecture. the first is taken in montpellier walking along the river, (when I got home and showed ben. he said that looked nothing like gotham city of batman) I thought it did, no matter I liked it.

as to the millau bridge well I already new it was the highest in the world designed by norman foster one of my heroes. though I had never actually seen it. I think it is something very special indeed when you cross it and look back. well worth finding if you are in the south of france.


sorry there will be more about france as I am off back there for a holiday (rather than work which the ardeche/narbonne one was) in about 3 weeks!

after a couple of days >> thoughts about hospitals

I didn't think it would be easy to stay away from this blog for a couple of days good but I did. it was so good to receive positive messages whilst I was away. so regards to paula hope you had some good waves this past weekend. troy thank you for your comments. special mention goes to andrew for checking that I really do have a problem with the way things are arranged, and also feistyred for making me think even more about how children can draw and enjoy drawing without being self conscious.
any way enough catching up and to the reason for today's blog.

I as usual always try to have a look at stuff wherever I go. today I went of the main city hospital as carol had an outpatients appointment (she is well it was a positive appointment). as usual I was looking up and almost enjoying the new section of the building shown in the picture below.

the shapes and shadows of the design of this building I thought were quite pleasing. this is a view out of a waiting room where I seemed to spend a long time. as long as I looked out of the window it was ok.

if only the same amount of time and money where spent on the interior. I pitched for a job designing textiles (curtains, etc.) for a health authority but we didn't agree on some stuff so it never really got going further that initial design drawings.


I wish that some one had been employed to design the interior of this hospital. I fully understand that the work of a hospital is not the same as a 'design studio' and there are more important things to consider as far as live saving. however there is no possible doubt that people recover better and even quicker if their environment is conducive to well being.
the chairs are so depressing (even though I like the colour!) it was the wipe clean plastic covers that I didn't like. as well as the combination of pale pigment less colour scheme. the new section of the build would have been specified, and though about with a chance to change the ever lasting corridors that really do my head in. I am sure that the is a better way of using the space even making the corridors perhaps not as straight, while keeping them accessible to all the emergency needs and wide enough to make it possible to visit without compromising the privacy of an inpatient.

by the time I left the hospital I felt like the last picture (this is the entrance/exit) that of course I have played about it a bit and I hadn't even seen anyone for anything wrong with me! perhaps that is why I spent so much time looking about.

bathroom again >> the man came back

I really have to apologise for the obsessive bathroom stuff it is just it has been something that has been bugging me for months. I should have done it really but I was and still are having major treatment on my shoulder and can't really lift stuff at the moment. (even though I did have a little game of rugby the other day).
I/we are so fussy about the look of things at home. it took a few weeks just to decide the colour of the tiles.
so out side of work where heaps is going on, it is very important for me to have other design colour problems to think about in a but is a respectful way as in world context it really is not that important.


I have had some very sad personal news in the last 24 for hours so writing about the design of a bathroom does seem futile, however I still do it.
as that is the way I get through stuff I suppose and it is important.

I really like the colour of the tiles and they haven't even been grouted or cleaned yet when the white grout goes on it will look stunning.

Still loads to do though as the new toilet an shower are yet to be put in.

meetings >> designing >> what do you use?

I apologise for the rambling nature and poor grammar of this post. perhaps I should have planned it in pencil first?

I have just come out of that (two hours plus) meeting I mentioned in yesterdays blog, it was very productive that is not something I can always say.

during the meeting I was struck by they different way the people involved chose to record their thoughts or used to bring their ideas to the meeting. taking in to consideration the make-up of the meeting, it included two people from an ICT (information communication technology) background, two from a design technology background (with four with a science background for the first half of the meeting) then ending with a longer discussion of design technology at the end. all the people present would by the nature of their work and qualifications would generally be thought of as academics.

I always take my filofax making sure I have got fresh plain paper and lined paper in, all but two had paper based forms of writing either with a pencil or a pen. only one had a pda (personal digital organiser) and one had nothing at all, I felt jealous that I didn't have the courage to not bring anything but myself, surely it is showing extraordinary confidence or that they couldn't care at all. knowing the person I have to say the former is the truth.

I thought more, with the assembled at the meeting all of whom work on computers every day, and all being computer/technology literate. why did no one bring a laptop? why did only one use a pda? and how is it the tool of choice for most a pencil?

then I thought more the one person using the pda is probably at least 15-20 years younger than the rest of us who where writing. the only one in the same age bracket as pda man was the person who didn't bring anything but his thoughts. I know others around the table have pda's and all have laptops of some description. I have a pda (i-paq) in fact I have had two, I gave one to carol and now I use the other as a sat-nav. I tried to use the first one I bought instead of the filofax after about 6 months I stopped I could just not get on with it I felt it made me think far too slowly, I was becoming bound by the software.

If I am trying to put an idea down visually I will always now start with a piece of paper (nearly always A3). even when it is for a web idea's or something with a digital outcome. this was not always the case up until a couple of years ago I would design totally on screen but I started to find that the ideas were being driven by the software and I started to design to the software specifications which became very limiting.
I would be interested to hear if I am the only one who works like this? do you design directly on your mac or (pc). do you still use a pencil and paper? is it an age thing? when I learnt to write we used paper and pencils then ink-pens when we went to the junior school! it would be nice to hear from you, if you have managed to get to the end of this!?!

what a day >> designing for mobile communities

what a day, I really have to mention carol, first she left early this morning to drive to an interview, probably the most important in her working life to date. then she is back home after lunch when she received a call to say that she didn't get the job. next she called me very disappointed and I promised to get home as soon as I could which I did.
next early evening they were on the phone again offering her the job, quite rightly in my opinion she excepted, and got a good deal.
and there I was thinking the design/academic world was fickle.

I spent some valuable time on designs for 'the hub' today which is coming together a bit better than last week. I did take some pictures very quickly before I had to get home, but in my haste I had the camera set on macro which obviously meant that whilst the pictures are interesting they do not mean anything, I will try to get more pictures on tomorrow.

whilst looking at more stuff on the internet I again was drawn to cati's blog because I remembered a link to jeff axup who finished his thesis on 'methods of understanding and designing for mobile communities'. it sounds a bit heavy but I took it upon myself to read a large part of it. I am famous for not really liking reading a huge amount of text on screen. so as bad as it is if I have to consider an examination criteria for a new exam course I will be teaching I print it off to read it in a quiet corner somewhere at home, usually because the text has not been specifically designed for reading on screen so doesn't work.

however looking at jeff's thesis or the sections of it that I have considered and read, make it different and easier to see on screen.
the understanding of the first user seems to have been thought through in a way that suits me at least.

It would be silly of me to try and explain all that jeff axup has considered and written about but I will show a couple of screen shots and explain a little of way I think it works. obviously splitting the thesis up for download is nothing new, (the complete thesis can also be downloaded).
I like the way jeff has done this because for me anyway it makes the most important part the subject matter easier an clear to grasp.

I would be very interested to see what you think.

going a bit botanical >> sunlight

it was nice to come home to find amongst the bank statements and my orange mobile bill a brown envelope containing a copy of 'digital diversity' a catalogue published for the exhibition of 'digital botanical illustrations' by niki simpson in collaboration with peter barnes at the botanishches museum berlin-dahlem, berlin.

it was sent to me by davidthedesigner, of celsuis (thanks david) as I was one of 5 winners of his great friday givaway competition last week. david mentioned when I contacted him earlier in the week that my interest in flowers was blossoming! (I think he must be correct) a coincidence perhaps? but before I went into my house to collect the post this afternoon, I spent a good 40 minutes taking the photos that accompany this blog.

I was scrambling around in the front garden because the sun was shining across the plants. I spent most of the time lying on the wet muddy grass desperately trying to get the right amount of sunlight to shine through to show the greenness of the different plants (it was good fun!).
as I mentioned before I have never really been that interested in flowers and never referenced them in any design work previously but I can't seem to get enough of them at the moment, well as far as images and photos anyway.
I must be getting in touch with my flowery / green / botanical side!

still not feeling good >> too much time to think >> NCDS >>

it's only a title so don't worry I haven't reverted to the self indulgence of another blog I ran few years ago, if anything I have too much to write today.

haven't been to proper work just not well enough but have spent some time on the long over due surf98 re-design see picture "big shock work not being done on a Mac!?!"(work on both PC and Mac), the finished website is way off yet I'm still at the illustrator stage.

I/we at home are learning sign language to help ben our eight year old son who is deaf (well hearing impaired if you want to use the trendy term). each Wednesday for the last five a very patient/caring man (mark) has been coming to our house and spending sometimes a couple of hours teaching/helping us to communicate using signing, during this time I have been humbled by the phenomenal visual language used by people who are dismissed by so many. at eight ben's visual recall is amazing but it is only now that we can get close to tapping in to it. ben's drawing and computer use is already surprisingly advanced but he will always be held back in the hearing world as he wears hearing aids and sometimes misses things that are spoken.
anyway just a thought have a look at NDCS and BSL. remember next time you have the chance to tap into a "hearing impaired" persons visual memory give it a go you may well be amazed.

oh yes I took this picture in the kitchen, the daffodil was broken in the strong wind today. I just had to bring it in and include it, as it's so yellow.

not much time >> surprised to be 46

well I didn't think I would manage to get a blog written tonight been at work and had a whole heap of stuff to sort before indulging myself. I will not be long and very few words of wisdom (nothing new). I did spend a long time today discussing the way that the adobe applications photoshop CS and illustrator CS series software that we have used for ages. are not as intuitive for the students we currently are teaching as the macromedia suite with fireworks as the main web graphic software, but much more of that another time.
I also spent a long time reminiscing today with my line manager/boss bob, about the first few Apple Macintosh's, the Archimedes, and the Amiga computers that I worked with in the '80s. we were both thinking about how we would like the the 17" MacBook pro as it seems a good combination of power and usability and it looks nice! just a bit pricey. that's from two people who have to spend all or most of our time working on PC's.
however it could be all the reminiscing today was because I was thinking about the passing of time as it was my birthday (not that I have an issue at all with age) but I was actually very surprised to realise that I was 46! thanks for all the cards and presents, especially carol.

late >> long day > fruitful?

funny the day has just got away from me I had so many things planned for the time. I did them but never imagined that at 12.45am I would be doing this and I still have my surf site to update yet. I spent over three hours working on a work colleague's wireless network at his home. trying to get the same application running on two computers. I got it sorted in the end, but as carol (my wife) says 'why don't I do the bit at the end that sorts it rather than waste all the time fiddling around first' very clever, that is after she has asked me if I have turned it off and on again! so we went shopping and I was so struck by the colour of everything. having some time off this week has made me slow down a bit. I'm sure the staff at the supermarket thought I was a little strange as I was staring as the fruit enjoying the colours. did have time to check a few sites/blogs for work next week here a just three; rwillustrator, blogs.adobe and creative boy.
so it's fruit that I like to look at tonight.