meaning

As a software artist I am a beast with two heads. I am an artist by compulsion and I am a software designer/engineer both by choice and sheer determination to understand technology. Most people tend to address one head or the other, depending upon whether they meet me first as an artist or as an engineer. Some colleagues grasp the nature of my hybrid approach and they are a pleasure to work with. Some never grasp it at all.

For a few weeks now my left brain has been absorbed in the details of implementing a client's web site. Being wedded to a tight deadline and having already done all the loose, creative design stuff, I'm now focused almost exclusively on solving the challenges of writing computer code in what is still a new territory for me. It's a great way to get to know the nitty-gritty details of how to build a modern, 'AJAX driven' web application.

What is the meaning of this sign?

Let me ask you again. What was the meaning that you first perceived? Did that meaning change soon after?

The chances are that you first saw a visual message 'STOP' and then, upon reflection, decoded the sign to mean 'GO'. Perhaps you might even see this image as an ongoing paradox that cannot be resolved.

A curious bit of personal history came to mind after I read Rachel Clarke's blog post about an online game (SaveMyHusband.com) which is based on a fake kidnapping. Rachel picked up on my 'We Were Framed' post in which I explain how we use 'frames' to distinguish the real from the fake.

It's five days to the software release date. Do you know what your icons mean?

Icon design is like an endless skirmish amongst transient zealots. I wish I had a nickel for every time I've been involved in a debate over the meaning of icons. OK, maybe a dollar.

You might wonder what is there to debate? An icon is a simple illustration of some important function. We all know a 'Print' icon when we see one. Heck, even my younger daughter knows what a 'Save' icon is - even though she's never seen a floppy disk.